I wasn’t posting today because we bought a new vehicle. While looking, I visited a couple of car lots in the Denver area.
They are full to the brim, jam packed with mostly new vehicles. It’s hard to find a parking spot on the lots of almost every car dealer.
If there’s an expectation that the Trump tariffs will immediately jack up the price of everything, I don’t think that’s going to happen, for cars at least. Unless I’m misunderstanding tariffs, they won’t be retroactive. In other words, if the vehicle has some percentage of foreign parts, it’s only when those parts are shipped to the factory that the tariff will be applied. So the current (to my eyes, heavy) inventory on dealers’ lots would have to be sold before the new prices would hit.
Even so-called “Japanese cars” are often built in the US or Mexico, and the percentage of non-North American parts in a couple we looked at was like 20%. Unless Trump decides to defy USMCA (the new NAFTA), the percentage of foreign parts isn’t enough to make the price go up like a rocket.
In Denver, a couple of months ago you could lease a Nissan Leaf electric vehicle for $25/month with nothing down. The cost has since risen a bit, since some tax credits have expired. Still, even though you could get a decent electric car for the monthly cost of a fast food meal, at least one of the Nissan lots I visited had what looked like at least a hundred brand-new Leafs. Presumably the economics of a tariff-driven spike in prices would lead to people grudgingly leasing those vehicles if they had to.
Anyway, this is anecdata, but the specter of tariffs didn’t push me to buy a vehicle, just need and a good deal on a 2024 model.
Open thread.
Trivia Man
Like they care
–
Trivia Man
@Trivia Man: plausible deniability
just like pump prices rise within hours if any event that impacts gas.
Sorry 🤷🏽♀️ It’s the tariffs donchaknow.
John Cole
What did you get?
Torrey
I was gonna ask what you got, but since J. Cole asked first, I’ll just sit back and await the answer. I’m wondering if you got a 2024 (new car, presumably) because the deals on the 2024s are better than the deals on cars a couple-three years old. My Corolla has just passed the 200,000 mile mark, and it’s about time to think about getting something younger (and with all the safety features).
cain
Next year our lease on our Tesla will expire so we will look for something else.
SpaceUnit
$25/month? That has to be a typo.
trollhattan
I presume Team Trump makes it near impossible to sell an EV not labeled Tesla and ponder the wreckage.
They’re coming after the CA 2035 EV requirement.
Starfish (she/her)
With the current prices of new vehicles, a lot of people are not buying because they cannot afford them. There are a lot of “The Middle Class can’t afford new cars” articles right now with the average cost of a new car being near $50,000.
@mistermix.bsky.social
@John Cole: 2024 Nissan Frontier long bed crew cab. Passed over Toyota Tacoma because the new model just had 41,000 transmissions recalled, and the 100K Tundra engines were recalled, so there’s nfw I’d get in for service at a Toyota dealer around here. Also, the Tundra is a turbo 4 cylinder engine, as is the Ford Ranger, which is in the size range we were looking for. (The mileage is about the same as the 6 cyl naturally aspirated V6 in the Frontier, but they aren’t as good for towing/carrying stuff in the mountains of Colorado.)
Our conversion van has almost 80K miles on it and doesn’t have 4wd. We’re looking for a vehicle that will take us more places and perhaps either tow something or put a pop-up topper on it for camping. The long bed is for the topper, if we get that.
My car decisions are based on wanting to do more long-term vehicle travel. If we weren’t traveling, I’d probably get a compact AWD suv like a CR-V or HR-V. Our 2004 CR-V was the best vehicle we ever had. We sold it when we moved, but I still miss that thing.
FDRLincoln
I will plod along with my 2005 Buick LaCrosse (175,000 miles) indefinitely
My wife’s 2010 Ford Escape is up to 210,000 miles and the transmission is starting to go. It will be at least a year before we can take on a car payment, so we just have to cross our fingers about the transmission
@mistermix.bsky.social
@SpaceUnit: I got it straight from a car salesman at a Nissan dealership. He said that the offer is no longer good, but the dealers got huge breaks for selling/leasing Leafs. Now they’re more like $169/month. Still cheap.
