Curious as to hear others thoughts.
Im in a position where it would be nice to replace my wife's (or my) car. Both cars still work fine but I just cant bring myself to pay the post COVID prices that are now the new reality. Perhaps im also hoping that EV prices will continue to moderate further towards petrol models too.
Would you delay replacing your current car if it wasnt due to mechanical failure or an accident? Or are you all aboard the EV express?
Thanks :)
Hold on for 2-5years and there will be plenty more EV options. The prices will come down a bit more and charging options will be better. Otherwise, it your last ICE now and don’t delay.
If the car is working and not costing extra repair money then I keep it. The last one was about 17 years old, had over 250Km on it but was starting to have a few problems. I'm way past wasting money on big ticket items for 'emotional' reasons. :)
The only reason I would diverge from that would be if I was able to claim the costs back against taxation in some way.
As for EV's, I'm holding out for one of these bad boys: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOA7qKMcjcE
I'll wait till the next flash sale so I can get a really hot deal.
18 year old car, coming up to 250,000km, going to keep it until something major goes wrong. I am putting money aside incase it does happen, but not sure what I'll get.
I'm delaying because cars are generally so bloody expensive, not too fussed about EVs or otherwise
Kind of but not hugely.
Waiting for the bubble to pop to replace the wifes Mitsubishi Challenger for something a little more economical but still able to hit the beach etc
I don't really want a new car, much prefer older stuff, but will eventually get something modern when prices become reasonable again
I had a 2009 Honda Jazz with about 160kkms on the odo that I traded in to buy a Golf R. Big regret, cars are a money pit and a terrible hobby. I went to one car meet and it was full of absolute flogs. Wish I could go back to my old car and ride that cheap train until affordable EVs.
tl;dr don't buy a new car, just wait until you actually HAVE to buy one.
Golf meet full of flogs, sounds about right haha. Biggest gripe with the car scene is P platers in boring cars, and elitist owners. Plenty of nice car people out there though!
Nope. Ordered a new car, but keeps getting delayed which I expected.
2016 Suzui Vitara Turbo. 70K. Driving like new and no issues whatsoever. Why replace then?
2016 is not old at all. It'd still be under warranty if it was a Kia.
I recognise it's a privileged position, but I've actually committed to having no car given where prices are at and that EVs are still too early in the game. I do want to buy an EV eventually but more around the 30k range whilst actually still having long range.
I live inner city so can mostly get by on bike/PT and scumming rides from good friends. Recognise that it's not always feasible, but it seems the most sensible in current times at least for myself.
Not sure I'd class not having a car as a "privileged position".
Depends. High socioeconomic areas tend to be well-serviced by public transport.
Absolute shitholes can also be well serviced by public transport. Having to wait for a bus, then sit on it with a bunch of ferals, isn't a privilege.
My car I'm running into the ground (9 years, 75k km) - a toyota 86
My wife's is going OK but is over 20 years old as well (merc c class) - this probably does need replacement at some point - would love for it to be an EV on the cheaper end but we'll see. Also would rather try running it until no longer economical.
My wife's is going OK but is over 20 years old as well
OK Leonardo
Currently dailying a 2015 Honda HRV at 102,000KMs now. Purchased from brand new. Averages at 7.8L/100km (99% around town). Runs great, no reason to sell replace it. How I see it is that the longer your wait, there better the battery tech + competition from other brands.
More or less, yes. My current car is fine, I'm hoping it will last at least another 2 years, so there will be more EV options on the market in the <$40k range.
Why would you replace your car if you don't need to and the EV revolution is just getting underway? In 5-10 years there should be decent, affordable
EVs on the market.
Inflation in 2022 was 7%, and looking to be around 6% in 2023. That means the cost of living will have risen 13.42% in 2 years. I don't think that tells the full story though, as rent has clearly risen much faster than that, and the price of many foods has gone up 50-100%. This kind of thing blows many people's retirement plans out of the water. It pays to be careful now, and I will be more frugal from now on. My car is about 18 years old and still going strong.
