How Long Should I Keep My Car?

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Park
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How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Park »

I suspect that the standard Boglehead answer to this is as long as possible, and buy used preferably.

However, I commute 58 miles every day, and the only way to get to and from work is by car. If my car breaks down, it will cause a major problem at work.

The links below would suggest getting a new car at 5 years or 60,000 miles.

http://learningcenter.statefarm.com/aut ... -your-car/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/how ... r-car.html
Luv2savmoney
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Luv2savmoney »

60K is too low in this age even if you had one car..
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LAlearning
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by LAlearning »

10 years minimum.

Are you a doctor? What else would be terrible for work...
I know nothing!
Sidney
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Sidney »

LAlearning wrote:10 years minimum.

Are you a doctor? What else would be terrible for work...
Fireman?
I always wanted to be a procrastinator.
Topic Author
Park
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Park »

When I say that it would cause a major problem at work if I didn't show up, that's probably an understatement. And I only own one car.
Leesbro63
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Leesbro63 »

Park wrote:When I say that it would cause a major problem at work if I didn't show up, that's probably an understatement. And I only own one car.
Then buy a new Corolla/Camry or Civic/Accord every 4-5 years. Your chance of a major breakdown would be very very low with a 5 year or newer one of those.
tibbitts
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by tibbitts »

Park wrote:I suspect that the standard Boglehead answer to this is as long as possible, and buy used preferably.

However, I commute 58 miles every day, and the only way to get to and from work is by car. If my car breaks down, it will cause a major problem at work.

The links below would suggest getting a new car at 5 years or 60,000 miles.

http://learningcenter.statefarm.com/aut ... -your-car/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/how ... r-car.html
I think a lot of Bogleheads are a little out-of-touch with the typical person when it comes to the situation you're describing with work, although I'm also not sure you're at a point where reliability significantly suffers at 60k miles with current-era vehicles. However you may be at a point where increasingly you'll have some required maintenance, and it can be inconvenient just to have to do scheduled maintenance when you don't have a second person and second car in the household to help you out. So i don't think it's going to be the worst thing to pay, on average, a little extra over your lifetime for a more convenient experience. It's true that beyond a certain point, whether it's 60k or 75k or 90k or whatever, you'll need to put some money into maintenance items, and you probably won't be able to recover those expenses unless you then keep the car long enough that indeed reliability might start becoming an issue.
tomd37
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by tomd37 »

Park - Just curious. What would happen if you broke your leg one day at home and could not go to work the next day? What is so unique about your work? :?:
Tom D.
randomguy
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by randomguy »

Park wrote:I suspect that the standard Boglehead answer to this is as long as possible, and buy used preferably.

However, I commute 58 miles every day, and the only way to get to and from work is by car. If my car breaks down, it will cause a major problem at work.

The links below would suggest getting a new car at 5 years or 60,000 miles.

http://learningcenter.statefarm.com/aut ... -your-car/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/how ... r-car.html
My experience is that cars rarely break down to the point of not start in the first 120k or so miles (the once exception is the guy who bought a Ferrari. Thats a different category of car). After 60k you will start running into repairs (batteries, alternators, various joints, failed window motors,....) but they aren't things where you wake up in the morning and your car doesn't start. And yes a 5 year old car is worth more than an 10 year old one. You still come out way ahead by selling the car at 10 years and not 5.
livesoft
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by livesoft »

On a day your car breaks down, you take a limo while you arrange for a rental car. Then you buy another car.

I have woken up and my car did not start. Basically, I needed a new battery. This is where having some friends or a taxi are helpful.
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adamthesmythe
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by adamthesmythe »

For a well-chosen* new car- 5 years/ 60000 miles is almost guaranteed. Guaranteed enough for a couple hundred dollar taxi ride to be a plausible disaster option. Some brands will be highly reliable well beyond that. Personally I keep a car long enough for the cost to be reasonable without trying to turn it into a fetish.

And there are ways to reduce an already small chance of problems. Own a battery charger and jumper cables. Be friendly with the neighbors. Buy AAA (although personally I would never do so).

* Consult Consumer Reports, for example.
furwut
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by furwut »

I think, if you read the various reviews, you can find a model of car that should be reliable for many more years & miles. Just keep up with the maintenance. Any auto mechanic will tell you that most breakdowns are the result of drivers failing to perform the needed upkeep on the vehicle.