Baud
@Starfish (she/her):
Those will die off as we get closer to the inauguration.
Jeffro
From now ’til the end of the year is THE time to be wheeling & dealing on a new car. Per Mrs. Fro, our resident car-buying expert. ;)
Omnes Omnibus
@Starfish (she/her): My brother just bought a new Accord SE for around $30K. Just saying. Now, if you want to argue that $30K is too much, I am open to that argument. But an Accord for $20K under that average you quoted says that there are a lot of really expensive cars out there not that you can’t get a very good car for less than $50K.
Steven Holmes
Tariffs will hit clothing and electronics first. We already have 25% duties on Chinese products, do going to 60% will be about a 35% increase.
FDRLincoln
I think it will take time for the average consumer to suffer from the tariffs.
However, deporting the farm labor force will have an immediate impact on food prices.
A Ghost to Most
Just saw a Nissan ad on a Denver station. $169/month for Ariya, $109/month for Leaf.
Parfigliano
@Starfish (she/her): No worries. Trump will fix that.😉
Starfish (she/her)
@Omnes Omnibus: I have always driven small, fuel efficient vehicles because I am not a car person, and my impression is people are complaining about the American car manufacturers not making anything small.
I think the issue is that my husband wants the next car to be small AND electric, and there is a chance that he is being a nerd concerned with things that do not matter.
Him: “But the range…!”
Me: “We are not taking a road trip in an electric vehicle.”
VFX Lurker
Yep. I am upgrading my PC, my husband’s PC, my phone and maybe his phone before January 20th. I was planning to put off upgrading until next summer, but oh, well…
RaflW
I’ve flown a few times recently. On my flights (and at least one that BF was on that I wasn’t) load factors are down. Now, this is a slow period typically, but I’d expect airlines to have pared down schedules knowing this.
I also stayed in a pretty decent Hampton Inn in Denver for 94 bucks, hadn’t see things that cheap in a while. My rental car was also $40/day including the absurdly high taxes and ‘facilities charges’. Again, cheapest I’d seen for an Int. SUV in ages around Denver.
I think there’s a mini-slowdown happening, but it might just be phantom. Car dealer stock surging might align with that? Hmm.
bbleh
Yeah let’s not assume tariffs are gonna cause a price revolution. *IF* and *WHEN* they’re imposed — and I’m willing to bet at least SOME will be imposed for pure show value because the Idiot has talked about them so much, but it’s not at all clear how widely or rapidly they’ll be implemented — then they’ll show up in retail prices eventually and to the degree retailers (and final product assemblers if applicable) decide to pass them on vs. absorbing some of them for various reasons.
Offhand, I would guess the impact of Reichsführer Miller’s deportation schemes on prices will be worse (quite apart from the terrible human cost).
None of this is to say we shouldn’t SCREAM AT THE TOPS OF OUR LUNGS about how TARIFFS ARE MAKIN’ MAH
AIGSSHIRTS ‘N’ UNDERWEAR COST MORE!!! But speaking realistically, I wouldn’t look for the effects to be particularly significant in the short run, or possibly ever if the Idiot can be distracted sufficiently.Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Omnes Omnibus:
Hey, I just wanted to say thank you for showing concern for me a few weeks back with my work situation.
And I wanted to say I’m sorry for the Biden thing. I won’t bring it up anymore from now on
HeleninEire
So glad I live in a city. I hate driving. Cars are so expensive. Both purchase and maintenance. It’s been 15 year since I’ve been behind a wheel. I will probably never drive again.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@RaflW:
Might be consistent with a soft landing
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Steven Holmes:
Do watches count as electronics?
