Car advice
03-16-2006, 05:20 AM
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Car advice
I am getting to a point where I need to decide what car I will be driving for awhile. I have had my 1991 Mercedes Benz 190E 2.6 since around August and since then have had to repair the front accessory belt/tensioner and stuff which was $800 (this was crazy coming from a previous Honda owner). The trannsmission has always been sluggish, which is a known problem in these automatics. While it is a 4 door the rear is kind of tight, especially on headroom, this is a consideration since I regularly carry 4-5 people in my car. It only has 100,000 miles on it drives nicely, but I know if I am going to keep this car for 3-4 more years I will have to sink some money into it to keep it in good shape. I really do like this car, its in excellent shape and is pretty quick with the 2.6 inline 6. Last thing to note is it will be paid off early in 2007.
Option 2 is to buy a new Honda Fit. This is what the smart old man in me tells me to do. It will be a new car, totally reliable, very practical, and I do like them. But I have come to value luxury ammenties, quiet and comfortable ride, and a powerful motor powering the rear wheels. This would be cheapest car to maintain as far as repair and gas, and certainly car carry plenty of people and cargo. But I feel like I am stepping down a notch from the Mercedes.
Option 3 I am looking at is a newer used luxury car. I stumbled on this car on craigslist.org 1998 BMW 740i I have loved this body style on the 5 series and enjoyed watching it in BMW Films and The Transporter. Its much newer than my current car but also has 100,000 miles. The current owner works at a dealership so all the usual problems on the car have been fixed and it has been taken car of. But it is a BMW and anything that would go wrong on the car would cost alot, like the Mercedes. The asking price is $14,250 which is correct according to NADA. So its about the same price as a Fit, is older and high miles, but its a BMW. And like the Fit I would have to have a long note to keep monthly payment down.
So should I keep the Merc, get rid of a payment and sink some money into it to keep it in a good shape. Buy a Fit and be sensible. Or buy the BMW and enjoy it while I can?
All of this is speculative as I dont know what the bank or insurance would say to any of this.
Kevin
Option 2 is to buy a new Honda Fit. This is what the smart old man in me tells me to do. It will be a new car, totally reliable, very practical, and I do like them. But I have come to value luxury ammenties, quiet and comfortable ride, and a powerful motor powering the rear wheels. This would be cheapest car to maintain as far as repair and gas, and certainly car carry plenty of people and cargo. But I feel like I am stepping down a notch from the Mercedes.
Option 3 I am looking at is a newer used luxury car. I stumbled on this car on craigslist.org 1998 BMW 740i I have loved this body style on the 5 series and enjoyed watching it in BMW Films and The Transporter. Its much newer than my current car but also has 100,000 miles. The current owner works at a dealership so all the usual problems on the car have been fixed and it has been taken car of. But it is a BMW and anything that would go wrong on the car would cost alot, like the Mercedes. The asking price is $14,250 which is correct according to NADA. So its about the same price as a Fit, is older and high miles, but its a BMW. And like the Fit I would have to have a long note to keep monthly payment down.
So should I keep the Merc, get rid of a payment and sink some money into it to keep it in a good shape. Buy a Fit and be sensible. Or buy the BMW and enjoy it while I can?
All of this is speculative as I dont know what the bank or insurance would say to any of this.
Kevin
03-16-2006, 06:16 AM
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I'm sure alot of you folks that own German cars are going to flame me for what I'm going to say, but it can't be any worse that what anyones said to me on here before, so I really don't care...
My opinion is that German cars are unreliable and expensive to maintain. When I was searching for a new car, I wanted a Boxter soooo derned bad, I even had dreams about it... Then I started talking to people who had owned German cars - Mercedes, Porsche and VW. I'll provide some of their commentaries as I remember them...
Mom: "The next car I buy won't be a Mercedes, it will be a Toyota or a Lexus."
(4 time Mercedes owner since 1979)
Uncle: "Never Again."
