how long do you keep your vehicles?

dcjredline said:
Ive had multiple cars I bought for <$1000 and also used to finance a new car every 2 years...DUMB DUMB DUMB cause I didn't have the income to take that kind of loss on new cars every 2 years!

Now I buy cars ONLY in cash and only at a BIG BIG BARGIAN, keep them till they are no longer worth keeping. Have had my 02 Bonneville for 2yrs, and my 89 Formula for over 8 years now. I will probably keep the Formula for ever and like I said the Bonne will go when the repairs outweigh the value.
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I think you are looking at two extremes though. Managing debt is okay. Having unmanageable debt is not!

Some people have just accepted a car payment as a permanent part of their budget. And that's okay too, if that's how they want to do it. I'm tempted to do the math and see which way you actually 'win'. Whether keeping a car a few years after it's been paid off and trading it in with lesser value, or trading your car in before it's paid off (but when it's still 'young' enough to be worth something), keeping yourself in perpetual payment mode, BUT having less of a purchase price.

I know some people who have a seperate savings account and put a 'payment' in that account each month. They use it for repairs to their car and, eventually, to buy a new one outright.

As far as repairs outweighing the value, I think that's relative. If your car is an old, but reliable car and needs $2,000 in repairs (like a new transmission) but is in otherwise great shape; yet is only worth $2,000, I think you can still come out ahead. After all the only car you can get for $2,000 is one as old and high mileage as the one you are wanting to fix!
 
My parents replace their daily drivers about every 6-8 years. They usually like to wait a year without payments, 5 years financed.

Had my 77 Ranchero for 3.5 years. 02 F150 for 3.5 years. Current truck is going on 5 months.
 
Till they
A: Die
B: Repair outweighs keeping
C: Gets given to one of the kids

My Bike on the other hand, Its a Triumph,, Its not going anywhere while its not totaled.
 
Always over 100K miles. I think the highest was 110K.
 
My wife gets a new car every 10 years, my truck was bought new in 1996 and still looks fantastic.
I take care of them so they always look their best.
As for my truck, well it has 230k on it but have no plans in getting rid of it, still runs like the day I bought it, might be time to change out the shocks being I lost a little of that GMC ride but everything is fine with it.
 
Like I said, for ME it was dumb cause I didnt have the income to justify it. I kept rolling negative equity into the next one and the next one.

I personally wont use debt anymore, after my house is paid off. I can tell u not having payments for ME isnt only about math, its also about the FREEEEEEDOM u get by not owing anyone (again besides my house) anything.

Sent from my SCH-I405 using AG Online
 
Got my S-10 in high school. Still have it 10 years later. It became my dedicated "project truck" after it got rear-ended and I got a new DD.

My new DD I've had about a year now and I'm ready to trade it in. Not happy with an SUV... Bad decision :bash:
 
Typically pretty long. When I buy a car I do it because I really like the car and want to keep it a long time; or until I find something I like better! :)
 
My mustang-12 yrs by the end of this month
My ranger I just bought (back in I think May) but I plan on keeping that till it's no longer drivable. So for about 20+ years (great lil beater) and my mustang another 12 years or so.
I use nothing but top quality fluids/greases and top of the line replacement parts so they just keep going and going. Both vehicles were purchased in cash cause car payments are for the birds. I'll buy a new car/truck when I retire :)
 
I lease a new car every two to three years. The mathematics are close, but I find it beneficial to lease and give the car back.
 
I have had my current car for over 9 years now. It has about 120k on it. But the last 3 years I haven't racked up the miles like I was in the previous years. I drive locally and once in awhile take a longer drive. Its been paid off for 5 years. I haven't been interested in taking on car payments again. When its starts becoming a money pit is when I'll get a new car but as of right now just routine maintenance costs and its running fine.
 
I keep mine until the wheels fall off or they start costing me more to keep them than to get something else.

Currently have:

05 Ram with 76K
06 Jeep Liberty with 101K
 
since 1994...
88 ranger sold @ 129K miles
94 intrepid sold @ 117K miles
01 intrepid traded in at @ 161k miles
08 avenger current @ 72K miles

keep them long time, until repairs are more than replacement cars payment.
 
I had my F150 for 10 years, and it had 249,000 miles on it when I sold it.
 
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