Posted on 05/15/2023 5:42:11 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — With new and used cars still painfully expensive, Ryan Holdsworth says he plans to keep his 9-year-old Chevy Cruze for at least four more years. Limiting his car payments and his overall debt is a bigger priority for him than having a new vehicle.
A 35-year-old grocery store worker from Grand Rapids, Michigan, Holdsworth would probably be in the market for a vehicle within a few years — if not for the high cost. For now, it’s out of the question.
“You’re not going to get one for a price you can afford,” he said.
Holdsworth has plenty of company. Americans are keeping their cars longer than ever. The average age of a passenger vehicle on the road hit a record 12.5 years this year, according to data gathered by S&P Global Mobility. Sedans like Holdsworth are even older, on average — 13.6 years.
Blame it mainly on the pandemic, which in 2020 triggered a global shortage of automotive computer chips, the vital component that runs everything from radios to gas pedals to transmissions. The shortage drastically slowed global assembly lines, making new vehicles scarce on dealer lots just when consumers were increasingly eager to buy.
Prices reached record highs. And though they’ve eased somewhat, the cost of a vehicle still feels punishingly expensive to many Americans, especially when coupled with now much-higher loan rates.
Since the pandemic struck three years ago, the average new vehicle has rocketed 24% to nearly $48,000 as of April, according to Edmunds.com. Typical loan rates on new-car purchases have ballooned to 7%, a consequence of the Federal Reserve’s aggressive streak of interest rate hikes to fight inflation.
It’s all pushed the national average monthly auto loan payment to $729 — prohibitively high for many.
(Excerpt) Read more at apnews.com ...
My last 3 trucks I bought new, paid off in 4, drove to over 300k with very few repairs just oil changes and trans service often. Saved a ton of money
2000 Kia sportage, 4wd, manual, 180k. Original owner lived on Camano Island here in the puget sound. Runs great, easy for the hubby to fix. We all have sportages except my oldest son, who has a 1993 Volvo station wagon. He loves it and does all the maintenance. Just recently bought the 300k tune up kit and did all the repairs himself.
And add to that, if not a 100% cash buy, the lease and/or finance cost (if not considered in your operating cost analysis).
I’ve paid cash for all the cars I’ve ever owned. My 2005 CRV, purchased new, now has over 230,000 miles on it, and it is still running great. For most all cars, if you remember to change the oil every 4-6,000 miles, and address any fluid leaks, it should last a long time.
That’s the Electric Version!...................
Now you know why .............................
Just before the used car market skyrocketed, my daughter was in need of a car. I tripped across one my co-worker was selling for trade in value.
Even though my daughter didn’t like the car, a Hyundai Veloster, I talked her into buying it. I told her that if she really didn’t like it in a couple years she could probably sell it for what she paid for it.
Earlier this year, my son bought a new Bronco and needed to sell his Escape. She bought it from him and put her Veloster up for sale. She sold it for the exact same amount, to the penny that she bought it for.
Our other son hasn’t been so lucky. He had a Dodge Ram get drowned when he drove over a patch of ice that turned out to be a sinkhole. He lost a F-150 that got hit by a drunk driver doing a Dukes of Hazard imitation in a parking lot and lost a beater S-10 when it caught fire two weeks after he bought it.
Most modern cars.. if you keep the frame from rotting out.. and do the basic motor care.. the engine will last for decades.
2015 Chevy Equinox is a fine car. Hope you have the LT model.
I have a 2005 Trailblazer LT with the GM 6/250 (4.2l) engine. It’s a dependable beast. Only some fit and finish items over the years and everything was DIY. It’s got everything they could stuff into it that model year. Best feature is the truck box frame it’s built on. My Ex totaled two vehicles with it and only broke plastic trim items up front. Zip ties made her purdy again. Only 190K on it, expecting it to do at least 500k on that 6/250.
I experimented with a “baking soda/lemon juice” headlight cleaning recipe found on the net. It worked great on my 18 year old headlights.
Same mindset here. Bought a 2010 Ford Expedition in 2021. Paid cash for it. It had 35K miles on it. Today it has 320K miles. I have had to replace a few things on it and at the time seemed stupid expensive but the long term cost of ownership has been low.
We normally do 2 to 3 years leases. We just bought our 2020 Fusion at the end of our lease for $14k. 13k miles. On the open market it’s worth $25k.
New vehicle leases are $500+ for an Escape with high interest rates and no incentives.
It’s just the base model. Nothing special but it works fine for what we need.
I can do personal miles on my company car but I think they might look askance at a 4000 mile road trip on vacation.
***Ryan Holdsworth says he plans to keep his 9-year-old Chevy Cruze for at least four more years.***
The youngest car I drive is 11 years old, and the oldest PU truck I drive is 26 years old. AC still works! Neither have over 70,000 miles on them and both run like a top.
I have no plans to buy a new one in the future. They cost too much!
There are “kits’ to use to polish those headlight covers.
BUT-—I was told that really soft cloths & TOOTHPASTE does just as good a job.
EVERYTHING I have has old fashioned headlights-—about $7 for a new bulb-—and easy to replace.
My car basically sat idle for two years while I paid the payments. It’s paid off now and has fairly low mileage. Off course I’m not trading it in on new one.
Just put in $2000 to maintain my 2008 Ford Taurus with 230,000 miles.Fully loaded wit the 10-disc DC changer in the trunk?
Local Auto Zone idiot told my elderly neighbor that Fram was no loner making the oil filter for his 350 Chevy truck.
I was furious when he told me-—they sold him an inferior brand that I wouldn’t use on a lawnmower.
I asked him what the Fram number was-—He old me.
Told him to follow me into my garage. Opened a box & handed him a new Fram filter—the correct one. MY 454 1 ton 1976 Chevy truck uses the same filter—and I keep spares on hand.
Less then $8, IIRC.
I had all I could do to convince him that Chevy is still making 350 engines & the filters have NOT changed.
I haven’t seen anything worth having at $50k for a full sized truck.
$65k is closer.
Fuel pump on my 1976 454 is ON the side of the block—and costs $26. Takes about 1 hour to R & R.
Keep an eye on ram.
They have the longest days supply. Meaning they are stacking up on dealer lots. Prices will have to come down to move them. Ford is in the same boat.
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