Buying a New Car: Need some Advice

[ChrisBird]

Hey Everyone,
I know this forum is for cubing stuff, but a bunch of you probably have a good amount of experience with buying cars (not everyone on these forums are 20 years old or less) and I have a choice to make.

Assume for the moment that the following two cars are identical in every way except what I will be listing, I'd like to know what you think and why. (Please only comment if you have experience with buying cars).

Mini Cooper #1
From 2002
Good Condition
80,000 Miles
$11,000 list, and could probably convince the seller to bring it down to around 9,000

Mini Cooper #2
From 2006
Good Condition
30,000 Miles
$14,000, and could probably convince him to bring it down to $12,000 or less.

Which would you choose and why.
Here are my thoughts:
Mini #1:
It's older, much older, which isn't a positive. It is getting on it's life (with 80,000 miles) and is getting to that age where it will start needing maintenance (which could be costly). For being 8 years old it is in very good condition, and relatively few miles on it. It is much cheaper, as you can imagine, because of what I have listed.

Mini #2:
It's newer, and only 30,000 miles on it so it will be running for quite a bit longer before it needs maintenance, but it is more expensive, by 3K.

So in your opinion is it worth it to save 3K to get one that is still in great condition, but is older with more miles? Or is it worth it to spend the extra 3K and get a newer one with fewer miles?

As I said before, we should assume they are the same in every other way (as they pretty much are).

I'd love to know your opinion.

~Chris

EDIT: I should also mention the following. I will be paying for this completely up front, with my own money, so no loans or anything on it. Just in case that changes things.

 

[Alcuber]

get the fastest one
On topic: the Mini cooper #2 will last longer so i'd get that

 

[xbrandationx]

You really just need to pay attention to reliability and gas-mileage

 

[ChrisBird]

Brandation: Not really. There is more to a car than that, and the other things certainly aren't useless.

 

[goatseforever]

Don't forget gas, insurance, registration, maintenance, smog checks, parking permits, parking tickets. Yea, prepare your anus .

Also, aren't you like 18 years old or something? From whence did you acquire so much money?

EDIT: A bit more input as someone who bought a car a year ago: Dealers will try to F you over so be careful. Private sellers on Craigslist will try to F you over too much it's much easier to tell. I noticed you didn't state who you're buying from, but personally I'd recommend buying from a private seller since it tends to be much cheaper and normal folk aren't as good at hiding problems. I know several people who bought used cars from dealers only to find out they got screwed months later. Make sure all the small (and not so small) things work i.e no oil is leaking, the A/C works, speakers aren't blown. Get a CarFax, on Craigslist there are plenty of people who will do a single CarFax for you for like $5 over PayPal or something if you are cheap like me.

As far as your two options go, they both have pretty decent mileage per year. If you intend to keep the car for a while, then I'd go for the 2006. If you live in an area where your car is likely to get vandalized or if you think you won't be keeping the car for a very long time then I'd suggest the older model.

Also, make sure it's a manual I guarantee you will be swimming in poon.

 

[ChrisBird]

Don't forget gas, insurance, registration, maintenance, smog checks, parking permits, parking tickets. Yea, prepare your anus .

Also, aren't you like 18 years old or something? From whence did you acquire so much money?

EDIT: A bit more input as someone who bought a car a year ago: Dealers will try to F you over so be careful. Private sellers on Craigslist will try to F you over too much it's much easier to tell. I noticed you didn't state who you're buying from, but personally I'd recommend buying from a private seller since it tends to be much cheaper and normal folk aren't as good at hiding problems. I know several people who bought used cars from dealers only to find out they got screwed months later. Make sure all the small (and not so small) things work i.e no oil is leaking, the A/C works, speakers aren't blown. Get a CarFax, on Craigslist there are plenty of people who will do a single CarFax for you for like $5 over PayPal or something if you are cheap like me.

As far as your two options go, they both have pretty decent mileage per year. If you intend to keep the car for a while, then I'd go for the 2006. If you live in an area where your car is likely to get vandalized or if you think you won't be keeping the car for a very long time then I'd suggest the older model.

I have had a job for about 9 years now, so I have saved up quite a bit.

 

[qqwref]

As far as your two options go, they both have pretty decent mileage per year. If you intend to keep the car for a while, then I'd go for the 2006. If you live in an area where your car is likely to get vandalized or if you think you won't be keeping the car for a very long time then I'd suggest the older model.

This.

 

[Carson]

The maintenance costs on a Mini in the U.S. are quite a bit higher than with other models. I would definitely go with the newer model.

I just checked the kelley blue book value for both vehicles. I assumed base model (not the s model) and a manual transmission since you didn't specify.

