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Old 03-02-2020, 02:47 PM   #1
robg
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What car would you buy and hold for 10+ years

Inspired by seeing a GS350 parked on the street this morning. I used to find the current gen completely fugly. But, maybe due to some of similarities between it and the latest 3 series (which i've now grown used to due to the sheer volume), I thought "hmm not too bad". It was a white F-sport version with grey wheels.

As a thought experiment, it got me thinking about what car I could buy and keep for 10+ years without too much worry and at a reasonable cost. That's how my parents always did it, but whenever i've run the math on a car i'd want it doesn't look very favorable vs a lease. I also understand buying/holding a classic car (like an air cooled 911 or something), but for this i'm thinking more of an everyday/daily driver type car.

Anyway, the criteria would be:
-have to be something with some practicality
-have good durability reliability
-be decent to drive and look at.
-be comfortable and have some creature comforts
-Have an average monthly ownership cost (taking into account depreciation/maintenance/repairs/cost of money) of no more than $300/month.

I say that because above that amount I think it probably just makes sense to just do serial bmw leases or something. Despite having good resale value, a new GS350 probably wouldn't cut it. Let's say a 10 year old one is worth around 10k. With 40k in depreciation, you're already at 333/month before the other costs. So maybe the best/lowest miles used IS or GS you can find for high 20s? And right out of the gate, they annoy w/ horrid infotainment and no folding rear seats. Camry V6 then? Or slightly used GTI for low 20s? Would almost certainly incur higher maintenance/repair costs though but less so than other european cars due to sheer ubiquity. What's the sweet spot (if any)?
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Old 03-02-2020, 05:35 PM   #2
Alan
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This is interesting, I would think the cheapest way to own a decent car is to buy it a few years old with low miles.

Also I would add that it should be a really inexpensive car to begin with like a Kia Optima or Hyundai Sonata. These cars are nice looking, drive nicely and they have a lot of extra features standard. My friends sons Optima has heated/cooled seats, some self driving features and the bigger engine which is pretty fast.
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Old 03-02-2020, 05:50 PM   #3
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987S. I could and did!
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Old 03-02-2020, 06:14 PM   #4
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If we hadn't moved from WA to SC, Our Ford Fusion Titanium (AWD, turbo, nicely loaded) would have been a ten year car.
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Old 03-02-2020, 06:22 PM   #5
robg
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan View Post
This is interesting, I would think the cheapest way to own a decent car is to buy it a few years old with low miles.

Also I would add that it should be a really inexpensive car to begin with like a Kia Optima or Hyundai Sonata. These cars are nice looking, drive nicely and they have a lot of extra features standard. My friends sons Optima has heated/cooled seats, some self driving features and the bigger engine which is pretty fast.
Yeah a Hyundai/Kia product probably makes a lot of sense. Dont they still have 10 year warranties as well?
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Old 03-02-2020, 06:23 PM   #6
robg
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Originally Posted by JST View Post
987S. I could and did!
Was thinking more of practical/4 door/daily driver type cars. Curious though- doesn't have to be exact but what would you estimate the average monthly cost to be for your 987 taking into account: maintenance, repairs, depreciation, interest/opportunity cost?
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Old 03-02-2020, 06:26 PM   #7
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Guessing we will have our 4runner for 10 years+.
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Old 03-02-2020, 06:27 PM   #8
robg
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Originally Posted by kognito View Post
If we hadn't moved from WA to SC, Our Ford Fusion Titanium (AWD, turbo, nicely loaded) would have been a ten year car.
I rented one of those in Hawaii several years ago and really liked it. Still a good looking, comfortable sedan. Ford sync was buggy but i'm sure that's better now.
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Old 03-02-2020, 07:23 PM   #9
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Something missing from the criteria list is use case. Is it a car that only gets a couple thousand miles a year? Or is something that needs to go 20k/year?

From a strictly dollars sensitive position, the 2008 Accord EX-L V6 w/Nav (eighth gen) I just bought for my kids makes a very strong case for itself. I've liked the 9th gen cars I've driven in practical terms. They're bland appliances, but just do their thing very, very well without inspiring rage in car people like the other appliancemobiles.

The new vs very recent used car market is still really weird. Not sure if my current Camaro experience is the best barometer, but I'm not sure the cost difference on a used current or last year's model is worth it for the time and miles you lose from the original warranty. This is a $46k MSRP car that will go new with a substantial discount, but identical used ones with 3-12 months of warranty used and 1-12k miles can only be had for about $1-2k less than a brand new one.
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Old 03-02-2020, 07:31 PM   #10
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