Cars be * expensive vs 10 years ago

what's the fixation with "10 years old" ? we've got 3 cars right now.

04, 06 and 08.

all modern enough, all reliable.

Ours is a 58 plate. So 2008.
Doesnt look too bad for a 15 year old car.

My. Old s2000 was 1999 reg. However it did have a bit of rust creeping in I believe before it was written off at 20 years old.
 
I've never seen so many new cars on the road these past few years, prices of used cars will only increase as we get closer to 2030 and people won't be wanting to swap to electric vehicles

Yeah. The amount of shiny cars I see and I think that must be new, and it is, literally brand new. I guess people are still leasing despite the massive increase in costs to lease now. I think a lot of households lease despite the cost because they see it as hassle free, it won't go wrong as it's so new, and they get to drive a brand new car.
 
Yeah. The amount of shiny cars I see and I think that must be new, and it is, literally brand new.
if they are leasing I think the pre-occupation to keep it shiny/scratch-free is stronger - my reservation on leasing is that responsibility

what's the fixation with "10 years old" ? we've got 3 cars right now.

04, 06 and 08.

all modern enough, all reliable

would you drive any of them on a vacation to europe(or Scotland) - reliability does depend on what you want to do with it.
 
The older it is the more chance of having rust, etc.

Newer cars in my price range have better engines, better fuel economy, lower emissions. And often better spec.

It's not a fixation, it's a benchmark.

that all depends on what you're buying.. buy a 10 year old dacia and the fuel economy etc won't be as good as a 15 year old toyota hybrid. Buy the best car you can afford for your needs and stop fixating on year/mileage. One of our cars is 2008 with 140k miles and still going strong with just basic maintance.

would you drive any of them on a vacation to europe(or Scotland) - reliability does depend on what you want to do with it.

absolutely, the s2000 has not once let me down, the crown we have is a "basic" by todays standards 3.5 v6 NA so no turbos etc, it has 140k miles and it just chugs along line nothing. The honda fit I have is the one I'd trust the least but it's heavily modified machinally and it shoudn't be used as a benchmark as its not "normal"
 
I think about 10 years old is roughly a sweetspot between depreciation (although still relatively expensive nowadays), not having moon miles, and condition i.e. rust. Things like rubber hoses may perish at greater ages and rust certainly starts to creep in around 15-20 years but variations do exist depending on car make and other stuff like has the car lived near the coast for much of its life.
 
Yeah. The amount of shiny cars I see and I think that must be new, and it is, literally brand new. I guess people are still leasing despite the massive increase in costs to lease now. I think a lot of households lease despite the cost because they see it as hassle free, it won't go wrong as it's so new, and they get to drive a brand new car.

Yeah leasing is another reason for car prices going through the roof, because few people own cars outright these days. Most are on some form of plan at x amount per month, and they get a new car every 3 -4 years, or if you get bored most let you trade up early.

My dad has done this for the past few years but now he's coming to retirement he's decided he doesn't wasn't to have to find £400+ per month for a new car so will be buying his current car when it's time for renewal so he has the loan paid up by the time he retires
 
Hardly anyone is leasing cars - leasing is not common outside of a commercial environment - it is more expensive and less flexible (You cannot buy the car the end, you cannot trade it in for another half way through the agreement) than other forms of vehicle financing. Most of the cars you see are probably sold on Personal Contract Plans rather than leases. Whilst they look similar (to the point that I'm sure most people who say 'leasing' mean 'personal contract plan') they are not the same thing at all.

This doesn't really change the point being made, but I thought it was important to point out anyway.
 
I paid £1900 for our 8 year old Suzuki Ignis Sport in 2013.

41K 2 previous owners.

I am about to sell 10 years later for £3000 @113K miles. Adjusted for inflation I have made £500 profit.

I paid £1900 also for my Manual Saab 9-5 Aero Estate in 2015

111k 4 previous owners.

I see one sell 150k mileage in about the same condition as mine for £6k!

My 1995 Toyota Celica cost me 3k in 2012. In good condition these are now selling anywhere between 15-20k depending on spec and mileage. Mine is only on 69k.

It is also the main reason why I decided to buy outright my new GR86 coming in September because residuals are just so strong. Plus it will be a rare car so I doubt I will lose much on it if I needed to sell in 1-3 years time. (Not that I will as I keep my cars long term).
 
that all depends on what you're buying..

As it basic rule it's perfectly valid. Generally speaking, a 2015 car will be more fuel efficient, better equipped and more reliable than it's 2005 equivalent.

I've had cars with 200k on the clock and cars with 5k on the clock and my most trouble free experiences have been, as you'd expect, with the newer and lower mileage cars I've had.
 
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As it basic rule it's perfectly valid. Generally speaking, a 2015 car will be more fuel efficient, better equipped and more reliable than it's 2005 equivalent.

I've had cars with 200k on the clock and cars with 5k on the clock and my most trouble free experiences have been, as you'd expect, with the newer and lower mileage cars I've had.

Still the random 10 year or newer limit is odd. Buy a car that’s 12 years old but a higher end/spec model and it’ll be better equipped. Basically my thinking is that anything post 2002 or so is easily comfortable and equipped enough to deal with everything world can throw at you. Especially when we’re dealing with a limited budget. Doesn’t need to be 20 years old for e.g.
 
@FoxEye

This guy has some useful videos on his chan, and does many reviews of other similar priced vehicles,

He is right about the Saabs. The non Aero models are dirt cheap and lovely cars to drive.

