Car advice

[HaloMilliVanilli]

The wife and I are interested in purchasing a used sedan.  We have settled on a Hyundai Genesis and looked at one today.  Test drove it today, really liked it, but didn't pull the trigger.  While researching further, I found another one but not sure which to go with.  Here are the most important variables:

Car A:  2012, 56k miles, $14,200

Car B:  2013, 36k miles, $16,500

Both cars are basically identical except for color and whatever minute changes occurred between the two years.  I think it would be a benefit to buy Car B, getting a newer model and the extra miles.  The wife isn't sure it's worth the extra $2,300.  Thoughts?

[Jay]

If you think you will be putting a lot of miles on the car then go with the lower mileage car, IMO.

If your annual mileage is relatively low you can go with the higher mileage car and save the money.

Also tire wear is a consideration. If one of the cars will be needing tires soon that could influence your decision. If one of the cars has had the tires replaced recently then that's $500 in your pocket.

 

[Vegas Halo Fan]

FWIW, I bought a used 2013 Hyundai Sonata and I have had great luck with it. Reliability is strong with the Hyundai line.

[gotbeer]

Have a mechanic you trust check both cars out.  Tires, brakes would be step 1 to check.  Service record/carfax on both.  Since they are relatively new, and the miles are low, most should have service records at the dealership.  And just on the off chance either has multiple owners. 

[HaloMilliVanilli]

We've decided to go with Car A.  Turned out it had a couple of upgrades that Car B didn't have that I overlooked when reviewing initially.  I have checked with two mechanics that I have good relationships with and both raved about the Genesis specifically and Hyundai in general.  Thanks for all the input.

[Don]

11 minutes ago, HaloJustinBieber said:

We've decided to go with Car A.  Turned out it had a couple of upgrades that Car B didn't have that I overlooked when reviewing initially.  I have checked with two mechanics that I have good relationships with and both raved about the Genesis specifically and Hyundai in general.  Thanks for all the input.

Questions before you buy: What/who are you buying it from? Private seller, private seller who is also the original owner, CarMax, dealership, etc...?

Are you trading anything in (if dealership)?If so, what?

If you're trading in and buying from a dealership, you could save some decent money by negotiating both on trade-in value and price. If you're trading in a 94' Astro van with 200k miles, just take whatever they'll give you for the trade, and focus on price. If you're trading in say a 2010 Sonata with 80k miles, negotiate on both (though especially the trade). Dealerships make a ton of cash by hosing people on trade-ins.

 

[Vegas Halo Fan]

Sound advice. I have read in several publications that you are better off negotiating the trade-in separately from the purchase, because it is easy for dealerships to muddy the water about what you are really getting through creative mathematics on the sale.

[IEAngelsfan]

Another option is to take your used car to Carmax and sell it to them.  You don't have to buy a car from them.

A few years back, I was looking to buy a new car and wanted to trade in my Plymouth minivan. Dealerships were really low balling me when I tried to trade it in. So instead, I went to Carmax and sold it prior to buying the new car. I was able to get $1,500 more from Carmax than the dealership. I used the cash from the sale as the down payment on the new car.

[Vegas Halo Fan]

28 minutes ago, IEAngelsfan said:

Another option is to take your used car to Carmax and sell it to them.  You don't have to buy a car from them.

A few years back, I was looking to buy a new car and wanted to trade in my Plymouth minivan. Dealerships were really low balling me when I tried to trade it in. So instead, I went to Carmax and sold it prior to buying the new car. I was able to get $1,500 more from Carmax than the dealership. I used the cash from the sale as the down payment on the new car.

Carmax gave me $200 for my 1996 Mercury Grand Marquis with almost 200,000 miles on it. Saved me the trouble of dealing with strangers test driving the car and trying to get me to make repairs before selling the car to them. That is probably about what it was worth. 

[wopphil]

3 hours ago, Don said:

If you're trading in a 94' Astro van with 200k miles, just take it to any hole in the wall dealership on First Street in Santa Ana and name your price.

 

Fixed.

[Tank]

3 hours ago, calscuf said:

If the car you get doesn't have BT audio,  give it back the same day you buy it.

Or don't buy it to begin with.

[HaloMilliVanilli]

This was our first used car purchase, and although I love the car the fact that it is beyond its initial warranty is a bit worrying.  How do you guys feel about extended warranties?  This is a luxury sedan with lots of upgrades, like navigation, heated seats, backup camera, etc., which was certainly part of the appeal.  I feel a little naked having a new car (to me) with no coverage.

[Adam]

I have a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. Super reliable thus far in terms of running. The gas mileage they advertised is bullshit. The shocks are terrible. My steering column rattles when I break going down hill. All in all its a super reliable piece of shit, which is exactly what I look for in a car. 

[Jay]

12 minutes ago, HaloJustinBieber said:

This was our first used car purchase, and although I love the car the fact that it is beyond its initial warranty is a bit worrying.  How do you guys feel about extended warranties?  This is a luxury sedan with lots of upgrades, like navigation, heated seats, backup camera, etc., which was certainly part of the appeal.  I feel a little naked having a new car (to me) with no coverage.

Depends on how much the extended warranty costs... doubtful that the extended warranty would cover anything like nav, heated seats and backup cam. The extended warranties are usually for engine/drivetrain. Typically the extended warranty will list the things that it covers, and then explicitly state that anything not listed is not covered. So check it carefully before buying.

