Is it worth trading in? Vehicle trade in value calculator

[Frans]

This will calculate your savings when you trade in your gas guzzler for a more fuel efficient vehicle.

I typed in an old toyota v6 (gas guzzling champ) for a new 09 Prius. According to the calculator it would take me just over a year before I could BEGIN to realize any savings from the fuel efficiency of the prius.
And the toyota v6 REALLY guzzled the gas!

http://www.edmunds.com/calculators/gas-guzzler.html

 

[RIVERRAT]

Pretty cool. But I think I will hang on to my V8 Dakota.

 

[SkwerI]

I'll stick with my 12-13 mpg 5.4l F-150 with all the comfy options. Besides, I just made my final payment 2 weeks ago and the payment savings is a LOT more than my fuel costs. I'd have to drive 5000 miles per month to justify more fuel efficient wheels.

 

[Frans]

I think you both completely missed the point.

Think about it a minute, go on, work it out what the calculator is saying.

 

[Newfie]

2 years on that prius before you start saving, since you probably have to wait a year to get the prius in the first place.

How big a chipper can I tow with the prius? What do I take on vacation in the prius, kids or luggage?

Interesting calculator.


Did a straight trade, Yukon for the new "fuel efficient" Yukon, only 813 months to break even.

 

[SkwerI]

My savings by going to a smaller pickup (I still require some towing capacity for my boat and my utility trailer) is less than $83 per month. It would take 207 months or 17 years before I would see any actual savings.


Even going to your Prius, the 136 months is over 11 years before you will see any savings. That's longer than the average expected ownership period. It just proves that most prius owners are simply trying to make a statement, not actually saving any money.

 

[TC3]

Drive it 'til the wheels come off is my motto. Then get some decent used 'wheels' & drive s'more.
Car payments suck. Full insurance sux more.

 

[Frans]

The calculator ONLY figures gas savings which take an enormous amount of time before you start saving.

Figure in higher registration, higher insurance, higher taxes, depreciation, and that trade in suddenly becomes a bad deal.

On an environmental view point, sure you save on gas, but what about the cost of manufacture? New cars, especially the prius, use exotic metals, plastics, etc. all of which increase landfill, toxics, and not even to mention the impact of the factories producing these things. Also new cars are designed from the ground up to have a limited life span. Which means you have to dump it and get another after less than 300,000 miles.

We are taught to re-use, recycle, save the planet. Why does this not apply to cars? The mantra is that the carbon footprint from the increased emissions is the main reason to upgrade the vehicle.

I think those savings are more than offset by simply keeping your old car in good shape.

I like how the calculator really spells it out clearly. IF you think about it.

 

[Bodean]

I just donated my Subaru for 500 bones and I don't have the key either.

 

[Mr. Sir]

We are taught to re-use, recycle, save the planet.

On the one hand, that's true, but we are also being taught to replace anything that doesn't work right. Just toss it and get a new one; think appliances, cell phones, computers, and marriages.

 

[Frans]

Speaking of 'saving our resources'. The day I see new home developments with no lawns, and the golf courses brown, thats the day I will get a low flow shower head.

Meanwhile, let it pour!

 

[Mr. Sir]

The tragedy of the commons. Sad

 

[lumberjack]

I went from a 99 Wrangler to a 2002 Civic. "Trade in" (Insurance check) was $1700 in my favor, I get twice the milage, and more interior room.


Works for me

 

[Al Smith]

Drive it 'til the wheels come off is my motto. Then get some decent used 'wheels' & drive s'more.
Car payments suck. Full insurance sux more.

I subscribe to that theory myself .I did buy that new Merc in April though but it was a deal I couldn't pass up .

Besides that I paid a whole 225 dollars for my Ranger about 3-4 years ago and I fully intend to get my monies worth out of it before it goes .

 

[sotc]

I went from a 99 Wrangler to a 2002 Civic. "Trade in" (Insurance check) was $1700 in my favor, I get twice the milage, and more interior room.


Works for me

cept you didnt do it right. you pobably typed in "good" condition when you should have typed in "parts vehicle"

 

[Frans]

LJ, this comparison is for trading in an old vehicle for a brand new one. But I guess you knew that.

I am a bottom feeder when it comes to buying a ride. Yes I have bought a few brand new vehicles before, but really I buy older stuff, work on it, and then one day bail.
Works for me

 

[lumberjack]

Haha Willie.

Trading in my Jeep Wrangler for a Civic was indeed a good trade. I was ahead enough to pay for the gas it would take to drive 18k miles, or roughly what I drive in a year.

I was making the observation that sometimes trading in is good.

Hybrid's don't make sense to me from a gas economy/economics standpoint. The Prius cost $10k more than a Civic, that's enough fuel to drive 95k miles before you start "saving" with the Prius. What's the battery life on the Prius anyways?

 

[Frans]

supposed to be 100k. I have already worked on some of them. Cheap plastic crap. But a nice ride overall