Looking at F-150s which are around 150k.
Do I need one, no? Will it fulfill my boyhood dream? Yes.
Will you clog the roads, block people's view and cause unnecessary pollution? Maybe.
Do I care? No.
If a bus, or a moving truck can be on the roads - so can this.
Busses have a purpose, and busses can carry more than one person.
Yeah EVs bore me personally, view them as semi disposable, and price they're asking is silly.
Hyundai N74 probably only thing of interest to me.
Semi disposable because they are too expensive?
Battery too expensive to replace, assuming still available.
After 10 yesrs, no warranty, on a cheaper EV will be basically an economic write off.
Also the amount of resources it takes to create EV's is much larger and worse compared to ICE vehicles.
Environmental impact is not as positive as what most people think.
Check out the recent ship fires writing off hundreds of EV.
Very flammable.
Thanks Team OzB - you confirmed my thrifty instincts :) Will soldier on (see related post)
Buying a petrol powered 4wd (because stuff diesel). this'll see me through to the next 2-3 years before getting my EV.
Need to get my 4wd phase out of me.
Wait what is wrong with diesel? I thought they had superior fuel economy and bullet proof engines? Have I been misinformed this entire time?
Yep you're not wrong, They do have better fuel economy and were bullet proof engines, up until they starting installing diesel particulate filters, adblue tanks and egr's. all of which will happily grenade your engine, injectors and fuel rail or put you into limp mode.
I think the best story was the case of a group of Australian SAS in a Mercedes G wagen who ran out of Adblue and the car went into limp mode in the middle of nowhere.
Yes, by all means buy a pre-dpf/egr car and you'll get great long term reliability & efficiency.
Buy one with a dpf/egr and prepare for big bills.
Ok I had no idea about all these extra additions. I do get it though in the sense that if diesel vehicles are big polluters, the manufacturers have had to bend to the environmental rules and regulations. Does it make sense to have a car that refuses to drive when you're stuck in the middle of nowhere if its unessential additive is out? I don't know, as given the option to override plenty of people would just bypass the additive every time and it would be pointless having it. But I get your gripes with it too.
This is how economics works.
There is a shortage, so prices go up until enough people delay, make do with fewer cars, repair the old one instead of wrecking, etc.
Similar with rents. A shortage, so prices go up until people build more, share a place, or stay with parents, …
I with the Greens understood economics. The "rent freeze" is almost as dumb as One Nation with their 2% transaction tax. (just talkin' economics here :-)
Personally, I think my car has had zero depreciation over the last few years. And yes, I'm delaying replacing it, on the feeling that prices could plummet soon. I wish I could say the same about housing,
Housing is different. People require shelter to live properly. A human right.
I’m not so sure supply/demand economics always works well. Price gouging and profit taking is a real thing.
The business community supports supply and demand economics unless it’s the labour market.
Price gouging and profit taking only really work with sufficient demand.
Or, with collusion by businesses.
Yes I've been putting it off since 2020 now.. Have a 2008 Mitsu Lancer ES (base model) Sedan.
The ABS module went end 2020 and I was fed up at the time given dealership tried to charge me 3k to fix (replace, not really 'fix', with a module that will eventually have the same issue as it's a design problem).
Almost bought an MG HS, but decided against it after re-thinking it.. Was a great value at the time. Probably dodged a bullet though..
Ended up getting the ABS repaired by an independent auto-electrician for ~1k instead, no issues since.
I keep looking, wanting to buy, and don't. Almost 180k on the clock, had a major service end last year, has only ever not started up on me once, due to the OG battery failing, that's it. Can't fault the damn thing but wanted something more practical (slightly larger hatch/medium suv style). Looking at the Kia Sportage Diesel range, but heh the wait times on Sportages are insane.. May wait til the Hybrid is released next year perhaps. Or just, run my car into the ground. Probably has another 100k on it to be fair (but was also going to give it to my little brother too as his first car..)
