There is a third option. Certified used(CU). I have bought two CU Lexus’ in the past three years. I look to buy a vehicle with less than 20K miles and no more than two years old. That way I get at least 2 years of original warranty plus (for Lexus) an additional two years of warranty. Total of four years, same as if I bought new. The cost of CU is about $2-3K more than the same vehicle without the CU features. And before purchase, I take the car to my trusted independent mechanic for an pre-purchase inspection including getting a readout from the onboard computer to show anything that has gone wrong in the past. About $100. Like most I’ll run the vehicle for many years getting about 150k miles before looking for a replacement. The down side is that it takes time and patience to find the vehicle, color and options that you want. Took me over six months to find my last purchase, a 2018 Lexus RX 450hL. I wanted hybrid and the extended body for extra cargo space plus limited colors that my wife would accept. I saved about $20k compared to a new vehicle. Plus I just love the folks who must trade in their vehicle every 2 years. Good source of CU cars. My last two CU vehicles (2017 & 2018) were bought mostly to get the new safety features that our pre-2005 did not have.
Comments
There is a third option. Certified used(CU). I have bought two CU Lexus’ in the past three years. I look to buy a vehicle with less than 20K miles and no more than two years old. That way I get at least 2 years of original warranty plus (for Lexus) an additional two years of warranty. Total of four years, same as if I bought new. The cost of CU is about $2-3K more than the same vehicle without the CU features. And before purchase, I take the car to my trusted independent mechanic for an pre-purchase inspection including getting a readout from the onboard computer to show anything that has gone wrong in the past. About $100. Like most I’ll run the vehicle for many years getting about 150k miles before looking for a replacement. The down side is that it takes time and patience to find the vehicle, color and options that you want. Took me over six months to find my last purchase, a 2018 Lexus RX 450hL. I wanted hybrid and the extended body for extra cargo space plus limited colors that my wife would accept. I saved about $20k compared to a new vehicle. Plus I just love the folks who must trade in their vehicle every 2 years. Good source of CU cars. My last two CU vehicles (2017 & 2018) were bought mostly to get the new safety features that our pre-2005 did not have.
Post: Driving Me Happy
Link to comment from December 11, 2021