You should also work out how you will handle a breakdown in advance with your employer. That way there should be no recriminations. Keep a list of phone numbers for taxis handy. Check out ride sharing services.
furwut
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by furwut »

and the only way to get to and from work is by car
I don't know where you live but, sadly, this is easily true in too much of the country. But I can't tell you who many people say that to me (I've been car-free 10 years) who, it turn out, live right along a major bus line.
john94549
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by john94549 »

1994 Buick Regal. Last I checked, less than 80,000 miles. Up for smog, we'll see. My Mom had a 1990 Taurus with less than 40,000 miles.
tibbitts
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by tibbitts »

tomd37 wrote:Park - Just curious. What would happen if you broke your leg one day at home and could not go to work the next day? What is so unique about your work? :?:
I'm not the OP, but I can tell you that a lot of employees don't get much in the way of forgiveness for being even a minute late or for any unscheduled time away from work. A lot of us have been fortunate to have had employment where that hasn't been the case, and I'm guessing that's the typical boglehead experience, but not everybody does. It's pretty stressful for some employees to have a couple of unexpected absences or late days, maybe due to expected accident that holds up traffic, flat tire, etc., and all of a sudden find themselves on the verge of being fired. Lots of employees arrive very early every day, even though they don't get paid for extra time, just because there's near-zero tolerance for them being late.

So maybe an employee has time to fall back to a taxi or alternative transportation with no repercussions; maybe not. And of course even with a new vehicle you can have bad luck (flat tire, etc.) and end up in danger of losing your job. But I can understand why someone might be concerned about trying to tip the odds in favor of not being late.
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bottlecap
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by bottlecap »

Maintain your car and it's age won't be much of a problem. It is extremely rare for a car of any sort to simply break down and leave you stranded. It has only happened to me once and I got a good bit of warning, but couldn't do much because I was on the last leg of a long trip. I've never broken down in town.

If you're that important to work that it would be disasterous for you to be a half hour late for any reason, your work needs a contingency plan. You are more likely to break down than your vehicle.

JT
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Toons
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Toons »

6 years unless,,,,,,,,, you reach that stage in life where you can pay cash for most anything you want,and have no debt,then buy a care whenever you feel like it. :happy :happy
"One does not accumulate but eliminate. It is not daily increase but daily decrease. The height of cultivation always runs to simplicity" –Bruce Lee
WHL
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by WHL »

My 2005 truck has 170k miles on it and has given me very few issues. Last issue that stopped me from driving was in 2008 :happy
tomd37 wrote:Park - Just curious. What would happen if you broke your leg one day at home and could not go to work the next day? What is so unique about your work? :?:
Still waiting to see the answer to this :P
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telemark
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by telemark »

My personal rule is to keep it until I get tired of it breaking down. Your tolerance for that is obviously lower than mine. I don't know that a simple rule based on age will work; I would focus more on picking a reliable model and keeping it maintained. I'd also look into having a plan B, because even the best of cars may break down unexpectedly.
Louis Winthorpe III
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Louis Winthorpe III »

5 years / 60,000 miles is absurd. I would consider a car with 100,000 miles on it middle-aged. These days you should be able to get 150,000 miles out of a car very, very easily, and 200,000 isn't an unreasonable goal, assuming you take good care of the car.

Replacing a car before 150,000 miles is more about preference than need. If you want to be extra cautious, drive yours until it has 100,000.
DireWolf
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by DireWolf »

I drive about 12,000 miles/year so I buy new and keep for 10 years/120,000 miles.

This has a couple advantages. By keeping it 10 years you come out ahead on the depreciation curve. Also, most cars need new tires and brakes around every 60,000 miles. I replace the tires and brakes at 60,000 and then sell/trade-in at 120,000 just before needing to replace the tires and brakes again.
countofmc
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by countofmc »

From my personal experiences, I'd say around 4-6 years, 50-70000 miles is when I started getting some fairly large repair/ maintenance bills. And then things kind of leveled out, and I didn't have major problems after that. But I've only had two "old" cars (got rid of at 12 years 130,000 miles, another at 10 years 130,000 miles).

Honestly though, I don't see much wrong with buying a fairly cheap cost-to-own car with good resale, keeping it for 5 years, and then repeating. Something like a CamCord or CivRolla. Obviously lower costs with a CivRolla. Obviously it's probably not financially optimal, but I doubt it'll put you in the poorhouse either.