(3 time SL convertable Mercedes owner also since 1979)
Coworker: "I keep my Mercedes until the warranty expires then I get a new one."
(2 time Mercedes owner)
This is the quote that kept me from buying the Boxter:
Friend Eric: "I loved my Porsches, but they just cost too much to fix. If a light comes on in the car it could cost you $500 to fix it."
(4 time Porsche owner)
Brother in Law and Sister: "German cars suck and they cost a fortune to fix. I'll never buy one again."
(Both Passat owners, now both I250/I350 Lexus owners)
That being said, my opinion is for you to part ways with the Mercedes. I understand that you would be downgrading from the Mercedes to another car as far as STATUS, but I never rode in a Mercedes I found more comfortable, powerful, or reliable than a Lexus, or even my 4Runner. My Toyota has been so reliable and maintenance free, that I replaced my front brakes for the 1st time in my truck at 122k, and I am still on the originals in the rear at 133K. Mercedes to me are just a status symbol. I think you should stay with your daily beater after you sell the Mercedes so you don't have a car payment for a while and can save for a nice downpayment on a slightly used Honda, Acura, Toyota or Lexus. I don't know why or how often you cart people around, but personally, I love having the S2K so I DON'T HAVE TO (be the taxi driver). No offense, but I looked at the Fit online, and I can't figure out why anyone likes that car, I think the S is the only nice looking car Honda makes.
FWIW, my .02 cents...
Good luck and let us know what you decide...
Tx_Phantom
My opinion is that German cars are unreliable and expensive to maintain. When I was searching for a new car, I wanted a Boxter soooo derned bad, I even had dreams about it... Then I started talking to people who had owned German cars - Mercedes, Porsche and VW. I'll provide some of their commentaries as I remember them...
Mom: "The next car I buy won't be a Mercedes, it will be a Toyota or a Lexus."
(4 time Mercedes owner since 1979)
Uncle: "Never Again."
(3 time SL convertable Mercedes owner also since 1979)
Coworker: "I keep my Mercedes until the warranty expires then I get a new one."
(2 time Mercedes owner)
This is the quote that kept me from buying the Boxter:
Friend Eric: "I loved my Porsches, but they just cost too much to fix. If a light comes on in the car it could cost you $500 to fix it."
(4 time Porsche owner)
Brother in Law and Sister: "German cars suck and they cost a fortune to fix. I'll never buy one again."
(Both Passat owners, now both I250/I350 Lexus owners)
That being said, my opinion is for you to part ways with the Mercedes. I understand that you would be downgrading from the Mercedes to another car as far as STATUS, but I never rode in a Mercedes I found more comfortable, powerful, or reliable than a Lexus, or even my 4Runner. My Toyota has been so reliable and maintenance free, that I replaced my front brakes for the 1st time in my truck at 122k, and I am still on the originals in the rear at 133K. Mercedes to me are just a status symbol. I think you should stay with your daily beater after you sell the Mercedes so you don't have a car payment for a while and can save for a nice downpayment on a slightly used Honda, Acura, Toyota or Lexus. I don't know why or how often you cart people around, but personally, I love having the S2K so I DON'T HAVE TO (be the taxi driver). No offense, but I looked at the Fit online, and I can't figure out why anyone likes that car, I think the S is the only nice looking car Honda makes.
FWIW, my .02 cents...
Good luck and let us know what you decide...
Tx_Phantom
03-16-2006, 06:26 AM
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Do you plan on continuing to race your current Civic? If not, I'd think the Fit is the best option because you'll be able to autocross the crap out of it without issues. (Well, except for tire expense. 
)
If the Merc replacement won't see track duty... Well, I haven't been to impressed by German car longevity past 100k miles. What about an older Lexus ES, or an Acura Legend? I see that David McDavid has a '93 4dr Legend L, 75k miles, 5spd manual, for $6,324.
)If the Merc replacement won't see track duty... Well, I haven't been to impressed by German car longevity past 100k miles. What about an older Lexus ES, or an Acura Legend? I see that David McDavid has a '93 4dr Legend L, 75k miles, 5spd manual, for $6,324.
