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Leasing Vehicles vs Buying New and Selling

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PierreBear

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Hi PSers,

I'm plagued with car problems and would love some wisdom. I'm accustomed to keeping cars until they die. If a notification warning comes on the dash, I would used to not worry and just drop it off at a mechanic that we trust and have been going to for years. However, it's just taking up a lot of time and planning to drop off the car and get a loaner car etc and changing up the work schedules.

Does anyone just lease cars and feel good about it? I've always gotten the "talk" that it's a waste of money or perhaps it's just paying a bit extra for not having to be inconvenienced.

Or does it make sense to just buy a new car and then sell it right before or a little after the warranty, assuming that newer cars just have less frequent problems to deal with?

I appreciate the help! It's been a rough month with both cars having issues. Thanks in advance!
 

azstonie

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I super don't feel good about used cars now that there are 10s of thousands of flood cars being illegally unloaded in the US right now. The really skilled bad guys have a second title created to hide the fact that the car is salvage due to flood.

Pierre, I apologize, you were asking about *leases vs purchase* and I thought buying a former leased car or used car! Sorry about that! Good luck with your search!!!
 

sonnyjane

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PierreBear|1471896081|4068714 said:
Hi PSers,

I'm plagued with car problems and would love some wisdom. I'm accustomed to keeping cars until they die. If a notification warning comes on the dash, I would used to not worry and just drop it off at a mechanic that we trust and have been going to for years. However, it's just taking up a lot of time and planning to drop off the car and get a loaner car etc and changing up the work schedules.

Does anyone just lease cars and feel good about it? I've always gotten the "talk" that it's a waste of money or perhaps it's just paying a bit extra for not having to be inconvenienced.

Or does it make sense to just buy a new car and then sell it right before or a little after the warranty, assuming that newer cars just have less frequent problems to deal with?

I appreciate the help! It's been a rough month with both cars having issues. Thanks in advance!

As far as price goes, for my specific car (2013 Honda Civic) as long as I keep the car 9 years or more, it's cheaper than leasing. Most warranties aren't that long so I think your plan of selling a car and buying a new one after the warranty is up would be very foolish. I don't care about having a new car every three years so ownership is best for me, plus when it's paid off I'll have several years of no payment at all which is nice.
 

kenny

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I just pay cash for a high quality but cheapo model of Toyota or Honda and keep it forever.
After getting the new car I sell the old one myself because trading in makes a ton of money go poof.
I never buy an extended warranty because odds are it just makes more money go poof.

Everyone hears about how X went wrong with a car and the owner was so glad they bought the extended warranty.
But the other 99.999999% of warranty purchasers who've filed no claim don't speak up much.

I think leasing might make more sense for someone who simply cannot be caught dead in a car that is over a couple years old and does not care about making tons of money go poof.
When the lease is up you give the car back.
When my purchased cars (high resale value brands) wear out I sell them for thousands.
 

chemgirl

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Have done both. If you want to keep forever I would buy a good gently used car. Something with a bit of warranty left so you have options if there's something wonky. Then keep it until it dies.

If you want to always be under warranty and have new cars then lease. My dad gets on my case for leasing cars, but I have never had an issue returning a vehicle. My last VW sold for more than the residual and they were honest enough to give me a check for the difference.

Really depends on what you want.
 

tyty333

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There are 10 cars that are suppose to last over 200k according to Clark Howard (consumer advocate). They are all
Toyotas and Hondas. I would buy one of these and keep it for 10 years (before it starts to need major repairs). I have
a Honda Odyssey. It's 10 years old and still no problems (I hope I dont jinx myself by saying that)! I plan on driving mine
for about 3 more years unless it starts to give me lots of problems. My DH has an Infinity which is 13 years old and it has
had no major repair issues. He plans on driving it for a couple more years or until he finds something that really interest
him.

