So, is my car really worth this much? What about yours?

Post by **Zaia** » 2003-10-01 11:24pm

Darth Wong wrote:Drive it till it dies!!!

PS. Keep a cell-phone with you in the car.

That was the original plan, but I know it's going to need a new clutch soon (because it's been about 100k miles since it's had a new one), and that, combined with the shocks and tires, it's getting to be about $2000, which is (as I've just learned) more than I can probably sell it for to a private buyer. So, what's smarter? To replace that stuff and cross my fingers that more stuff doesn't go wrong, or do I kiss it for being a good car to me, sell it soon and get another car with less miles?

The D.W. wrote:Seriously, I tend to drive cars until they either die or begin costing so much in repairs that it would be cheaper to buy a new car. Why replace any more frequently than you have to?

I completely agree. I drove my last car until it would drive no more, and then donated it to the Red Cross for parts and got a tax write-off for it.

CmdrWilkens · Post by **CmdrWilkens** » 2003-10-01 11:31pm

Zaia wrote:
Darth Wong wrote:Drive it till it dies!!!

PS. Keep a cell-phone with you in the car.
That was the original plan, but I know it's going to need a new clutch soon (because it's been about 100k miles since it's had a new one), and that, combined with the shocks and tires, it's getting to be about $2000, which is (as I've just learned) more than I can probably sell it for to a private buyer. So, what's smarter? To replace that stuff and cross my fingers that more stuff doesn't go wrong, or do I kiss it for being a good car to me, sell it soon and get another car with less miles?

Anytime the repairs are going to cost you (out of pocket) more than you can reasonably expect to sell it for then its time for it to go bye-bye. My car realistically isn't worth it anymore but that's only because a drunk destroyed half of it. Thus the next major repair I'll need to make (probably a new clutch in another 12-17k) it'll be time to say bye-bye and file a diminished value claim with the bitch's insurance. Anyway if the Blue Book on your car is less than what repairs will amount to then switch up.

Alferd Packer · Post by **Alferd Packer** » 2003-10-02 12:28am

Wow, my truck's worth 6 grand on trade, 7 in a private sale. Not bad.

Post by **fgalkin** » 2003-10-02 12:36am

My dad's 1998 BMW 528i

Trade-In Private Party Dealer Retail
$15,939 $17,951 $20,474

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-10-02 12:42am

Well, I priced my new vehicle that I had to get. My last car ('88 Isuzu Trooper) wouldn't make the trip from home to school, so in a joint decision between me and my parents, I went ahead and bought a new car that would last for a while.

2002 Jeep Wrangler Apex
$16,515

BTW, I use www.kbb.com for my vehicle pricing needs. They seem to be more accurate than Edmunds.

Post by **Zaia** » 2003-10-02 12:50am

Yeah, I checked out the Blue Book site too. Weird thing is, the prices change depending on your location. My aunt sold us her old car, and there was a thousand dollar difference between where she lives (northern Jersey) and where we live (central Maryland). It doesn't make sense because it's worth less up there and more down here, though--I would have figured that everything'd be more expensive up there since everything seems to be horribly overpriced there anyway. *shrugs*

TrailerParkJawa · Post by **TrailerParkJawa** » 2003-10-02 01:08am

CmdrWilkens wrote: Anytime the repairs are going to cost you (out of pocket) more than you can reasonably expect to sell it for then its time for it to go bye-bye.

Yes, yes. I made the stupid mistake of being obsessed over keeping my previous Honda for as long as possible. It died right after graduation from college. I put in a grand of my money, and a grand of my dad's money to fix it. It did not help. I was so focused on not having a car payment right out of school, I ended up losing two grand and having to buy a car anyway.

EmperorMing · Post by **EmperorMing** » 2003-10-02 03:12am

kkb.com rated my 3 cars:

2000 for my '85 300ZX and 1200 for my '82 280ZX. I had to use 83 for the year for my 280.

And I have 2 '85 300's.

Kyle · Post by **Kyle** » 2003-10-02 04:41am

99 Camaro SS T-Top 38,000 miles.
Trade In Value: 14,475
Private Party Value: 16,280
Retail Value: 18,205

I love it, I bought this car two years ago for only 18 from a chevy used car dealership. If you know what you're doing it's not hard to work a dealer. Most dealers really don't know much about cars, they just try to fake it.

Just call them on the bullshit and you can get a good deal. Never be happy with anything, if you like a car look it over and find every little problem. Then starting pointing them all out, and act like every little thing is a big thing. And always low ball the fuck out of them on your first offer.

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2003-10-02 07:19am

aronkerkhof wrote:
Col. Crackpot wrote:Z hun... you best off just trading it in. as good as toyotas are it will be a tough sell with that many miles on it. A dealership would be more apt to take it in and give a fair price because you are buying a new car from them.
Whooboy. Dealers love guys that think like that. A car's retail price is a shell game, in which the dealer tries to get you to think you are getting a good deal by spreading the money around on things like rust proofing, car mats, sunroofs, spoilers, extended warranty, car trade in, etc. Its in your best interest to eliminate as many shells as you can, so you can focus on the price of the car.

