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WHY PERFORM MAINTENANCE?
“Should I keep my car or should I sell it or trade it in for a different one? How many times have you thought about no putting money into your old car and buying a new one? Here is some valuable information that you may find useful. The truth is that it is almost always cheaper to keep your older vehicle running and smarter too! Especially if your vehicle is paid off. Let’s take a look at the options:
New cars have payments that average $400.00 or higher and include a higher cost of insurance. With the economy like it is today the bank interest rates are higher than they used to be so the “deals” are not as good as they used to be. You do have a good warranty because it is new and the reliability is high. So now you have high initial costs and few repair bills. (But you still need to perform maintenance)
See a nice used car that you like? Ok, now you have a lower $250 to $300 average payment for something somewhat new (5 years old) with some reliability and very little (if any) warranty. Also, banks always charge higher interest rates on used cars (usually start at 8% and can be as high as 19 %!). Now you have a car payment with auto repair bills. (Buy you still need to perform maintenance)
See an older used car for less? Think about why you are looking for another vehicle. You are looking for a vehicle because you are sick of putting money into yours, you do not think it is worth repairing, the costs are too high… Why do you think the previous owner of the vehicle you are looking at wanted to get rid of it? You always get someone else’s problems when you purchase any used vehicle. Also, most used vehicles require some kind immediate repairs to make it satisfactory to own and drive. (You still need to perform maintenance… see something familiar here?)
Keep your old car? Ok, you have a vehicle that has value. The value is higher to you if you keep it. If you trade it in, they will need to give you less so they can still mark it up to sell. If you sell it yourself, usually it takes a long time and you have to negotiate the price. It has the most value if you keep it.
Ok, since you have decided to keep your old vehicle, we have to talk about maintaining it. If you just keep driving it and do not perform any preventive maintenance, you increase the costs of keeping your vehicle because you end up having major repair bills. You must keep up the vehicle with an aggressive maintenance schedule to ensure that the vehicle remains reliable. Yes, you may have less reliability than a new car but the average used car maintenance averages $1200.00 to $1500.00 per year over 5 years. Broken down further by month is $100.00 to $125.00 per month! This includes oil changes, tire rotations, tires, wheel alignments, tune ups, fluid flushes, struts, and brakes! Some vehicles may cost more than others but this is a pretty accurate average. Remember, this maintenance is STILL REQUIRED whether your vehicle is new, used, or old!!!
New car -- $6000/yr---30,000/5 yrs (not including maintenance)
Newer Used Car -- $3000.00/yr -- $15,000/5yrs (not including maintenance or repairs)
Older used car -- $2000.00/yr -- $10,000/5yrs (not including maintenance or repairs)
Keeping your vehicle -- $0.00!!!!!!! X 5yrs = PRICELESS! Maintenance is $1200.00 to $1500.00 per year plus occasional repairs and the knowledge that you know exactly what you have done and need to have done to the vehicle. Ask us today to create a maintenance schedule for your vehicle! |
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