• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Is there any reason for me to buy this car?

A.Nonymous

A.Nonymous

Extreme Android User
Long story short, my bro-in-law is selling his car and I'm thinking of buying it.

His car - 2007 Corolla S series w/minor hail damage and ~40k miles.
My car - 2005 Focus ZX4 w/minor scrapes from parking lot incidents and ~27k miles

Now, his car blue books for about $10-12k and mine blue books for $7k. He's willing to sell it to me for what their payoff quote is. That's in the $8k range. His car is nicer than mine. There's no question about that. My car has power steering and power brakes and that's about it. No power locks, power windows, power windows, etc..... I don't even have cruise control. So his car is newer, nicer and (after I sold mine) would cost about $1k more. I could easily scrape up $1k. That's not the issue at all.

My problem is I'm looking for a compelling reason to buy this car and I'm coming up empty. My current car runs with no problems. It's got low mileage. It's reliable. It's not fancy, but it gets me from point A to point B reliably and with no fuss. I have no complaints about it that I couldn't fix by spending a few hundred bucks (like adding cruise control or a nicer stereo system), but I'm too lazy/cheap to do it and it doesn't bug me that much. I recently drove 3 hours to another town for work in a work van that does have cruise control and didn't even realize that the van had cruise on it until I was halfway back as I've just gotten used to not having it.

So far the only reasons I can come up with are that it's a nicer car than mine and it's a really good deal. Neither of those is compelling. I'm not the type who will buy something just because it's nicer than what I've got. If what I have works, I'm reluctant to replace it unless it's getting old or unreliable or the new doodad will do the job better. None of these things apply here. I don't buy anything just because it's a good deal unless it's something I need or can use. Neither of those things seem to apply here either. Is there a compelling reason to pull the trigger on this deal?
 
Rule 1 never buy a car from family.

Now it seems to me you have already made up your mind in not getting the car. You really gave no pros to getting the Toyota. Why spend 8 grand more when you have a capable car now. Is your ford having problems? If not keep the ford and enjoy it. You don't seem like the type of person who loves creature comforts.

Ever ask yourself why your bil is selling the car in the first place?
 
If you have to search for a reason to make this purchase then I would say you don't need it.The fact is your car is running just find and that's what you want your car to do.
 
If you don't want the added features of the new car (which it doesn't sound like you do), and your car is running just fine and reliable, then I fail to see what the decision is.

I can understand you want to try to help your brother in law, but based on the sounds of it he has $2k - $4k in equity in his car, so he won't have much of a problem at all (In fact it sounds like he's in a pretty good position) regardless of whether you buy it, or not.

Based on what all you're saying in your post, it sounds to me like you've already decided, and that you want to keep your current car, which is totally fine.
 
Dark Jedi said:
Rule 1 never buy a car from family.

Now it seems to me you have already made up your mind in not getting the car. You really gave no pros to getting the Toyota. Why spend 8 grand more when you have a capable car now. Is your ford having problems? If not keep the ford and enjoy it. You don't seem like the type of person who loves creature comforts.

Ever ask yourself why your bil is selling the car in the first place?
Click to expand...

It wouldn't be eight grand more. I would sell my car for seven, toss in a grand of my own and buy it.

He actually has a good reason for selling it. He's a preacher in a local church. He's decided to go be a full time evangelist. So they're buying a truck and a trailer and hitting the road full time. They don't need the car and don't want to tow it around with them.

The Ford has no problems. Like I said, I would like it to have a nicer stereo and cruise control. I could fix both of those problems for $500-600 I expect, but neither of them bugs me enough to spend the time or the money. The only pros the Toyota has is that it is a nicer car than mine. It has the power locks, windows, mirrors, seats, etc...... It's definitely a much nicer vehicle than mine. Corollas get very good reliability reports so there are no issues there.
 
it all depends on personal preference I think. i much prefer ford to toyota, all the toyotas ive driven or have family who have driven have had horry stories.(my gf's family all drives toyota and not one of their cars has made it over 80k miles before they crap out on them)

The biggest thing with cars is that if you treat them well they will treat you well.
 
gallandof said:
all the toyotas ive driven or have family who have driven have had horry stories.(my gf's family all drives toyota and not one of their cars has made it over 80k miles before they crap out on them)
Click to expand...

Wow, your gf's family must be HARD on cars!!! Toyota's are one of the most reliable cars on the road. Much more reliable than Fords typically speaking.

I don't have an anti-Ford agenda here either, that's just a fact based on historial figures. Now that by no means insinuates that any Toyota out there will outlast any Ford on the road. Certainly there are exceptions, and for the last couple of years Toyota has had their share of recalls and quality problems. But generally speaking, you're usually going to be better off with a Toyota than you would a Ford.

I'd say you have to look at two things. First, your Ford has less miles. But not a LOT less. So if you're the kind of guy who keeps a car until it falls completely apart, then you'll likely go further with the Toyota than you would in the Ford. But if you switch out cars every 3 to 4 years to keep from having to do all the mickey mouse repairs that start adding up after 100,000 miles or so, then you might be better off with the car that has less miles on it.

Second, what is the resale value projected to be for both cars. Toyotas also have a fairly solid history in having a higher than average resale value. So if you're thinking you'll only have the car for a few years then resale should be a selling point. But if as I mentioned before you plan on running which ever car you wind up with into the ground before purchasing another one, then resale value doesn't enter the equation at all.

Which ever way you decide to go, good luck!
 