My wife and I are planning on buying a new car every 5 years, so that we always have a car thats' 5 years or newer.
jlawrence01
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by jlawrence01 »

I am up to 80k and have yet to call AAA in the past eight years. It is all about keeping your car properly maintained, a practice that a LOT of people have a lot of problem doing.
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William4u
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by William4u »

LAlearning wrote:10 years minimum.

Are you a doctor? What else would be terrible for work...
10 years minimum. Cars today are very reliable 10 years out at 150k miles.
Johno
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Johno »

It seems to me many people extrapolate their own lives and experiences to others with little thought, and cars seem to always be a prime example. Besides it mattering more for some people if they miss work (as typical here, a significant % of the comments might be from retired people), people's comfort with dealing with car issues varies very widely. I'm somewhat familiar with cars, could actually do fairly serious work on cars way back when (like my '67 VW in the 70's-80's) but not now. Other people have concentrated their attention in life to other things and car problems are an inherently more stressful unknown to them. Also even myself, living in an urban area past almost 30 yrs, car trouble is inherently more of a hassle than in the 'burbs: no garage of your own, watching out to get avoid getting hit by a car when you're looking under the car parallel parked on a busy street, the tow truck can't even get to the car when it arrives until somebody else moves, etc.

Also in same context cars deteriorate when kept outside as a function of time not just mileage. Late model Hyundai's have good reliability records in general per Consumer Reports but a few weeks ago my son's (original mine) 46k miles 5 yrs old (ie not used all that intensely compared to sub/ex-urbanite's cars) had a bad starter. Pretty big hassle for him wrt work, and naturally it happened when parked on a particularly busy main street. And similarly I've found even for 'modern' cars driven less than 10k a year and parked on the street the point where getting stuck becomes fairly likely is somewhere around that 5yr/50k mark. We got stuck within that mileage on both Fords we had in the 90's/2000's (bad starter again in one case, fancy automated air intake control in the other), my Mercedes stranded me at a much lower age/mileage (bad low oil level sensor; in addition to several other annoying non-stranding problems with that car: reliability stunk).

Sure on a strict $'s basis the lowest cost for a car (which doesn't prove itself a complete lemon) is to keep fixing it till it turns to dust. But having cars for 100-200k miles when you drive 6-9k miles a year, no thanks, around 10 years max is enough for me. OTOH our Lexus is 9.5yrs old with 61k miles and it's only left us stuck when the original battery died, which I could have avoided by replacing it preemptively. It's actually had zero unavoidable problems: we're very happy with it. We'll probably sell it to another son soon, but I expect it to be in the family for awhile, though I doubt it will ever get to the kind of high mileage of people who drive 10's of miles a day to work. I've never commuted to work by car in my life. I even took the train when I lived out in the 'burbs for awhile when I was young.
Ron Ronnerson
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Ron Ronnerson »

My commute is 20 miles each way and I aim to be an hour early to work each day because there are 30 ten-year-olds lined up at my door when the bell rings. I have never been late in 12 years at the job. I drive a 2000 Honda Accord with 150k miles on it that I bought new in 2000. I've simply kept up on maintenance and did repairs along the way as needed. Flat tires and bad traffic pose the greatest issues IMHO. So I have a AAA membership, replace tires before they become a problem, and leave early for work. Replacing a car every 5 years is too costly. If you hold on to a car for (at least) 10 years instead of 5 and invest the savings, you're looking at a huge difference in the amount you will save over a lifetime. Try it out on a compound interest calculator and brace yourself for the shocking number that pops up.

By the way, now that my car has hit the 150k mark and is about to turn 15, I'm in the market again for a new vehicle. It is likely to be a Corolla or Civic and I plan to drive it for at least 10 years. Being stranded with my four-month old daughter (who I drop off and pick up each day) on the side of the road while my students turn my classroom into the Lord of the Flies is a horrendous thought to me but still preferable to throwing away an amount of cash that can only be described as "vast." In the end, you should do what makes you most comfortable, of course. Just run the numbers on a calculator first so you fully understand the cost of the extra peace of mind which comes with a new car every five years.
BigPrince
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by BigPrince »

I aim to replace a car roughly every 10 years mostly because of safety improvements over that time that tends to develop.
LateStarter1975
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by LateStarter1975 »

BigPrince wrote:I aim to replace a car roughly every 10 years mostly because of safety improvements over that time that tends to develop.
+1
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tibbitts
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by tibbitts »

