New Car - Old Car - Decisions, Decisions

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nzkiwiman

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#173513 26-May-2015 10:20

For the last 11 years I have been driving around in a 1996 Honda Civic LXi Hatch
It has a few niggles, but is still a very sound car and does its job well. It however is just getting a little old.

I have been playing with the idea of getting a new car (new to me, but not a brand new 2015 car), and over the weekend I was surprised to receive an offer from my father that he would give me some $ towards a car. That prompted me to look a little harder, which of course started to confuse me.

How old should I go?
How many KM?
Car type/body shape?
How much of my cash do I actually want to spend?

Thinking further, I decided
2012
30,000 km (or less)
Hatch preferred, as long as it holds the big boxes I grab out of my storage shed every so often
Not an ex rental

The cash issue seems to be the issue - I don't really want to spend ALL of my money, but at the same time I don't want to spend a bit now and have to spend a bit more later

This weekend, I will go test driving a few cars - the Mazda 3 seems to have glowing reviews.

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#1311861 26-May-2015 10:28

What is your budget?

heylinb4nz

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#1311871 26-May-2015 10:44

I wouldn't get to hung up on Newness (ie the year).

a) features you want (power, economy, safety, looks, space etc)
b) low kms (40,000-50,000 is good range)
c) reliability of chosen model
d) fair price within your budget

Allow a little extra to get chosen car upto your standard (ie serviced, better tyres etc)

Depending how long you plan to keep car should define what km range you buy in...and thus affect the price. It will vary by person

eg

For our main family car we keep for 5 years and sell it around 100,000 (+/- 15,000 km), so I bank on 10,000 km per year and therefore I look around the 50,000-60,000km range. Not to much to go wrong between that and 100,000 kms, most of the depreciation has happened.

Depending on the value of my car after 5 years, mechanical condition, and what else is available I will sometimes break my rule and keep an additional 2 years.

wasabi2k

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#1311872 26-May-2015 10:45

There is a thread about 1 away from this one comparing the Mazda 3 with the i30 and another.

Mazda 3 seems to win everything.

Unsure as to their older models however.

ilovemusic

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#1311887 26-May-2015 11:03

why not ex-rental ?

many from reputable firms like orix have moderate to high kms but most importantly have been regularly serviced with supporting documentation.

i've bought several ex-rentals (ford, toyota) in the past that have been great value for money.

Boeingflyer

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#1311891 26-May-2015 11:06

ilovemusic: why not ex-rental ?

many from reputable firms like orix have moderate to high kms but most importantly have been regularly serviced with supporting documentation.

i've bought several ex-rentals (ford, toyota) in the past that have been great value for money.

thats where we just bought ours from (orix). Bula and Simone are awesome and don't talk crap. they have heaps of cars to move.

wasabi2k

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#1311892 26-May-2015 11:07

ilovemusic: why not ex-rental ?

many from reputable firms like orix have moderate to high kms but most importantly have been regularly serviced with supporting documentation.

i've bought several ex-rentals (ford, toyota) in the past that have been great value for money.

Alternatively - ex lease. They seem to be relatively cheap, well maintained (as they are usually dealer serviced) and in most cases well looked after.

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Hammerer

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#1311901 26-May-2015 11:18

ilovemusic: why not ex-rental ?

many from reputable firms like orix have moderate to high kms but most importantly have been regularly serviced with supporting documentation.

i've bought several ex-rentals (ford, toyota) in the past that have been great value for money.

+1 Ex-rentals can be a very attractive option. If you are going to exclude them then you should probably exclude ex-fleet and other ex-leased vehicles because they often have similar usage and servicing profiles.

I found that the main advantage of ex-rentals (and ex-fleet) is that they often get their mileage up faster than average so they have more of the new standard features for a lower price. In recent years that means you are more likely to get the end of the warranty and safety features like stability control and side/curtain/knee air bags. This is more obvious with smaller cars which tend to get these features later than larger more expensive cars.

I wouldn't exclude a bargain just because it is ex-rental. We bought an ex-rental about five years ago and two years later it was still valued at more than what we paid for it. When it was written-off in a crash the insurance company also confirmed that when they paid us more than what we paid for it.

maxeon

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#1311902 26-May-2015 11:21

If SUV or Crossovers are on your List, have a look at the Ford Kuga 2013 onwards.
The Titanium Diesel Model ticks all the boxes for being very economical, spacious and also have pretty much every feature that the latest model high end cars have these days.

Inphinity

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#1311909 26-May-2015 11:34

Personally, I would exclude ex-rentals, but include ex-lease. In my experience, while both tend to have relatively conclusive service histories, ex-rentals are more likely to have been mistreated due to a high volume of different types and competencies of driver, whereas an ex-lease tends to have had a fewer number of drivers (often just one) who have treated the car more as their own vehicle. Purely personal anecdotal experiences on these having bought a few of each type in the past.

mclean

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#1311996 26-May-2015 13:44

There's a lot of ex-lease Mondeo's on the market right now. Typically 50-70000 ks, usually with factory fitted cruise control and bluetooth phones. Some of them are like new, great buys. That's provided you looking for something that's purely utilitarian, which is how I would rate the Mazda 3. If you want to spend your money on a car you can fall in love with then forget the boot-space thing.

nzkiwiman

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#1312020 26-May-2015 14:19

Cheers all for the replies.
If I was going after a car I wanted, then it would be a Toyota 86 (not that I have ever been in one), but the boot space issue makes that not practical

Budget - max $20k, plus whatever Dad threw in.
However I don't know if I want to actually spend $20k.

I want to get a car that lasts me a long time (like my current car) rather than going in an upgrade ever xx year cycle as I see that as money wasted.

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#1312022 26-May-2015 14:21

at 3 years old it would have depreciated around 30-50% depending on the model. that is the best bang for buck.

wasabi2k

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#1312029 26-May-2015 14:29

joker97: at 3 years old it would have depreciated around 30-50% depending on the model. that is the best bang for buck.

I've also noticed a noticeable drop just after 3 years when most new car warranties run out.

nakedmolerat

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#1312049 26-May-2015 14:39

I always prefer new car, the smell is good ;-P and I like cars. I sell them after manufacturer warranty is over.

With 20k+, you can get i30 (get diesel if you do >15000km a year) with odo less than 20,000km.

Wade

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#1312069 26-May-2015 14:52

I reckon the sweet spot is buying ex-lease @ 3yrs old, NZ new, under 100km, most would be company cars which are generally well serviced as per factory warranty requirements etc and have usually been maintained in a no expense spared fashion

It also depends largely on the type of car, I wouldn't expect a low spec white corolla hatch to be treated as kindly as say a mondeo/camry/falcodore as it depends if it has been used as a pool/tool of trade/management vehicle

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