Here's the list:

Toyota Prius

Toyota Camry (4 cylinder)

Honda Odyssey minivan

Honda Pilot

Toyota Corolla

Honda Accord (4 cylinder)

Honda CR-V

Toyota Sienna

Toyota Highlander

Honda Civic sedan
 

yssie

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I worked for one of the bigger automotive financial software creators for a while.

Leasing is NEVER a good deal. Anyone who argues differently is either ignorant or pushing his own agenda. The only people for whom leasing is a reasonable choice are those for whom driving the latest and greatest is top priority and business owners who don't want to have to list their vehicles as assets. For absolutely every other use case buying - even financing - is guaranteed to be the more cost-effective choice, in any US state, as long as one has the ability to make consistent payments.
 

chemgirl

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Yssie|1471922468|4068849 said:
I worked for one of the bigger automotive financial software creators for a while.

Leasing is NEVER a good deal. Anyone who argues differently is either ignorant or pushing his own agenda. The only people for whom leasing is a reasonable choice are those for whom driving the latest and greatest is top priority and business owners who don't want to have to list their vehicles as assets. For absolutely every other use case buying - even financing - is guaranteed to be the more cost-effective choice, in any US state, as long as one has the ability to make consistent payments.

I'm curious where the tipping point is. My husband says he wants a car for the long haul, but talks about selling before the year is out. I make him lease and commit to a car for 3 years. Does that make sense verses buying?

I bought my last car, but it's age was such an issue that I leased my current one.
 

kenny

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I once bought a house with a VERY smart real estate broker.
We connected right away and spent lots of time hanging out.
She said her business went WAAAAY up when she started driving clients around in a very new fancy car.
She ran ALL the numbers and for her leasing was cheaper than buying a new car that often.

So there is the rare circumstance for which leasing makes more financial sense than buying.

FWIW.

A couple ways they get you is mileage and minor damage.
If you put on a lot of miles or get dings and scratches, when you return the car they rip your kidneys and heart out and sell them.
 

VRBeauty

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I know this isn't one of the options you're asking about, but consider buying a newer used car with manufacturer's extended warranty.

I bought a 2-year old car that had come off lease a month or two earlier. It had less than 23,00 miles on it, and was being offered with a 1-year or 12,000 mile manufacturer's extension on the comprehensive warranty. The car's original sticker price was $37,115. Two years later the asking price was $21,750. With just a little haggling, I got it for 20,099.

The large drop in the asking price was probably linked to the fact that 1) it's a plug-in hybrid, but not a Prius - so sort of an unknown to most people, and 2) this model was rated low in customer satisfaction due to some new model shake-out issues. But - I had done a lot of on-line research so I knew what those issues were, and knew that they were no longer an issue.

Anyhow, I saved a lot of money over any new car option, and could easily have traded it in after one year with little further depreciation, if I'd chosen to do so. I will definitely be checking out lease returns first next time I'm in the market for a "new" car.

(note that mfg's extended warranties vary greatly from one mfg to another. You can find tables comparing what the various companies offer online.)
 

missy

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Timely that you are posting this question now PierreBear. My dh and I have begun test driving cars and we are planning on replacing our current car sometime in the probably not too far future. We currently drive a Lexus RX300 from 1999. We bought it certified preowned in 2002 and all these years later knock wood we are still driving it. Just like you we want to hold onto our car as long as makes sense.

We were considering leasing vs buying over this past month and have come to the conclusion that the best option for us is buying and holding onto the car for as long as we can just like we are doing with our current car. Leasing is an expensive proposition and perhaps for a business it is an expense that makes more sense but for just personal use I think buying makes the most financial sense.

We are looking not at just new cars but at certified preowned again because that worked out really well for us in 2002 and it is a good way to get a good car at a better price point and where hopefully all the bugs have already been worked out. So far with all the test driving we have done over the past few weeks we have come to the conclusion that Lexus makes a really good car with a comfy ride (important for me because I tend to get motion sick and with the Lexus SUV I never do) so we are leaning that way again. I know Kristie's concern about flood cars is an important concern and thank you K for informing us about this when we started looking. We are doing our due diligence and hopefully that won't be an issue.