Yes
Also who wants to sit there for hours on a long trip waiting for it to charge. It's ridiculous. Modern petrol cars have 1000km range on single 'charge' that takes 3 minutes. Add one more minute for me to get my sausage roll.
Good Post - Yes.
We lost both our cars in the floods at the Start of 2022. We were forced to buy either a (very inflated price for a used car) - or a new car which they had stock for (which wasnt many).
For my wife, we got a very old beatup Subaru Hatch. I think its about a 2003 model for 3k from the mechanic. The goal was to use it until the prices of things settled and we could get a more reasonably priced second-hand alternative but that hasnt happened. Will now run this one into the ground.
I'm picking up my new Hyundai i30N in about a week or so and that is replacing my 2007 Mazda 3 sedan with 230,000km's on the clock. I'm well overdue for a replacement of that hence why I went with the i30N. Didn't want to go the EV route at this point in time. For me personally, I wouldn't consider an EV until I can fully re-charge the thing in the same amount of time it takes me to refuel my ICE vehicle at the servo & also the fact that I don't want to just own the vehicle for 7-8 years and then be up for a bulk multi 10's of thousands cost to replace the battery or have to do away with the vehicle entirely due to battery failure. I also don't have a huge solar array with batteries and work at home all of the time. My workplace also does not have any EV charging facilities so an ICE car was the way to go.
Understand some aren’t ready for EVs yet, but you haven’t given good reasons.
How often would you realistically need to recharge in the sme time as it takes to fill with petrol? Probably hardly ever. I know a Tesla long range owner that often travels almost a full charge, but chooses 1-2 10min charge stops in the trip at a supercharger in lieu of a 40-50min stop for a near full charge at the end of the trip.
Batteries don’t fail and need replacing after 7years. That may have been true for early Nissan lead batteries, but they didn’t active temp control for the batteries like current EVs do. Its just an antiEV talking point by the naysayers.
I should clarify that I do fairly long distance driving (in addition to my use driving to and from and for work) so I'm not really enamored with the idea of needing to stop & hang around at a servo or EV chargers for extended periods to charge an EV when I'm either on long distance driving or in a rush.
You haven't, as most very pro EV people don't, acknowledged the fact that I don't have solar, batteries or any local way of charging an EV. In my experience, the EVangelists keep on saying "just charge when you're at home" or "charge it while you're at work" but when someone brings up the challenges that their position doesn't fall in line with people who either have or that or have had an EV for years, there's no understanding of that. I can't charge an EV at home purely pulling energy from the grid, especially now with electricity prices skyrocketing.
On the point of batteries failing, a neighbor of mine (who I have these discussions with all of the time) has a Model 3 and he has owned it for between 4-5 years and he had his batteries fail. No warranty so he's either up for the cost of replacing them or buying a new car. Probably more an exception than the rule, I grant that, however, it's still a concern.
I can't charge an EV at home purely pulling energy from the grid, especially now with electricity prices skyrocketing.
Charging at home using grid rates is still likely cheaper than buying petrol, especially overnight when rates are lower.
Most people tend to use charge times as a bad thing, but don’t really recognise that their reality is long distance driving is rare. You’re obviously an exception to that. Personally, I travel long distance maybe four times a year and mostly that’s towing, so an EV isn’t right for me - for one car in the family. The other basically does town duties so could easily charge overnight or often during the day using solar.
most very pro EV people don't, acknowledged the fact that I don't have solar, batteries or any local way of charging an EV
Yes you do, unless you dont have electricity to your house? Solar and batteries are not a requirement to buy an EV. It's only an issue if you live in a huge apartment complex and they wont let you run power to your car spot in the basement, or you live in a townhouse with only onstreet parking.
EVangelists keep on saying "just charge when you're at home" or "charge it while you're at work"
Because, that is literally what you do. You charge it while you are asleep… Or do you need the car in your sleeping hours as well? As for work, well, that's hit of miss. Some work places wont let you use their power or outlets and dont have chargers installed.
