How many of you thought it was a mistake to get a new car?

... instead should have gotten like 1,2,3 year old one?

when i got my first new car and realized how bad the depreciation was.

 

which is why i probably wont be buying a car new for very long time.

Depends on the car and what I intend to do with it. The Legacy I thought going in would be my sedan/daily driver solution for a long time, and given the sub-invoice pricing, I was ok buying new.

 

However, for a secondary car, used for sure. That, you can spend time and cherry pick the right sports car, beater, project, etc.

 

Certain brands (Volvo, Saab, Jaguar, nearly anything American...) and certain styles (7-Series BMW type cars) only used as so many models seem to appear on EBay for 40% off new after only 1yr/12k miles of usage.

 

Certain brands (Mini, Honda, Toyota) and diesels (VW TDI anything, Mercedes diesels), only new because the resale is so high on them there isn't much savings buying a late-model used alternative.

This was my first brand new car since 1992 and I'm still glad I did it. Sure, it was $30k but then again, I took possession with 7 miles on the odometer and everything that's ever happened to/with the car was done by me -- no surprises.

 

I have a whopping 17k miles after 3.5 years of ownership so I'll get to enjoy the car for a long time to come. That enjoyment factor is about to go waaay up once my Green/FMIC setup is installed.

i've been burned 2 x by used cars....

 

I have bought 4 new cars in the past 6 years... I'm sticking with new.

 

That said, I've bougt them at 1 year old used car prices. There are ads for used LGTs listed at more than I paid for mine... I even saw one on this site.

Not a mistake for my choice. 1.9% financing, Used 2.0L WRX had too much lag and Forester XT had only been out for a year, so no real bargins.

 

Also glad I did it when I did, as it was in October of 2004, it took a while to find what I wanted new.

 

If I were looking for a typical FWD point A to B car, would definitely go used, same goes for weekend vehicles.

I'll never buy a new car ever again. The last three I've bought have hosed me on depreciation so badly, that I could have bought another new car with what I lost.

 

I just bought my 06' LGT 5MT with 30K miles on it for $18K. It's brand new to me for $9K less than an 08'.

 

If you do your research, and have a mechanic check out the car before you buy you can end up with a really good deal.

 

And don't forget, new cars can be lemons too. Trust me I know.

I don't mind too much. I consider the car something I've purchased, not something I'm holding money in, although I know it'll just be a waste of money if I got another car too soon.

Good question. I remember figuring it out once that it would have been better to buy a car brand new with good financing, than buy it a year old for a few thousand less.

 

It is usually a matter of financing. If you can get 1.9% from Subaru, then it's definitely worth it to buy new. If you get 6.5% then it is probably worth it, financially, to buy it used.

 

The point of this story:

 

If you have 30k in cash, you should be buying it used. But if you have 30k in cash, you've got the extra money to burn to buy it new.

I'll never buy a new car ever again. The last three I've bought have hosed me on depreciation so badly, that I could have bought another new car with what I lost.

 

I just bought my 06' LGT 5MT with 30K miles on it for $18K. It's brand new to me for $9K less than an 08'.

 

 

Same here. I bought my '05 LGT 5MT with 30,600 miles on it for $16,300 in Feb. The car probably stickered for almost $26,000 when new. That's a huge difference in price that I'll happily let someone else eat

you can take chances with used cars with historys for being reliable (subarus, hondas, toyotas) if you have another car to drive if you need to repair stuff.

I've had this car since Nov 2004, and it's still worth 4 times what I paid for it

Considering that I'm keeping this car for quite some time, I don't regret it. I had my 95 wagon since brand new and I just sold it last month.

 

I just have a hard time buying a car which I have no idea about the previous history of the car and how it was treated. I baby my stuff, not everyone is like that.

Considering that I'm keeping this car for quite some time, I don't regret it. I had my 95 wagon since brand new and I just sold it last month.

 

I just have a hard time buying a car which I have no idea about the previous history of the car and how it was treated. I baby my stuff, not everyone is like that.

 

Same here. But I usually don't sell the car....either it gets used up, wrecked, or given away.

I have no regrets buying my LGT wagon new because I'd have had a hell of a time finding an 05 LGT Limited 5-speed wagon in my choice of color/interior on the used car market. Besides, I'm planning on keeping it for awhile.

With some of the deals I see on the cars for sale page here, I wish I bought one of those used.

I needed a car after my 1993 Legacy was damaged by a bad mechanic. The repair bill was over $2000 and the car wasn't worth that much. The new 05 turbo Legacys were out and I liked them. The 05 Legacy GT was a huge improvement over a fwd 93 Legacy. The one I bought was marked as a Labor Day special across the windshield. It was a month past Labor Day and it still hadn't sold so I got it at 24K.

i dunno new is nice if you can afford it im happy with my used Spec.B for 24k...

Used is the way to go as long as you get what you want and get a good deal. Let someone else take the origional hit.

I don't think it was a mistake. I like knowing exactly where the car has been and how it's been maintained from Day 1.

 

Besides, a car is a poor investment any way you look at it. We all dump crazy amounts of money into our cars to get some extra enjoyment from them. I feel like the ~$3k premium to drive it off the lot with 6 miles on the odometer was money well spent.

With a new car, if the car turns out to be a lemon, at least the dealer can deal with it under warranty.

 

With an used car, you never know what you are going to get especially if you get a "good" deal.

With a new car, if the car turns out to be a lemon, at least the dealer can deal with it under warranty.

 

With an used car, you never know what you are going to get especially if you get a "good" deal.

 

certified pre-owned is a nice compromise for that issue

Most truely weathly people don't buy new. It just doesn't make economic sense. Get a 2.5-3 year old car with 35K miles and you can pay 1/2 of the new cost. I don't think I'll ever buy another new car.

My boss could afford a brand new car but he needed to replace his SAAB 95 that had over 300K miles so he just bought a real nice 2005 SAAB 93 with 36K miles loaded, leather etc still under factory warranty for $14,500.

2005 Legacy GTs are also going for about 1/2 of the new cost.

I have had some concerns about having just bought my 08 LGT new. But honestly, I got one hell of a deal. We had some difficulties with the new-buying experience....partly because I bought out of state...and we traded in a relatively-newer car (5 years old, no problems) that was paid off.

 

So the sudden $18k in debt (after trade-in) I took on hurts, but I remind myself that this is a great car for the long-haul. That a performance AWD car is not something you want to "test the previous owner's responsibility" with....look at the clutch and turbo threads on this forum alone.

 

This way, I can take care of it from day one and hopefully it'll take care of me till the day it hits 100k.

 

Joe

Everyday I think what if....I bought a used WRX, LGT, 5 series, A4 or paid the extra money for a new LGT.

 

By the way..a car isn't an investment...it is an expense. You need transportation to get to work to pay the bills, have fun, eat, etc. If a car were an investment, then there would be no depreciation and you would get your money back, or maybe even more.

 

If you buy a used car and it brakes down, you regret not buying new. If you buy a new car and trade it in, you regret not buying used. Every god damn day a look at the auto finder to see what I could have bought. Who knows..

like everyone else it depends. I'm glad I bought my LGT new, well because it's my baby. That being said my next car will probably be used. I've seen how low some of the really well modded cars on this forum sell for. With the money I save I can invest in a built engine, tranny or whatever else I choose.