Hi guys!
My fiancés transmission gave out earlier this year and left us stranded on the road and we had it fixed instead of buying a new car (hoping to save money). Well, now it seems like we may be having issues again with the car. Im wondering if it would be smart to just trade it in and get something out of it before it’s worth nothing. Here is a quick breakdown of our finances and other little bits.
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We are in our 30s
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Planning a wedding this year
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Planning on purchasing a home at the end or beginning of next year.
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Possibly try for kids at the end of the year.
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Retirement account 400k
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Combined income – 135-140k
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HYSA- 300k (Down payment for a house + emergency fund)
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No debt
– she currently has a 2019 Mazda cx-5 and the reason we got it other than it being a good bargain for everything you get, is the reliability I heard about these cars. We typically keep our cars until the wheels fall off lol.
We were thinking about getting a 4Runner just purely for reliability as I used to have a jeep with the same engine that lasted 20 years before it finally giving out. I know it’s not the most economical but we just want something that will last with just basic maintenance. The only thing is the used ones still run 35-40k compared to other suvs that might be better priced. Would this be a smart buy right now with everything going on? (Open to other suv suggestions!)
Should we buy a car right now??
byu/Mission_Scratch5704 inpersonalfinance
Posted by Mission_Scratch5704
2 Comments
Seems like you’re in a position where you can afford to, but I don’t think you can make a strong argument for why it would be smart to trade it in and get a different vehicle based on undefined problems. The residual value of that vehicle is likely to decline slower than the residual value of whatever replacement you get, unless the Mazda’s problem turned out to be catastrophic.
Just buy a new/lightly used rav4 in cash out of your HYSA and call it a day
The jeep and 4runner do not have the same engine.