Used Car Prices Keep Getting More Shocking.

Robert59

Robert59

Well-known Member
Location
Now I live in Tennesee. Did live in Michigan.
What used to be a $5K car is now $8K. What used to be $8K is now $11K or $12K'

A couple of months ago, a woman paid a visit to Jeff Schrier's used car lot in Omaha, Nebraska. She was on a tight budget, she said, and was desperate for a vehicle to commute to work. She was shown three cars priced at her limit, roughly $7,500. Schrier said the woman was stunned. "'That's what I get for $7,500? ‘" he recalled her saying.

https://www.newser.com/story/315239/used-car-prices-are-downright-shocking.html
 

I bought a second hand car (200,000km - 125,000 ml) for AU$8000 - US$5700 - four months ago.
Whereas it would have cost $5000 12 months ago.
The dealers say supply and demand forces up prices.
I wrote to several dealers and said it is purely taking advantage of the public.
None of them agreed with me.
They continue to make the maximum profit they can.
Scurrilous if truth be known.
 
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If they are going to increase the price I'd hope they'd extend the payment plan then.
 

Now is NOT a good time to buy a car....new OR used. Dealers lots are half empty, and they are charging the maximum for what little inventory they do have. This condition will probably stretch for at least another year....maybe longer.

If a current vehicle can be repaired/maintained for a reasonable cost, keeping it is the best way to go.
 
I went back to my dealer a few months ago and the only new cars they had were 3 demonstrators. Even those used were few at that time. I was buying new again every 3 or 4 years to have the bumper to bumper warranty but I might run what I have into the ground unless things change.
 
I have had my car dealer contact me practically begging to buy my pickup truck back for close to what I paid for it several years ago. These are strange and different times, but I’m keeping the truck…
 
Don M. said:
Now is NOT a good time to buy a car....new OR used. Dealers lots are half empty, and they are charging the maximum for what little inventory they do have. This condition will probably stretch for at least another year....maybe longer.

If a current vehicle can be repaired/maintained for a reasonable cost, keeping it is the best way to go.
Click to expand...
Yep, it is supply and demand, not price gouging. The only way to beat it is to wait for supply to catch up. Eventually it will.
 
I had to get a new car, my old one would have made a mechanic, and his decedents quite wealthy. The dealership wanted $5,000 over sticker price ( didn't happen). But I couldn't believe the trade-in for my old car. I figured if I got a few hundred, I'd be happy with that. I got $2,000. a 13 year old car, the AC didn't work, the steering was shot, it had been into two accidents - a deer, and rear ended. And the trunk was bent when in another anonymous rear end in a supermarket.
 
Golf 4.jpg
For thirty odd years we would get a new, or relatively new car every three years or so.
When I bought my wife a VW Golf in 1999, I never expected her to still be running
around in it twenty three years later. The car's longevity comes down to the fact that
it shares a heated garage with a vintage MG. The only fault that my wife can find with
the car is: She's bored with it! Even so, my wife agrees that the cost saving has been so
impressive that she's happy to go on being bored, after all, when the weather is clement,
there's always the MG.
 
I'll stick with my 10-year-old hooptie.

The replacement cost has nearly doubled since I purchased it new in 2012.

With the total cost of ownership, it would actually be cheaper for me to call Lyft or Uber when I need to go out.

My need to own a vehicle is mostly psychological.
 
We are in the process of buying a new car. Our lease is up on our current car and our son says "get rid of it now" as it has 60,000 miles on it and he works in service at the dealership and sees this model starting to have major problems at this mileage.

So we go to the dealership and they only have one vehicle that we like. As we are working on the numbers,another salesman came up and said that the couple across the room said they will give us 5k cash if we will let them purchase the car! Crazy! We didn`t end up buying it because we decided to go with a Toyota instead. It was not yet available on the lot,but is supposed to arrive on the 15th. We`ll see...
 
I've pretty well lost my "infatuation" for new cars/trucks. For years, I traded vehicles every 3 or 4 years....mostly because I drove quite a few miles when I was working. Now, in retirement, there are years when we only drive 4 or 5 thousand miles. We have a nice old 1997 Dodge Dakota with about 108K miles on it, and a 2006 Impala with a little over 85K miles on it. Both are in good shape...mechanically and appearance. Outside of tires and annual oil/filter changes, etc., I've had to spend little for repairs. They spend most of their time in the garage. Outside of gas, I probably average less than $100/yr, each, to keep them in good shape. Compared to the 10's of thousands we would need to spend every few years to "keep up with the Jones's", we save a bunch on transportation.

If/when this auto market returns to normal, we plan on swapping the Impala for a compact hybrid; SUV, and that should ;take care of our remaining years. The Son-in-laws can "flip a coin" for the Dakota.
 
Glad I bought when I did last Summer! I had to buy on line and wait for the dealer to receive the model I wanted.
But, my old Jeep was leaking from the engine in a lot of places and all I could see was more and more repairs.
AND, it had189,000 miles on it! (I get so attached to my vehicles) I fall in love with them because they are alive!
I got a good deal before the prices shot up! Much less miles, much newer vehicle.
 
Judycat said:
If they are going to increase the price I'd hope they'd extend the payment plan then.
Click to expand...

I agree, and I hope so too,
but they might not, because they know that the used cars, especially with high mileages, will not last any longer just because they cost more to buy them. :confused:

So, if they gave you longer to pay for it, then they might fear the car would more likely stop working before it's paid for, and many buyers would not, or simply could not continue to make the payments at the same time as having to pay for other transportation.:oops:

In addition, I think that used cars, are often sold to you, as requiring full payment before you take the car, as well as "as is" .... or with a very, very short and very, very limited warranty, if any.

It's not a good time or situation, for those who must replace their car, in order to be safe where they live, or to get to their job.
 
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My 2003 Ford Focus was 16 years old when I traded it in for a 2018 Ford Focus. The 2003 had 275,000 and ran "like a kitten." I only sold it because my wife wanted a new car. I bought the 2018 for $19,000 Canadians. It had only 42,000 km. Consumer Reports says you are a fool (my words) to buy a new car. The valuable drops immediate when you drive it off the lot. But hey, it's always true and always has been true, "A fool and his money are quickly parted." Anyway, I heard that the "Jones have left town" so who is there to impress?
 
I would have happily kept our old car and just purchased it-in spite of what our son was saying. But the first day we had a "heavy" snow here,we couldn`t drive it down the street,so we have to get an AWD. Mine is definitely a California car lol.
 

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