You could probably haggle this for 2.5k.


100% that has belonged to a recently passed dentist or something along those lines. Full Saab/Specialist history.
 
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100% that has belonged to a recently passed dentist or something along those lines. Full Saab/Specialist history.
No need to guess. 90% of the advert words describe the owner, lol.

*Modern Classic* This is the story of Audrey and her Saab 9-5. Audrey and I live close to each other. Audrey from Hagley in Worcestershire has owned this fantastic 9-5 2.3T 170 bhp example for the last 23 years. Audrey's husband sadly passed away in 2000 after purchasing it new. It has driven just 76,246 miles in that time, on average just 3000 miles per year. Audrey, aged 80, is quite a character and used it to pop down to the local village Deli to do her shopping and to Stourbridge Golf club where she told me she always received admiring glances and compliments off local folk who had always wanted to own one of these beautiful Saabs. She has continued to have it serviced pretty much annually despite only driving it a handful of miles each year. Therefore, it comes with a Full Saab & Saab Specialist Service History: 20 services by Droitwich Saab and P D Autocraft (Saab Specialists) which are recorded in the service book [see photos]. The last service was carried out on 7/11/2022 at 76,224 miles. It has now done 76,246 miles. Unfortunately Audrey is unable to drive any more because of her age and health although she says she still loves driving it and has clearly cherished it. The factory fitted extras are: Auto Transmission - Leather - Metallic Paint - Heated seats and the lovely 3-spoke Alloy Wheel Upgrade. The original sales invoice is also present [see photos]. It also has a tracker fitted. Rare opportunity to purchase such a well serviced 2.3T 170 bhp, low owner example. It has always been garaged at Audrey's beautiful home in her dry double garage as she resides in a superior residential part of Hagley. She has spent many thousands maintaining it over the years and has really looked after it. Original, complete and correct throughout. 12 months MOT. Next MOT due 18/07/2024, Full service history, Silver, 1 owner, £2,795



It is a peach but has probably never gone above 2500 rpm.
 
I think we can refer to the other thread on deluded sellers.

There’s asking price and sale price.

Also see the Arnold Clark thread for the benefits of buying from a trade seller.

Then see the thread on WBAC values, and refer to Motorway who will also give you the value of the vehicle tracked over time.

Beautiful.
 
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It is a peach but has probably never gone above 2500 rpm.
hadn't read the description but looking at the pics it was the nomark tyres that had stuck out - Audrey's grandson had been using it recently ?
didn't clock a (horsebox) towing bracket though, which would be another strike.

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if you are buying cars from a dealer (AC excepted) you have the price of their warranty & margin/vat to pay for too, can that total be anything less than £500,
and probably represents a bigger percentage on oldest cars ? perhaps it's better to go private and trust your character evaluation of the seller.
 
I think we were 'spoiled' for a long while with cheap used car prices relative to other nations and whilst conditions have softened somewhat there's no escaping the fact that the supply chain issues in recent years will have residual impacts on the used market for years to come simply because 2021/22 had very low numbers of registrations, so in say 2026-7 if you are looking for a 5 year old car you will have limited choice and elevated prices, which then has a knock on impact on cars that are 6-7 years old because they don't need to fall in price as much.

I know money has realistic limits but I wonder where the trade off is with cars a little more expensive, higher miles but newer and a lot more spec for the money. I wonder though if they are being sold because big ticket items are imminent like turbo and you'd end up in it for another grand :s for example as someone mentioned earlier in the thread the Nissan Pulsar - quite a few ~2015 cars but on ~100K miles at £4-5K with the higher trim levels.
Yeah basically the bottom of the market is compressed, because there is kind of a 'floor' value for any car that is in reasonable condition, especially where dealers are concerned as theyhave to add their overheads and margins on top so it makes up a bigger proportion of the price on cheap cars. So a car that is 50% better might only cost 10% more (I know you can't measure how much better a car is but you get my drift). In other words there is sort of a logarithmic Quality:Price curve whereby at the low end you really get a big benefit from spending slightly more which then starts to taper off as you increase budget and get towards diminishing returns.

anything post 2002 or so is easily comfortable and equipped enough to deal with everything world can throw at you
My memory is a bit hazy but going back that far you risk losing some basic stuff like isofix, cruise control, potentially cd player and electric windows on cheaper cars and then potentially lack ULEZ compliance if that matters. Obviously some people won't care about this stuff maybe they can fit aftermarket audio, no kids etc.
 
My 2005 mini has isofix, cruise control, cd player, heated seats etc. and is Clean Airzone exempt. So did my 2004 3 series way back when. Edit: sorry, I missed where you said "cheaper cars".
 
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Hardly anyone is leasing cars - leasing is not common outside of a commercial environment - it is more expensive and less flexible (You cannot buy the car the end, you cannot trade it in for another half way through the agreement) than other forms of vehicle financing. Most of the cars you see are probably sold on Personal Contract Plans rather than leases. Whilst they look similar (to the point that I'm sure most people who say 'leasing' mean 'personal contract plan') they are not the same thing at all.

This doesn't really change the point being made, but I thought it was important to point out anyway.
Yeah PCP is definitely the most common way people get new cars. Prices of PCP deals are also crazy now compared to a few years back. I got a brand new full spec'd Audi TT in 2014 for £300 a month it was about a £36k car. Absolutely no chance of getting anything like that now!
 
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