How to maximise value when buying??

SM746

Just interested in people's thoughts / opinions.

I bought my car new and have drove it for 10 years + but will change in the next year or two.

What is the best way to maximise value in car purchasing?
Is going new and driving into the ground the best way or are you better to go 3/4 years old when buying, etc etc!
Just be interested to get some perspective in what people think.

James Bond Junior

I've bought cars from 10k to 20k in the last 4 years which I've needed to spend nothing on. None were new but 4 years old and they haven't needed anything spent on them bar routine servicing costs. I currently drive a car which cost me 1k and no sooner have I spent money fixing it/managed to fix something myself than something else pops up. While I have more money in my pocket overall the constant spending on niggly things is a pain.

Tldr; spending cheap can cost you as much day to day as buying new and not having that worry.

bazz26

Buy a model that is soon to be replaced by a newer model, at a large discounted price and keep it for 10+ years.

You are still buying a new or nearly new car but at a cheaper price as it's coming to the end of it's life cycle, no risk of being neglected by it's previous owner, will still have the full manufacturer's warranty for a number of years and keeping it for years will mean depreciation is minimum.

Something like the now old model Ford Mondeo comes to mind.

Atlantic Dawn

Calculate that whatever you buy will be worth 50% at best of what you purchased it for in 3 years time, the more you spend the more you lose.

Idbatterim

the only cheap motoring is a cheap to run a bangernomic, no depreciation, no loan etc...

9935452

Idbatterim wrote: »

the only cheap motoring is a cheap to run a bangernomic, no depreciation, no loan etc...

Yup no loan is one of the biggest ways to cut your costs that noone seems to thing of

SM746

Was always preached by my father that buying a car 4 years old and swapping it every 3/4 years was the best method! Always the one he follows so probably the reason for his love for it!
Buying bangors is cheap but I would fancy my luck would be crap going down this route and I'd end up with pure duds regularly.

9935452

SM746 wrote: »

Was always preached by my father that buying a car 4 years old and swapping it every 3/4 years was the best method! Always the one he follows so probably the reason for his love for it!
Buying bangors is cheap but I would fancy my luck would be crap going down this route and I'd end up with pure duds regularly.

knowing the history of the car helps a lot when doing this. A friend bought a 92 carina off his sister 10 years ago and the car never causes problems or costs money to keep going