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Curmudgeon
Curmudgeon MegaDork
5/25/15 5:34 p.m.

'Sheeple' are those conditioned to always buy, buy, buy the latest and greatest because heaven forbid they not be on the bleeding edge of things. I personally don't give a E36 M3 what people think of what I drive, etc; don't like it? Avert your gaze.

I personally refuse to be a party to the 'consume new at all cost' society we've become. I don't buy cars 'new every two', I don't buy the latest smartphone when my existing one works fine (as an aside at some point my 4S will need to be replaced not because it's busted but due to Apple's software support for it diminishing; it's pretty obviously a ploy to get me to buy a new phone and I don't go for that. For that reason my next phone will be an Android), my appliances are chosen for longevity not style, etc.

I have helped remove a perfectly good toploader washer and dryer from a friend's house that had to be less than three years old because his wife insisted on the newest ~$2,000 front loader set; if my set hadn't been in great condition I probably would have bought his old set. They better hope they hit the lottery when it comes retirement time.

There's even an Internet ad making the rounds about how if you are gonna sell your house then you need to replace the granite countertops or it will slow the sale. One version of it: http://dishwashers.reviewed.com/features/goodbye-granite-the-6-hottest-countertop-finishes Granite was/is NOT cheap and was the hottest thing going just a few years ago. Ever stop to think how wasteful this type thing is?

Wally
Wally MegaDork
5/25/15 7:52 p.m.
chief8one wrote: First off.. I'll never understand the reason why one would buy a new car off the lot. Second.. I test drove the turbo regal. I thought it was a pile of crap. I drove the turbo optima right before and there was a night and day difference. I'm really surprised that platform has not taken off.

My wife and I both drive an ungodly amount of miles. I bought her two new cars, a Malibu and a Fiat. I know both were overmaintained and driven carefully. I got over 400k on the Malibu with one large repair and so far she has almost 60k on the Fiat with one bad wheel bearing which is most likely do to the ridiculous pothole season we just had. My brother has bought two CPO Huyndais and one has been ok and one has been awful. When I needed a new car I went to the local dealer and bought my first new car. Between incentives and the lower interest rate for a new car over a used car it didn't make sense to buy used.

Appleseed
Appleseed MegaDork
5/25/15 9:03 p.m.

Or my FR-S. They are going for 25,000 and used are at 22,000. Didn't nake sense to buy used.

Appleseed
Appleseed MegaDork
5/25/15 9:04 p.m.

Or my FR-S. They are going for 25,000 and used are at 22,000. Didn't make sense to buy used.

Flight Service
Flight Service MegaDork
5/25/15 9:13 p.m.

In reply to Keith Tanner:

My Grandad used to do the same thing with boat motors. Every 2 years he would buy a new one. I asked him once why. He said when I want to fish, I want to fish. If it is broke I don't want it to be my problem. Guess how long the warrenty lasts?

What is the average, current, Americans knowledge of cars? Color? Number of Cylinders? Diesel or Gas? Cars used to have a very quick inflection point from reliability to nag you to death. Most models were around the 60K to 80k. Then it was reasonable to trade every few years if A.) you didn't want to work on a car or B.) didn't feel like working on a car. But those are not the days we live in today.

Sheeple buy what is pretty, what is cute, what is macho. That is even more so today. As much as the cars of today are awesome, people seem less and less inclined to participate in cars and up keep, much less the culture. Scary stats for our hobby coming out of SEMA on this one.

There is a current decrease in the # of cars owned per family. In cities people are going more and more to no cars.

People do not want to think for themselves, ask for help, or educate themselves anymore if there is a chance they may do something wrong. Can't become that internet meme you know?

Sad.

Chris_V
Chris_V UberDork
5/26/15 9:24 a.m.

"Sheeple?" Elitist claptrap and an insultingly closed minded view of the world. Sorry, makes me want to puch you in the throat.

I like cars. All cars, old AND new. And I completely understand buying brand bnew with a warranty and the latest tech and safety features. I want way more cars than I can own all at once, so i tend to own them sequentially and not keep them around long (with the exception of my Comet which I've had for 20 years, but even then, if someone offered me good money for it, I'd be on to the next...). I like leasing a new daily driver for myself and my wife so that I don't HAVE to work on it just to get back and forth to work, and can reserve working on cars for my hobby where I can walk away if I get frustrated. And that keeps the hobby enjoyable. But according to you, because I LIKE the newest features, and the warranty, and the styling, and everything, that I'm a "conditioned sheeple."

tuna55
tuna55 UltimaDork
5/26/15 10:26 a.m.

