Quote:
Originally posted by STORMINORMAN
The average cost of buying, insuring & operating a new car/truck has risen so dramatically in the last decade that it looks like the "average" citizen better start looking for an apartment next to the closest mass transit stop!
|
I don't think the cost of buying and operating a vehicle has gone up much at all. When we bought my 300E brand new 15 years ago, we paid about $45,000-$50,000 after all was said and done. Today, that'll buy me a bigger, roomier, safer, faster, more fuel-efficient, more comfortable Mercedes or BMW, with a better stereo and real cupholders. If anything, the pace of technology and competition has produced better "value" than at any other time in the history of automobiles.
And if you can't or don't want to pay for a new car, there's nothing preventing the "average" citizen from shopping for a like-new or used vehicle that has the features they want, at a price point they can afford. Instead of buying a brand-new cookie-cutter Civic or Accord, my father just paid $12k for a 5-year old C230, avoided the big depreciation hit, and got a comfortable, safe, fuel-efficient car that will likely last quite a bit longer than most other vehicles being produced today.
Frankly, I think what's different is that the cost of everything ELSE has gone up - housing being the biggest chunk. But, throw in a media-driven urge to consume, longer commutes, more two-income (or more) households, and the lack of personal down-time, and what you get is a society that finds it increasingly harder to make ends meet.
Quote:
Buy a used car and fix it up? Not cool enough! The high schoolers around here drive Acura, BMW, and for some strange reason, Jettas? I saw one in a 2 year old Range Rover the other day and confirmed with my friend's son that it was, in fact, the kid's car! Got it for his 17th Birthday... Must be tough.
|
This is just Keeping-Up-With-The-Joneses-itis. Personally, any kid who thinks his or her parents should buy them a brand-new BMW so he or she can look cool walking out of the high-school parking lot has bigger issues than the seeming lack of choice in the new-car market.
Quote:
Between the increasing price and the unbelievable technilogical complexity of the new models is the real dilemma: you can afford to buy the specialty used car of your dreams, however it is out of warranty and if the tranny goes or you need a new engine it may cost you more than the purchase price.
|
When has this not been the case? This is always the trade-off with used cars, and frankly, I think a 5-year old used car bought today is likely to be MUCH more reliable than a 5-year old used car was ten or twenty years ago.