RaflW
@Omnes Omnibus: Fullsize pickups are eye wateringly expensive. And popular! I assume that’s part of driving the averages up.
BF’s mom just bought a Corolla Cross, she paid sticker for it, which I think was about $35,000 (plus taxes and stuff). Trade in offer was bad, so she sold private and did decent on her well-loved 2005 Corolla 4 dr. Even has AWD, a first for her!
Omnes Omnibus
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): You are welcome. I would just say that both situations involve situational awareness. For future reference.
Gvg
You are leaving out panic buying and I don’t think full lots are more than a month of inventory. Those prices will be marked up to near what the tariff results turn out to be, just a little less, so that the dealerships can get more profit before the market crashes. Not sure that I blame the when I think about that. Otherwise other sales people will buy the cars and resell them, to get the profit, so the dealers may as well. The domestic manufacturers will also raise their prices. Scarcity will drive prices up and if they don’t capture the margin, other people will do it by buying and reselling. Nothing can prevent that except maybe price controls. I can’t imagine republicans going for that. Not sure I would either but I wouldn’t have been stupid enough to propose this tariff.
mrmoshpotato
Missing a zero there?
Starfish (she/her)
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
Get yourself a cheap watch here.
RaflW
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I do hate it when my economy (or my plane) crashes.
Omnes Omnibus
@RaflW: And who the fuck needs a full sized pick-up? Let alone one with more luxuries than a Range Rover? My family is looking at getting a old pick-up to use at our cabin. A real working vehicle, but even for that, we are looking a small pick-up. $5-10k and who cares about dents….
Steve LaBonne
I keep cars forever. I put 250,000 miles on a Fit (I had an obnoxiously long commute). My 2014 Civic, with a little over 120,000 miles, will stay on the road as long as I can drive. I convinced my wife to break her longtime leasing habit and we own her 2019 CR-V free and clear as well. We’re bad for the economy. ;)
eclare
@@mistermix.bsky.social:
I love my 2017 CR-V.
laura
@FDRLincoln: you do not want to hear about my catastrophic transmission failure on the Oakland Bay Bridge during a rainstorm on my way to a flight to a work convention in Florida in January of 2020 at all, in any way. Short version, get on that transmission right the fuck now.
Dan B
@SpaceUnit: My partner, the “gearhead”, just explained that it6 $3,000 down and then a wildly subsidized $25 a month because Colorado decided to do it. Very jealous here in WA.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Starfish (she/her):
LMAOOOO! $1300 for an NH35! Seiko manufacturers these for third party watch brands that you can buy for a few hundred dollars at most. The most I’ve ever seen a watch with an NH35 movement sell for is like $500-600. The MSRP for Seiko watches with the 4r36, Seiko’s internal name for the movement, is $325.
Seiko 5 Sports SRPD61
Much better looking than that gaudy piece of shit too. Diamonds on watches are tacky imo
RaflW
@Omnes Omnibus: I drove a Ram pickup around Taos a couple times when I was dating a guy there a couple decades ago. I hated it (and generally I love to drive). Jebus H LeChristmas, it was huge, ungainly, ugly and guzzled gas. He kinda regretted owning it, but was fairly stuck with it as replacing it meant taking on more debt.
(We parted ways amicably long ago. He now lives in a rent controlled appt. in Manhattan and hasn’t owned a vehicle for at least 15 years. That’s one way to rebound from a pickup mistake.)
eclare
@laura:
Your comment is my nightmare. I already don’t like bridges, and with car trouble? Yikes.
SpaceUnit
@Dan B:
Interesting. I’m in Colorado so I guess I need to look into it.
Nukular Biskits
Given my work commute is thirty-seven miles one way, I’d like to get an EV or a plug-in hybrid.