03-16-2006, 07:25 AM
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I totally agree with yall about the German unreliability, mainly in new models. The older ones (like mine) were built very well during the era German cars got the reputation they have.
I have considered a Legend but they just dont thrill me. I need to drive one though to see how they really are. The Fit attracts me because it reminds me of my 1987 Civic, bare bones, lightweight and very practical.
The Civic is retired, I dont have the time to replace the engine and have already sold off the race suspension. I love that car so much but dont have the time or money to support a race car right now. So it would be nice to have a car that is luxury around town but can still be fun at the autoX without tearing it up. If I keep the Mercedes I will probly start modifying it to do some light autoX duty.
Where does your sister live? I am considering coming over to Ft. Worth sunday arfternoon to drive the BMW and a couple other cars.
Kevin
I have considered a Legend but they just dont thrill me. I need to drive one though to see how they really are. The Fit attracts me because it reminds me of my 1987 Civic, bare bones, lightweight and very practical.
The Civic is retired, I dont have the time to replace the engine and have already sold off the race suspension. I love that car so much but dont have the time or money to support a race car right now. So it would be nice to have a car that is luxury around town but can still be fun at the autoX without tearing it up. If I keep the Mercedes I will probly start modifying it to do some light autoX duty.
Where does your sister live? I am considering coming over to Ft. Worth sunday arfternoon to drive the BMW and a couple other cars.
Kevin
03-16-2006, 07:29 AM
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Originally Posted by nivek2002,Mar 16 2006, 11:25 AM
Where does your sister live? I am considering coming over to Ft. Worth sunday arfternoon to drive the BMW and a couple other cars.
Kevin
Kevin
Let me know
Tx_Phantom
03-16-2006, 02:29 PM
#7
I agree with Elistan. Get the Fit as your daily driver and autocross car. It should be fun and reliable and won't hit the old bank account too hard. Plus, warranty is a great thing...
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03-16-2006, 03:39 PM
#8
Option 4:
Instead of spending fourteen to fifteen grand on a brand new crapbox or a ten-year old premium luxury car, why not spend the same money on something in between? Something with a little more luxury than a Fit, but with much lower operating costs than a 740il?
The problem with the Fit is that it's a brand new car. It won't cost much to maintain it, but as the 1st owner you'll take a bath on resale should you decide in two or three years that you want to trade it, especially since you've already said you'd need a long note to afford the payments. That and the fact that it's a 2/3rds scale minivan - why on earth any of you think a tall, narrow, extremely underpowered fwd wagon would make a fun car to autocross is beyond me. Don't see a whole lot of Scion xBs at autocrosses, do ya? Wonder why...
The problem with the 740il is that it is a well used, high end, German luxury car. At 100,000 miles it isn't used up, but it will likely need quite a few expensive repairs and intensive maintenance during your ownership period. Can you afford that on top of the note?
I think you'd be better off with something along the lines of a higher-mileage IS300. It will carry 4-5 people, it's rwd, it has Lexus's legendary bank vault reliability and low maintenance costs, and it'll be a hell of a lot more fun to drive than a luxo-barge 740il or an econo crapbox Fit. You could even (gasp!) autocross it and kick the twenty year old, carbureted, slushbox Civic to the curb.
What's not to like? Sounds like the best of both worlds.
Instead of spending fourteen to fifteen grand on a brand new crapbox or a ten-year old premium luxury car, why not spend the same money on something in between? Something with a little more luxury than a Fit, but with much lower operating costs than a 740il?
The problem with the Fit is that it's a brand new car. It won't cost much to maintain it, but as the 1st owner you'll take a bath on resale should you decide in two or three years that you want to trade it, especially since you've already said you'd need a long note to afford the payments. That and the fact that it's a 2/3rds scale minivan - why on earth any of you think a tall, narrow, extremely underpowered fwd wagon would make a fun car to autocross is beyond me. Don't see a whole lot of Scion xBs at autocrosses, do ya? Wonder why...
