My current main vehicle is about to turn 20. I bought it 4 years old and have had it ever since. During the time I’ve owned this van, I’ve towed 3 other cars to the junk yard to collect my ~$300 salvage fee. The van is running on a ghost of its better days, and I’m thiiiiiiiissss close to replacing it. The only thing stopping me is I haven’t gotten a new vehicle without experiencing the death of a current vehicle. And because the van hasn’t died yet, the voice in the back of my head keeps whispering, “it might last till November 2022. Do you really want to give up all that free driving?”
We’ve never had a car payment, I bought a 2016 in 2020, so I’m good, but my husband’s 2007 is struggling (if you put the a/c on heat comes out). We are both home so I’m wondering if we can share? The prices for new and used vehicles are crazy right now.
And I must be related to you, @EconPop. When we bought our current car, we asked if there was any trade-in value on our 18-year-old Windstar. The salesman looked it up and said, “I’m sorry to say that I can only give you $500 for the van.” “$500!!!,” I exclaimed, “If it’s worth $500, we shouldn’t be considering a new car. Let’s go, honey.” DH was not amused and we bought the newer car, but instead of trading in the van, we sold it to our handyman for a $500 discount on some work he was doing for us at the time. He had a new truck and wanted the old van for hauling stuff he didn’t want to dirty the truck with. Win, win.
I find the turn of this thread pretty funny and accurate. In the 1980’s my parents were able afford BC tuition in part by driving really old embarrassing cars. That and Maine logging land.
Fairly common in our well to do suburb - leasing a new high-end car or SUV every 3 years or so. Also, high end vacations at peak travel times. Around here, college stress is mostly about how to pay for a second tier, expensive, name-brand university, rather than about getting in.
Our Windstar was 14 years old before we bought a new car. Saving up for college did mean paring back on a lot of high end spending that folks in our income bracket are accustomed to. But both children are grateful that they don’t have to worry about college tuition. Also, grateful that when DH lost his job a couple of years ago, we were still able to continue our lifestyle and stay in our house because of our savings and the fact that our house was paid off. We have been fortunate to have the opportunity to save up.
We aren’t car people either - I had my Subaru for 10 years and am on year 6 with my RAV4. I don’t put a ton of mileage on my cars as I work from home so they’ve really lasted. I’ve been able to sell when I’m ready for something new - usually when the cost of upcoming repairs exceeds what I could get for the car. Where I live most people are driving a high end SUV, BMW or Lexus - often leased every few years. I’ve never really seen the appeal.
A neighbor of mine once asked “Aren’t you embarrassed when your colleagues see your car?”
I had to explain that since I commuted by train (as did many of my co-workers) the subject of our cars never came up. Oh- and the day I got embarrassed by not owning a particular consumer product/status symbol ended in middle school!
As if there was something to be ashamed of in driving a fuel efficient, safe, low maintenance Honda!!!
I’m not going to lie, our kids were a little embarrassed with the duct tape, although it was a silver odyssey. My son drove a 30 year old minivan, getting it back and forth to college was tricky since the 2nd transmission was shot, his campus was 1 hour 15 minutes away and it took almost 4 hours on the backroads. We have AAA plus so once he just had it towed home and took the train.
The original Odyssey? Man, I loved that car (van). Drove it to death, and cannot believe what I got in trade-in for it (the Honda dealer said that people loved the original, hated the newer version).
The only new car I’ve ever owned was my 2003 Honda Odyssey, I recently found the receipt, $31,000. I had 3 small children and found out I was expecting twins. My minivan only had 4 shoulder belts and 1 lap belt, at that time I think the odyssey was the only minivan with 5 shoulder belts. I had 5 in car seats. My oldest totaled it when she was 21 (the Lexus she hit in the back faired much better).
The people who acquire new cars with 3 year leases.
Older page from 2016, but it suggests that leasing is more popular in higher income areas and (for high volume brands) with more expensive brands: The Most Commonly Leased Car Brands in America
Given the current state of the (both new and used) car market, you may want to keep an eye out for suitable cars and deals, rather than having to buy a car in an emergency if your current one stops working.
Of course, that may be less of a consideration if you have another car to drive if the van in question stops working.
I have the next generation. You’re right about the transmission - I had to replace it a year or two after I bought the van, long ago. No major repairs since then, until last month’s R&P steering.
Yeah, I have another (not quite as old) vehicle to drive so it won’t be an emergency situation.
I took a friend to buy a used SUV a few months ago and the experience was an eye opener. I’d heard about the escalating prices, but seeing what he had to pay for an 8-year old vehicle in average good condition was almost more than my miserly sensibilities could bear.
If a now older car was great out of the factory, some newer models may represent a downgrade in one or more ways, particularly with respect to road feel.
In terms of longevity and mileage potential, these tend to be influenced more by prevailing economic conditions, marketing and culture than by mechanical limits. For example, Cuba, I believe, still relies on many cars from the 1950s for regular transportation. And '32 Ford coupes, while often heavily modified, were popular in the U.S. into at least the early 1970s.