Sheeple click links like that.

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/off-topic-discussion/i-started-this-thread-and-what-happened-next-made-me-throw-up-in-my-mouth/102009/page1/

RX Reven'
RX Reven' Dork
5/26/15 11:22 a.m.

I really like rotary engines but I’d only pay pennies on the dollar for someone else’s previously enjoyed magic spinning triangles.

Far too many of them have suffered at the hands of Fast & Furious wannabe’s and / or generally inept people that don’t know how to take proper care of them for me to be willing to take the risk.

So, I bought my FC new in ’87 and put 286K highly satisfying miles on it over the course of 18 years and I bought my FE new in ’06 and have currently put 235K highly satisfying miles on it over the course of 9 years.

If that makes me a Sheeple than…bhahaha, I’d buy a new FF in a heartbeat if Mazda made one, Bhahaha

fanfoy
fanfoy Dork
5/26/15 11:49 a.m.

Flight Service
Flight Service MegaDork
5/26/15 12:27 p.m.
Chris_V wrote: Sorry, makes me want to puch you in the throat.

Anytime your want turns into a need, just let me know.

mazdeuce
mazdeuce PowerDork
5/26/15 12:36 p.m.

I often wonder what it would cost per month to do the "new car every 12 months" thing with 30k cars. Maintenance would be $0, so it comes down to tax/title and depreciation. Sales tax for me is 6.25%. If I assume depreciation is 20%, then it costs $7875 a year or $656 a month. I can see how a lot of lease plans make sense if that's what you do. I admit that it would be fun to pick out a new car every year.

Flight Service
Flight Service MegaDork
5/26/15 12:38 p.m.

In reply to mazdeuce:

I have seen that set up done on 2 years but not 1

RX Reven'
RX Reven' Dork
5/26/15 1:17 p.m.
mazdeuce wrote: I often wonder what it would cost per month to do the "new car every 12 months" thing with 30k cars. Maintenance would be $0, so it comes down to tax/title and depreciation. Sales tax for me is 6.25%. If I assume depreciation is 20%, then it costs $7875 a year or $656 a month. I can see how a lot of lease plans make sense if that's what you do. I admit that it would be fun to pick out a new car every year.

Hi mazdeuce,

The 6.25% tax would only be on the difference in value between the new car and the trade in. So, 30K @ 20% depreciation times 6.25% = $375 rather than $1,875. However, you’ll need to include the additional registration on a new car rather than a year old car.

Personally, given the typical bathtub shaped distribution you see with complex systems like cars, I’d suspect you’d actually achieve the highest reliability if you kept the car for around three years.

If you’re not familiar with what I’m talking about, look up Weibull distributions (infant – random – end of life).

mazdeuce
mazdeuce PowerDork
5/26/15 3:47 p.m.

Those are some very interesting numbers. Thanks.

nderwater
nderwater PowerDork
5/27/15 11:26 a.m.
Datsun1500 wrote: My Wife drives a 2015 Lexus GX. Last year she had a 2014, before that a 2013, etc. I started in 2011, and trade them every 14 months. They do not depreciate much at all, it costs me less than $3500 to do the swap, and has for the last 5 trucks, so why not do it?

Thinking back to the linked article, it sure sounds like you "Can't Wait to Get Rid Of" your GXs. Lexus must make some crappy automobiles.

petegossett
petegossett PowerDork
5/27/15 2:07 p.m.

In reply to Datsun1500:

Very interesting numbers, but at some point it seems you'd have to make a jump up to a higher bracket, so to speak. For example a $30k car today may still be a $30k car in 14-months (or may possibly be less, depending on new model changeover, holdbacks, rebates, etc.), but that potentially also means it will be worth less at trade-in than the car you just got rid of. Couple that fact, with the fact that it seems each new incarnation of a given model seems to go up by a couple grand(plus inflation, etc.), and in 5 to 10 years time, you're now shopping for a $40k car instead of a $30k car.

So in my mind, this seems like it could work well through a few cycles, but eventually you'll need to cough up more than the $4870 (even after adjusting for inflation). Have you noticed anything like that yet?

It certainly seems like a good plan to get on for SWMBO if we could swing the expense. Mama gets a new car frequently, I stay happy.

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