how do you justify buying a NEW car?

wardog · Feb 21, 2004

351CJ said:
The question I have is how do you justify spending any $$ on modifying your car. ?

Virtually any $$ you spend on modifications is worth ZERO the day you fork your money over. Then once you install your aftermarket parts the value of your car usually goes down making it a double loss.

Before the concept Stang came out, I was all set on buying an 01/02 GT in 04, and spending the money getting it the way I would want it. Wheels, tires, suspension, seats, shifter and engine mods. I added it all up and with the car I was looking at about $25K.

Then I saw the 05 and have become obsessed. I will still probably replace the wheels (if I can't get the 18's) & stereo, but I will not spend anywhere near the amount in mods I had planned for the 01/02. When I sell the 05 for a 07/08 Cobra, I figure I'll get more out of it than the 01/02 with lots of aftermarket stuff on it.

shatner saves · Feb 21, 2004

http://www.topfive.com/arcs/t5032603.shtml

siege · Feb 21, 2004

how do I justify modding? its mine, I'll make it look/handle/go fast/sound/whatever like I want. I personally don't think you should worry about your cars resale value...you're NEVER gonna make any money off of it, and you RARELY break even, so what's the point? and seriously, how many people buy cars with the intention of selling them in a few years? I sure don't. just driving the stupid thing makes the value go down, so what are you gonna do? not drive it? only put 300mi/yr on it? whats the point? like was said before, the people that just see it as transportation are the ones that won't mod it. driving is an experience...you might as well enjoy it

Heathdude · Feb 21, 2004

Midlife crisis worked good for me.

66Satellite · Feb 21, 2004

siege said:
how do I justify modding? its mine, I'll make it look/handle/go fast/sound/whatever like I want. I personally don't think you should worry about your cars resale value...you're NEVER gonna make any money off of it, and you RARELY break even, so what's the point? and seriously, how many people buy cars with the intention of selling them in a few years? I sure don't. just driving the stupid thing makes the value go down, so what are you gonna do? not drive it? only put 300mi/yr on it? whats the point? like was said before, the people that just see it as transportation are the ones that won't mod it. driving is an experience...you might as well enjoy it

This is why up to now I've liked classic cars. You get your money back plus interest when you go to sell 'em. You won't get your labor back, but you should get cost of new parts back if you do it right.

s7v7n · Feb 21, 2004

Heathdude said:
Midlife crisis worked good for me.

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaa

Stangston · Feb 21, 2004

I would justify buying a new car based on how much $$ I have. If there was $200k sitting in the bank account, I wouldn't think twice about buying a new Mustang if I wanted one.

However, that's not the case, and I couldn't justify buying a new car at this time. I bought my 99' GT in 2000, completely loaded except automatic (as I wanted), the color I wanted, and perfect condition for $9k less than the new price. To me, that felt 10X better than buying a brand new car...the satisfaction of getting a great deal on a car seemingly new. And I didn't have to worry about driving it off the lot with immediate depreciation, the initial break-in period, when the mileage began racking up, losing its newness, or the possible devastation of getting a dent/scratch, etc. Number of problems I've had with this car in the 3-4 years of ownership? Zero. I was also thought of as the rich guy with the brand new Mustang GT in highschool and got "best car"--when in reality, it was about in the same class pricewise as other's new Civics, used Jeeps, Pontiacs, and so on. It was really funny being so untrue--and that's just it--95% of the people will think your used car is new.

In conclusion, if you have excess money, then buy new. If you don't, then rather than settling for a lesser car new, buy a used car you want.

Rootus · Feb 21, 2004

Stangston said:
... the initial break-in period,

Saving $9k is good, but what you said about break-in is one of the reasons I would like to buy brand new. Who knows if the guy who bought it brand new followed any kind of break-in, maybe he went sideways down the street in front of the dealer . More important on some motors than others... but I like to know what's happened during those critical early miles.

Dave

falchulk · Feb 21, 2004

Buying a 1 year old car makes no sense. Its likely got problems or the owner would not have traded it in. Buying a used v8 mustang itself is a crap shoot. People flog these cars. Think of what youy would do to lease if you were turning it in 3 years later. Its not like a family car.

66Satellite · Feb 21, 2004

falchulk said:
Buying a 1 year old car makes no sense. Its likely got problems or the owner would not have traded it in. Buying a used v8 mustang itself is a crap shoot. People flog these cars. Think of what youy would do to lease if you were turning it in 3 years later. Its not like a family car.