I still think too many bogleheads underestimate the difficulties that sometimes come with older cars, just because that doesn't happen to have been their own experience. I know someone who had a 10 year old car with only about 40k miles. It had had only minor and non-costly issues for about 6 or 7 years. Then all kinds of issues started happening regularly: refusal to start, accessories refusing to work, interior trim failing due to sun exposure, rubber parts deteriorating or metal parts rusting and needing replacement, etc. The repairs started with $1k, and the car just kept costing more - many thousands of dollars in all over the next few years, despite trying different service facilities, getting second opinions, etc. The problem is that after you put in some money, then you feel you don't want that to go to waste, so you put in some more, etc. etc. So we can't make blanket assumptions that it will always be cheaper, especially considering the convenience factor, to hang onto even moderately old cars. On average, maybe, but there are no index cars: you can't buy a car that will essentially guarantee average reliability or cost-to-repair.
countofmc
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by countofmc »

A thought I've had recently is whether our paradigm about car ownership will change as the years go by, towards a more "disposable" model. Your average midsize car like a Camry or Accord have actually gone down in price when taking into account inflation, and you also get a lot more standard equipment these days.

But then I've heard mechanics say cars these days are getting tougher to work on due to the extra technology they are packing into these things. My new Accord might as well be a computer, the steering is electric, it's drive by wire, and software dictates artificial "shift points" for the CVT. The CVT is going to need new special CVT transmission fluid, and while I have not heard issues about it yet, direct injection engines are notorious for carbon build up that may necessitate an expensive maintenance. If maintenance costs go up due to cars being more "advanced" but initial purchase prices are going down on an inflation adjusted basis, maybe more people will just opt to keep cars for 4-5 years and trade them.

Similar to computers and appliances. Computers used to be a lot pricier and people hung on to them longer, but now they are almost disposable. Things like refrigerators, microwaves, etc also seem to be coming down in price, so people seem more inclined to just replace them if they break rather than dealing with an expensive repair job.
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bottlecap
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by bottlecap »

I'd say 10 years or 120,000 miles is a good benchmark to reassess on average. Obviously earlier if you have major problems earlier. Earlier if you have more than a normal fear of breaking down. Earlier if you know absolutely nothing about cars and don't care to know. Earlier if you don't maintain your vehicle properly. Earlier if you are very concerned about safety improvements. Earlier if you just don't like the vehicle. A lot of things come down to personal issues. There is no magic formula, but most folks - even those who post - just want a new car sooner rather than later. If you want to make the best financial decision, it's best to be honest with yourself. If you really lose sleep and or lots of money over breaking down, then that's a legitimate concern, no matter whether the rest of us think so or not. But if you think of the number of cars you see on the road every day and then try to remember any times you've seen a breakdown, you realize it's a low probability event. I'd personally plan contingencies for a possible breakdown on the way to work rather than buy a new car every 4 or 5 years.

If you make it 10 years or 120,000 with much problem, your vehicle will probably go to 200,000 or even 300,000 miles, but you may very well have to replace some fairly significant compenents because stuff starts to wear out.

JT
poker27
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by poker27 »

MY SO's car is only 3 years old, but is coming up on 70k miles. We will probably begin 'thinking' about cars at 100-120k miles, but hopefully it will last 200k +. I haven't needed a car in many years, but we currently own 2 and one sits idle (yes, waste of money). Years ago I would buy new cars too often, and would never keep them to watch the mileage tick up. Now its kind of exciting watching the mileage get higher, man I need a new hobby
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tadamsmar
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by tadamsmar »

Park wrote:I suspect that the standard Boglehead answer to this is as long as possible, and buy used preferably.

However, I commute 58 miles every day, and the only way to get to and from work is by car. If my car breaks down, it will cause a major problem at work.

The links below would suggest getting a new car at 5 years or 60,000 miles.

http://learningcenter.statefarm.com/aut ... -your-car/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/how ... r-car.html
Maybe it should be 5 years and 60,000 miles. You probably get to 60,000 well before 5 year with your long commute. According to the book Drive it Forever, a car's life is measured in the number of cold starts.