I can't charge an EV at home purely pulling energy from the grid
Yes, you can. That is the beauty of an EV… your fuel is delivered to your house and there is a handy little outlet in the wall that it comes out of…
especially now with electricity prices skyrocketing.
I pay $0.20c/kWh on off peak… My wife pays $2.05/litre for her car. My EV to fill up on off peak is about $12~$18. Her car is about $80~100. My car gets about 400km/charge. Her car gets about 600km/tank. To go the same distance as her petrol powered car, I would need to top up 1.5 times… or about $30 in electricity compared to her $100.
a neighbor of mine… has a Model 3 and he has owned it for between 4-5 years and he had his batteries fail. No warranty…
Bullshit. The battery warranty on a Model 3 is 160,000km or 8 years… So, unless he has done well over the 160,000km mark, either you or he is full of shit on the "no warranty" part.
Your replies just reek of regurgitated misinformation.
Yes you do, unless you dont have electricity to your house? Solar and batteries are not a requirement to buy an EV. It's only an issue if you live in a huge apartment complex and they wont let you run power to your car spot in the basement, or you live in a townhouse with only onstreet parking.
Of course I have electricity to my place but what I meant by saying that is that I can't charge essentially "for free" like a lot of the EV proponents claim that they do which makes it much more viable - my bad that I didn't originally explain my original point like that. You do make a good point of highlighting people who live in unit buildings and those who don't have off-street parking though.
Because, that is literally what you do. You charge it while you are asleep… Or do you need the car in your sleeping hours as well? As for work, well, that's hit of miss. Some work places wont let you use their power or outlets and dont have chargers installed.
Well my work certainly won't allow you to just plug into an outlet and they don't have chargers in their parking. Also in my unit building, same deal, won't allow it.
Yes, you can. That is the beauty of an EV… your fuel is delivered to your house and there is a handy little outlet in the wall that it comes out of…
Yes, I know I can plug into a standard outlet but still would be drawing energy directly from the grid, so again, as a lot of EV proponents say that they do, no "for free" charging at home.
Bullshit. The battery warranty on a Model 3 is 160,000km or 8 years…(tesla.com) So, unless he has done well over the 160,000km mark, either you or he is full of shit on the "no warranty" part.
Hey, look, in all honesty, I am just communicating what he has previously told me has been his experience. I intend on hitting him up this evening when he gets home from work to see what he says.
I pay $0.20c/kWh on off peak
You must be on a good deal.
@pegaxs: In 8 years car can lose up to 30% battery! That's ridiculous. MY 18 year old car can go 400km (450km on highway) and takes only 3 minutes to 'recharge'.
Very much so. Replacing Tesla battery out of warranty will cost 30k!
Seriously. Thats a good enough reason for him. Give it a break mate
What he described initially were bullsh.. reasons. The usual fossil fuel propaganda talking points. Has since clarified and that’s cool.
Are you willing to take the risk of Tesla battery failure at 8.5 years. Also it might degrade 30% and you won't get warranty for that.
Reality is battery failures are probably no more likely than an engine or transmission failure in a similar timeframe.
As for 30% less range? I reckon I could live with that given I’d likely only travel more than 300km in a day 3-4 times per year. Actually if I could buy an EV that had dropped to 150km range for the price of a 10yo corolla o probably would do it t drive to and from work.
@Euphemistic: IT is unknown how common battery failures are though. All I know is that the battery chemistry is actually the same as your cell phone. I know for a fact that my cellphone fails and loses battery at the two year mark. At 5 years battery is almost unusable.
For me personally I'd have the Corolla with 450km range at 10 years with at least 10 years of life left in it.
Overall it is way better for environment to be using your car for many decades rather than changing it every 4 years when Tesla warranty runs out.
I am not convinced that it is cheaper to run an electric car compared to a cheaper petrol. For the lifetime of a petrol car, it's possible that the carbon footprint is worse but not if you want to change your electric every 4 years.
For your use case of driving small distances it would be fine but you won't find used electric car for that sort of money though. Used Corolla ? $15k? may $20k.
