No new cars for us. We have concluded that our car with 220K miles will serve us better than a new one that will fall apart right after the warranty expires.
We plan to repair and restore everything.
Btw, this works well for appliances, too.
If I thought this was a go, I'd swing down the street and nab a used car for under $3000, *any* used car that I thought would qualify, but it's a gamble, and by the time I'd be more sure of this, the prices of all clunkers would suddenly spike, leaving me with the clunker I like, the one I drive, the only car around here. :^(
The other problem is, I don't want to go into debt (even if I thought I could get a loan, which I probably can't right now) to buy a brand new vehicle with the $5000 off the sticker price (no other deals will be forthcoming).