If your current car does not have stability control, that's a factor in favor of trading. A car without stability control has a 50% higher estimated fatality rate.
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by flyingaway »

I have a 2000 Nissan Quest with only 95K miles (original owner). I am thinking to drive it for 5 more years. I think I just have it "over-repaired", unnecessarily have the brakes, brake fluid, and brake disks replaced, costed me $970. (Sometimes I felt difficult to reject the mechanics' offer to repair my car, although I knew I probably do not need new disks and should not have the brake fluid flushed.)
Johno
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Johno »

tibbitts wrote:I still think too many bogleheads underestimate the difficulties that sometimes come with older cars, just because that doesn't happen to have been their own experience. ...So we can't make blanket assumptions that it will always be cheaper, especially considering the convenience factor, to hang onto even moderately old cars. On average, maybe, but there are no index cars: you can't buy a car that will essentially guarantee average reliability or cost-to-repair.
True. I should have said that 'sure the lowest *expected* cost of ownership is to repair the car till it turns to dust'. But with only one car you can't diversify the risk that your particular car is less reliable and/or has much higher repair cost than average for its model. Besides which, just attaining the lowest possible cost of ownership of transportation isn't the only possible rational goal. And at least some of the people who crow about how they drive 200k mile junkers probably live where they could take the bus, which is generally cheaper still, so why are they indulging themselves 'overspending' by having a car at all. :wink:
Last edited by Johno on Mon Sep 29, 2014 1:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
WHL
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by WHL »

flyingaway wrote:I have a 2000 Nissan Quest with only 95K miles (original owner). I am thinking to drive it for 5 more years. I think I just have it "over-repaired", unnecessarily have the brakes, brake fluid, and brake disks replaced, costed me $970. (Sometimes I felt difficult to reject the mechanics' offer to repair my car, although I knew I probably do not need new disks and should not have the brake fluid flushed.)
That maintenance is so unbelievably easy. Parts, if you had purchased them yourself, would have been roughly $250 using good components.

By discs you mean rotors, and it's easy to tell if they needed to be replaced. Did the brake pedal pulsate when you stopped quickly? When you looked at the rotors, could you see grooves, or feel wear with your fingernail? Rotors can be machined, but they aren't expensive to replace, and for a one vehicle guy like me, too much of a hassle to deal with machining them.

Flushing the brake fluid depends on your climate, but should be done no later than every 4-5 years or 50k miles. Brake fluid attracts water. Water boils, and under heavy braking, can cause failure of your brake system. Replacing the brake fluid and bleeding the calipers and / or drums is a routine maintenance item.

Where ya located? I'd be more than happy to help if we're regional...
Quickfoot
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Quickfoot »

100K miles is a decent number. If you are doing that amount of driving I'm assuming it is mostly highway, that will generally stress the vehicle less and you should get longer life. Pick a brand with a high power-train warranty (some offer 10 years / 100K miles) and maintain it. With modern vehicles the number one cause of a breakdown is lack of maintenance by the owner.

If you absolutely can not afford to have a car not work you probably need to buy a second one, two is one and one is none. I would encourage you to build some redundancy at your employer though so you can do things like take vacations, get sick or retire without putting the company out of business :).
These days you should be able to get 150,000 miles out of a car very, very easily, and 200,000 isn't an unreasonable goal, assuming you take good care of the car.
Not very very easily but doable. According to consumer reports average life of a passenger car is 150K miles, 200K for a truck or SUV. Average of course means some get much less than that and some get much more. Lexus is ranked the most reliable brand so if you wanted to go super high miles it would be a good bet, followed by the usual foreign cars. Some people claim the quality gap has closed but the numbers show that isn't the case.
technovelist
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by technovelist »

Quickfoot wrote:100K miles is a decent number. If you are doing that amount of driving I'm assuming it is mostly highway, that will generally stress the vehicle less and you should get longer life. Pick a brand with a high power-train warranty (some offer 10 years / 100K miles) and maintain it. With modern vehicles the number one cause of a breakdown is lack of maintenance by the owner.

