To those that sold their Si

[amirza786]

Yeah I've been there before.

It just kind of depends. Toyotas are very good cars and do hold their value well. It takes more time for them to steeply drop. I kind of dont plan to get another car for a long time.

Buying old stuff was the only way I could afford to change cars every 2-3 years and it not be a burden. Even with 2 newer cars... the average age of them all is 12+. I've always kind of liked the sub-$10k stuff... and have a aversion to spending more than $25k on any new car... which is getting to be not-much nowadays. I just don't feel like cars are worth as much money as what dealers sell them for. I don't have any no-warranty anxiety and 10 year old cars have a lot of unfortunate siblings in junkyards to mine cheap parts off of, if need be. It's things like that 25 year old Z that become a bit of a problem... as the junkers are mostly gone.

Well I can tell you one thing. I have never had a Toyota die on me from natural causes. My wife had to murder ours. I had a 1995 Corolla LE with a 5 spd MT, long story short, it ended up in the hands of my nephew, and it was still running 3 years ago when he traded it in for a Prius through a program called "Cash for Clunker". He got $8,500 trade in credit, and I paid probaby $12K for it new! It had plus 200K on it, the body was falling apart, but it still ran really good. I think the clutch on that thing was only changed once, and I don't even think I changed the MT fluid on it since I owned it! If my Si lasts half as long, I will be happy

 

[krees]

My loss vs the trade in tax offset nearly washed so I almost broke even. I was given several hundred less than I owed yet I got about 1500 in taxes offset so it wasn't too bad for me.

 

[JNRS]

Out of curiosity did you break even or did you owe? Also where did you sell it to carmax or back to Honda?

I traded in my Si for a BRZ that I found at a Subaru dealership. They gave me what I owed on the vehicle, but like others have mentioned, I did lose some money during the process in other areas (down payment, tax, etc), but it wasn't nearly as much as other vehicles since Hondas tend to hold their value well. In the end, the Si is and was a good vehicle, but It wasn't the right fit for me. At this point in my life, I am looking for the closest affordable "race car" I can buy until I am able to afford a 911 GT2 RS (In my dreams).

 

[charleswrivers]

Well I can tell you one thing. I have never had a Toyota die on me from natural causes. My wife had to murder ours. I had a 1995 Corolla LE with a 5 spd MT, long story short, it ended up in the hands of my nephew, and it was still running 3 years ago when he traded it in for a Prius through a program called "Cash for Clunker". He got $8,500 trade in credit, and I paid probaby $12K for it new! It had plus 200K on it, the body was falling apart, but it still ran really good. I think the clutch on that thing was only changed once, and I don't even think I changed the MT fluid on it since I owned it! If my Si lasts half as long, I will be happy

I was given a '89 Corolla years and years ago as a second car just after I was married. Had a pile of miles on it. The thing ran like a top the year we had it and I sold it to another couple before I had to move cross country for a little bit of nothing. I've long lost track of it now, but several years later, I know it was still going strong.

I think I asked like... $300... $500 something like that for it. The folks who bought it were as broke as me. Still, it started everytime. The heat blew hot. The cold blew cold. The radio made noise. For a 15+ year old car at the time, it was still doing it's job and didn't cost me a nickel past gas and an oil change or two over that time.

 

[MattyNice]

I’ve traded in 2 Si’s and many other vehicles after 1-3 years of ownership. I’ve typically lost 1-2 grand each time. Yes, it’s expensive but until this damn car, only thing I ever paid for outside the payment was for oil changes. No problems to deal with, no tires, brakes, batteries, etc to replace. And I always have a new car.

As to those that say it’s “silly,” that’s a bunch horse crap. You have to have some enjoyment in life and for some us, it’s cars. You can’t and don’t have to save every penny you make or make the best use of every dollar you make. Most everyone does something with their money that doesn’t make great financial sense. As long as your 401k looks good, your savings looks good, and you’re living within your means, you can afford to enjoy some of your hard earned money whether it makes financial sense or not.

People that think cars are a waste are just people that see them as a means to get from a to b. Typically, a Toyota driver.