2002 is valued at under 10k while the 2006 is valued at nearly 16k (assuming excellent condition for each)
In terms of value, the 2006 is the obvious choice.

 

[avgdi]

I would go for the '02. The miles are higher, but it will work fine. Plus it is significantly cheaper.

 

[yeee707]

I would choose the '06, as, yes it is $3000 more, but theoretically it will require less maintenance. As this is my opinion, I love mini coopers, so my goal would be to keep the car as long as possible. I would be willing to pay more for reliability. Plus, its newer. Don't we like new things? =)

 

[PhillipEspinoza]

What I wanna know is what kinda job you have that lets you buy tons and tons of cubes and still have money to buy a car?!! So you were working since you were 9 years old? Whatever happened to child labor laws?! Haha. Hope you have fun with whatever you choose though.

On another note, do you *need* the car? Maybe you can go a little longer before getting a car. That way you can save up for a brand new mini. I personally don't have a car and I'm 22 years old. That's mainly cuz I can't afford one but ya. Public transportation is doable.

 

[Litz]

It depends on what you plan on doing with the car. If you plan to keep it for a long time, get the '06. If you don't, get the '02. Think of how many miles you think you'll be doing per year on average, and how many years you plan on keeping the car. Then see where that would leave you at and decide. If this is just about the value though, the '06 wins easily and the resell value will also be higher.

 

[BeautifullyDecayed.]

You're a student, aren't you?
Well I don't see the need at our age for a flash car.
Also maybe 'cause I'm from nubzealand but everyone is like OMG2001SO OLD.
My car is 1996, and that isn't considered THAT old here. Although I only paid $1800NZ for it.
Seriously though, a car is a car, gets you from A to B. How much time are you planning on spending in it? I personally think there are more worth while things to save for and don't see much benefit on spending a large majority [in my case] of your money on a car.

 

[StachuK1992]

Get the Camry. Really. Just get something safe.

 

[RCTACameron]

It depends how long you'll have it for. If you get the older one, and have it for a while, the maintenance cost will add up to more than you would have paid extra to get the newer car. Think about it.

 

[BigGreen]

'92 Toyota Corolla

 

[irontwig]

You're a student, aren't you?
Well I don't see the need at our age for a flash car.
Also maybe 'cause I'm from nubzealand but everyone is like OMG2001SO OLD.
My car is 1996, and that isn't considered THAT old here. Although I only paid $1800NZ for it.
Seriously though, a car is a car, gets you from A to B. How much time are you planning on spending in it? I personally think there are more worth while things to save for and don't see much benefit on spending a large majority [in my case] of your money on a car.

+1

 

[Bryan]

What I wanna know is what kinda job you have that lets you buy tons and tons of cubes and still have money to buy a car?!!

I worked at a Little Caesar's inside a KMart starting when I was 16 and by the time I was 18, I have I think around $8,000 in savings. Since I was 18 it was my money, and my parents had no clue what I had. I came home one day and told my mom what I did (opened a mutual fund and put $4,000 into it), and she was wondering where I got $4,000, and then I explained I still had $4,000 left in savings. That completely baffled her, since my two brothers always spent their money.

For this, I would hold off on getting the Minifor now. You can get a cheaper brand that won't require as much maintenance to get you through college. Once you're out of college and have a real job, go ahead and get a Mini.

 

[ChrisBird]

Thanks for all of your help guys!

A few things, I have decided on getting a car, so not getting one is out of the question.
I have decided it is 95% percent likely that the car I get will be one of these two, so a different car is just about out of the question.

I don't technically "need" a car, but my parents are tired of having to wake up at the crack of dawn to get me to school and then back, and I agree with them. I should have gotten a car a looooong time ago.
And also it opens up many possibilities for my social life, so maybe I can make more friends (I have like, 1 now)

Phillip: From the age of 9-14 or so I worked for my Dad at his company as a maintenance man (installing speakers, running electrical wires, figuring out what products to buy (research), gardening, pool maintenance, etc. Basically if he needed something done, he'd take a little time to teach me how to do it, and then from then on I'd fix that type of problem. So I have a quite large list (as you can imagine) of things that I can do.
From 14-Now I have found a similar job at another company, who is paying me $15 an hour while working full time in the summer and part time during the school year. So the money adds up quickly. (I should note that while $15 an hour is a lot, it is considerably lower than hiring a real "handyman" to do the job).

So that's that. =p

 

[teller]

If money is a concern at all (hence the OP), don't buy either one. You can get something modest and decent with air conditioning for ~$5000 and do something else useful with the difference.

Otherwise get the 06. You could quite possibly end up paying the difference in repairs alone with the 02. It's only a ~20% discount for almost 3x as many miles.