During the last several years, as a result of government intervention, inflation, and regulations, the American folk have seen the quality of many things decline. One of those things has been the decline in the quality of our cars.
Our cars have become smaller, less durable, and are designed to crumple. The smallest impact with anything will leave a big dent on the car! So what’s the point of buying a new, flimsy car when you could be driving a “tank” capable of going over 60 miles an hour?
Well, there are a few bonuses to having a new car. One of those is that the car is new. There is no wear, everything is clean, and it has that “new car smell” that so many people cherish. All by itself, this isn’t a very convincing reason why you should get a new car.
Another bonus to getting a new car is that you don’t have to spend as much money on repairs and keeping the car running for a few years (if it can last that long). This is an important plus on the side of a new car, but all in all, the plusses of buying a new car is greatly outweighed by its cons.
One of those cons is that a new car is designed to crumple due to CAFE regulation, which were established to make car manufactures create more fuel-effecient cars. Due to this, cars have become lighter, and so has the material with which they are made. So even the smallest impact will make you pay a significant amount of money on repairing that dent.
The second con about buying a new car is that they are expensive, and rarely are there new cars that you can buy for less than 20 grand. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather spend 16 grand, save those other 4, and drive in an older Ford than a brand-spanking new Ford Escape.
Another con is that newer cars tend to break down after a shorter period of years than older cars. In fact, there are Model T Fords that can still operate almost a century later! Try to convince me that a 2016 Toyota Camry can do the same!
There are multiple pros when buying an older car, some of which I’ve already mentioned but will review. The first one I’d like to mention is that these things are tanks compared to the modern day cars. A small impact with a car might result in a trivial fender-bender, but there are DIY methods for solving those.
They are also considerably cheaper, and it’s possible to find ones that require a total of only 7 or 8 grand. Try to find me a new car that costs me that much!
And finally, these things are meant to last. Since they have simpler engines, there aren’t as many things that could go wrong in them. Even if anything does break down in them, auto-dealerships still sell the necessary parts to replace the broken ones.
So, if there was a competition as to which one was worth my money, I’d easily say that an old car which will still run another 7 years no problem, is more durable, costs less, and is easily fixed is much the better alternative than a new car that’s going to only run for 7 years, is less durable, costs more, and isn’t as easy (or cheap) to fix.
Lesson 105 Assignment: 250 Words on Whether to Buy an Old Car (20-30 years) or a New Car (2-3 years).
Posted in Assignments, Personal Finance
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