Put the car in the paper for three weeks for $1000, or whatever. People do buy cars like this, because even if they have 250k miles on it, if its running good, its going to be as if not more reliable then many other car manufacturers at 100k. If you sell it, you'll be money ahead, and you'll be in a better negotiating position. If you don't, you have the dealer to fall back on, and you're out $20 for the ad. I think its worth that risk. Oh, and decline the floor mats ($30 bucks at autozone), spoiler ($250-350 painted and installed at any aftermarket shop), extended warranty and anything else the bastards try to tack on.

oh dear god. or you could be smart and tell the dealer what you want and what you want to pay. NEVER buy any of that crap. i buy my cars in january, at the end of the month because dealer commisions and quotas are based on a month to month basis, and they get awful desperate at the end of a slow month like january.

Drach · Post by **Drach** » 2003-10-02 07:55am

$5,845 trade in, $6,847 private, $8,071 retail. 97 Honda Civic del Sol coupe, still in good shape. They don't even list dates back far enough for my Mustang

Hethrir · Post by **Hethrir** » 2003-10-02 09:30am

If i refit all the parts that have been removed to make it lighter, i should be able to get about $10 000 for my '82 RX-7.

Peregrin Toker · Post by **Peregrin Toker** » 2003-10-02 10:33am

I don't own a car myself and Edmund's doesn't anything about my parents' mid-'80s Nissan Micra 1.0 DX... but according to a Danish used-car guide that's 3 years old, it should be worth not much more than a fee the equivalent of 3000$. Given the value loss of such an old car, it's probably significantly less worth today than in 2000.

(author's notes: Keep in mind that Denmark has the highest taxes in the world, which would explain why you'll have to pay the equivalent of 2000-3000 US$ for an old Nissan Micra.

BTW - when I saw that Zaia's Toyota Camry would be worth a mere $1400 I almost freaked out! In Denmark it could be worth 70-80.000 Dkr., which is roughly $10.000... well, if the buyer doesn't know how that it has that many miles on it)

As for my brother's Ford Escort (I don't know its exact model year but it's from between 1985 and 1986), it would not be much more worth than the Micra despite being a larger car. His previous car, an ancient VW Passat from the late seventies, would go for such a low price that it would be better to scrap it. (I believe that's what he did with it)

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2003-10-02 11:09am

Simon H.Johansen wrote:I don't own a car myself and Edmund's doesn't anything about my parents' mid-'80s Nissan Micra 1.0 DX... but according to a Danish used-car guide that's 3 years old, it should be worth not much more than a fee the equivalent of 3000$. Given the value loss of such an old car, it's probably significantly less worth today than in 2000.

(author's notes: Keep in mind that Denmark has the highest taxes in the world, which would explain why you'll have to pay the equivalent of 2000-3000 US$ for an old Nissan Micra.

BTW - when I saw that Zaia's Toyota Camry would be worth a mere $1400 I almost freaked out! In Denmark it could be worth 70-80.000 Dkr., which is roughly $10.000... well, if the buyer doesn't know how that it has that many miles on it)

As for my brother's Ford Escort (I don't know its exact model year but it's from between 1985 and 1986), it would not be much more worth than the Micra despite being a larger car. His previous car, an ancient VW Passat from the late seventies, would go for such a low price that it would be better to scrap it. (I believe that's what he did with it)

Car prices and taxes in Europe are friggin' insane! When i heard how much my grandmother had to pay for a Toyota Corolla in Ireland i was shocked. Not only that but there is a completely different classification of cars over there. Most people i saw drive a "European compact" which in the US would be considered a "sub-compact"...and that is a bit of a stretch. What passes as a sub-compact there could pass as a go-kart in the 'States. What is a midsize here is considered gargantuan and enormous in Ireland. odd. but with gasoline so insanely taxed i guess thats all people can afford to put fuel in.

2000AD · Post by **2000AD** » 2003-10-02 11:18am

Since "my" car is really my mums car i'd proably get an earful no matter what i managed to get for it.

Let's see, X-reg (old system) Daewoo matiz, hmmmm ....

Peregrin Toker · Post by **Peregrin Toker** » 2003-10-02 11:22am

Col. Crackpot wrote:Car prices and taxes in Europe are friggin' insane! When i heard how much my grandmother had to pay for a Toyota Corolla in Ireland i was shocked. Not only that but there is a completely different classification of cars over there. Most people i saw drive a "European compact" which in the US would be considered a "sub-compact"...and that is a bit of a stretch. What passes as a sub-compact there could pass as a go-kart in the 'States. What is a midsize here is considered gargantuan and enormous in Ireland. odd. but with gasoline so insanely taxed i guess thats all people can afford to put fuel in.

On the flip side, many of us Europeans find it ridiculous that Americans insist on driving V8-powered gas-guzzlers weighting 2 tons each, and some of us even consider the American preference of very large cars the sole reason why Congress refused to sign the Kyoto treaty.