Good luck PierreBear and please let us know what you decide.
 

rainydaze

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Piggybacking on tyty's post, DH and I have owned only Toyotas and Hondas and have only had them in the shop for oil changes. I drove my Odyssey hard for seven years before it had its first problem (and over 150k miles). Four years with my Sienna so far (and 110k) and not a single issue. Camry & CRV - 10 years without any headaches. Traded those two in bc DH's job requires a decent-looking vehicle and they were looking tired, not because anything was wrong with them.

Leasing never made sense for (or to) us. But we both put on a lot of miles, so right off the bat that would mean we'd pay a bunch by going over allowances. I'd recommend buying - go for a Toyota or a Honda and save yourself the grief of putting it in the shop.
 

missy

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PB, check out the latest Consumer Reports to see reliability and pluses and minuses of each car. CR is a wealth of helpful and real life information and you should check it out before you make any decisions.
 

Puppmom

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I drove a Toyota Corolla for 13 years with virtually no maintenance other than oil changes, tires and inspection. I totaled it in November (minor accident but a new bumper and hood would have cost more than the car was worth). It had 200k miles and had recently been inspected. My mechanic thought it easily had another 50k miles in it and reminded me with every oil change that he would buy it if I ever wanted to get rid of it.

My plan was to always buy the cheapest new Honda or Toyota available and drive it until it dies. But we have two small children and the small car was tight - manageable but tight. We weren't sure if we wanted a mid-size SUV or mini-van and had to make a decision quickly as we were without a necessary second vehicle. We decided to lease a mini-van. We leased a left over at the end of 2015 and my monthly payments plus the buy out still total less than what I would have paid outright for the same vehicle earlier in the year - IF I decide to buy out the lease. If I don't, of course there is money lost. That was a risk we were willing to take and I don't have any regrets. Talk to me again when it's time to turn this thing in or buy it out. :lol:
 
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PierreBear

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Hi everyone! Thanks for all the responses and comments. My husband and I are both Volvo drivers and don't intend to make a change as we both really like their cars. I am fully convinced that a Toyota/Honda is a better route to go ... but being an Asian American, I can't get myself to fit that stereotype. :silenced: haha... I guess I'm getting myself into this situation then.

One of our cars is at the 135K mile mark and I think we will try to keep it closer to 200K as of right now. We started tracking out repairs etc and it seems like we spend at most about $1000 a year and bring it into the shop perhaps 2 or 3 times a year. Anyone mind sharing if this is average for an older vehicle or perhaps you just have to bring in a Toyota/Honda in less?


Still unsure what we will do after we that car gets old enough but I think our philosophy aligns with some of Kenny's thoughts:
After getting the new car I sell the old one myself because trading in makes a ton of money go poof. - We've sold about 3 cars on Craigslist so far. It's always been a positive experience. We've learned that as long as a car is running and you can drive it away, it's at least worth $1000.

I never buy an extended warranty because odds are it just makes more money go poof. - I think it pays off almost 50/50 from the people I've talked to. We've thought about an extended warranty but instead of putting $ into a warranty we will just put it into whatever repairs come up.

Oh and we also only by liability only insurance on older cars. No comp or collision insurance. Does anyone have any thoughts on whether this is wise?