I'd wait at least 3 years on an American car or 5 years on Japanese or German car. And I wouldn't buy from dealer, I'd only buy from a mature original owner who had all the service records. And no lease returns. People treat lease cars like rental cars.

Stangston · Feb 21, 2004

Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but I think so many people have misconceptions about used items is general. These people usually think linearly in that, if it's used, it has problems. Let's be realistic here.

First off, I don't remember the release of the 99-04 body style, but I'm assuming late 1998? I purchased late 2000, so that's more like 2 years old.

Anyways, a used car having mechanical problems as the reason being sold early on is probably one of the least likely reasons. Think about it. You buy your $27k 2005 Mustang GT and love it to death. Twenty thousand miles down the road, being completely under warranty, it has a mechanical problem. Would you screw the warranty and quickly sell it back for $13k as fast as possible? If you liked the car, that would be completely ignorant.

What are some likely reasons the car was turned in after two years?
1. A Mustang GT was not right for them--it didn't offer the comfort or performance they desired.
2. The person was in financial trouble, bought the car new, and simply couldn't afford it. Rather than struggling through life with no money, they had to sell the car.
3. This person was not satisifed with the snowy traction, and it simply wasn't a practical car to own for their yearly driving conditions.
4. They bought a silver Mustang, and in 2000, they really wished they had purchased black, and the new headlights and scoops were the deal breaker. Furthermore, they decided it was time to upgrade to Cobra or another special model.
5. The lease was up, and it was time for something fresh. Many people like to upgrade cars every 2 or 3 years.
6. Manual transmission was fun at first, but it really was a pain when they lived in a city with traffic, or they did alot of traveling.
7. The person/people were trying to make this a family/friend car, when no one could fit in the back.
8. They needed an SUV to haul stuff. It just was an impractical decision and an impulse purchase.

I could go on and on, but I won't bore you all. The fact of the matter is that mechanical problems are not the likely problem. If they liked the car and it had mechanical problems, it would be fixed under warranty. And looking down the road after warranty was up, how many people put $14k+ into a car soon after?

Purchasing a car slightly used is a bad decision? Yeah, let's buy a Mustang after it has no warranty, and the sold reason being mechanical problems is more likely. I had 16k miles left on warranty when purchased. If I felt the car was not confident in reliability, I could turn around and sell it a year later if desired.

I have this exact same trouble convincing people that buying used items off Ebay aren't flawed. Ahhh...some people will never learn.

s7v7n · Feb 21, 2004

Stangston said:
Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but I think so many people have misconceptions about used items is general. These people usually think linearly in that, if it's used, it has problems. Let's be realistic here.

First off, I don't remember the release of the 99-04 body style, but I'm assuming late 1998? I purchased late 2000, so that's more like 2 years old.

Anyways, a used car having mechanical problems as the reason being sold early on is probably one of the least likely reasons. Think about it. You buy your $27k 2005 Mustang GT and love it to death. Twenty thousand miles down the road, being completely under warranty, it has a mechanical problem. Would you screw the warranty and quickly sell it back for $13k as fast as possible? If you liked the car, that would be completely ignorant.

What are some likely reasons the car was turned in after two years?
1. A Mustang GT was not right for them--it didn't offer the comfort or performance they desired.
2. The person was in financial trouble, bought the car new, and simply couldn't afford it. Rather than struggling through life with no money, they had to sell the car.
3. This person was not satisifed with the snowy traction, and it simply wasn't a practical car to own for their yearly driving conditions.
4. They bought a silver Mustang, and in 2000, they really wished they had purchased black, and the new headlights and scoops were the deal breaker. Furthermore, they decided it was time to upgrade to Cobra or another special model.
5. The lease was up, and it was time for something fresh. Many people like to upgrade cars every 2 or 3 years.
6. Manual transmission was fun at first, but it really was a pain when they lived in a city with traffic, or they did alot of traveling.
7. The person/people were trying to make this a family/friend car, when no one could fit in the back.
8. They needed an SUV to haul stuff. It just was an impractical decision and an impulse purchase.

I could go on and on, but I won't bore you all. The fact of the matter is that mechanical problems are not the likely problem. If they liked the car and it had mechanical problems, it would be fixed under warranty. And looking down the road after warranty was up, how many people put $14k+ into a car soon after?

Purchasing a car slightly used is a bad decision? Yeah, let's buy a Mustang after it has no warranty, and the sold reason being mechanical problems is more likely. I had 16k miles left on warranty when purchased. If I felt the car was not confident in reliability, I could turn around and sell it a year later if desired.

