So many things to think about with a car purchase: do I order it and get everything exactly the way I want it and pay the premium or I do find a CPO that is as close as possible and be happy with the savings?

Ordering that car and doing the European delivery would be great and could be justified if this car would be a "keeper."

So how many folks have bought their car brand new thinking that it would be kept forever and then ended up getting rid of it. Did you regret taking the hit on the value at time of resale?

Thanks in advance for the insight.

 

My 2 cents: Get EXACTLY what you want and pay premium...assuming you will keep for period of 4-5 years or longer...also assuming your decision criteria isn't heavily weighted on $.

I can also say by experience...sometimes what you "want" shifts over time...or, shifts as you mature as a driver.

Here's a curveball fer ya: take extra time and find CPO that gives you exactly what you want...the hunt is half the fun!

Good luck!

 

To answer your two questions: every time, and not one bit. The daily disappointment of knowing I "settled" for something less than exactly what I wanted and yet still paid >$75,000 far exceeds any financial loss.

 

Unless you are wanting something very specific with color combos and options, go for the CPO. My car has been driven a year and has 7500 miles on it, and I marvel at what an awesome deal it would be for someone in the used car market if I were to sell it now. And I don't believe my story is unique. Most of the folks on this forum take care of their cars just as well or better than I do, so if you can deal with the occasional very slight imperfection, very very slight, go for CPO.

 

PS - I haven't kept a car more than 2 years since '01. I just make sure my initial deal is reasonable and keep them until I'm neutral.

 

PPS - I also don't like CPO because I don't like driving the same car as every other guy out there, and the CPO inventory is a sea of (no offense to anyone) boring basic colors and options. Kudos to the guys who can find what they want from a CPO, but I can't. I like bright colors, I like unique combos, and I dislike useless "popular" options like boring basic seats and the WTF-SC-on-a-6MT?

These are just my likes. I'm sure I would be wealthier if I liked more average stuff. Of course, if I did, I might not have ended up with a wife who let's me spend whatever I want on cars and replace them whenever I get bored.

 

I almost always ordered my cars the way I want, usually in blue color.

I tried to keep most of my cars for 4+ years.

Longest so far was my first Porsche, a 993 Targa, for 9 years.

I traded it because I want something newer and better.

Yes, I regreted the trade.

In an ideal world, I want to have all my previous cars back. But since this is not an ideal world, something has to go if you want something new.

As I always say, buying cars is not a problem. Finding spaces to park them is.

I don't care too much about the money lost as I can earn them back.

 

A new car and a used car both depreciate. The used car shopper is simply trying to hedge the financial loss by reducing exposure . In my opinion no car ought to place its owner in a position to experiennce a financial stress event or doubt .

Whether the car is a "keeper" or not should not be the deciding factor . The impact of financial loss can vary greatly from one owner to the next but the person who stands the most to lose is one who spends money on an expensive car that would be needed for other necessities . No one likes the value loss of depreciation but it's a huge difference if one really needs to retain that money.

In my opinion --
1) If buying the new car (Euro delivery) -- stirs sentiment of financial worry -- don't do it.
2) If buying the CPO car --stirs sentiment of second guessing the car -- don't do it .

In short -- when in doubt .. don't buy anything . It's better to have no car than buy the wrong car .

 

Great advice.

 

I bought my GT3 and C2S new.

I bought my Turbo and Aston Martin used.

I will never buy a high end (>100 grand) car new again. I always thought I would keep my cars forever, but I always ended up selling 2-3 years later (sometimes after 1 year!). Buying a two year old 140 grand stickered car for 90 grand makes up for the lack of being able to spec out the car myself. Also, it is very easy to find a 2 yo pampered car with 3500 miles.

If I was really going to keep it forever, I probably would pay the premium.

 

I think most people who rationalize the expensive purchase by believing they will keep the car forever end up trading in a few years.

 

my story is that i thought i would keep my car forever so i pay for pricy options and ended up with selling it, not because i dont like it, but my wallet, while better car pops out

 

I got what I wanted, paid a premium, and expect to keep the car forever. I paid a premium to get the car I wanted, and I'll keep it forever because I paid a premium. I'm well on my third year with the car and still love it. I had similar thoughts about my Land Rover Discovery at the time...that was in '98 and I still have it, and still love it. I'll never understand losing 20-30k every few years just to have the latest/greatest car. I'd rather work less and enjoy what I have.

J

 

Made this mistake myself. My Dad loves to buy all his supercars new, however he's somewhat wealthier than I am . I bought my first Porsche brand new, I couldn't find what I wanted used and spec'd a lot of options that I thought I needed/wanted.

I had planned on keeping this car, a completely decked out Cayman S for a long time. To cut a long story short, I got married and ended up needing a rear seat since the Cayman was my only car at the time. My wife being great, decided we needed a 911 but in the process of completing the trade, my $80k+ Cayman, 1 year old and with 14k miles was only worth $45k trade. I took a huge hit on this car and to this day I still feel the impact of that.

The other thing I realized is that since my CPO'd 911 doesn't have all the options my Cayman had, I discovered that most of the options I'd considered a 'necessity' when I ordered new, were no longer that big of an issue. This 911S doesn't have the auto-dimming mirrors, something I considered vital in my purchase, however tints do just as good a job and look good in the process!

I doubt I will ever order brand new again. I like to change my cars every 2/3 years and to be honest, this isn't long enough to justify the increased prices for me.

 

I saved over $30k by buying my CPO with 9,800 miles on it....not even really broken in. There were some extras on the car I wouldn't have purchased. There were one or two things that I would have added--and (given the money I saved) -- I did.

Similar to others, I wouldn't get a car that's significantly different from what I wanted just because "it was cheap." (comparatively) Yet, if I see essentially what I want and someone else graciously paid for the first couple of years of depreciation....and it's in very good condition....then I'm happy to have someone else pay for me to enjoy the car.

If you get a good one that's close to what you would have ordered, you have the buffer to refine it to what you want.

I keep looking at newer and different cars, but have never found one that I like better....so, I've been driving mine longer than expected. No regrets.