Thank you PS friends! Have a great day!
 

asscher_girl

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I agree with some of the others about looking into certified pre-owned. I've gone that route for my last 2 cars and it's worked out great. My current car was 1 year old and had 12,700 miles on it. If I would have bought it brand new it would have been about $38K, and I got mine for $26K with a 2 year warranty (bumper to bumper) and it still had the 5 year power train warranty on it. It's a Mini Cooper though and they don't keep their value as good as others (my last 3 cars prior were Acura's and they always held their value extremely well) but I made that scarifice going to a Mini... the reason I went w/ a Mini was mainly due to needing a small car to fit in our new garage, lol... DH's car was newer so he was planning to put his in there, but I couldn't fit my Acura in there with his, so I went small! :lol: lol! But it is a convertible and it's a blast to drive!
 

asscher_girl

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Oh forgot to add, I've always sold my cars on Craigslist too, it's worked out well. Except my last car, my co-worker bought it so that was even easier!
 

Puppmom

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PierreBear, I don't know what's average but my Corolla with 200k was generally only in the shop for inspection. At that time, I would get an oil change and address tires, wipers if needed. At that point though, I was driving the car only 4,000 miles or so per year whichwas obviously a contributing factor.

Over the last two years of ownership (so from about 182k-200k), I only needed inspection, oil and to replace the battery. $1,000 per year in maintenance seems like an awful lot to me but it's all relative - do you drive a lot, are the replacement tires expensive, did you happen to need new brakes? Are the trips to the mechanic urgent matters? Is the car failing to start at times?
 

baby monster

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As far as repairs go, if you think about how much a new car costs, spending a thousand dollars per year to keep the old car going is not that much. Let's say you spend 40K on new Volvo tomorrow and drive it for 10 years without any repairs beyond maintenance. It's 4K per year vs 1K for repairs.

I buy either Honda or Toyota cars and drive them at least 10 years. Leasing makes sense if you need a new car for professional reasons or like changing cars often.
 

Puppmom

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Good point, BabyMonster. I was thinking more in the context of my $14k Corolla.
 

diamondseeker2006

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Toyotas are going to have far less maintenance costs long term than Volvo. I could say ditto to many of the posts in this thread! We use Consumer Reports and only buy highly reliable cars, pay cash, and keep them several years (8+). Aside from my husband's Porsches, we have a Toyota Tundra truck, Corolla, Camry, and Venza!!! Our married daughter drives a Corolla! We are into quality and reliability which translates into good resale value or longevity. Our oldest vehicles are driven by our kids, and honestly, we have spent basically nothing on the oldest Corolla which is over 12 years old until this year and it was about $500 to change some things that were worn out. We had a neighbor who was a nuclear engineer who drove the Honda Civic he had in college for over 30 years (certainly not for financial reasons) until someone ran into him and totaled the car (and seriously broke his leg!). It had over 300k miles on it!

All I know is that I did the research years ago and it never pays to lease unless you just plan to trade cars every couple of years and that is a money losing proposition no matter what you do.
 

Dancing Fire

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I have never leased a car b/c you can only drive it for 36K miles with a 3 yr lease, and every mile above 36K will be very costly.
 

distracts

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I know a Volvo-driving family who likes to keep themselves in new cars, and they buy and then sell them a couple of years later. I was talking to them when I was buying my new car earlier this year and they said they leased a couple of times but it was better to buy and then sell.

(I used to have a Toyota Prius. I loathed it. It was the least fun car in existence, absolutely dead dull basic ugh hatred. I always felt like I was rolling down the road in a tin can. And then it started having problems - last year it spent over two months in the shop (not consecutively - 1-2 weeks at a time). Eventually they found the root problem and it was going to be expensive to fix, and with the hybrid battery out of warranty and my hatred of the car, I didn't want to spend it and so took myself to the VW dealer where I bought a GTI and now can actually accelerate when getting on the highway. I test drove several Toyota/Honda/Lexus cars and was just meh about all of them. Obviously I anticipate more costs in the long run with the GTI than if I'd gone with a more reliable car, but to me it is worth it to have a car I find enjoyable to drive. The extra cost is the price I am paying to have fun, not just transportation. Having had fun cars and a not-fun car, I know that makes a significant difference in my quality of life and overall happiness/stress levels. Obviously YMMV, but that's how it is for me.)
 

kenny

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I guess people vary even when it comes to what they consider to be "fun".