 

[amirza786]

I’ve traded in 2 Si’s and many other vehicles after 1-3 years of ownership. I’ve typically lost 1-2 grand each time. Yes, it’s expensive but until this damn car, only thing I ever paid for outside the payment was for oil changes. No problems to deal with, no tires, brakes, batteries, etc to replace. And I always have a new car.

As to those that say it’s “silly,” that’s a bunch horse crap. You have to have some enjoyment in life and for some us, it’s cars. You can’t and don’t have to save every penny you make or make the best use of every dollar you make. Most everyone does something with their money that doesn’t make great financial sense. As long as your 401k looks good, your savings looks good, and you’re living within your means, you can afford to enjoy some of your hard earned money whether it makes financial sense or not.

People that think cars are a waste are just people that see them as a means to get from a to b. Typically, a Toyota driver.

Ha ha looks like some nerves got rattled. No need to get touchy, enjoy buying your new car every year, no one is judging you, different Stokes for different folks. Lol

 

[Spike Spiegel]

Anyway, all of my cars I keep them until they either die or are totaled by my wife

Perhaps driving lessons are in the pipeline for her next Birthday?

 

[Spike Spiegel]

I’ve traded in 2 Si’s and many other vehicles after 1-3 years of ownership. I’ve typically lost 1-2 grand each time. Yes, it’s expensive but until this damn car, only thing I ever paid for outside the payment was for oil changes. No problems to deal with, no tires, brakes, batteries, etc to replace. And I always have a new car.

As to those that say it’s “silly,” that’s a bunch horse crap. You have to have some enjoyment in life and for some us, it’s cars. You can’t and don’t have to save every penny you make or make the best use of every dollar you make. Most everyone does something with their money that doesn’t make great financial sense. As long as your 401k looks good, your savings looks good, and you’re living within your means, you can afford to enjoy some of your hard earned money whether it makes financial sense or not.

People that think cars are a waste are just people that see them as a means to get from a to b. Typically, a Toyota driver.

A man does not live on bread and water alone (unless you're in prison). I agree that we all tend to waste money on our own pet hobbies... having a new & exciting car every few years seems reasonable. Or modifying. Or having a cheap daily and an exciting weekend toy... Or anything that works for the individual!

 

[amirza786]

Perhaps driving lessons are in the pipeline for her next Birthday?

Ha Ha Ha perhaps. The good news is she has not had an accident since 2013. The bad news is that does not stop her from getting scratches on our car.......

 

[jason510]

As far as what people are saying on Facebook groups, I would take that with a grain of salt. People are not going to admit that they are on the losing end of something, especially if it's a bad financial decision.

Isn't it the same for this forum? LOL. Especially what people say they bought their car for on a few other threads?

But I agree with you @amirza786 about a car being a bad investment. The word investment means getting a return on something you buy, and a car definitely doesn't fit that definition. I think it's safe to assume that most people don't consider buying a car an "investment" unless someone is buying a classic car to restore and sell. But even then I don't know that would necessarily net a profit.

 

[amirza786]

Isn't it the same for this forum? LOL. Especially what people say they bought their car for on a few other threads?

But I agree with you @amirza786 about a car being a bad investment. The word investment means getting a return on something you buy, and a car definitely doesn't fit that definition. I think it's safe to assume that most people don't consider buying a car an "investment" unless someone is buying a classic car to restore and sell. But even then I don't know that would necessarily net a profit.

I look at a car as an investment, but instead of the return being profit, the return should be years of trouble free ownership. Time is money. If I have to constantly visit a mechanic or go thru the painful purchasing process every few years, than that is wasted time which equals money. I would rather put my money in my bank, my home, my children's education (ugh), investments that will get me closer to a comfortable retirement and vacations. If other people want to put their money in changing cars every few years, more power to them

 

[b4gel]

I look at a car as an investment, but instead of the return being profit, the return should be years of trouble free ownership.

Very few cars are an investment in the classical sense. Most are rapidly depreciating assets.