I really am wondering if I should do that before 20JAN.
laura
@laura: also, I loved that Ford Escape so very much, and after replacing the transmission and giving it to my darling nephew, it crapped out on him a year and change later on a drive back from Las Vegas that could easily have gone really south.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Omnes Omnibus:
I wish they still made trucks like this: 1999 Ford Ranger
FDRLincoln
What cars have you all had? My list, in chronological order, beginning when I turned 16 in 1983.
1972 Buick LeSabre 1983 to 1986
1977 Ford Mustang II 1986 to 1991
1990 Mitsubishi Mirage 1991 to 1994 wrecked
1994 Ford Aspire only car I ever bought new 1994 to 2007
1992 Olds Cierra 1998 to 2003
1989 Chevy Beretta 1998 to 2004
1998 Mazda 626 2004 to 2009
2005 Buick LaCrosse 2009 to 2021, totaled in wreck, replaced with another
2005 Buick LaCrosse
None of the wrecks were my fault.
eclare
I know I’ve complained about drivers in Memphis here before, statistics bear me out. Well insurance companies are factoring that in. I just got my six month renewal notice for my car, and it’s within $100 of what my homeowners is for an entire year. So twice my homeowners for a year.
No claims since mid-2000’s, no moving violations.
It is scary to drive here.
Dan B
@Dan B: Noticed that it’s $109 and $169 instead of $25 but that’s much less than here, sigh.
RevRick
Back in 2021, my daughter and son-in-law needed a new car, pronto! So I drove down to their place and chauffeured them around to various dealerships. The sparse pickings were quite astonishing. On more than one occasion they were told that they couldn’t expect delivery for three months on a model that interested them. It soon became apparent that they had to choose between three possibilities. None exactly thrilled them, but they all served the need. SIL preferred a Mazda, but my practical-minded daughter preferred the Honda HRV. It was available for immediate purchase in Henry Ford’s favorite color. Which they now own.
Our 2019 Hyundai Tucson recently hit 35,000 miles.
Starfish (she/her)
@SpaceUnit: People were stacking all sorts of electric vehicle discounts.
laura
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Diamonds on watches are tacky imo
Diamonds should only be on the soles of one’s shoes, or so I’ve been told:https://youtu.be/MvARI6KOmVQ?
eclare
@Nukular Biskits:
I would at least look into it, hasn’t TCFG also mentioned doing away with the credits?
Dan B
@SpaceUnit: The Aryia at $169 looks good. It has the new plug for the chargers that will be most common. The plug for the Leaf is going away fairly quickly, at least here.
frosty
I bought a 2014 Mazda 3 with 18,000 miles in 2017 – it’s at about 100,000 now. I figured that if I could get 20 years and 200,000 miles out of it, it would be my last car ever. By then the kids will take away the keys LOL.
It gets 40mpg highway, high 30s for the type of driving I do so I don’t see the point in going electric or hybrid. And I really like it. Manual transmission (aka Millenial anti-theft device)!
gene108
Investors want the two U.S. based manufacturers to keep profits up. Best way for Ford and GM to do this is sell fewer more expensive vehicles.
One reason why affordable cars are harder to come by. Foreign manufacturers are still willing to compete on volume.
Omnes Omnibus
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): That’s the kind of thing we are looking for.
SpaceUnit
@Starfish (she/her):
Ah. I see that the catch is that you have to trade in your combustion vehicle.
There’s no way I’m parting ways with my 2003 Wrangler. I love that Jeep and it only got to 100,00 miles last summer. It’s barely broken in.
Gretchen
@FDRLincoln: That’s why we decided now is the time. My husband’s 2014 Ford Escape just had another $1000 repair, for a total of $4000 this year. His Ford mechanic friend said he can reliably predict which parts will fail in which order, and this car was on the downswing. And I remember when covid messed up the supply chains and there were absolutely no cars on the lot. I think it’s a good bet that Trump will mess things up – we just don’t know how. We got a 2024 Subaru Outback.