Fun for me is the challenge of getting there in my hybrid on minimum gas, not in minimum time.
I love it and am very good at it. =)
When I get onto the freeway or change lanes I merge into a space behind that car, instead of in front of it.

Americas sons and daughters are dying in oil wars.
I feel bad enough using ANY gas, let alone wasting it.
 

missy

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distracts said:
I know a Volvo-driving family who likes to keep themselves in new cars, and they buy and then sell them a couple of years later. I was talking to them when I was buying my new car earlier this year and they said they leased a couple of times but it was better to buy and then sell.

(I used to have a Toyota Prius. I loathed it. It was the least fun car in existence, absolutely dead dull basic ugh hatred. I always felt like I was rolling down the road in a tin can. And then it started having problems - last year it spent over two months in the shop (not consecutively - 1-2 weeks at a time). Eventually they found the root problem and it was going to be expensive to fix, and with the hybrid battery out of warranty and my hatred of the car, I didn't want to spend it and so took myself to the VW dealer where I bought a GTI and now can actually accelerate when getting on the highway. I test drove several Toyota/Honda/Lexus cars and was just meh about all of them. Obviously I anticipate more costs in the long run with the GTI than if I'd gone with a more reliable car, but to me it is worth it to have a car I find enjoyable to drive. The extra cost is the price I am paying to have fun, not just transportation. Having had fun cars and a not-fun car, I know that makes a significant difference in my quality of life and overall happiness/stress levels. Obviously YMMV, but that's how it is for me.)




Yes people vary quite a bit with everything including cars. Distracts it's funny because I find the ride the VW provides to be jerky and nausea producing for me. I couldn't tolerate more than a few minutes in the VW SUV we test drove while I find Japanese and Korean cars to be among the smoothest comfiest rides.




kenny said:
I guess people vary even when it comes to what they consider to be "fun".

Fun for me is the challenge of getting there in my hybrid on minimum gas, not in minimum time.
I love it and am very good at it. =)
When I get onto the freeway or change lanes I merge into a space behind that car, instead of in front of it.

Americas sons and daughters are dying in oil wars.
I feel bad enough using ANY gas, let alone wasting it.

Kenny, I'm with you and if it weren't for the 4 cats and their carriers we take back and forth we would go to a smaller car. As it is the car we drive fits everyone perfectly with no real room to spare. But I agree that the size of the cars people drive have gotten out of hand and how many people really need to drive cars the size of Hummers or even bigger.


A good friend of mine (shout out to Kristie) recommended the Kia Sorrento and I have to say it provides a very smooth ride with decent pickup/acceleration and is less expensive than some cars that don't provide as much as the Kia does. However I found their dealership to be among the sleaziest in our area. Anyway that might be a car worth considering if you are looking for reliability comfort and overall high ratings from CR.
 
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PierreBear

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missy|1472033181|4069409 said:
distracts said:
I know a Volvo-driving family who likes to keep themselves in new cars, and they buy and then sell them a couple of years later. I was talking to them when I was buying my new car earlier this year and they said they leased a couple of times but it was better to buy and then sell.

(I used to have a Toyota Prius. I loathed it. It was the least fun car in existence, absolutely dead dull basic ugh hatred. I always felt like I was rolling down the road in a tin can. And then it started having problems - last year it spent over two months in the shop (not consecutively - 1-2 weeks at a time). Eventually they found the root problem and it was going to be expensive to fix, and with the hybrid battery out of warranty and my hatred of the car, I didn't want to spend it and so took myself to the VW dealer where I bought a GTI and now can actually accelerate when getting on the highway. I test drove several Toyota/Honda/Lexus cars and was just meh about all of them. Obviously I anticipate more costs in the long run with the GTI than if I'd gone with a more reliable car, but to me it is worth it to have a car I find enjoyable to drive. The extra cost is the price I am paying to have fun, not just transportation. Having had fun cars and a not-fun car, I know that makes a significant difference in my quality of life and overall happiness/stress levels. Obviously YMMV, but that's how it is for me.)




