Comments on: 13 Frugal Ways to Save on Car Ownership

By: Wain

Wain — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:58:32 +0000

If you plan to keep your car for a while make sure to avoid any and all American brands; if you have an American car with, let say 75K miles on it, go to a local dealership act like you’re planning to buy so they will appraise your American clunker, almost as a rule they don’t give an American car with 75K or more a second look. On the other hand take an import be it Japanese or German. With around 100K on the odometer, appraisers know the entire car is just a baby with a long life ahead. Not unusual for an import to reach the 300K mark on original power train, basic maintenance. So figure; if you drive let say 10K per year, your import shall pound pavement for the next 30 years and that’s no bull.

By: Getting Into The Frugal Mindset on Cars « The Crafty Dollar

Getting Into The Frugal Mindset on Cars « The Crafty Dollar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 07:33:03 +0000

[...] See this link for additional ideas on 13 Frugal Ways To Save on Car Ownership. [...]

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 18:27:51 +0000

I’ve enjoyed reading your posts each day and linked back to this particular post from my blog.Thanks for the great list:
http://whatacoolidea.blogspot.com/2009/08/frugal-car-care.html

By: Ricky

Ricky — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:26:25 +0000

Don’t toss aside domestics either. If you do your homework you can get a great car for less money than a pre-owned import. And not all imports are created equal anyway. The resources are abundant for researching quality and reliability standards for used cars. Put them to good use!

By: Des

Des — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:53:39 +0000

You might also consider imports other than Honda and Toyota. Since these two brands are known for their reliability, that is factored into the used price. Our Suzuki has over 200k miles on it and counting, with no major repairs to date. Comparing used Suzukis in our area to their Toyota counterparts it looks like they’re almost 50% cheaper. We plan on driving our little car till it dies. If it lasts till 300k, I’ll be fully sold on our “off-brand” import. Just something to consider…

By: Kevin

Kevin — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 17:36:20 +0000

I neglected to mention… whenever I say we plan to buy a “new” car, I mean new to us. Not new. Definitely looking at models that are 1-2 years old. I let someone else take the depreciation hit.

By: B7

B7 — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 14:01:54 +0000

Instead of buying a new car, buy a reliable (Honda or Toyota) used car that is 3 years old and gets good mileage. It only costs 50% of the price of the new car, and will last 10 years, especially if you don’t drive more than 10,000 miles per year.

By the way, I am on a similar plan. I finish paying off my car in 3 months (after 5 years!) and will never get a car loan again. It’s either pay cash or keep driving the same car.

Also, buying a used car for cash puts us on the other side of the debt/ wealth curve. Instead of paying interest on a $25,000 car for 5 years, we can pay cash for a used car that costs $15,000. Then, we can invest that remaining $10,000. After 5 years growing at 10%, it becomes $16,000. That is a passive income of over $1,000 per year.