Each to their own though.
I know for a fact that my cellphone fails and loses battery at the two year mark. At 5 years battery is almost unusable.
Car batteries are very different. They have temperature management and much better charge management. Phones get hot and have no cooling. Plus there is less incentive to make them last a long time because the tech moves on quickly. Car owners expect a much longer l service life.
Overall it is way better for environment to be using your car for many decades rather than changing it every 4 years when Tesla warranty runs out.
Battery warranties are more like 8-10years.
For the lifetime of a petrol car, it's possible that the carbon footprint is worse but not if you want to change your electric every 4 years.
The carbon footprint of constructing an EV can be paid back in as little as 2 years, for normal usage. But again, the majority of EVs will not become useless at 4 years.
You’re right. Each to their own, but misinformation around EVs is rife and you should know about real world experience not fox news propaganda
@Euphemistic: I agree with temp management for EV batteries which are exactly the same as a phone battery etc
Battery warraties are horrible even though it's 8 years.
Quote from Tesla: "8 years or 160,000 km, whichever comes first, with minimum 70% retention of Battery capacity over the warranty period."
30% range loss does not occur with petrol cars at 8 years. That's ridiculous to say it's ok to lose 30% at 8 years. The car is just a baby at 8. A typical engine would have had plenty of time to fail due to manufacturing defect at typical warranty periods say 5 years. But the battery is DESTINED to fail after a certain charge cycles. That's why battery warranty is very important. If it's only 160k that's just silly and does not inspire confidence. Besides Tesla wouldn't be here in 20 years anyways. All their cars will stop working if the main server goes down.
People would not use Tesla or other electric car for 20 years like they do for gasoline. Once you landfill an electric car say at 10 years (due to battery replacement costing 30k) then all your environmental advantages are lost.
But then, this is ozbargain - don't care about environment. I can get TWO gas cars that will last at least 20 years for the price of one electric such as Tesla. 3 minute recharge and 1000km range. While electrics have 300km range and you have sit around for 30 minutes each time to charge. Then your career becomes hwo to find charge spots and where to sit while it charges…. :)
I do commend Tesla for their price war though. IT will cause massive depreciation for current EV owners.
Ozbargain, where everyone can drive manual and has a 10 year old car with 160,000Ks
Yet they all seem to earn north of $250k/year…
Our 17 yo Mazda 6 was gifted to my wife’s parents because we moved overseas. Otherwise would still be rocking it. Very reliable car.
Having said that after buying a high k’s 4 yo car in new country, some of the safety features I’m not sure we could go without, rear cross traffic alert and reversing camera to name the favourites
Just because people earn a decent income doesn’t mean most are wasting it on essentially an appliance to move around. Always buy the cheapest car your ego can afford!
Most do waste on fancy cars though. I know several people who have very basic (old/ uncomfortable) houses but have extremely fancy cars. I love catching rides with them.
mo. much mo.
160k is a baby. except if it's a EV. Then you would have lost 30% of your battery.
Til that people class 6 year old cars as "tired" or "old".
It is for EVs because they lose 1-2% range per year. It's like an old phone.
Waiting for v2g to be sorted properly, then will dive in.
OP, a great topic.
current car is 2013 model AURION with 190K - if someone knows how long these cars last that will be a great help :-)
I was hoping to change my car in 2020 -(was thinking something higher like 4WD which might be easier for my old joints to get into) but there is no way this is happening. Unlike US our car market is not showing any signs of cooling down at all.
EVs need to do better to get my $$ as well
hoping to change in 2026 onwards at least now.
If maintained your aurion would likely easy go to 400k km
Even if you go twice as long between services it’d still likely last another 100,000km.
Thanks for that, appreciate it
Will easily go 400k. 450k if you change oil every 5k.
Yes, as a mech by trade my trusty $2k 30yr old Subaru is nearing its end. People still want Ludacris amounts of money for rubbish. I don't see the second hand market decreasing unless there is a big fuel hike.