Yes people vary quite a bit with everything including cars. Distracts it's funny because I find the ride the VW provides to be jerky and nausea producing for me. I couldn't tolerate more than a few minutes in the VW SUV we test drove while I find Japanese and Korean cars to be among the smoothest comfiest rides.




kenny said:
I guess people vary even when it comes to what they consider to be "fun".

Fun for me is the challenge of getting there in my hybrid on minimum gas, not in minimum time.
I love it and am very good at it. =)
When I get onto the freeway or change lanes I merge into a space behind that car, instead of in front of it.

Americas sons and daughters are dying in oil wars.
I feel bad enough using ANY gas, let alone wasting it.

Kenny, I'm with you and if it weren't for the 4 cats and their carriers we take back and forth we would go to a smaller car. As it is the car we drive fits everyone perfectly with no real room to spare. But I agree that the size of the cars people drive have gotten out of hand and how many people really need to drive cars the size of Hummers or even bigger.

A good friend of mine (shout out to Kristie) recommended the Kia Sorrento and I have to say it provides a very smooth ride with decent pickup/acceleration and is less expensive than some cars that don't provide as much as the Kia does. However I found their dealership to be among the sleaziest in our area. Anyway that might be a car worth considering if you are looking for reliability comfort and overall high ratings from CR.


Sorry this is slightly off topic but I can't resist. How do your cats do in the car? My cat, when he was younger, could tolerate driving in the car. Now he always gets car sick so we stopped bringing him on trips to the in-laws when we are staying for an extended period of time.

Thanks again to all for sharing your experiences/widsom about cars! I've def learned from the perspectives shared.
 

missy

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PierreBear said:
missy|1472033181|4069409 said:
distracts said:
I know a Volvo-driving family who likes to keep themselves in new cars, and they buy and then sell them a couple of years later. I was talking to them when I was buying my new car earlier this year and they said they leased a couple of times but it was better to buy and then sell.

(I used to have a Toyota Prius. I loathed it. It was the least fun car in existence, absolutely dead dull basic ugh hatred. I always felt like I was rolling down the road in a tin can. And then it started having problems - last year it spent over two months in the shop (not consecutively - 1-2 weeks at a time). Eventually they found the root problem and it was going to be expensive to fix, and with the hybrid battery out of warranty and my hatred of the car, I didn't want to spend it and so took myself to the VW dealer where I bought a GTI and now can actually accelerate when getting on the highway. I test drove several Toyota/Honda/Lexus cars and was just meh about all of them. Obviously I anticipate more costs in the long run with the GTI than if I'd gone with a more reliable car, but to me it is worth it to have a car I find enjoyable to drive. The extra cost is the price I am paying to have fun, not just transportation. Having had fun cars and a not-fun car, I know that makes a significant difference in my quality of life and overall happiness/stress levels. Obviously YMMV, but that's how it is for me.)




Yes people vary quite a bit with everything including cars. Distracts it's funny because I find the ride the VW provides to be jerky and nausea producing for me. I couldn't tolerate more than a few minutes in the VW SUV we test drove while I find Japanese and Korean cars to be among the smoothest comfiest rides.




kenny said:
I guess people vary even when it comes to what they consider to be "fun".

Fun for me is the challenge of getting there in my hybrid on minimum gas, not in minimum time.
I love it and am very good at it. =)
When I get onto the freeway or change lanes I merge into a space behind that car, instead of in front of it.

Americas sons and daughters are dying in oil wars.
I feel bad enough using ANY gas, let alone wasting it.

Kenny, I'm with you and if it weren't for the 4 cats and their carriers we take back and forth we would go to a smaller car. As it is the car we drive fits everyone perfectly with no real room to spare. But I agree that the size of the cars people drive have gotten out of hand and how many people really need to drive cars the size of Hummers or even bigger.

