Advantages to Holding Onto an Older Car
That’s not to say that you should necessarily bail on your used car before that point. There are several advantages to holding onto the car. First, it may be completely paid off, and no car payment is a good thing. You’ll pay less in insurance and your state license fee may go down as well.
In fact, the maintenance costs on older vehicles remain relatively low over the long run. While depreciation removes almost half of the value of a vehicle after five years, repairs and maintenance only add up to about three percent of the original cost of a vehicle after five years, and on average, these costs ramp up slowly. The average five-year-old car costs about $350 in repairs, while a 10 years old car has an average annual repair cost of just under $600 a year.
It should be noted that the above advice applies primarily on cars from Asian and American car makers. European car makers fall into an entirely different category. While the average 10-year-old car may cost $600 a year to repair, the average Mercedes-Benz costs more than $1,500 a year to keep running at that age, with the average BMW costing you about $1,300 in repairs. Even older Mini Coopers accumulate more than $1,000 a year in repairs on average.
To many people, it’s not the cost of most reliable used cars canada that drives them to purchase a new (or newer) one, but rather the concern about picking up and dropping off children on time or getting to work at the start of each day. As mentioned earlier, modern cars are extremely reliable, even as they age. Even 10-year-old cars have less than one problem per year that needs repair. For example, a five-year-old car may only suffer a major problem every three years and a 10-year-old car would have a problem only every 18 to 20 months on average.
In fact, the maintenance costs on older vehicles remain relatively low over the long run. While depreciation removes almost half of the value of a vehicle after five years, repairs and maintenance only add up to about three percent of the original cost of a vehicle after five years, and on average, these costs ramp up slowly. The average five-year-old car costs about $350 in repairs, while a 10 years old car has an average annual repair cost of just under $600 a year.
It should be noted that the above advice applies primarily on cars from Asian and American car makers. European car makers fall into an entirely different category. While the average 10-year-old car may cost $600 a year to repair, the average Mercedes-Benz costs more than $1,500 a year to keep running at that age, with the average BMW costing you about $1,300 in repairs. Even older Mini Coopers accumulate more than $1,000 a year in repairs on average.
To many people, it’s not the cost of most reliable used cars canada that drives them to purchase a new (or newer) one, but rather the concern about picking up and dropping off children on time or getting to work at the start of each day. As mentioned earlier, modern cars are extremely reliable, even as they age. Even 10-year-old cars have less than one problem per year that needs repair. For example, a five-year-old car may only suffer a major problem every three years and a 10-year-old car would have a problem only every 18 to 20 months on average.
In conclusion
From the data we’ve accumulated, it would appear that the best plan would be to purchase a car just a few years old and drive for another two to three years. This strategy reduces both maintenance and repair costs, as the car is still likely under warranty, as well as avoids the two major dips in depreciation.
Advertise on APSense
This advertising space is available.
Post Your Ad Here
Post Your Ad Here
Comments