If you absolutely can not afford to have a car not work you probably need to buy a second one, two is one and one is none. I would encourage you to build some redundancy at your employer though so you can do things like take vacations, get sick or retire without putting the company out of business :).
These days you should be able to get 150,000 miles out of a car very, very easily, and 200,000 isn't an unreasonable goal, assuming you take good care of the car.
Not very very easily but doable. According to consumer reports average life of a passenger car is 150K miles, 200K for a truck or SUV. Average of course means some get much less than that and some get much more. Lexus is ranked the most reliable brand so if you wanted to go super high miles it would be a good bet, followed by the usual foreign cars. Some people claim the quality gap has closed but the numbers show that isn't the case.
My every day driver is a 2001 Maxima with over 170K miles on it and it still drives like a new car.
I did have to sink about $2500 into it last year, which was the first big repair bill year, but haven't had any further trouble since...
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Grt2bOutdoors
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

As long as it runs.......
but expect to replace on a regular basis - the oil.
Radiator fluid
Battery
Brakes - depending on if you have a "lead" foot.
Transmission fluid
Air filter
Tires
Maybe a light bulb every now and then
The belts - fan, a/c, alternator
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Crimsontide
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Crimsontide »

I commute 84 miles a day and drive my cars until they die, usually over 160k. To do otherwise would be foolish. Of course one could argue that driving 84 miles a day is pretty foolish as well :oops:
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Traveller
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Traveller »

Park wrote:The links below would suggest getting a new car at 5 years or 60,000 miles
5yrs/60k???. That's when I buy them!
NYPhD
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by NYPhD »

I had a similar commute.
With a Ford Mustang, in 9 years I got 150k out of it.
At that point, there were a number of things that needed to be repaired, so I bought a new car.

Outside of brakes, tires, oil changes and tune ups, the only maintenance that I had was a clutch at 60k, an ignition coil, tire rods, shocks and a battery at 130k.

If you really need a car without maintenance or repairs, I would lease. Otherwise, I feel that the fear of your car breaking down is a bit antiquated. I mostly see accidents on the the road.

Chances are that I have trouble getting to work due to an accident, drained battery, nail in my tire or bad roads. Not a bad water pump.



Park wrote:I suspect that the standard Boglehead answer to this is as long as possible, and buy used preferably.

However, I commute 58 miles every day, and the only way to get to and from work is by car. If my car breaks down, it will cause a major problem at work.

The links below would suggest getting a new car at 5 years or 60,000 miles.

http://learningcenter.statefarm.com/aut ... -your-car/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/how ... r-car.html
bricklin
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by bricklin »

I personally drive pretty old cars. My newest car is 10 years old, my oldest daily driver (I have older project cars) is a 1985 Chevy truck. Granted I'm DIY mechanic so fixing cars is a hobby, so my experience is not really applicable to most folks. That said, I find the maintenance on older cars much easier and cheaper to do. I started having a serious knock in the old 305 in the truck and swapped the engine one Saturday for a 350.

For those who do not have time or are not mechanically inclined, buy a Honda. You will get 120,000 worry free miles until you need to replace a water pump/timing belt.
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Nestegg_User
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Nestegg_User »

Personally, I've always used 8 years/120K as the break-even point for new cars... and at 100k, many models have significant outlays for maintenance. While spouse has older (13+ yr), my last vehicle needed replacement at 10yrs due to reliability "concerns" (let's just say, in my commutes, you don't want to break down in certain parts; see national news for details).
I do, however have the advantage of not being concerned about firing if I show up late, so I understand the dilemma shown by "tibbetts".
Crow Hunter
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Crow Hunter »

I or my wife have always had a fairly long commute.

I target 300,000 miles but I haven't hit that yet. :D

My best was my wife's 2001 Corolla. I got 234,000 miles before I hit a patch of black ice and got intimate with a pine tree at 35 MPH. It technically was probably fixable, but I got somewhere north of $4,500 for it to total it out.

I miss that little car. It was a trooper. Every body panel on it had been replaced except the front bumper the hood and the roof from my wife either hitting someone or someone hitting her. But all I ever did was change the oil every 5,000 miles, replaced the timing belt at 100k and 200k, changed the pads twice and I think I replaced the battery a couple of times.

I would aim for at least 150k on a quality vehicle.
leod
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by leod »

I plan to keep at least 10years/120Kmiles minimum until major repairs comes up
Erwin007
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by Erwin007 »

technovelist wrote:
Quickfoot wrote:100K miles is a decent number. If you are doing that amount of driving I'm assuming it is mostly highway, that will generally stress the vehicle less and you should get longer life. Pick a brand with a high power-train warranty (some offer 10 years / 100K miles) and maintain it. With modern vehicles the number one cause of a breakdown is lack of maintenance by the owner.