TheOtherHank
My ’98 CRV is closing in on 250,000 miles, or as I like to say “a quarter of a million miles”. I was looking at getting a hybrid Maverick, but then I lost my job, so I’m hoping it keeps going until I rectify that problem.
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: Please check your spam folder.
FDRLincoln
@Gretchen: I wish I could afford a car payment but we are still paying off debts incurred during the pandemic. Another year and we should be clear of debt except for the house. Assuming we still have jobs.
Nukular Biskits
@FDRLincoln: Not including motorcycles:
Nukular Biskits
@eclare:
Yeah, but I’m not at a point to commit to buying one, even with the credits. ☹️
Omnes Omnibus
@WaterGirl: Check your email.
Nukular Biskits
@TheOtherHank:
My F150, with 335K miles, says you’re just breaking that CRV in.
FDRLincoln
@Nukular Biskits: you had a Regal TType? Awesome. I love my Buicks.
Starfish (she/her)
@Nukular Biskits:
Thank you for telling me the answer to your bank account’s secret question about your first car’s make.
Gin & Tonic
@frosty:
Pretty much describes my Miata, plus I have top-down fun. But not a winter car here in New England.
FDRLincoln
@Starfish (she/her): hadn’t thought about that. I am not paranoid enough for the modern world.
Nukular Biskits
@FDRLincoln:
Indeed.
I loved that car … but paid way too much for it and had to let it go when the first child showed up.
Couldn’t afford diapers, formula and car notes.
Nukular Biskits
@Starfish (she/her):
LOL! Well, the list here is just the ones I’m willing to admit to.
Gretchen
@FDRLincoln: I know and sympathize. That was us for most of our married life, but the kids are now grown and (mostly) self-sufficient. We had more falling-apart old cars with repairs on the credit card than I care to remember. We were into our 60s before we got our first new car. Good luck.
Kelly
@FDRLincoln:
1963 VW Beetle
1956 Ford 1/2 ton pickup
1953 GMC 1/2 ton pickup, 6 window, only one rust spot, this is the one I wish I’d kept
1979 Rabbit, really great ski car. Better on plowed road, packed snow and ice than a 4WD. great mileage
1985 Nissan 4×4 king cab
1992 Plymouth Grand Voyager
1999 Dodge AWD Grand Caravan
2001 Toyota 4Runner – 20 years of faithful service, stepson is still driving it
2018 Toyota Highlander AWD, a comfy station wagon for rough roads and snow
eemom
Shortly before the election we bought a 2017 Ford F150 with 71k miles. I dunno, my husband wanted it and said the price ($25k) was reasonable . The mofo’s so big I’m terrified to drive it.
I drive a 2007 PT Cruiser. Before that I drove a 2006 PT Cruiser. My son makes fun of me but I hope to drive PT cruisers until I die. They’re comfy.
#dontknowshitaboutcars
RaflW
@FDRLincoln: 1984-present. All used, except the last two.
The Ford was a gift from my dad, he’d bought it used and then passed it to me. Saturn was my moms till she died, then dad transferred that to me and I promptly sold the very snow-averse Ford.
’79 Saab 900
’83 VW Golf
’89(?) Ford Thunderbird
’90(?) Saturn SL
’98 Subaru Forrester
’06 Volvo V70
’15 Subaru Outback
Almost 7 years per car, on average. But the VW and Ford were much shorter so my more recent average is 9-10 years (VW transmission seized for unknown reasons at only about 70K, sold that for cheap to my neighbor)
The Forrester was an absolute champ, put on 136,000 miles after used acquisition. The Volvo was, after a time, a terrible mistake, hence the second ‘roo, which is now nearly 10 years old and another champ.
Omnes Omnibus
I had a 1984 GTI. I could drive that thing my fellow LTs wouldn’t drive their Jeeps. One of the best cars I have ever owned.
FDRLincoln
@Gretchen: I’m 57. Both of our kids are grown but the 19 year old is autistic and requires our full support. I’m OK with never getting a new car again, but I want one last Buick at some point…would love an 18 or 19 Regal.
