Good time to buy?

[StarsFan4Life]

Let's start out by saying I haven't purchased a new vehicle in over 8 years. I currently drive a 1999 Jeep Cherokee with 175k miles on it, but it's getting to the point where I need to make a decision:

Pay to repair/replace a few things (brakes, transmission, bearings)

or

Buy a new vehicle

I have thought long about what I want vs what I need. I want and need a truck, but my drive is 35 miles one way to work. Currently, the Jeep (in top condition) gets about 17 MPG, but that was two years ago. A bad pinion bearing and 175k miles on the whole deal has started to decrease that altogether. I am guessing I am getting about 15mpg at this point.

Now, I purchased my Jeep at 52k miles for $10k (plus interest at 17.9% - no credit and first vehicle) so it came out to about $16k after it was all said and done....6 years later. It's been a GREAT vehicle, and still has some miles left on it, but safety is becoming an issue for myself, my wife, and the future we have in the next few months (becoming a parent).

I would like a truck, a reliable truck just like anyone else. I don't think a V8 is economical for me at this point, but a V6 certainly is. I want to spend (finance) about a max of $20k or about $350 per month on a payment. Now, why do I want a truck? Simple, I am a brand new home owner (last April) and have a few projects in store (building a deck, huge green thumb here, expanding my fence, building a shed, and various other needs for a truck). A car itself just will not be sufficient for my needs, although the MPG would be great (25-35).

We currently also have a 2006 Honda Civic with about $6k left on the payoff. It has about 72k miles on it so we are good there for my wife, for now. She eventually would like to get a mid-sized SUV.

What do you guys suggest I do? Brand new? Used? If used, do I go with CarMax again?

What truck do you guys recommend based upon the MPG I need (roughly 20-25) and my monthly payment budget?

What do you guys recommend I do with my Jeep? Sell it or trade it in? I highly doubt I will get much, if anything, if I trade it in.

 

[Arkaign]

Becoming a parent? Want a truck? Want safety? Want reliability? Have $20k or less to spend? Want bonuses of comfort and affordable insurance rates? Go jump in an F150. Seriously.

EDIT : Look at this :

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.j...s=&max_price=20000&cardist=850&standard=false

Less than 10k miles, perfect condition, and has the extended cab (great to have BTW, regular cab can be restrictive).

 

[StarsFan4Life]

Becoming a parent? Want a truck? Want safety? Want reliability? Have $20k or less to spend? Want bonuses of comfort and affordable insurance rates? Go jump in an F150. Seriously.

EDIT : Look at this :

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.j...s=&max_price=20000&cardist=850&standard=false

Less than 10k miles, perfect condition, and has the extended cab (great to have BTW, regular cab can be restrictive).

So how does Autotrader work exactly?

 

[kornphlake]

Autotrader is a classified ad site just for vehicles, the seller pays to run the ad and you contact the seller directly. Dealerships advertise in autotrader most heavily, but you can narrow search results to private sellers only.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

If you're going to get a truck, don't get extended cab with "rear" doors, get a crew cab. The extended cabs will all have issues at some point with rattling doors due to the design.
I picked up my 06 Silverado used for $18K. It's an LT1 Crew Cab.
If you get a full size truck, the V6 will not get any better milage than the 8's. It might be a smaller engine but it has to work harder to move the same load. You're not going to get a truck worth using that gets better than 20MPG. I get 17 combined in mine. I have the 5.3L, a friends GF had the same truck but with the 4.8L and got the same milage. I had a regular cab work truck with the V6 and a stick and got 18MPG. Truck and great MPG don't belong in the same sentance.
It might be cheaper for you to buy a car with the milage you want, and rent the truck from Home Depot when you need it. (They do great burn outs )

 

[jpeyton]

To answer your question, it is a good time to buy, but not a great time to buy.

It's good simply because the auto industry is still trying to recover. Inventories for most makes/models are still high.

It's not a great time to buy because your car definitely would have qualified for CFC.

You can easily find a base F150 or Ram for under $20k new.

 

[vi edit]

I like trucks, have owned trucks, and would like to own one again. But for your requirements it just doesn't make sense.

Get a car that is cheap, gets good milage and is reliable and rent/borrow a truck from Home Depot/Menards/Lowes for $20 when you need it. Or buy a $1500 beater truck and use that for your short distance runs for stuff you need.