YO! How many kms??
192,000 gen 2 liberty rx wagon
Nice.
I think I will only get an EV if it made compulsory by the Government or that I become a Uber driver. An EV cannot be the only car of a household. You need a petrol car as a backup.
Why do you need a petrol car as a backup?
When EV solid state batteries give us a 1000km range in the next few years i think that'll be the nail in the coffin for ICE.
My car is 9 years old, 160k kms, waiting a couple of years before upgrading to an EV
Yes delaying a purchase. I was hoping to get a new car this year or next but prices for second hand cars are nuts and the wait times for new cars are ridiculous.
at this point im just gonna keep watching and see as my 2013 diesel i30 is running fine.
My 2012 Skoda Superb Diesel with ~495k kms, still pulls 3-4L/100k on the highway. Just missing the smarter features on the newer cars (powered boot and adaptive cruise)
There a winners too. Bough a car for $4500 eight years ago. Sold it for $5000 last month 🤷🏾♂️
Do you walk everywhere now
This was a car that wasn’t registered but I have other cars.
Beautiful
NICE. I got a Corolla in 2004 fot $17600 with 40k on it. I sold it 2021 for $5500 with 196k on it. it lost NO RANGE. Still had 450km range and only takes 3 minutes to recharge.
Can't bring myself to do it. My wife got a new job and company car recently. It's an MG HS. Absolutely horrible cars but it has somehow satisfied my craving for a new car (maybe I was just craving that new car smell..).
I drive a 2016 Toyota corolla at 100,000 kms. It's been serviced every six months since we bought it and drives extremely well.
Save your money and invest it.
100k is just a baby. For en electric car it's time to check into a nursing home though.
Call me old and grumpy but the new cars with "new tech" and giant touchscreens turn me off a bit. More electronics that can go wrong. And when i want to adjust the aircon i like the tactile response of buttons and knobs!! Got a 2013 subaru with an updated apple car play headunit and I'm content enough for now.
Ironically I'd say if you care about the environment then hold off buying an EV where your car is clean and efficient enough (most would be). Imagine if everyone crushed their cars and bought new EVs immediately.
I'd like one and could make a case for one now but I'll skip a cycle instead and buy in 4-5 more years when my vehicle is well and truly done.
No. But potentially add a second car in about 1-2 years.
Current car is a MY19.
Yeah that cheks out. Get tesla and change to another when warranty runs out in 4 years. :)
Unplanned 3rd child, due in a couple of months.
This has thrown us out.
Went looking for people movers, only to realise the market for these are small, your only option that is most affordable is a Kia Carnival. Cheapest option is $52k or so which is a diesel.
But yeah we are like in the era of plasma TVs + LCD TVs, do you buy a plasma, knowing LCD would take over?
Also can't afford that much, so ehhh will just have to be creative with seating or all not go out at once lol
Gutted.
The government's been breeding feral deer to help us all keep upgrading our cars!
I thought I had the local roos and wombats understood — then my car discovered imported deer — they happily stand in the middle of the road at any time of night challenging oncoming traffic.
Not up near Newcastle by any chance? There are a shitload of dead deer out on the expressway… and I didn’t even know we had deer up here in the wild just wandering out onto the highway system…
Funny I saw a group out on a run recently in the hills where I live. I was aware they existed but hadn't seen until then!
i am driving a 23 years old honda with 280k kms and still going strong. has abs, sunroof, cold AC, awd and constantly giving me 9l/100km. all needed are the consumeables.
thinking on purchasing a 4 years old car as a replcament but unless this car dies on my, why should I?
OP, if your car doesnt require anything expensive to repair, just keep on driving it and if you are keen, get yourself a hobby car might be cheaper on the long run. unless, you are a selling agent that requires a newish car for your work/daily.
DAIM MAN. I thought my RAV4 2004 310k was good but you are doing well.
Lol my car has mechanical failures and im not replacing it yet.
Just a small misfire and oil leak she'll be right
go drive one, you will change your mind.