Difference between nearly new car and used car

thegirlintheattic

Ok, need a new car and have looked around and the options seem to be:

13k for a brand new car
10-11k for a nearly new car of the same spec (1 year old, 3k odd miles)
7-8k for a 2009 model (30k odd miles) + 500 for warranty etc.

I want a reliable car (many problems with my current one) and am planning to keep this car for as long as practical. I've never had a new car so don't know how much difference a year or so in age makes.

Is a brand new or nearly new much more reliable than a few years old car?
Is the nearly new worth paying more for etc.?

At the moment I'm leaning towards a nearly new (although they are thin on the ground) but this would require approx. half of the cost being financed which is making me nervous as I don't really want to be in debt but also want to get rid of current car relativity soon.

LandyAndy

I think we need to know what sort of usage you intend to make of it.

If you intend to do 30,000 miles a year and can't afford to have the car off the road due to breakdown then the answer will be very different to if you intend to do 4,000 miles a year and could easily use public transport for a day or two every few months.

Of course, in general, cars get less reliable as they get older but a modern car from a reliable manufacturer ought to go 5 or 6 years at an average mileage without anything other than routine servicing and tyre replacement(my experience of Mazda).

thegirlintheattic

At least 12,000 on the daily commute alone plus 600 mile round trips several times a year.

Can't really afford to have the car off the road as to get to work there is no easy public transport solution (i.e. only public transport solution requires a lift to the station and gets me in late) - I have already had one day off this year when car broke down.

Your last paragraph is kinda what I wanted. So no real difference between reliability for the first 3 years or so?

Strider590

"Nearly new" is just a buzz word used to make a 2nd hand car seem less 2nd hand.
Vanity drives a large amount of car purchases and vanity will choose "nearly new" over "2nd hand" any day.

Very often dealerships run "pool cars", which their salesmen and employee's run errands in, or which get used as courtesy vehicles. They keep these cars for a few thousand miles, then sell them on. Most "nearly new" will be these vehicles...... They may have had a pretty hard life, being driven by people who don't own them and don't care about them.

A 2nd hand vehicle, will be a customer car and much more likely to have been looked after.

It's all "swings and roundabouts" though really.

In many ways your better off with a car that's a couple of years old, substantial savings + hopefully all the "new car teething problems" will all have been sorted out.

BJV

Strider590 wrote: »

Nearly new is just a buzz word used to make a 2nd hand car seem less 2nd hand.

In many ways your better off with a car that's a couple of years old, hopefully all the "new car teething problems" will all have been sorted out.

I worked for a massive dealership - Big and you are totally right. Nearly new sounds a lot better than used.

If you have the money then new is better as you will always have the manufacture back up. But and it is a big but massive but the price difference can be huge.

A good choice is to find a year old car(had it biggest depreciation ) from a manufacture who offers 5 year warranty. That way you are getting the back up but still keeping costs down.

Please remember though that every car new used and falling apart can have problems. Its just that the older the car the more likely it is.

I have seen less than week old £40,000 & £50,000 cars being transported back to the garage after braking down.

colino

Best buy, if you are keeping for a long time, is the one-owner, 2-3 year old car from private hands with a copper-plated service history. You will have saved on the cliff-face depreciation, the wrinkles will have been sorted out and if they are affluent enough to change so often, the car will have been well looked after.

vax2002

If you want reliability, buy a repmobile, look at the car in the range aimed at the rep market and you will seek out the most reliable one they make.
This is the market where car makers make the money and put most effort in to getting right.

thegirlintheattic

Thanks. I'll have another look round the dealers soon and see what I come up with. Currently looking at Fiesta's which seem to meet my needs and be value for money. I just assumed that at only 2K difference the lower mileage would be better.

What is a repmobile? I've had a look at some 'motorway' cars such as focuses and mondeaoes, but they are more expensive and much bigger than I need. Although I did fall in love with a focus but too expensive.

Strider590

thegirlintheattic wrote: »

Thanks. I'll have another look round the dealers soon and see what I come up with. Currently looking at Fiesta's which seem to meet my needs and be value for money. I just assumed that at only 2K difference the lower mileage would be better.

What is a repmobile? I've had a look at some 'motorway' cars such as focuses and mondeaoes, but they are more expensive and much bigger than I need. Although I did fall in love with a focus but too expensive.

It's very good advice, but those cars don't become available at a reasonable price until the fleet owners shift/rotate their old stock (typically 4 years). At which age you'll pick up a bigger car for small car money.

I bet your starting to wish you'd never asked? lol

Car buying is very complex, people get ripped off because they don't want the hassle....

thegirlintheattic

Thanks. I'm starting to realise that. Went to look at cars at some dealers at the weekend and it really put me off. Neither took into account my budget, one wanted me to sign for the car that day! even though I kept saying I just wanted an idea of prices and the other was extremely rude when I said I did not want to fill in an application form or take a test drive or organise fiance as I made it very clear I just wanted to see roughly what was around. The last guy lost any chance of a sale although I did see a car I rather liked, I wouldn't be forced into it and won't by from someone so rude.

Seems the consensus is for an older car (OH wants me to get a brand new for some reason) so I'll have a look around.

vax2002

Brand new can come with problems and endless trips back to dealers for niggling faults, a car with a few thousand on has been through the mill and had all the loose ends tied up.