Wold you rather have?!?!?

[W30olds]

Got to thinking about life stuff today for some reason. The one topic I've been pondering is would you be happy with a newer car, or one that's a bit older and in good condition? Obviously with a new car comes payments, higher insurance rates plus maintenance.

 

With an older vehicle hopefully no payments, or low payments. Personally I'd rather be debt free and drive a nice older car that's paid for and is mechanically sound.

 

There's nothing automotive wise I'd want to be strapped to for 60 or 72 months making payments on. I'd much rather have the extra cash for guns, vacations, cruises, renovations to our house and savings for rainy days.

 

Maybe it's because I'm older now and see life different. When I was 20 years younger it was all about having the best car, clothes, girls....

 

Not saying that's wrong for others, but just me pwrsonally. What's everyone else thinking? Just throwing out a life ponder for the day.

[Imp558]

Older

[94 olds vert]

I owned a newer truck. While it was nice, the payments sucked. The insurance was higher. Now I own a 10 year old truck, no payment, cheaper insurance, and it runs great. That extra $400/monnth goes right into my bank account. I have plenty of money for fun things now.

Edited November 30, 2017 by 94 olds vert

[W30olds]

I owned a newer truck. While it was nice, the payments sucked. The insurance was higher. Now I own a 10 year old truck, no payment, cheaper insurance, and it runs great. That extra $400/monnth goes right into my bank account. I have plenty of money for fun things now.

Nice!

[Galaxie500XL]

Until just a few years ago, I'd never had a car payment--I'd always bought nicer older cars.  The newer one is for my wife, because I'm perfectly happy with older stuff.  The IROC I now have had for the past couple of years was one of my dream cars I'd wanted ever since they were new.  I drive it daily...in fact, I've now put nearly 40,000 miles on it in just over two years.

[W30olds]

Until just a few years ago, I'd never had a car payment--I'd always bought nicer older cars. The newer one is for my wife, because I'm perfectly happy with older stuff. The IROC I now have had for the past couple of years was one of my dream cars I'd wanted ever since they were new. I drive it daily...in fact, I've now put nearly 40,000 miles on it in just over two years.

Nice! 5.7L, or 5.0L?

[W30olds]

I'm happy with my cars and life. I believe in today's society there's too much emphasis on material looks. Meaning if one dosent have the latest iPhone, clothing, car, fake hair, ect. then your an outcast. I've never really understood why so many people live above their means to portray someone they're not and live in large amounts of debt. Just not my thing really. Not knocking it if that's how you want to live, but me as I've grown older I care less about that crap and care more about living a balance life.

[Galaxie500XL]

Nice! 5.7L, or 5.0L?

5.7 TPI, with a 5-speed swap.

 

[jimmyfloyd]

Saving up and paying cash for a newer vehicle an option? No payments, reliability, ok insurance.

 

 

That said, it took Driving older, cheap vehicles for years to get to that point. Still, I do love an inexpensive vehicle that looks decent but you don't have to cry about if it gets a scratch.

[jiggity76]

Payments suck but I wanted a new daily driver so I wouldn't have to worry about it since my other two vehicles are a 87 and 91 model year.  I also wanted to try an aluminum bodied vehicle since rust is what eventually took my old truck.

[94 olds vert]

Payments suck but I wanted a new daily driver so I wouldn't have to worry about it since my other two vehicles are a 87 and 91 model year. I also wanted to try an aluminum bodied vehicle since rust is what eventually took my old truck.

Im not sure if Im sold yet on the aluminum body trucks. Time will tell if they hold up well or not.

[jiggity76]

Im not sure if Im sold yet on the aluminum body trucks. Time will tell if they hold up well or not.

Only time will tell, I already know what road salt does to steel so I'm giving it a try. 

[rich_e777]

Well let me see here a 2017 Kia vasectomy or  2-3 maybe 7(W-bodies ) whatever the hell i want made 15+ years ago.

 

But then I`m the guy that would live in a trailer in order to afford an 87` Countach, Testarossa or GNX so my opinion is obviously biased.

[jiggity76]

Well let me see here a 2017 Kia vasectomy or  2-3 maybe 7(W-bodies ) whatever the hell i want made 15+ years ago.

 

But then I`m the guy that would live in a trailer in order to afford an 87` Countach, Testarossa or GNX so my opinion is obviously biased.

I like the way you think!

[Nas Escobar]

Older car, no payments, more money to modify it.

[Imp558]

With a newer car it's more important to keep it clean too. A much bigger deal if a Hooker yaks in the back seat or if a bottle of booze leaks in the glove box.

[Mitchellman]

Definitely an older vehicle that can be paid outright. Gives more cash for possible issues to fix and/or modify. Plus you can scope out some pretty good deals on older cars, if you wait. I'm currently looking for another car so the wife and I have a backup. Plus, I don't like driving my GS in the winter.

[W30olds]

Definitely an older vehicle that can be paid outright. Gives more cash for possible issues to fix and/or modify. Plus you can scope out some pretty good deals on older cars, if you wait. I'm currently looking for another car so the wife and I have a backup. Plus, I don't like driving my GS in the winter.

