PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - View Single Post

Randy · #38 03-21-2011, 09:06 AM

Well, really it's a point-of-view thing to me. Cars have three values: utility-going where you want to go; the cool/sexy/look at what I have/emotional satisfaction thingy; and what it will sell for. if you want to drive a quality car and don't mind repairs and maintenance, you can drive it for a lot less money if you will get an older one and keep it repaired. As long as you can get parts and it is not rusted out or wrecked, it will provide good service if it is kept repaired and the maintenance is performed. There are too many Ford Model Ts and countless other antique cars running today, to allow refutation of this argument. Any car can be repaired and kept running. If you get caught up in the "it's not worth fixing" thinking, where, for example, a transmission repair would cost a lot compared to what the car would sell for, you have to decide either to repair it, in which case it will go (utility value) the same as it always did, or retire it because you had rather have something else than spend money on it.Cars like Mercedes have more "sexy/lookee" emotional value than some others, not to mention quality of driving experience, so people are more willing to spend money keeping them running and maintained. A Kia, on the other hand, is very disposable: when it gets old and takes significant money to repair, most people would rather have something else, or a new one. Ofteh cars like this are allowed to die because the maintenance and repair stops when the "I want/like it" goes away.
Really, lots of repairs on an older car are one-time repairs of significant cost, then you won't do them for a long time if ever. They can be aggravating, though. It helps to have more than one vehicle so you have more time for planning and paying for larger repairs.
Just some thoughts which might help you.