I have this exact same trouble convincing people that buying used items off Ebay aren't flawed. Ahhh...some people will never learn.

Ebay items aren't flawed, however, the people are

SVTdriver · Feb 21, 2004

66Satellite said:
I'd wait at least 3 years on an American car or 5 years on Japanese or German car. And I wouldn't buy from dealer, I'd only buy from a mature original owner who had all the service records. And no lease returns. People treat lease cars like rental cars.

You like the classics. Which is why you can't justify the purchase of a new car. Yes you can get some money back from the sale of a classic. But I bought my 66 fastback for me. Since high school it had been my dream car. So I have no real intentions right now of selling. I am debating putting a mod motor into it. And that likely will not show any gain if I do sell it.

Buying cars is a state of mind. If you plan on selling in 2-3 years and can afford it. Then do it. Or buy used beat the hell out of it. And still sell. But if you're planning on keeping it for a long period of time. Then why not spend the money to make it better. Whether it's a suspension upgrade or a body kit.

351CJ · Feb 21, 2004

SVTdriver said:
The people that have a real passion for performance cars mod them. The people people that see them as transportation don't. I'm not trying to bash you or anything like that. BUt it doesn't seem like you have a real passion for mustangs.

One could argue that the people who have a real passion for Mustangs leave them bone stock, just the way Ford intended. It could be said that those who modify their Mustangs really don't have a passion for them as they don't really like them they way they were designed and built.

The point I was trying to make is that if one's only concern was transportation we'd all be driving Toyota Echos. Spending money on a new car AND spending money on modifying a car (used or new) are both very bad investments and impossible to justify by rational financial analysis.

So in other words, this whole topic is sort of silly. Buying a Mustang, new or used doesn't stand up to any measure of sane personal economics. So as some have suggested, buying a Mustang and modifiying it is a human emotional need.

66Satellite · Feb 21, 2004

351CJ said:
One could argue that the people who have a real passion for Mustangs leave them bone stock, just the way Ford intended. It could be said that those who modify their Mustangs really don't have a passion for them as they don't really like them they way they were designed and built.

The point I was trying to make is that if one's only concern was transportation we'd all be driving Toyota Echos. Spending money on a new car AND spending money on modifying a car (used or new) are both very bad investments and impossible to justify by rational financial analysis.

So in other words, this whole topic is sort of silly. Buying a Mustang, new or used doesn't stand up to any measure of sane personal economics. So as some have suggested, buying a Mustang and modifiying it is a human emotional need.

Well, I figure we're all car nuts here, so an Echo just isn't an option. And I figure we're all working within whatever budgets we feel we can justify. And if you're purely a Mustang nut, sure, a 5 year old Boxtser isn't going to interest you. But if you're budgeting for a $25k car, though, do you buy a new GT or a 2-3 year old Cobra? Or do you buy a 5 year old GT and have $10-15k to go nuts on the thing? Or do you buy a 10 year old GT, a $1000 pickup and a 65 Mustang project car? Etc....

Jeffspeed24 · Feb 22, 2004

Pending on my budget, i might be getting a 01 GT over the 05, though some will argue that used mustangs are usually driven hard, its going to be my weekend racer, not my daily driver.

spanky442 · Feb 22, 2004

Well, most Mustangs do not have a babied life. Yeah, everyone garages them and drives them on nice days but even those people like to do a burn out here and there. There is nothing wrong with buying used cars. As long as you are careful and have the car checked you should not have a problem. Most people get rid of their cars early because of lease returns or they just don't want the car for whatever reason. But another example is this forum. Many people in this forum have newer Mustangs allready and are talking of selling or trading for an 05. I think this is the most common reason. People want the latest and greatest. As soon as something new comes out the old is no good to them. Not me, I plan to keep my 93 and 97 Cobras. I am going to wait for next Cobra and if it interests me I may consider buying one. But I'm not getting rid of any of my old ones to buy a new one.

MidnightThunder · Feb 22, 2004

re:

All the justification one needs is the fact that they want to.

GREENBIOCH · Feb 22, 2004

Selling crack to kids on the weekends is how I justify a new car.

Ron Jeremy · Feb 22, 2004

And making skin flicks is how I can afford to buy my Mustangs. I always buy new. I don't want to inherit the past owner's problems. I prefer a virgin factory brand new vehicle even though I don't don't prefer virgins to be in any of my skin flicks.

how do you justify buying a NEW car?

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