 

[StageLeft]

I advise you sportf**k that $6k, just pay it off like it was a cancer. Then get yourself a replacement truck. Two car payments sucks soooooooooo much phallus, truly.

You are right to get a truck. Or a minivan. Either one will haul all that stuff from Home Depot. If I didn't have kids I'd get the truck since it's more manly.

You can do better than CarMax.

You are right you won't get much for trade-in on the truck. You'll get more private party but deal with human refuse, so it comes down to how much you're willing to dick around with people vs just cleansing your hands of it.

Get a car that is cheap, gets good milage and is reliable and rent/borrow a truck from Home Depot/Menards/Lowes for $20 when you need it. Or buy a $1500 beater truck and use that for your short distance runs for stuff you need.

You could rent from Lowes at $20-30/pop but it's kind of a pain in the butt and requires a bit more planning/time to do things. I would prefer the $1500 beater truck idea. Get something with 4X4 absolutely, if you happen to live in a snow climate, and you can double it up as a winter storm vehicle, too. If you don't live in that climate, though, the beater will be undriven 99% of the time and will feel like a waste of money, which it is, which brings you back to renting from Lowes, but then that's a pain, so then you're back to buying a truck

If you do intend on having kids soon get a minivan or at least a truck with a real back row. No guy without kids--none--is going to buy a minivan, though, so you can just ignore that idea.

 

[vi edit]

I just couln't bring myself to willingly buy a truck with that commute.

That's 70 miles a day, 350 a week. That's probably 20 gallons of gas. If gas goes back up to $4.00 a gallon that's $80 a week or over $320 a month...just in gas.

If you got a decent commuter car (Focus/Fit/Civic/ect) you'd save yourself over $150 a month. That's almost $2000 a year.

Just saying...

I think he does have a kid on the way. I would have suggested a minivan too...but people are freaking emotional about them that I figured it wasn't worth it.

 

[StarsFan4Life]

No kid on the way yet guys, but we are planning on it in the near future. I live in Fort Worth TX and drive to Dallas, 35 miles each way.


114 --> NorthWest Hwy --> 75

 

[kornphlake]

Unless you're hauling big stuff every day, I'd look at something like a Ford Ranger with the 4 cyl. You'll get better gas mileage and you'll be able to haul stuff, it might take a an extra trip to the hardware store once in a while, but you'll save quite a bit on gas.

Trust me, if your wife has a car that has your child seat already installed in the back seat and a stroller in the trunk you'll never drive your truck if you're going somewhere as a family.

 

[ponyo]

With your commute requirement and a baby on the way, I would buy a minivan. I would give the minivan to the wife to drive and take over driving the Civic. You'll save on the gas with the Civic and your wife can have a roomier car for the future baby. You can take the minivan for the times you need to run to Home Depot.

As for the Cherokee, I would take it to CarMax to see what they offer and then try to sell it on my own on Craigslist. If you find later you really need more hauling capacity, look into buying a beater truck or cargo van as a third vehicle. Cargo van > truck imo but you'll look cooler driving a truck.

 

[iGas]

I'm single and I have a minivan and a Camry. The Camry is much nicer to drive and consumes less fuel, while the minivan is function well as a truck with canopy.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

No kid on the way yet guys, but we are planning on it in the near future. I live in Fort Worth TX and drive to Dallas, 35 miles each way.


114 --> NorthWest Hwy --> 75

Move. The Dallas area is better than Fort Worthless.

 

[StarsFan4Life]

Move. The Dallas area is better than Fort Worthless.

Are you kidding? I bought a 2k sqft house for $159k, it was a model....completely decked out/upgraded and I have a damn YARD. No way in hell could I get that in Dallas.

As for the minivan.....NO, and HELL NO. I frankly don't care how I "look" in a vehicle, but I will never be a minivan kind of guy. I might as well stick with the mid-size SUV style if this is what you guys recommend, but I don't want to. I have advised you guys of what my needs are vs my wants. A minivan just will not fit into the equation for me.

 

[inspiron]

How about a ford ranger?
a slightly used 2009 ford ranger can easily be bought for under 20k.

 

[StageLeft]

I frankly don't care how I "look" in a vehicle, but I will never be a minivan kind of guy.

Not rare for people to contradict themselves but very rare to do it in literally a single sentence.

 

[inspiron]

Not rare for people to contradict themselves but very rare to do it in literally a single sentence.