My whole extended families own Toyotas (Lexus now, Toyota before) for the past 20 years... there's a reason why. Example: My mom used to have a Toyota Camry and drove 190,000 miles in 4 1/2 years (she drives EVERY day a minimum of 60 miles). 0 problems. I've never heard of anyone in my family having any major issues with their cars. There have been some minor issues, but then again... they're minor.

When it comes to cars... YMWV

It seems though that you've already made your decision. The Toyota though will probably last longer than your Ford if you plan on keeping it for a long time.
 
I always plan on keeping my car until it falls apart, but never do. My first car was a complete beater. Drove it until some punk kid with a learners permit side swiped me and the insurance company took one look at what a beater it was and decided it was easier to total it and pay me than to pay to fix the front end of a 20 year old vehicle. Next car I drove until we had a ginormous rainstorm that flooded every street in the county. Got caught in 3-4 feet of water and flooded out the engine not to mention what it did to the interior. Next car I did actually drive for 3-4 years. Sold it when I realized that a sports car really wasn't my style. This car I've had for a year or so now. My plan was to drive it until it fell apart.
 
Dark Jedi said:
Rule 1 never buy a car from family.
Click to expand...

I tend to agree. Dealing with family in any relationship involving money can lead to problems. That said, I have a basic set of rules that apply to every deal with my brother. I'll buy his car and he will sell it to be as is, no warranty, not even the implied familial warranty that assumes I will not bitch about a bad deal but do and his car is as warranted and represented to me.

Since I know the history of his vehicles, I know a bad one before I start deciding to purchase the item. Once bought, there is no further discussion about the issues and problems with the car.

We have rules. When the cash exchanges hands, the deal is done and neither side is allowed to complain.

Someone else mentioned that if you want to buy something and you need to look high and low for a reason, avoid the deal. I am paraphrasing.

Bob
 
One problem you might run in to is selling your ford for the price you want.
 
Another question - assuming both cars are maintained well and treated well and I drive them both 'til they die, how many more miles am I really going to get out of the Toyota vs the Ford? 10k? 20k? 70k? What ballpark am I talking about?
 
The Toyota will outlast the ford hands down. Just replace the timing belt every 80 to 100k miles and you should get 200k easy.
 
A.Nonymous said:
How much will I get out of the Ford though?
Click to expand...

Its hard saying asamerican cars tend to not last as long as Toyota and Honda. To take a guess and don't quote me maybe 140k but who knows ford ford seems to be getting better. My Honda accord coupe has 185k miles and still running strong. Burns no oil. Now can you say you seen many domestic cars or trucks (diesel don't count) reach those numbers and run just as good?
 
I've gotten 200k+ miles out of Ford vehicles too, its all in how you maintain them. Honestly Ford does make a decent product, granted I am a fan of Honda's and Toyota's as well, but I've owned (and my family) many Ford's in my life and they've always served me well.
 
I agree not only that the Toyota will generally last longer with fewer repair costs, but the resale value later on will be better. The thing is that when I look at consumer reports, overall it looks like the Focus has better reliability in some areas. The only area worse than average on the focus is the electrical system which is just average on the corolla. The 2007 actually looks to have the "worst" (I put it in quotes because it still has fantastic reliability) reliability ratings from 2001-2010 models.
 
ashykat said:
I agree not only that the Toyota will generally last longer with fewer repair costs, but the resale value later on will be better. The thing is that when I look at consumer reports, overall it looks like the Focus has better reliability in some areas. The only area worse than average on the focus is the electrical system which is just average on the corolla. The 2007 actually looks to have the "worst" (I put it in quotes because it still has fantastic reliability) reliability ratings from 2001-2010 models.
Click to expand...

I don't think the electrical system will be much of an issue on my car. It doesn't have power windows, power doors, power mirrors, power seats or power anything really.
 
Why spend the money if you don't have to. I know it is nice to have the upgrades but if your car is working fine I would just stick with what I have.
 
cds0699 said:
... its all in how you maintain them.
Click to expand...

Embroider that onto a pillow and place it on the passenger seat so you see it every time you get in your car. Truer words have yet to be spoken.

With proper maintenance and common sense any car manufactured in the last 25 years (with the exception of maybe Yugo's) should easily make it to 140k miles and any vehicle above the bottom line base model should go for 200k.

My brother changes the oil in his cars once a year whether they need it or not, he thinks the dash indicator lights are there for decoration and the only regular lubrication going on in the car is ... let's not go there ;) . He wonders why his cars crap out on him before 80k.

I just traded in my 12 year old SUV still going strong at 170k for something with better mileage. The dealership owner decided not to auction it off, but keep it for himself.

To answer the OP's question, I think i'd pass, unless you somehow feel obligated to help out your b-i-l and you know the history of the vehicle beyond the visible condition. You know your car and it serves you well. You also don't seem to be lusting after all the comfort features in a more fully equipped vehicle, so there's really no benefit in having them. While the Corolla will have a better resale value, if you plan on keeping your cars for a while, resale value isn't much on an incentive. Plus the Corolla is an unknown commodity. It could be on the verge of a major mechanical problem that your b-i-l doesn't realize.

My dad was a minister and frankly he couldn't be bothered with vehicle maintenance. Granted he was pastor to his congregation above everything, but it sure kept us in crap cars growing up.
 
I love Ford. Quality has improved to the point of surpassing Toyota. I'd buy Ford these days way before anyone else. Just look at the stats. We have a Ford with 125,000 miles on it with nothing but general maintanance. As far as Toyota Resale? It's not what it used to be...those days are over.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom