Please don't ridicule for even thinking of buying a Chevy or Hyundai 🤣 ! I genuinely need some guidance. I'm in the market to for a new (or new to me) car. Gas mileage is ultra important. I would love to have a Prius (I have had one in the past) but it's super hard to find one. Most of the ones I am seeing at 18kish for 2012 with 90,000...good grief! In 2015 I paid 10k for a 2010 with 90,000.
Here is my dilemma: I live pretty rural in the mountains of Western North Carolina. There aren't any decent Toyotas or Hondas for sale within a 2 hour radius. I have been searching for weeks for a good used car - but been pretty limited with options. We have a small Ford and a small Chevy dealership with little to no used car options.
My budget is 23-25k or below if I finance (car needs to be 2017 or newer), and 10k or lower if I buy cash.
Am I better off getting a new car or used? Only options for new would be Corolla Hybrid (if I can even find one), regular Corolla, Hyundai Accent or Elantra (yikes, I know!), and Ford Maverick Hybrid which seems to be unavailable until mid 2022 or 2023. What about a chevy Equionix IF it has a lifetime warranty? Does a lifetime warranty make up for unreliability? What am I not thinking of? I have three young kids so we need at least 5 seats. We were able to fit them all in the prius, so as long as its not smaller than a prius we are good.
If new is not a great idea (or even possible due to lack of inventory), what would the best used option be? I can't stomach the idea of paying more then 17k for a used car. I'm not opposed to buying something around 10k cash, BUT I would need peace of mind that I wouldn't need to have it in shop often.
Curveball: husband came across a bmw electric vehicle on carvana for 16k - good idea or bad?
Thanks for the help!
Clarification: How many years and miles do you need it to last you?
forever! ha. At least 8 - 10 years. (Edit: it depends. If I buy a used car or 10k, if it lasts 4-5 years I think I would feel pretty happy about it. New car would obviously want to last longer)
I also didn't include any fords other than maverick. Are any of the ford hybrids decent? Ford fusion?
Don't buy an Equinox, I don't care what kind of "warranty" it's supposed to have. Those are one of the worst vehicles around and you can bet your sweet bippy that the "lifetime" warranty is some dealer or 3rd-party thing that will turn out to be worthless when the stupid thing starts falling apart. Hyundai is not much better.
I'd go for a new Corolla and call it a day.
Thank you!
Even if you have to travel a bit more than you'd like to buy it, in the long run you'll be a lot better off.
live pretty rural in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
I love it there. I hiked to the top of Mt. Le Conte. The Blue Ridge Pkwy is a real gem too.
My budget is 23-25k or below...
Am I better off getting a new car or used?
New. A brand new Corolla is $20k
Or see if they still have any previous year's model left over.
You might be able to find a Camry or Rav4 in your budget.
Does a lifetime warranty make up for unreliability
I don't think so. Ideally the car is reliable enough that you don't have to deal with warranty. And you should read the fine print on "lifetime" because it's too good to be true.
husband came across a bmw electric vehicle on carvana for 16k - good idea or bad?
Bad.
Thank you for the input. This helps me a lot!
Mt Mitchell is the BEST! I used to live about 30 min from it, tucked up in the mountains just off the parkway. We have since migrated a little more West and settled in Franklin, NC.
sorry I got that mixed up. I went to Mitchell as well, but that isn't in the Smokies, and it's more of a tourist walk. I meant Mt Le Conte which is a lot more breathtaking.
I would definitely suggest Honda or Toyota in the first place. And given the ridiculously high used car prices and if you're not in a rush for a car then buy new; worst case is having to do a deposit and wait for the car to come in. Toyota has been pretty good with the hybrid technology and they've figured it out since they've been making the Prius for 20 years so even if Prius is not in your budget they offer the Corolla in hybrid version too. The Rav4 base msrp starts at $26350 and I know it's hard to get cars for below msrp these days but if you could then a rav4 is a great car too. For Honda there is the Civic and Accord which can be in your price range based on the trim level you select. Their CR-V is good too. And yes for all these cars you can see if there are any dealerships with previous year models left which can help in getting a better deal hopefully.
Since you said you want the vehicle to last forever, with 3 young kids, you may be better off buying a brand new CR-V/RAV4 so that they don’t outgrow a sedan. You don’t want to be back at square one, in 5 years from now.
The used car market is crazy at the moment, and with your scarce used options, you may just be better off buying brand new, unless you find a real deal somewhere.
No matter what you end up with, don’t forget to test drive it extensively to verify it suits the needs of your family.
All the best!
New car pros> no repair worries, expenses. Car drives great & nothing like that new car feeling
cons>high monthly payment & full coverage insurance wont be cheap
Used>much cheaper but repair factors unknown
If you're planning on driving that new Toyota until it dies 20 + years from now and absolutely can afford it without overstretching your wallet Id go that way. If you'd be lying to yourself saying you can afford this new car, then don't lie to yourself and find a used corolla or Camry for half the price of the new one
the BMW electric is a bad idea if you ask me. Its probably only $16K for a reason
I can't think of any more potential horror than a electric BMW. What climate do you have? Do you have severe winters? You mentioned hills. Did you mention where you live?
She mentioned the Mountains of Western North Carolina (i.e. Franklin, NC)
Thanks. I am actually familiar with that area. My mother in law lived in Columbus NC. The interstates are pretty good but there are a lot of local winding and steep roads. A used Hyundai or Kia with the V6 built after 2017. You pick the model but you will need the extra power. That's pickup truck country. Tell her not to honk her horn if caught behind a slow moving manure spreader.
Responsible spokesmen with opposing viewpoints are offered a opportunity for rebuttal. (He only gave me a choice between Chevy and Hyundai)
So what did you buy?