Would Love To Buy A New Car!

Last brand new one I bought was a 1980 Ford Fiesta, last year sold in America, bargain price, all we could afford. That was in 1981. 35 years with no new car. Today, it's even tougher, no, impossible. I will never again be able to buy a brand new one. Leaves me feeling morose.

When was the last time you bought a new car? Would you consider buying one nowadays, considering the high prices? Frank

 

Last time I bought a new car (Citroen) was about 15 years ago....I kept it until the engine seized and then

...2 years ago I bought 4 year old Ford Fusion Mini SUV... I probably will never buy a Brand new car again..it's preferable to buy a car approx 3 years old, they lose so much value as soon as you drive it from the showroom from new , and also after 3 years they've got all their teething problems ironed out too..

 

I have only had a couple of brand new cars in my life and that was a long time ago, I have had lots of ex demo nearly new cars which are a lot cheaper. My brother was in the trade so he always found a good one for me, he still buys new cars himself though.

My daughters still buy regularly buy new cars and I recently inherited Cathy's last one a Nissan Note, which I like and will probably outlive me

I don't think I will ever buy another new one, because like you Frank I couldn't afford it, plus I am no longer that bothered as long as it drives well.

 

The last new car we bought was in August of 2001. We bought a brand new 2002 Ford Explorer. We still have it. It only has 80000 miles on it. I just sold a 2003 Ford F150 with less than 90000 miles on it. I didn't buy it new. To replace it I bought a 2000 Ford Ranger with 181000 miles on it.
This was not done for economical reasons though. The F150 was standard shift and my left knee was making it harder and harder to drive, especially in traffic.

 

I bought a new car in 2012, but my kids helped me. They put $5000 down for me and each one gives me $100 a month toward the car payment. I pay $60, since the payment is $260 a month. It was a Chevy Cruze and wasn't on the expensive end as most cars are. I love it though and it's perfect for me.

 

Last new car I bought was in 1994. A Ford pickup. Like this, different color.

 

The car I had prior to my Cruze was a 1997 champagne colored Nissan Altima. It was a good car til it's last year. I do get better mileage with the Cruze. A trip to my daughter's one way with the Altima used a little more than half a tank of gas, the Cruze uses a little more than a quarter tank of gas.

 

The Ranger, if a V-6, might have either of two designs: the older is an Overhead Valve design, the newer an Overhead Camshaft design. The early OHCs experienced frequent failure of guides which keep the timing chains in place. at 180,000 miles, if it is of the OHC variety, it might have had the guides replaced already, or they may develop problems soon. Somewhere about 2003, Ford finally changed the design, using a different guide material. I bought a 2004 Explorer having this engine, knowing absolutely nothing then about it, picked up all the derog info on Explorer Forums.

Your 2002 Explorer, if equipped with the V-8, 4.6L, should easily outlast us both! Frank

 

We are located 10 miles north of Needles, CA, through which I-40 passes. The town is separated from AZ by the Colorado River; AZ route 95 connects the two places, by way of a bridge across the river. Gasoline on the AZ side of the bridge is as much as a dollar per gallon lower than on the other (CA) side. The unsuspecting tourist, motoring along I-40, does not know this, so buys fuel in Needles. We always are amazed by this bug price difference, and imagine most Needles residents cross that bridge regularly, to buy fuel! Frank

 

I've never had a brand new car, and doubt I'd buy one new, unless as Ken said, I won the lottery. Even then, I might purchase one a few years old. I dated a guy before who actually wrinkled his nose at my dashboard, because I didn't keep it dusted, and didn't wash the outside of my car at least weekly. I informed him that it was a vehicle, a means of getting from point A to point B, and he was astonished at my attitude. Having a nice looking car is great, but having a nice running car is more important to me, and so is saving money.

 

I'm sure we all dream of buying a new car. Our first car was a dilapidated Gemini that we bought in 1994. It did not last long for we had to sell it when we needed money. Our next car is a 1993 Honda that we bought from a colleague in 1996. A nice car, quite new and classy that lasted with us until 2013 when we bought our Ford Escape. Coincidentally, I studied driving and eventually had to buy my own Mitsubishi Mirage, a small car in the genre of people's car. So we had 2 brand new cars in 2013.

We have no plans this year but maybe next year there is a chance that we would buy a new one and sell one of the our existing cars. But that remains to be seen.

 

I'd like to buy an 'old' car - if I won the lottery I would
See some smashing American cars passing us by - all that loverly chrome - sigh ..................

 

Should I be so lucky as to win the lottery again, I would buy a restored 1948 Plymouth coupe like the one pictured. I had one back in my late teen years. lots of fond memories.