It may not be a good time to purchase a car now
By kingparker
@kingparker (9673)
United States
June 26, 2011 11:25am CST
A friend of mine is looking for a car, since his current vehicle has some much problem, one after another. On the last few months, I heard that he already spent $2000 to fix that car. It is 10 years old, and I think it is time to give it up and look for a new one. But from what I heard, right now it is not the good time yet, because you might not get a better deal or bargain now, than it would be in the fall or winter time.
When the recession hit, cars sales fell off and the automakers that were used to building in an automatic future demand by doing short-term leases couldn't afford to be in the leasing business anymore. So there was no normal cycle of leased vehicles coming back to dealer lots, creating an extreme shortage of those newer used vehicles.
In addition, the supply of older used cars was soaked up by Cash for Clunkers as a lot of cars were taken off lots when the government crushed them.
Finally, the Japanese earthquake led to shortages in new cars diverting some buyers to the used car market.
What do you think of it?
2 responses
@jacklintan (1302)
• Malaysia
26 Jun 11
HI kingparker,
Car is a huge liability if you're not using the car to make sales. For me, if you're not going to spend huge amount of money on a new car and perhaps, opt for 3-5 years of used car. Having spent $2k to fix the car is a huge amount of money. Might as well get a new one.
Another global issue will hit all of us when the the price of the petrol going up every year. What's more when the fuel runs out of the supply and what's gonna happened to all the transportations.
So, it's all up to a person's earning percapita. If you're going to get a new lease for your car and it's going to eat up a high percentage of your income, I think it's better to stick to the car he have just spent 2k repair with.
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
26 Jun 11
I have heard the opposite, that this is a good time to buy cars. Interest rates are still really low and new car sales are low. The only companies affected by the earthquake are those which rely on Japanese parts. Many car companies do not use Japanese parts.