 

[Blarg]

At 56k you are looking at the major service which would include replacing the spark plugs. Not sure what the arrangement under the hood is for the Genisis is but my wife's Santa Fe required removing the intake manifold and gasket replacement which made it costly. Not Mercedes costly (just had that fone)  but not six spark plugs and do it in the garage work. 

[Blarg]

28 minutes ago, Adam said:

I have a 2011 Hyundai Sonata. Super reliable thus far in terms of running. The gas mileage they advertised is bullshit. The shocks are terrible. My steering column rattles when I break going down hill. All in all its a super reliable piece of shit, which is exactly what I look for in a car. 

That's not shocks, possibly tie rod ends depending on the mileage. True, all of the Hyundai gas mileage ratings are bullshit and they got caught inflating their numbers but didn't get the bitch slapping Volkswagen got because they didn't cheat,  just lied. 

[HaloMilliVanilli]

Getting quotes this morning so unsure about cost.  I plan on driving this thing for the next 4-5 years and wonder if getting a warranty to cover big issues would make the wife less paranoid.  I wonder if the warranty with come with meds?

[Blarg]

41 minutes ago, HaloJustinBieber said:

This was our first used car purchase, and although I love the car the fact that it is beyond its initial warranty is a bit worrying.  How do you guys feel about extended warranties?  This is a luxury sedan with lots of upgrades, like navigation, heated seats, backup camera, etc., which was certainly part of the appeal.  I feel a little naked having a new car (to me) with no coverage.

Don't buy the extended warranty from the dealer, look at getting the equivalent at a credit union for about half the cost. Although the car is probably good for 100k before it needs repair you don't want to look at the cost of something like a transmission replacement. Shop the warranty options,  some do bumper to bumper but they are costly. With all of the extras on your car it may pay off. 

[mrwicked]

4 hours ago, Blarg said:

At 56k you are looking at the major service which would include replacing the spark plugs. Not sure what the arrangement under the hood is for the Genisis is but my wife's Santa Fe required removing the intake manifold and gasket replacement which made it costly. Not Mercedes costly (just had that fone)  but not six spark plugs and do it in the garage work. 

how is your benz holding up blarg? you still have that pretty slk350?

my mbz is at just over 140k miles, and has been perfect with zero problems. until now.

coming back from a weekend wine country it felt like i was driving on gravel. and loud as balls. but luckily didn't stop us from hitting up a few more wineries and making it home safe.

turns out the rear wheel bearing and hub need replacing. will be probably $1k. thankfully its the first non brakes/tires/cosmetic/serviceA/serviceB/etc issue i've had, so i can't complain at all. 

but that being said, a german car at 10 years is rolling the dice. i might start looking for a new car this summer and change things up.

[Blarg]

Traded it in for the new body style. It rides smoother, has more horsepower and even cup holders that don't threaten to short out your nav system if your drink sweats. Many improvements astheticly but they made changing spark plugs a pain in the ass, having to remove the intake manifold instead of clear access like the old one. 

My Mercedes mechanic says the German cars are the best car in the world for five years. After that get rid of it and buy or lease another, the repair costs are rediculous. He does good business, especially with BMW and Audi which are less reliable after 5 years.

Then he warned me to stay away from Mini Coopers because their engines always have issues. My wife just bought a Clubman  S with the new BMW 2.0 Turbo so I guess we will see how that goes. She loves her Mini, just really enjoys it like no other car she has ever had and is getting racing stripes installed today. I'm tempted to make her birthday present a track day so she can run it at Willow Springs with some professional instruction from a club racer I know that runs a MG Midget on the historic circuit.

[Jay]

I had that experience with my BMW.

I have also heard that Mini's are expensive to own.

 

[Vegas Halo Fan]

On 1/5/2017 at 10:39 AM, Jay said:

I have also heard that Mini's are expensive to own.

 

I can vouch for that. I had a 2003 Mini Cooper (wife wanted it, and we got a really good deal). A lot of crap went out on it, and none of it was cheap to fix. Cost me $800 just to get the hood release cable replaced, because the way the car is built, you have to remove a fender just to get to it. The manufacturer didn't bother relocating the release handle when they started building left-hand-drive cars, so it was on the passenger side kick panel. Had a fuel tank sender go out, power window switches, power steering fan, A/C and a few other things. Couldn't get rid of the thing quick enough.

[Vegas Halo Fan]

On 1/5/2017 at 9:04 AM, Blarg said:

Then he warned me to stay away from Mini Coopers because their engines always have issues. My wife just bought a Clubman  S with the new BMW 2.0 Turbo so I guess we will see how that goes. She loves her Mini, just really enjoys it like no other car she has ever had and is getting racing stripes installed today.

I strongly advise dumping it as soon as the warranty runs out. This is from personal experience.

[Troll Daddy]

Lease don't buy

[Vegas Halo Fan]

3 hours ago, Troll Daddy said:

Lease don't buy

The problem with that is the mileage restrictions with high penalties for going over, and the fact that they charge you for everything when the car is turned in (minor things like door dings and carpet stains included). My father also ran across the issue that when his doctor advised him not to drive anymore, there was no way out of the lease other than paying it off. Had he financed, he could at least have sold the car.