Exactly! what he said made 100% no sense... if you don't care how you look in a vehicle wats the problem with the minivan?...

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

Are you kidding? I bought a 2k sqft house for $159k, it was a model....completely decked out/upgraded and I have a damn YARD. No way in hell could I get that in Dallas.

As for the minivan.....NO, and HELL NO. I frankly don't care how I "look" in a vehicle, but I will never be a minivan kind of guy. I might as well stick with the mid-size SUV style if this is what you guys recommend, but I don't want to. I have advised you guys of what my needs are vs my wants. A minivan just will not fit into the equation for me.

Ok and? You can get homes that size in Dallas/Richardson/Plano/Garland for the same price and with the same sized yards.

 

[RedRooster]

Exactly! what he said made 100% no sense... if you don't care how you look in a vehicle wats the problem with the minivan?...

Cuz they're boring and useless if you compare them to what a truck can do. That has nothing to do with perception of how you look driving it, its just a fact that if you want to drive through a ditch or over a curb you can't with a van.
I have a feeling the OP speaks of that, rather than if his purse will fit in the armrest and if his buddies will laugh at him.
I don't know why the defense of minivans around here, when they're just a glorified station wagon. blech

 

[Fenixgoon]

Cuz they're boring and useless if you compare them to what a truck can do. That has nothing to do with perception of how you look driving it, its just a fact that if you want to drive through a ditch or over a curb you can't with a van.
I have a feeling the OP speaks of that, rather than if his purse will fit in the armrest and if his buddies will laugh at him.
I don't know why the defense of minivans around here, when they're just a glorified station wagon. blech

for people and cargo carrying, a van is infinitely better than a truck (with few exceptions - obviously a bed is handy for things)

the only trucks that can do what a van can (or more) get piss poor mileage.

 

[vi edit]

Yeh, having owned a truck and a van, about the only time I really miss the truck is when it comes to going to the local nursery and picking up a truckload of mulch or dirt for various things around the house. Everything else I can pretty much do in a van and get better milage doing it. Plus it's a fully locked down, water tight cabin. The few times I actually needed a real truck it was just as easy to borrow or rent one with the money I save on gas/insurance and have a more useful vehicle the other 360 days a year.

Don't get me wrong, I had no problems with my truck milage when I had a 6 mile commute. But I'd ask somebody to slap me with a tire iron if I willingly bought something that got 18mpg combined knowing I'd be driving it 70 miles a day and only carried myself in it and nothing else 97% of the time I was in it.

 

[StarsFan4Life]

What about something like a GMC Canyon crewcab? How is the gas mileage on that?

What about Hybrid trucks (GMC Sierra and Chevy 1500)? Are they worth the extra cost?

I'm just lost on what I want vs need. I am thinking more and more that a big truck is just pointless for me. I mean, I will be doing ALOT of home improvements (mainly outdoor). Should I go with another mid-sized SUV?

I really want something with a little bit of power too, something V6 or better, but with decent gas mileage. As much as I would LOVE to have a big F-150, I would spend a fortune in gas every month.

 

[StageLeft]

I don't know why the defense of minivans around here, when they're just a glorified station wagon.

Then it seems you understand the defense exactly; that is the point. They are a glorified station wagon.

You know, if you have the room you could just get a hitch and trailer. My father in law keeps a pretty decent trailer next to his house, big enough to cart all the crap he could want, and hooks it up to his avalon. When he's not in need of stuff to haul (99% of the time) he doesn't have to be carting around that big, useless truck bed. You can also get foldable trailers and may find one that you could have flush against a garage wall or something. Especially if you are close to home depot and that's what most of your trips will be a trailer could be good.

 

[angry hampster]

What about something like a GMC Canyon crewcab? How is the gas mileage on that?

What about Hybrid trucks (GMC Sierra and Chevy 1500)? Are they worth the extra cost?

I'm just lost on what I want vs need. I am thinking more and more that a big truck is just pointless for me. I mean, I will be doing ALOT of home improvements (mainly outdoor). Should I go with another mid-sized SUV?

I really want something with a little bit of power too, something V6 or better, but with decent gas mileage. As much as I would LOVE to have a big F-150, I would spend a fortune in gas every month.

Have you considered a wagon? The tiny bed in a crew cab Colorado isn't worth much. The 2-stage hybrids from GM are laughable and expensive.


I'd look into something like a VW Passat wagon if i were you. Sexy cars.