The problem with the 740il is that it is a well used, high end, German luxury car. At 100,000 miles it isn't used up, but it will likely need quite a few expensive repairs and intensive maintenance during your ownership period. Can you afford that on top of the note?
I think you'd be better off with something along the lines of a higher-mileage IS300. It will carry 4-5 people, it's rwd, it has Lexus's legendary bank vault reliability and low maintenance costs, and it'll be a hell of a lot more fun to drive than a luxo-barge 740il or an econo crapbox Fit. You could even (gasp!) autocross it and kick the twenty year old, carbureted, slushbox Civic to the curb.
What's not to like? Sounds like the best of both worlds.
03-16-2006, 03:47 PM
#9
Even better option for fourteen grand? Buy an $8k '98-'02 4 cylinder Accord to use as your daily driver - cheap to own, reliable, comfortable, good gas mileage, plenty of room, etc. My wife has driven a '00 EX 4 cylinder for the last three years and thoroughly enjoyed it. More importantly, it has been incredibly reliable and inexpensive to own. If you ever get bored you can swap in an H22a and make an Accord Euro R out of it - trust me, marcucci has pestered me to do this on more than one occasion. 
Spend the other $6k on a used Miata. Cheap to own, reliable, good gas mileage, and so much more fun to autocross - or just drive on a nice, sunny day - than a slushbox Civic from the era when Devo ruled the charts, you'll wonder what took you so long to buy one.
Seriously.
Spend the other $6k on a used Miata. Cheap to own, reliable, good gas mileage, and so much more fun to autocross - or just drive on a nice, sunny day - than a slushbox Civic from the era when Devo ruled the charts, you'll wonder what took you so long to buy one.
Seriously.
03-16-2006, 11:29 PM
#10
Don't constrict your future buying decisions by locking yourself into a long car note on a new car that is subpar by all indications. Even though it'll be nice to have a new car, it's get old quickly, literally and figuratively.
I almost went down that route. As lame as it sounds, I wanted my dad to buy me a NEW Geo Metro convertible back when I was 17. It was only $13k or so and I just wanted a new car so bad. I was driving an '86 Isuzu I-Mark. Anyway, due to the grace of God, he didn't buy me that, he helped me a buy a used '93 Del Sol Si. I put almost 40k miles on it and sold it for about $2,500 less than we paid for it. I used that money to get a new Prelude and drove the crap out of that and sold it for maybe a $7k depreciation hit.
I guess what I'm saying is that with your current age and financial situation you need to buy a cheap, reliable, fun car that won't cost an arm and leg to buy and maintain. You will put yourself in a much, much better financial situation down the road where you will be able to buy a car you REALLY want.
If you keep compromising, it'll be that much longer that you can afford something you really want to buy. I know the itch for a 'new' car is very strong and it feels great to scratch, but the feeling goes away quickly and what you're stuck with is a financial obligation on a car you don't want.
I almost went down that route. As lame as it sounds, I wanted my dad to buy me a NEW Geo Metro convertible back when I was 17. It was only $13k or so and I just wanted a new car so bad. I was driving an '86 Isuzu I-Mark. Anyway, due to the grace of God, he didn't buy me that, he helped me a buy a used '93 Del Sol Si. I put almost 40k miles on it and sold it for about $2,500 less than we paid for it. I used that money to get a new Prelude and drove the crap out of that and sold it for maybe a $7k depreciation hit.
I guess what I'm saying is that with your current age and financial situation you need to buy a cheap, reliable, fun car that won't cost an arm and leg to buy and maintain. You will put yourself in a much, much better financial situation down the road where you will be able to buy a car you REALLY want.
If you keep compromising, it'll be that much longer that you can afford something you really want to buy. I know the itch for a 'new' car is very strong and it feels great to scratch, but the feeling goes away quickly and what you're stuck with is a financial obligation on a car you don't want.