Used car: age vs. mileage

I'm going to be in the market for a used car in the next year or so. Anyone have advice on the issue of age vs. mileage? I can find cars that are three years old with relatively low mileage (let's say 3 years old with 50,000 miles on it), and I can find cars that are a year old with what I would consider high mileage given the age (say, 30,000 miles on a one-year-old car). Where's the sweet spot?

I myself tend to drive only about 7,000 miles per year, if that helps.

Eric

I usually calculate the average per year to compare cars.

Having said that, unless being relatively new and fashionable is important, place the emphasis on low mileage.

Age in and of itself doesn't produce wear and tear or bad parts.

Mileage = wear and tear.

SkidAce said:

Age in and of itself doesn't produce wear and tear or bad parts.

Mileage = wear and tear.

Click to expand...

For short periods, yes. However, for longer periods, age can matter - seals, gaskets, and belts age no matter if you are driving the car.

My wife and I just bought a used car a few weeks ago. We found the best value seemed to come from a specific sort of car - formerly leased, bought as a certified used car from the dealership. We found these to typically have low mileage for their age (presumably, there was a charge for miles over some cap in the lease), and were almost always kept up with their regular maintenance - and whether they were getting regular oil and filter changes may mean more for the long-term life fo the car than flat out mileage in many cases.

Also check around nearby cities.
Last time I went car shopping I was able to save $3000 by driving from San Jose to Burlingame--30 miles. Same car, roughly the same milage, but Burlingame wasn't as fashionable a city, and bluebook values are lower there for some reason.

In short, I drove off the lot for less than the basic sticker price.
$100 per mile away from where I live? That's even worth a CalTrans "train" ticket!

Low mileage, good mechanical condition, and reptuation of the make/model.

EricNoah said:

I'm going to be in the market for a used car in the next year or so. Anyone have advice on the issue of age vs. mileage? I can find cars that are three years old with relatively low mileage (let's say 3 years old with 50,000 miles on it), and I can find cars that are a year old with what I would consider high mileage given the age (say, 30,000 miles on a one-year-old car). Where's the sweet spot?

I myself tend to drive only about 7,000 miles per year, if that helps.

Eric

Click to expand...

I look at the make and model of the car. Some are known to be more reliable than others. There are several Honda vehicles that are on the top ten list for cars most likely to last beyond 200,000 miles. My own car is over 10 years old, has over 140,000 miles, and I do almost no maintenance on it, but it keeps running. I've had other cars that were newer but couldn't go a year without having trouble.

When my wife bought her car she had a choice between two of the same make/model/year, the primary difference being the mileage. We went for the vehicle that had more mileage because it was cheaper and we probably won't have it long enough for the difference in mileage to be noticeable, which brings me to another point. Consider how long you plan to keep that vehicle. If you are going to get rid of it in a year or two, mileage might not be that important. On the other hand, if you are like me and want to drive it until the wheels fall off, you might want something that has a little less wear and tear.

But to your main question, I consider mileage to be far more important than age, at least for the ages you are describing. Obviously that may change if you are talking about a car that is 30 years old or something like that.

Type of miles matters. A higher mileage car where the bulk of that mileage was highway wouldn't bother me -- those miles are relatively low wear and tear. High city miles on the other hand ...

Extremely low mileage should also be a warning; a car spending too much time sitting, especially if not properly prepped for storage, could have other problems later on.

This also depends on the age of the car; I'd recommend different figures for a 1-year-old car versus a seven-year-old one.

I suggest you're generally OK finding a car with between 3,000 and 15,000 miles per year of age, and allow for higher if most miles are highway (Note that most warranties and insurance assume "average" is 10-12,000 miles per year, so that's a reasonable middle point.)

You can also consider warranty options -- whether a certified pre-owned, or an aftermarket extended warranty -- if you're really concerned (CarMax, if you buy from them, has one of the best in the buisiness -- you can get a six-year bumper-to-bumper warranty from them, and they'll pay you back for unused warranty. Buying a car from them costs more than buying from the local want ads, on average, but it's a painless process that probably results in a good car the majority of the time.

One last recommendation -- pick up the thick car issue of Consumer Reports. Their reliability data is pretty good and can provide suggestions on models and years to avoid. All averages, of course -- for any given make and model there are a lot of good ones for every poor one but the data is still useful to assess overall trends.

Thanks everyone! I appreciate the responses.

CarMax for the win. $10K gets you a vehicle with 44,000 miles on it, probaly 2-3 years old.

Car payment ends up being just under $250/month.

I've bought 3 cars from them and have been happy with each one. Cars from dealerships? Felt like I got screwed on the deal every time.

And get the warranty. On used car, it's worth it.

What kinds of car / car troubles can you fix? That is the real question. Cheap car makes little sense if you have to go to some monkey with a wrench for any minor problem. When you get a used car, you'll be getting someone else's problems.

If you can't fix anything on a car, I'd suggest looking into what you can get with a full warranty and fuel efficiency. Warranty is important because a lot of newer vehicles have fiendishly expensive replacement parts, that can be a real pain to get at.