BTW - is the difference between car classifications really that big??
If you americans really classify cars like you imply, then a Mercedes-Benz S-Class is only a midsize by American standards.

But you are right to a lesser extent - a Toyota Camry is considered a luxury car in Europe but in America it's a very humble car.

Col. Crackpot · Post by **Col. Crackpot** » 2003-10-02 12:26pm

Simon H.Johansen wrote:
Col. Crackpot wrote:Car prices and taxes in Europe are friggin' insane! When i heard how much my grandmother had to pay for a Toyota Corolla in Ireland i was shocked. Not only that but there is a completely different classification of cars over there. Most people i saw drive a "European compact" which in the US would be considered a "sub-compact"...and that is a bit of a stretch. What passes as a sub-compact there could pass as a go-kart in the 'States. What is a midsize here is considered gargantuan and enormous in Ireland. odd. but with gasoline so insanely taxed i guess thats all people can afford to put fuel in.
On the flip side, many of us Europeans find it ridiculous that Americans insist on driving V8-powered gas-guzzlers weighting 2 tons each, and some of us even consider the American preference of very large cars the sole reason why Congress refused to sign the Kyoto treaty.

BTW - is the difference between car classifications really that big??
If you americans really classify cars like you imply, then a Mercedes-Benz S-Class is only a midsize by American standards. But you are right to a lesser extent - a Toyota Camry is considered a luxury car in Europe but in America it's a very humble car.

We buy bigger cars because:
cars are cheaper here, because alomost every carmaker builds cars here. No shipping across oceans, no shipping charges. and the taxes on cars are much, much less.

Gas is cheaper, because we are a large producer and also simply because of economies os scale. we buy more, it costs less. Also gas taxes are a fraction of what European taxes are.

as for size classifications, we'll use Toyota as an example. In the US it goes like this:

subcompact: Prius
compact: Corolla
mid-size: Camry
full size: Avalon

the mid size is the average American size. Usually with a large (2+ litres)4-cyl or a small (3+ litres) 6-cyl engine. There aren't as many V8 cars in the US as you think, other than pickups and SUV'S.

Peregrin Toker · Post by **Peregrin Toker** » 2003-10-02 12:32pm

Col. Crackpot wrote:
subcompact: Prius
compact: Corolla
mid-size: Camry
full size: Avalon
.

the mid size is the average American size. Usually with a large (2+ litres)4-cyl or a small (3+ litres) 6-cyl engine. There aren't as many V8 cars in the US as you think, other than pickups and SUV'S.

Then it's not as different as you believe.

The differences are following:

1. European cars considered compact by the US are considered small mid-size in their native countries. (eg. Skoda Octavia, Alfa Romeo 147, VW Golf)
2. The larger European mid-size cars are generally the same as their American counterparts, but they tend to have smaller engines and are slightly smaller. (eg. Peugeot 406, Renault Laguna, Volvo S60)
3. In Europe, cars such as the Toyota Camry, BMW 528i and the Opel Omega (sold in the US as the Cadillac Catera and in the UK as the Vauxhall Carlton) are believed by some to be large cars, while others consider them to be the heavier end of the midsize market segment. Because of this, they are regarded as luxury cars and carry more prestige than they do in US. (save for the Audi A6 and Mercedes-Benz E-Class) This might have caused some of your confusion.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-10-02 12:46pm

Darth Wong wrote:Drive it till it dies!!!

PS. Keep a cell-phone with you in the car.

Seriously, I tend to drive cars until they either die or begin costing so much in repairs that it would be cheaper to buy a new car. Why replace any more frequently than you have to?

That's supposed to be the best way to get your money's worth out of a car.

I try to look at it this way. Until the cost of repairs/maintenance reaches a point where it's close to what monthly payments on a new car would cost it's better to stick with what I have as long as it's still reliable.

I can see getting a different vehicle if your needs change, or if there's a financial incentive to do so (ie much higher fuel economy) but otherwise it's more cost effective to "run the thing into the ground".

Post by **LadyTevar** » 2003-10-02 04:16pm

2002 Dodge Neon 4 Dr STD Sedan

Trade-In Private Party Dealer Retail
National Base Price $5,070 $5,726 $6,820
Optional Equipment $869 $945 $1,184
Automatic 4-Speed
Transmission $350 $380 $477
Front Side Airbag Restraints $125 $136 $170
Alarm System $78 $85 $107
Power Door Locks $74 $81 $101
Air Conditioning $0 $0 $0
AM/FM/CD Audio System $74 $81 $101
Antilock Brakes $168 $182 $228
Color Adjustment: Dark Blue $-3 $-3 $-4
Regional Adjustment
for Zip Code 25301 $-12 $-13 $-16
Mileage Adjustment
14,580 miles $352 $352 $352
Condition Adjustment
Clean $0 $0 $0
Total $6,276 $7,007 $8,336

Certified Used Vehicle $9,081

Post by **Kuja** » 2003-10-03 01:47am

None of the cars in this thread can possibly compare to this:

"My Car" by Guardian2000 (you know who)