Im saving some coin for a 2007 GXP myself. Found several in good condition. Really like those Grand Prix's

[MemphisMan]

I've always liked driving an older car, especially my current one. I take pride in the fact that it's 23 years old (build date October 24th 1994) and it still looks and drives like a new car...new as far a 90's GM build quality car will allow lol. My car was practically new when I bought it, so I know it's entire maintenance history. I've performed all scheduled maintenance and always addressed little things before they become major ones. The result is a dependable, enjoyable, and practical daily driver. I'll always rather pay above blue book for an older car with extremely low miles than to buy a new (or slightly used) car.

 

I think the challenge with daily driving an older car is keeping it looking new so people understand you're driving it by choice and not by necessity. I see a lot of people around Memphis driving mid-90's cars that are held together with prayers and duct tape. It sucks that that's all they have to drive so they make the best with what they have. I've had so many people ask me why I don't drive a newer car and I just say "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

[KnightOwl]

I had older cars for years because it was all I could afford, and while I got plenty of fun miles from those cars, I got tired of spending all my days off wrenching on them to keep them running. Now I feel like I have the best of both worlds. My 2013 Escape is one of the most comfortable cars I've ever owned, has nice features, plenty of space for versatile use, and has enough zip to make a lot of fun to drive. At $350/mo the payment isn't breaking me, but my Dad always said "you will pay for a car one way or the other." When I drive the GP now the difference is stark but still an enjoyable experience, and I know if something goes wrong with it, I'm not stuck, so having it as second vehicle feels like it makes more sense. Having a classic musclecar (like a Trans Am) has always been a dream, but for me, any car I own still has to be somewhat useful and comfortable. I cant own something that all its good for is to drive once in a while and that's it.

[Moozery]

Being my age and from my area it's hard to afford a brand new vehicle. Plus for me leaving things stock is too boring for me, so having a cheap car with lots of side money to add/change things is perfect.

Plus, I like getting to fix stuff up (that's fixable of course, not many want a rusted out car as a project lol), and I've learned a lot of valuable info from fixing up my GP that I never would've learned with a brand new car for a long time.

 

But really above all that, the biggest thing is there's something I love about cars from the late 90's and early 2000's. Whenever I see those 2000's-ish Camaros, Imprezas, Mustangs, etc, I can't help but drool haha.

[W30olds]

Having had my 1995 GP in the body shop for the last 2 weeks I drove around in a 2017 Altima. Man was that car super nice. Powerful, amazing gas mileage, super tight suspension, heated everything. Made me feel like a king. Had to return it Saturday. Now it's back to my 95 GP. Driving in that new car got me the new car fever. Don't know if, or what I'd buy really. Wife and I talked about a mid sized SUV, so might get one of those. I have a 2006 GTO as well. So we have 3 cars currently. Only thing is my GP has over 200K miles on her. She still runs fine, but it's the orginal tranny. If it let loose today I couldn't complain. It's been a wonderful car. It's in amazing condition for a 22 year old car and I get compliments all the time on it. I can totally buy a new car, but I really have no need for one. I like stacking away cash for hobbies, performance parts for my GTO and doing upgrades to our home. Plus I'm a gun nut and it's cool to have extra cash for ammo. We also like to travel so not having car payments is nice. Wife and I both do good money wise. I guess we just feel like wealth is measured in many ways. We both like to serve at the church and in the community, so doing good for others can't have a price on it. Piece of mind to us is the most rewarding feeling.

[Galaxie500XL]

Same here. Over the decades I’ve been driving, the average age of my daily driver has been at least 20 years. The Cutlass was the newest I’d had in awhile, and it was just over 20 years old when I sold it. The IROC just turned 30...I’ve driven it over 38,000 miles in the past two years.

[W30olds]

5.7 TPI, with a 5-speed swap.

 

Nice!

[Moozery]

Having had my 1995 GP in the body shop for the last 2 weeks I drove around in a 2017 Altima. Man was that car super nice. Powerful, amazing gas mileage, super tight suspension, heated everything. Made me feel like a king. Had to return it Saturday. Now it's back to my 95 GP. Driving in that new car got me the new car fever. Don't know if, or what I'd buy really. Wife and I talked about a mid sized SUV, so might get one of those. I have a 2006 GTO as well. So we have 3 cars currently. Only thing is my GP has over 200K miles on her. She still runs fine, but it's the orginal tranny. If it let loose today I couldn't complain. It's been a wonderful car. It's in amazing condition for a 22 year old car and I get compliments all the time on it. I can totally buy a new car, but I really have no need for one. I like stacking away cash for hobbies, performance parts for my GTO and doing upgrades to our home. Plus I'm a gun nut and it's cool to have extra cash for ammo. We also like to travel so not having car payments is nice. Wife and I both do good money wise. I guess we just feel like wealth is measured in many ways. We both like to serve at the church and in the community, so doing good for others can't have a price on it. Piece of mind to us is the most rewarding feeling.

 

Maybe try out a used car, but something a little different? You might still get that same new feel and excitement from an old car still. If you liked that Altima, maybe see if there's a nice used Maxima that you can take for a drive. That way you could have the best of both worlds.

 

I know a guy who's absolutely hooked on that "new car fever". He always has 2 vehicles for himself and he swaps each of them out for something different about 2-3 times a year.

 

Sometime if you get bored you should make a thread for the GTO and the GP in the Members Rides section