JMG
Have a 2017 Subaru Forester. Need the space to carry my golf stuff, since in season it’s my locker room. Have 60K miles on it, expect at least that many more. It might outlive me.
Other cars in my life: ’67 Camaro SS. My Dad loved hot cars and so did I. Somehow, his gift did not kill me.
76 VW Rabbit
81 Chevy Nova
96 Mercedes Wagon (inherited from parents)
’04 Toyota Corolla. By far the best car I ever had. Had 200 K miles on it when I gave it to a niece as a HS graduation present. She still has it at 300-plusK
leads us back to the Forester.
Kelly
@Omnes Omnibus: I wanted a GTI but needed a pickup to haul my whitewater raft. The Nissan 4×4 was an OK ski truck.
LivinginExile
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I’m still driving a 1984 ranger. I don’t know which one of us is going to give up first.
trollhattan
@Omnes Omnibus:
Eff-one-fiddy is practically the Official California Veehikle. We love us some trucks and vanishingly few of them are used for anything resembling “work.” Ten million former Camry drivers can’t be wrong.
Was surprised North Carolina highways weren’t similarly truck-clogged, they’re very SUV oriented. Like 2/3 of the fleet. Someday it will snow, ah sweah.
FDRLincoln
My most reliable car was the first 05 LaCrosse…Just normal wear and tear items from 2009 through 2021 when I got rear-ended shortly after turning over 200,000 miles.
The insurance settlement from the other driver was just enough to get another 05 LaCrosse, with fewer miles and more options. So far this car has needed more work but again, mostly normal wear tear stuff. The engine in these cars is the Buick 3800 V6, likely the best engine GM ever made.
Nukular Biskits
@FDRLincoln:
Concur on that Buick 3.8L
jnfr
We bought a ’21 Leaf a year ago when the rebates were on and we’re really happy with it. I’m a fuddy duddy who prefers to own.
I don’t know why the lots are so full but I don’t think the world needs more cars so I hope people are finding other ways to get around.
Steve LaBonne
My understanding is that $60,000 trucks are purchased by economically anxious people. Makes sense, right? (Anyway the economy is now magically much better overnight. Funny how that works.)
trollhattan
@RaflW: Eurotrash!
I approve. Our family collectively: 3 Saabs, 2 Volvos, 1 Audi, 1 VW, 1 BMW.
There was a Jeep and a Subaru, back in the day.
Lyrebird
@Kelly: Learned to drive on a similar Rabbit – awesome little car!
Wish I knew whether my contract was going to get renewed, because we might need a new car in the next four years, argh.
Thinking a Toyota hybrid but not a Prius, they drive like crap and their climate controls are horrible. Might get a used Subuwu instead.
Will probably just limp along with the current car indefinitely though. Maybe get a remote job after another year or so.
Lyrebird
@Nukular Biskits: I mailed my postcards for the MS Supreme Court runoff a day late. Commuting too much and working too many hours right now, and fell asleep on getting them out in the mailbox on the correct day. Sorry! I hope a few get there in time.
FDRLincoln
@Nukular Biskits: its a beast. Decent power and gas mileage with superb reliability as long as you maintain the cooling system properly.
Nukular Biskits
@jnfr:
What kind of range do you get with that Leaf?
Suzanne
@eclare: I have a 2015 CR-V and I love it. It replaced a 2000 CR-V.
When I bought this one, I got the 2WD and not the AWD. I now regret that decision. But when it comes time to replace…. I just want another CR-V.
Martin
Pretty sure car insurance is the current new drag on the industry. It’s increasing WAY faster than inflation (25% in the last year nationally, something like 40% in Florida), mostly due to larger vehicles and more complex vehicles being increasingly expensive to repair in accidents, etc. Car fatalities are shifting from occupants to pedestrians, and as expensive as repairing a quarter panel is, covering a wrongful death payout is several magnitudes larger.
