First thing I wanted to mention, is that I try to avoid buying a completely new vehicle if I can. My '07 Envoy Denali I bought for less than $30,000 with 1,700 miles on it. Brand new, it would have been over $42,000. I saved $12,000 just by buying slightly used, and I still got most of the warranty. Sure, deals like that are tough to find, but there are so many nearly perfect slightly used vehicles out there, that most of the time it just isn't worth it to buy brand new. Often you can find one or two year lease returns with very low mileage. This is where being friends with a good used car dealer can come in handy.

Next, one of the best things about newer cars is the comprehensive warranty. I love having a warranty. Anything goes wrong and the dealer fixes it. For me, that's worth having a newer vehicle as my daily driver. Especially now that vehicles in general are very complicated and expensive to fix.

Finally, I don't like vehicles that start to give me trouble or that have knowingly been in some kind of crash. Therefore, if I have a vehicle with a problem I can't fix on my own, that leaves me stranded more than three times; or is involved in a crash (which, even after being fixed, can still have hidden structural problems), I get rid of it.

It's not worth it to me to hang onto something that I have doubts about. Not for a daily driver. In my experience, when you need it most, is when it's going to conk out on you. For me, reliability and dependability is worth paying a bit extra.


My advice, search around. If you don't think you need it right now, at least keep an eye out for a good deal. See what things go for, research the vehicles you like, and then if you see something that seems like a solid deal, go for it. Don't wait too long though, the worst thing to do is wait until your vehicle dies, and then go searching around because you need a vehicle ASAP. When you don't need it, it's a lot easier to make a well thought out decision and do better research. Good Luck with whatever you choose to do!




That's not true. It's quick, but not that quick.