If you absolutely can not afford to have a car not work you probably need to buy a second one, two is one and one is none. I would encourage you to build some redundancy at your employer though so you can do things like take vacations, get sick or retire without putting the company out of business :).
These days you should be able to get 150,000 miles out of a car very, very easily, and 200,000 isn't an unreasonable goal, assuming you take good care of the car.
Not very very easily but doable. According to consumer reports average life of a passenger car is 150K miles, 200K for a truck or SUV. Average of course means some get much less than that and some get much more. Lexus is ranked the most reliable brand so if you wanted to go super high miles it would be a good bet, followed by the usual foreign cars. Some people claim the quality gap has closed but the numbers show that isn't the case.
My every day driver is a 2001 Maxima with over 170K miles on it and it still drives like a new car.
I did have to sink about $2500 into it last year, which was the first big repair bill year, but haven't had any further trouble since...
Good luck with that. I had a 2000 Nissan Maxima that I just sold this past summer. Within the past two years I sunk close to $4,000 into it--new alternator, new starter, new battery, new radiator, new brakes and rotors, etc.; only to have the dreaded ignition coil "check engine soon" code come up. Had already paid close to $900 years ago to have those replaced due to a known flaw in those Nissan Maximas that Nissan refused to cover/acknowledge. Not again. In my family that was our 3rd Nissan Maxima, but the quality has been getting poorer and poorer with each successive iteration. The last two years of my Maxima's life were by far the most expensive. Sounds like you're at the beginning of that. Sold it for $2500 and used that towards my new Acura, which I plan to drive forever.

In regards to the OP, I, too, am in a profession where not having a reliable car is an issue (medicine). I think it's hard to say using an exact year number or mile number. But I also think that you'll know, just as I did that it was time to part ways and find something newer and more reliable. Your odds of having it break down when you need to get to work are less than 50%, unless you only drive it to and from work, and then it would be exactly 50%. If it breaks down on the weekend or on your way home that isn't nearly as big of an issue, and would constitute more than half the time the car is driven.
technovelist
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by technovelist »

Erwin007 wrote:
technovelist wrote:
My every day driver is a 2001 Maxima with over 170K miles on it and it still drives like a new car.
I did have to sink about $2500 into it last year, which was the first big repair bill year, but haven't had any further trouble since...
Good luck with that. I had a 2000 Nissan Maxima that I just sold this past summer. Within the past two years I sunk close to $4,000 into it--new alternator, new starter, new battery, new radiator, new brakes and rotors, etc.; only to have the dreaded ignition coil "check engine soon" code come up. Had already paid close to $900 years ago to have those replaced due to a known flaw in those Nissan Maximas that Nissan refused to cover/acknowledge. Not again. In my family that was our 3rd Nissan Maxima, but the quality has been getting poorer and poorer with each successive iteration. The last two years of my Maxima's life were by far the most expensive. Sounds like you're at the beginning of that. Sold it for $2500 and used that towards my new Acura, which I plan to drive forever.
I've already replaced the battery, the starter, the radiator, the ignition coils (all 6), the catalytic converter and the oxygen sensors (twice). I bought a check engine decoder so I'll know what it means the next time the dreaded light comes on.

I have my fingers crossed. Will that help? :confused

Oh, and I'm not buying any more Nissan products anyway, due to getting hosed by them on the extended warranty. Honda, Toyota, or maybe Hyundai for my next vehicle...
In theory, theory and practice are identical. In practice, they often differ.
wander
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by wander »

It depends. While I am leaning to keeping the car as long as I can ( I am handy with car). There are cases that I wouldn't want to keep it any longer: safety and performance. When the car doesn't do what it should then it is time to let it go. It's up to you to decide. For example, my car is old (17 years old), but performance wise, it is still good. GPM is still as good as it was new and if I need to climb mountain (or cross country trip) I can without any problem. My friends told me to let it go, but I am driving it so I don't care. Some people drive new cars for the look, more safety, new technologies ..., but somebody else just want to keep the cars. For me, it's nothing right or wrong about it as long you can afford. At some point, I may not want to deal with car problems anymore then I will get rid of it sooner.
campos202
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Re: How Long Should I Keep My Car?

Post by campos202 »

Vehicles these days when well maintained can easily see 200,000+. As long as I'm not sacrificing safety I plan on keeping my 10 year old Corolla with 116k on it until 300k if possible. I do most of the work myself so this drastically cuts maintenance costs. I look at it this way. Every year I wait, my next car will feel that much more of an upgrade in terms of features and as compared to the old.
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