A good friend of mine (shout out to Kristie) recommended the Kia Sorrento and I have to say it provides a very smooth ride with decent pickup/acceleration and is less expensive than some cars that don't provide as much as the Kia does. However I found their dealership to be among the sleaziest in our area. Anyway that might be a car worth considering if you are looking for reliability comfort and overall high ratings from CR.


Sorry this is slightly off topic but I can't resist. How do your cats do in the car? My cat, when he was younger, could tolerate driving in the car. Now he always gets car sick so we stopped bringing him on trips to the in-laws when we are staying for an extended period of time.

Thanks again to all for sharing your experiences/widsom about cars! I've def learned from the perspectives shared.

Hi PierreBear, yes I know what you mean. Our little Francesca tends to get car sick (like her mommy LOL) so I have her on my lap up front and the other 3 cats are in their carriers in the back. We put the carriers right next to each other and make sure they are stable and each of the cats have a view of us in front and outside so they have a visual point to look at that may help them from getting sick. Very rarely does anyone throw up now. Another critical point is not to feed them for at least 4-6 hours before you are taking the car trip. We usually leave early morning so I just feed them a couple of hard bits of food so they don't go crazy and that seems to be fine. Do not let them have a full stomach because that would be a recipe for disaster. We don't go anywhere overnight without our kitties and through trial and error this is what we found works for us. HTH!
 

Arcadian

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I lease. (oh I know the horror right?) but I do it for a few reasons. I tend to buy hybrid or full electric. Technology in that area is moving pretty fast, so IMO makes little sense to buy a car because the darn things are computers on wheels. However I fully support auto manufacturers in this area, I also support out government in making sure that MPG goes UP and not down. I don't drive a lot. Yes while this may seem kinda crazy, it makes sense to just have newer vehicles. And because of the type of work I do, I can take a portion of my driving miles off for taxes..its a big chunk of driving time, I don't tend to leisure drive often.

My lease has never been over 300 a month and I never put any money down. Obviously I'm good at negotiating :)

lastly, I do like having a new car every few years. I used to be the one to keep a car 8-10 years, but I also find that about year 6, problems can and do arise. the last car I bought I kept for 8 years. it looked brand new on the inside and out and had less than 25k miles on it....but did have issues because frankly it sat there more often than not.

IMO to each their own. You have to decide what works better for you and your situation.
 

House Cat

Ideal_Rock
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Everyone has different priorities when car shopping. Some want to buy a car for beauty or speed. Others might want economy or safety. For instance, when I was shopping for a car at the time when I had 4 kids with one being an infant, safety was my main concern. Safety and seating six people. I opted for an Expedition. That thing was a BEAST! After paying a gigantic car payment, enormous gas bills, having three of my kids grow out of the house, I went for economy and now I drive a Prius.

One day, I might buy a new Mustang because they are soooo sexy. (I talk big. I will forever drive a Toyota..)

Define your real priorities and what you can actually afford and go from there.

Oh, and I hate making car payments. After the Expedition, I'm cured of that nonsense.
 

kenny

Super_Ideal_Rock
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33,225
Arcadian|1472043584|4069434 said:
I lease. (oh I know the horror right?) but I do it for a few reasons. I tend to buy hybrid or full electric. Technology in that area is moving pretty fast, so IMO makes little sense to buy a car because the darn things are computers on wheels.

Our 2006 Honda Hybrid, bought new, is going fine.
In a decade, not one penny spent on repairs, not a single drop of oil on our driveway!
Every morning it just starts.
Every trip it just goes.
Now, THAT's what I call fun. :appl:

Yes technology marches on but brands like Honda or Toyota have the best odds of remaining reliable for a very long time.

By all means, buy or lease whatever you want.
I'm just challenging what you've presented as a reason to lease.
 
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