Car purchase - bottom range new or top of range old?

sinizterguy

I'd rather have an 6-8 year old BMW/Audi than a brand new Citroen/Pugeout/Ford/Hyundai/Kia etc.

That's my personal preference.

So, my vote goes for older better spec over newer bottom spec.

Joe_Horner

Older, higher range every time.

Then again, I remember when poverty spec was poverty spec:

No aircon (even as an option)
Heater possibly optional
Handles to wind all the windows up and down
Wing mirrors (yes, actually on the wing!) only available at extra cost
Rubber mats
Vinyl seats that cook or freeze you depending on the season
No radio
Not even a space for a radio
Drum brakes all round, disks not available until half way up the model range (and then front only)
No power steering
No brake servo
15 inch plastic steering wheel with a 1/2 inch, unpadded, rim


Ahh, those were the days......

N9eav

Joe_Horner wrote: »

Older, higher range every time.

Then again, I remember when poverty spec was poverty spec:

No aircon (even as an option)
Heater possibly optional
Handles to wind all the windows up and down
Wing mirrors (yes, actually on the wing!) only available at extra cost
Rubber mats
Vinyl seats that cook or freeze you depending on the season
No radio
Not even a space for a radio
Drum brakes all round, disks not available until half way up the model range (and then front only)
No power steering
No brake servo
15 inch plastic steering wheel with a 1/2 inch, unpadded, rim


Ahh, those were the days......

You are talking about my friends first car. 17 years old and was given a Morris Minor. We did not care it was wheels !!!!

Joe_Horner

Not a bad choice for a first car even nowadays!

As you say, it's wheels. They're also fairly cheap to run, very cheap to insure (comparatively) for a young driver, and do help you develop a certain respect for the road with so little protection

anotheruser

Top spec older model.
It'll give you a better experience than a bottom spec new model, which has loads of buttons removed and look awful.

DKLS

Top Spec every time, my mate has just bought a Merc AMG CLS, for 6k, original invoice was for 78K not that long ago.

Am sure the potential to throw a big bill is huge but what a car, the way it launches down the road :eek:

Tilt

I had this dilemma just over a year ago. Needed a newer car to do my occasional long distance trips to the Midlands as my trusted 14+ year old Punto was now hitting the 75k mark.

So I went for something i've always wanted; a top end Alfa 159 V6 Q4. Not many of them about with the right mileage (most appear to be diesels) but eventually I found one on a 07 plate that had just done 80k. Fully "stocked" (to put it as John Cleese's 'Q' term), full dealer history and under £8k (£28K new).

Not the most economical choice though.... lucky if I get 28mpg on a run plus the VED.... don't ask!

But on the upside, it's a real beaut to look at, feels solid, everything works and it's a dream to drive.

InsideInsurance

BarleyGB wrote: »

Hi all,

Ive been saving for a long time to buy myself a nice car. Putting aside discussions about the merits of car purchases, depreciation etc im looking for some opinions re the merits of:

Bottom of the range:

Pros - shiny and new, would be the first new car id ever bought and from the outside looks are the same as better models, reduced running costs

Cons - depreciation, small engine, not many toys


Top of the range:

Pros - big engine, acceleration, power, lots of extras e.g. nice wheels, sat nav, cruise control etc, forecourt to road depreciation priced in

Cons - running costs, repairs etc (not really an issue for me)


Realising the same amount of money would get me a brand new bottom of the range model has got me wondering whether ive thought about it enough. I think ive made my decision but wanted to see what other peoples thoughts/preferences would be?

Seems that depreciation factored in fairly heavily despite you saying you wanted to ignore it

Predominately I agree with others, top of the range 2nd hand over bottom or the range new however it does vary a little by which car you are going for (namely how low bottom really is) and if there have been any model changes (if there has then is there anything in the change I'd want).

Bringing depreciation back into the equation, depending on just how old you are talking then a top of the range 2nd hand model may well still depreciate rapidly too because as people say above, in many cases cars tend to converge to the same price over a long enough timeline.

forgotmyname

But top of the range varies a lot between different manufacturers and even different models from the same manufacturer.

Compare a Focus C-Max to a Mondeo. Basic LX Mondeo has cruise control and a heated windscreen, You need at least a Ghia spec Focus C-Max to get those.