A little late to this party but I feel inspired since I sold my wife's Toyota Highlander today. Since I've kept some decent records on maintenance costs and what not, I thought I would post some figures from my ownership experience of VW, Mercedes and Toyota:As far as Benzes and maintenance worries, think about it: we all worry about a "big bill" owning a Benz, and then spend years paying a whole bunce of small and medium bills on the VW's. Do you like your suffering in one good shot, or dragged out in a constant slow torture?
Thank you.2000 Golf GL TDI
Bought: Used
Owned: 5.8 years
Miles put on: 94,304
Miles when sold: 172,054
Repairs & Maintenance: $20,472
Man - have you ever thought of leasing? Those repair bills look out to lunch - do you do any mtc yourself? Are you factoring in depreciation in there or fuel costs?A little late to this party but I feel inspired since I sold my wife's Toyota Highlander today. Since I've kept some decent records on maintenance costs and what not, I thought I would post some figures from my ownership experience of VW, Mercedes and Toyota:
2001 Passat 1.8T
Bought: New
Owned: 5.1 years
Miles put on: 102,386
Miles when sold: 102,386
Repairs & Maintenance: $3,261
1996 Passat TDI B4V
Bought: Used
Owned: 2.7 years
Miles put on: 18,970
Miles when sold: 185,209
Repairs & Maintenance: $9,250
1998 Mercedes E300D
Bought: Used
Owned: 3 years
Miles put on: 46,214
Miles when sold: 217,214
Repairs & Maintenance: $15,010
2000 Golf GL TDI
Bought: Used
Owned: 5.8 years
Miles put on: 94,304
Miles when sold: 172,054
Repairs & Maintenance: $20,472
2002 Toyota Highlander (Wife's)
Bought: Used
Owned: 7 years
Miles put on: 106,301
Miles when sold: 121,287
Repairs & Maintenance: $9,706
Hmm, that's sobering. Lug_nut always told me not to look at those numbers. But here they are, all together in one post. Yuck.
I have 80K miles driven by me to bury my costs in (so far), but currently facing some interesting decisions.....And note that I daren't put the B5.5 through that same financial scrutiny......
On the Golf I did almost all the oil changes myself. Brakes and such on the VW's and minor repairs, I did myself. Timing belts done by other mechanics. I don't do the Mercedes repairs. The Mercedes is a whole different animal that I'm not familiar enough with. I did less than a half a year at the dealer with the 1998 MB until the repair prices shocked me enough to find a good mechanic.Man - have you ever thought of leasing? Those repair bills look out to lunch - do you do any mtc yourself? Are you factoring in depreciation in there or fuel costs?
Are you including high priced tires and rims in there?
Maybe it's just me....
Resale ONLY should be considered if your plan is to sell the car when you're done with it.. every single one of my cars except for a small handful of them I've brought to the scrap yard when I'm done..The re-sale value really has to be considered.
Also,
A new car driven for 5 years with zero maintenance will be dirt cheap when only repair and maintenance are considered.
The bloke buying that neglected car will have a boat payment's worth or expenses before the first mile it turned, and instantly that low maintenance car is a money pit.
So, depressing as those numbers may appear, they don't really say all that much.
Well you see, first thing, I'm anal retentive (in more ways than one) so when I buy a used car I like to fix everything up. Hood insulation, cloudy mirrors, etc.This is startling to me:
1998 Mercedes E300D
Bought: Used
Owned: 3 years
Miles put on: 46,214
Miles when sold: 217,214
Repairs & Maintenance: $15,010
I suppose there was something "big" in there?
And, note the mechanic is holding a Standard (SAE) sized wrench!Do you know why that mechanic's shirt is so clean? He is the mechanic who does all the (VW honoring its)warrantee work!
Heck, even I could do that! Maybe I should pay MYSELF to do bad work on my car!And, note the mechanic is holding a Standard (SAE) sized wrench!
Heck, I would pay you to do (your) bad work on my car, cause it would be 1000 times better than the dealership!Heck, even I could do that! Maybe I should pay MYSELF to do bad work on my car!
If you are going to brag about it, please post some photos.My 99 300D......... and when I picked it up, the valet said to me "sir, of all the new and used cars at this dealer, your car is the one I would take home if I could choose one car here." Pretty neat...
I cannot: the reflection off the paint is so dazzling that it would blind you over the computer monitor!If you are going to brag about it, please post some photos.