Safety isn’t coming from simple solutions but mostly from jamming more computers and sensors into the vehicle that are expensive to replace. In some cases cars have higher tolerances in engineering which require repair shops to buy new equipment to perform repairs. And some of this is the age-old racket of funneling service work back to dealerships after online car sales zeroed out their profit margins on car sales in order to keep them in business, and with no real competition for certain kinds of repairs, they can charge insurance companies as much as they want (fist bump to hospitals there).
So even if Trump could mitigate the cost effect on car prices, he’s still fighting investor demand for profits which is exactly as @gene108 states, and the reality for the insurance companies of constantly growing costs associated with accidents fueled by consumer demand for bigger, fancier shit.
Nukular Biskits
@Steve LaBonne:
I bought my 2002 F150 XLT Supercrew brand new in September 2002 for $20k (no leather, no “premium sound system, etc).
I’ve looked at comparably equipped newer trucks starting at a ridiculous $45k … and I refuse to pay that for a truck.
persistentillusion
@JMG: 2015 Subie Legacy, just under 60K. Bought used with 25K on it. Love that car. Wish it had 4 cylinders, ocassionally glad it has 6.
Nukular Biskits
@Lyrebird:
Thanks, from this Mississippian!
p.a.
I’m looking Corolla Cross or HR-V to replace my beloved 2010 Zuke SX4, 2.0L cvt😕, which just passed 200k miles. (Lived 2 blocks from the dealer, stopped in on a whim). No issues on the Suzuki besides regular maintenance (including front suspension: new struts Tuesday) but they pulled out of N America in 2012, so parts are becoming an issue. It may have been one of the first subcompact x-overs, awd AND locking diff (up to 30mph), unheard of at the time I think in something that size. List was 19k. It’s been replaced by the S-Cross, and if they were sold here I’d jump. Funny thing, I was totally NOT the target demo: 51 y.o. in ’10, the brochure showed young pups rockclimbing, windsurfing with the car in the foreground. Did wish for more space- downsized from Grand Cherokee.
Might go soft hybrid, but not plugin. Traveling the NE metroplex we go Amtrak all the time, but we do northern New England & upstate NY by car, so plug-in in would be an issue.
Thinking new, haven’t bought used in years, even though I know 1-2 year old are the best values. Do not want to approach $40k.
Really drawn to Subaru, but multiple mechanics have said “ok for 100k, after that…” I keep vehicles until they wear out, and even American stuff can get to 100k now. I currently do 15k+ miles a year. Buick makes a bunch of crossovers, but again: reliability?
Every mechanic I talk to says Toyota for durability, my just-retired guy said it too BUT Honda almost as durable, replacement parts much cheaper than T.
Toyed with the idea of Maverick or Santa Cruz, but reviews have been uneven.
NotMax
Denver can’;t be all that much different than other locales. Dealerships move a LOT of inventory during the Happy Holidays season. and increase the stock on hand accordingly
kalakal
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
Lol! t’s a truly horrible watch. NH35s cost around $50 -60 atm and that’s if you’re buying them individually.
The only visible ‘jewel’ I want on watches is the sapphire crystal ‘glass’
Another Scott
@Steve LaBonne:
I blame Section 179:
(Emphasis added.)
The cynic in me figures more than a few people are setting up a $100 LLC in their basement closet then running out and buying and F-350 Super Duty or a Mercedes G 550 4×4 Squared and writing off the cost on their taxes. Grr…
Best wishes,
Scott.
FDRLincoln
American cars are a lot more reliable than they used to be. I’ve always been partial to used Buicks, which tend to be well-maintained by their owners and more likely to last than their GM badgemates despite using mostly the same parts. Old people buy Buicks and old people usually follow maintenance schedules and don’t abuse their cars too much.
