Notelitus

ANY vehicle (used or new) you buy from a lot is going to decrease in value by many thousands when you drive it off the lot.

As for buying a new vehicle, there is something to be said for being the only owner, having a guarantee that your investment is taken care of, never abused, and well maintained, etc. There is logic in both points of view, it's just a matter of opinion.

You can save money by buying everything used. I know people who buy everything second hand, they shop eBay. They save many, many thousands per year by doing that, much more savings than from the purchase of a vehicle every 10 years. Do you buy everything used?

user5941

But not to the degree a new vehicle loses value

[/quote]As for buying a new vehicle, there is something to be said for being the only owner, having a guarantee that your investment is taken care of, never abused, and well maintained, etc. There is logic in both points of view, it's just a matter of opinion.You can save money by buying everything used. I know people who buy everything second hand, they shop eBay. They save many, many thousands per year by doing that, much more savings than from the purchase of a vehicle every 10 years. Do you buy everything used?[/quote]
I wouldn't buy used toilet paper but some items used is just as good and costs much less trucks and vans being a major one.

Notelitus

That's where the opinion differs, a new vehicle is not "just as good" as a used vehicle in most people's opinion.

user5941

Who are "most" people?Of course not all used vehicles are as good as a new one but a three year old van with 75000 miles on it that has its maintenance record with it and is half the cost of a new one in my eye its just as good for what I am going to use it for.

I bought a new truck once and had a big payment and a year later I had a "used" truck with a big payment.

Mach

For me it was Risk Management. I do contract work east of the Mississippi. Usually I get about $15k on one contract that last a month. My old vehicle had 160k miles on it and it was an 03 Cavalier. I thought I was walking on thin ice with that car. This new truck will cost about $8k more a year for 4 years then I will be down to maybe $2k. If I went to the F150 I would have saved some. It seems the timing was right with the economy the way it is. The sticker price was $45k. The plan is to keep this truck 10 years plus. By then I am hoping we are all driving the same car with the same color or riding on Amtrak. The crazier thing is why did I get the F250 sense I have really no use for a truck that big. "Because I can"

Peter D

When buying a new vehicle, always ask for a price, inclusive of all discounts and incentives first. NEVER discuss financing, trade-in etc without first getting a firm price. If they won't give you a price, just head for the door. It worked for Marc and it that tactic will work every time.

Heck, I called a dealership just asking about their inventory on a particular vehicle and even after I told them I wasn't interested in their dealership anymore, they still kept calling me weeks later.

Mach

The Finance manager is the one to watch out for. When I walked into the office he had me financed at a high rate added a bunch of warranties to the truck. and just a bunch of crap that would have cost an extra 6k. I was so mad that they would have tried that on me. those are the real scum of the office.

Notelitus

The vast majority of the people.
No, it's not "just as good". In no way can a sane person say that a 3 year old vehicle with 75,000 miles is "just as good" as a brand new one.
No one is arguing that.

Black4Truck

Here is a place where you can price and pick all the bells and whistles you want for a Ford truck

http://www.commtruck.ford.com/

woodchuck2

From what i have noticed with Ford dealers around here is they are not pushing to hard to sell their vehicles. Ford not taking the bailout really helped them alot as the general public no longer trust GM or Chrysler/Dodge so they are looking else where for a secure investment that has a secure warranty. Dodge and GM are still selling because their prices have dropped so much but they no longer have the quality vehicle that Ford has. Ford by far has the best interiors and best options packages out there, Dodge has the Cummins and the Jeep line keeping them afloat and GM has Cadillac and the Duramax/Allison combo keeping them alive. As far as purchasing new, yep you will be taking a loss when leaving the lot but you do have a new vehicle that drives straight, everything is quiet and tight and even has that new car smell. But i have also bought used also and came out very well on the deal. I also used to be an auto tech for GM and Chrysler for several years and i used to work in a body shop many years before so i have a pretty good idea what to look for and generally what problems each brand has. The one thing to remember is they have to sell that car, this is how they make a living. Each day that vehicle sits on the lot it cost them money so like several folks have said already dont show that you need a vehicle, dont fall in love with the car right away, beat them up on every little thing you can find and dont be afraid to walk away. That dealer isnt the only one selling vehicles, shop around, it doesnt hurt to "test drive" the car from that dealer to another and shop there too. Salesman will see that and push even harder to sell you a car just to cutthroat the other dealer. Its all a game, you cant be afraid to play it.

__________________
No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms.-Thomas Jefferson

Peter D

I recently did the Ford Rouge F150 assembly plant tour on my vacation. I was a Chevy guy but after seeing a non-government owned auto company in action, I'm a Ford guy now.

Black4Truck

WTF... NO vacation pics to share with us??

Peter D

They didn't allow picture taking at the Rouge plant.

But here's one of me at one of Edison's labs at Greenfield Village/Ford Museum. The furnaces are where Edison made graphite materials for testing light bulb filaments.

Black4Truck

I heard there was a light bulb that Edison made and it's still burning today

Was that at your museum??

Mach

www.centennialbulb.org

Black4Truck

Great info... thanks for posting

Too bad Phillips can't even get one of their 2,000 hour rated light bulbs to last 1,000 hours

Peter D

Throughout Edison's labs they have perfect replicas of his original lamps in operation. Because they are so incredibly expensive to make, they run them at 1/4 of their rated wattage.

Black4Truck

Did Edison call them lamps or light bulbs??

captkirk

Peter.........wow Im surprised your acually kind of Handsome......

Peter D

Now if only some women would start telling me that!