People can convince themselves that buying a new car every few years is the price to pay for their hobby. Let them. Without them, there wouldn't be used cars that have already suffered the worst few years of their depreciation. It's not how I'd check cars off my list though...

When you already own a dependable daily driver, dealing with cars that are becoming "classics" is where you start being able to have fun for almost no money (assuming you're willing to wrench on stuff yourself). I owned a mint condition NB Miata for a few years before buying my Si last year. I did a bit of work to it and ended up breaking even on the parts, tax/tags/title, and all the fuel I used because I sold it for $1500 more than I bought it for. Other than the cost to insure it and the space it took up in my garage, I checked owning a roadster off my list and did it basically at no cost. You can't really argue that fun to cost ratio.

Meanwhile, in 9 months of owning my new Si that new car smell and Apple CarPlay has probably cost me $2500 in depreciation. Prior to buying it, I thought long and hard about replacing the Miata with a S2000 instead of purchasing a new 10th generation Si (the used market wasn't there yet). A S2000 is a stupidly impractical car compared to the Si, but ironically, a more sound "investment".

Ultimately, I made the worse financial decision and bought the new Si instead. After ten years of daily driving a Honda Fit, I wanted to reward myself with a "fun" daily driver instead of having my fun limited to weekends. Owning a weekend car worth 4x more than my daily driver felt out of whack.

 

[amirza786]

Very few cars are an investment in the classical sense. Most are rapidly depreciating assets.

People can convince themselves that buying a new car every few years is the price to pay for their hobby. Let them. Without them, there wouldn't be used cars that have already suffered the worst few years of their depreciation. It's not how I'd check cars off my list though...

When you already own a dependable daily driver, dealing with cars that are becoming "classics" is where you start being able to have fun for almost no money (assuming you're willing to wrench on stuff yourself). I owned a mint condition NB Miata for a few years before buying my Si last year. I did a bit of work to it and ended up breaking even on the parts, tax/tags/title, and all the fuel I used because I sold it for $1500 more than I bought it for. Other than the cost to insure it and the space it took up in my garage, I checked owning a roadster off my list and did it basically at no cost. You can't really argue that fun to cost ratio.

Meanwhile, in 9 months of owning my new Si that new car smell and Apple CarPlay has probably cost me $2500 in depreciation. Prior to buying it, I thought long and hard about replacing the Miata with a S2000 instead of purchasing a new 10th generation Si (the used market wasn't there yet). A S2000 is a stupidly impractical car compared to the Si, but ironically, a more sound "investment".

Ultimately, I made the worse financial decision and bought the new Si instead. After ten years of daily driving a Honda Fit, I wanted to reward myself with a "fun" daily driver instead of having my fun limited to weekends. Owning a weekend car worth 4x more than my daily driver felt out of whack.

Just think about this...you pay of the si in 5 years (I plan to pay it off in 3), then for the next 5 to 10 years you have NO car payment. That feels damn good. The last car I bought before this was my 2013 Toyota Sienna (I had no choice, my wife totalled our 2004 Sienna), I paid it off in 2016, and I had no car payment for the last almost 3 years. That felt damn good!

 

[b4gel]

Just think about this...you pay of the si in 5 years (I plan to pay it off in 3), then for the next 5 to 10 years you have NO car payment. That feels damn good. The last car I bought before this was my 2013 Toyota Sienna (I had no choice, my wife totalled our 2004 Sienna), I paid it off in 2016, and I had no car payment for the last almost 3 years. That felt damn good!

Good call on 3 years. Car payments do suck, but .9% financing is a gift that helps you get over the pain of depreciation -- I too am planning to pay off in 3 years. I've considered paying off early a few times already but I'd rather the money be working elsewhere..

 

[amirza786]

Good call on 3 years. Car payments do suck, but .9% financing is a gift that helps you get over the pain of depreciation -- I too am planning to pay off in 3 years. I've considered paying off early a few times already but I'd rather the money be working elsewhere..

My loan is 1.4%, even though that is low I would rather pay the car off and have no payments! If it was 0% than it's free money and I would pay it off over the time of the loan. That is the exception

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