FDRLincoln
When my son turned 16 in 2014, we got him a 2000 Buick Century which had just 60000 miles on it and complete maintenance records from its one owner. 10 years later, he is still driving it. The body is mostly rust and a lot of the electrical options no longer work, but the engine and transmission remain sound.
NotMax
@p.a.
FWIW, extremely happy with the hybrid Maverick. Ordered mine the first year it came out, before manufacture had even begun and yes, there have been growing pains until now for some of the early builds. Same as with any newly introduced model line.
Have there been recall notices? You bet, but I’d guesstimate the vast majority were for software updates/fixes (a commonality spanning virtually all brands). A small number involving mechanical things affected only a relatively tiny percentage, pinpointing those built during specific weeks.
Prices on the new ones, though, no longer as rock bottom as they were. Indeed, a new hybrid is now listed as more expensive to buy than the non-hybrid, a significant sea change.
jnfr
@Nukular Biskits:
This ’21 model goes to 150 miles, approx. We already have solar panels so we charge it up during sunny afternoons (though it works with commercial chargers of course). I am old and don’t drive long drives any more, but it gets us out for errands and doctor’s appointments and visits to parks or whatever.
Nukular Biskits
@jnfr:
Once upon a time, I entertained the idea of buying a Tesla.
No more.
I’m considering a Chevy Bolt or a Nissan Leaf.
trollhattan
Whew, now maybe I can get some sleep.
Soprano2
@Omnes Omnibus: Good luck finding one to buy. We have a 1987 S-10 with a standard transmission. It’s stripped down but I wouldn’t trade it for anything because they don’t make them like that anymore.
After I get the brakes on my Sonata fixed I’m going to trade it in, probably for another sedan or small SUV or crossover. I can’t sell to an individual because it burns oil and I’d have to tell them that. Let the dealer mess with that.
Jacel
@Omnes Omnibus: I had a 1977 Rabbit that was also a surprisingly great car for carrying an electric piano, among other musical gear. Move the front passenger seat forward a little an angle the keyboard case in from the hatchback.
frosty
@Gin & Tonic: We bought a Miata in 1989, the dealer’s third shipment, one of the first 5,000 made. I drove it for 23 years and ~225,000 miles when it got totaled on the Baltimore Beltway (35mph, no injuries).
When it came out I was like: front engine, rear wheel drive, rice burning ragtop. Gotta get me one! I loved my Brits but they were all love/hate. Not the Miata.
Ohio Mom
@gene108: I thought Ford stopped making cars and is only doing trucks now.
NotMax
@Ohio Mom
Cut back on sedans in favor of SUIVs and crossovers.
Ronno2018
Get an electric cargo bike and support your local urbanists fighting for sidewalks, bike lanes and walkable urban communities. https://www.reddit.com/r/fuckcars/s/lgoyvPpDHC
TheQuietOne
@FDRLincoln: The Buick LaCrosse, as I’m sure you know, is darn near bulletproof. The 3.8l V6 is the best engine GM ever made.
Miss Bianca
Pal D’s 2003 F250 is at the dealership getting worked on right now, and while he was waiting for me to come pick him up, he strolled around the lot looking at prices on new F250s. $70,000 base price.
I am never, ever, getting another new vehicle again, most likely. Nursing my ’96 Passport (with the rebuilt engine) along indefinitely.
J_A
@@mistermix.bsky.social:
I actually have a 2004 CRV that’s been with me 20 years, and it’s only 110,000 miles (perks of having really short commutes, go inner suburbs of Houston!!!). My colleagues at work hate it and say I’m paid enough to get a new car, but I love not having a car payment
My car has been extremely reliable and I find it very comfortable even in (rare) long trips. And if it keeps as reliable as it has been so far, I see a Viking Funeral for me and it sometime in the next forty years
Dennis Doubleday
@SpaceUnit: I just looked locally (in Pittsburgh) and the Leaf lease is $400/month. I guess that’s “up a bit”.