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First time car buying decision

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by vlads, Apr 3, 2009.

  1. vlads

    vlads New Member

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    I'm considering buying or leasing my first car and I'd like to get your opinion on what I should do. I live in Brooklyn, NY which is half way between a city and a suburb. I don't have a garage, so the Tesla Model S is not really an option. I need to drive about once a week to do shopping and visit family. I'm married with a first child on the way.

    I'm undecided between the following options:

    1) Buy a 2010 Prius and keep it for 10 years. Downside is that electric vehicles are maybe 3 years away.

    2) Buy a 2010 Prius but sell it when practical EVs come to the market three years later. Downside is that the trade-in value might really drop.

    3) Buy a non-hybrid used car but sell it when practical EVs come to the market. The advantage here is that I lose a lot less money on depreciation and initial cost, but pay more for gas.

    4) Buy a used Prius for now. I don't really like this option since my wife thinks the Gen2 design looks dorky.

    5) Lease a 2010 Prius for three years and then reconsider my options.


    So in essense, I worried about investing in hybrid technology that might become obsolete soon and replaced by clean and simple EVs in a few years. Then again, even if that does happen, not having a garage means I'm heavily dependent on recharging infrastructure.

    I guess I'm leaning towards option #1, but would love to hear your take.
     
    #1 vlads, Apr 3, 2009
  2. lauren80ryan

    lauren80ryan New Member

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    I say option #1. :) Cause even if price of hybrids drop due to all electric cars...NON-hybrid cars will probably drop even more! As they all run out to buy our hybrid cars cause they can't afford to drive their 10 mpg vehicles anymore:p...especially if gas prices go up again. And if you get the "base" 2010 prius, you aren't really spending a whole lot more than if you got a regular gas car (thinking camry or civic) and you are saving ALOT in the 10 years and you are also being environmentally conscious NOW and having less 'footprint'.

    I don't know much about leasing but have been told over and over by financially-savvy individuals NEVER do it.

    Hope that helps.:D
     
    #2 lauren80ryan, Apr 3, 2009
  3. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    1 or 5. You said a Tesla isn't an option so unless you're planning to move to a house in 3 years, I'd take option 1 then consider option 5.
     
    #3 Tideland Prius, Apr 3, 2009
  4. firepa63

    firepa63 Former Prius Owner

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    Buy an economical Option 3. With the planned driving you state, you're not going to gain anything with a Prius. Wait for the EV technology to become a proven option.
     
    #4 firepa63, Apr 3, 2009
  5. William B. Kayen

    William B. Kayen New Member

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    Why don't you rent a car one day a week for $50.00 per day. That would be $2500.00 per year and get a new car when you can garage it. How safe is parking a new Prius on the streets of Brooklyn?
     
    #5 William B. Kayen, Apr 3, 2009
  6. FL_Prius_Driver

    FL_Prius_Driver Senior Member

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    A wife with the first child on the way usually wants a tank for the family vehicle.

    My recommendation is to reevaluate since an ideal family electric vehicle may be farther out than 3 years. Depending on family planning, you may have more than one kid at that time and getting the initial expensive models of a very hard to get vehicle may make lease plans less of a real option than thought.
     
    #6 FL_Prius_Driver, Apr 3, 2009
  7. vlads

    vlads New Member

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    Hmm, I'll look into whether there are any good rental companies within a 5 minute walk.

    Brooklyn is pretty safe. In the last 10 years, the worst thing that happened was my passenger window was broken, but that was my fault because I left a laptop bag on the seat. The bag was empty though.
     
    #7 vlads, Apr 3, 2009
  8. vlads

    vlads New Member

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    Wait, are you saying that you think the Prius isn't safe enough?
     
    #8 vlads, Apr 3, 2009
  9. royrose

    royrose Senior Member

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    Depending on where you live in Brooklyn, there may be a zipcar car sharing location near by. It is definately economical if you are only going to drive once per week. Check out their website. I haven't posted enough to post a link but it's pretty easy to figure out.

    Ask her if she thinks you look dorky. If so, she might love the gen 2 prius despite it's looks. :)

    Roy
     
    #9 royrose, Apr 3, 2009
  10. vlads

    vlads New Member

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    Yep I thought about that and it doesn't work for me because I would have to take the train to get to the ZipCar location.

    Also, there is an Enterprise location near me, but you can't return the car on Sunday, so you'd need to take it for the full weekend and they charge $100 / day. That comes to $800 / month which is way more than a lease.
     
    #10 vlads, Apr 3, 2009
  11. FL_Prius_Driver

    FL_Prius_Driver Senior Member

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    No. I am use to a mom-to-be only considering a new vehicle purchase exclusively from a child carrying point of view....which usually puts "style" at the bottom of the list and the ability to safely haul lots of kids and cargo at the top.
     
    #11 FL_Prius_Driver, Apr 4, 2009
  12. lauren80ryan

    lauren80ryan New Member

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    I am a new mom and I WANT the prius. The cargo space ROCKS, the interior is so roomy (compared to my civic) and yet I can still park it easily, AND now I am driving way more (to babysitter and back) so gas mileage is important. As is cost of car because I would like to have it paid off in 2-3 years so I can go down to part time if/when baby #2 comes.:D
    Reliability is also big factor, and I am confident my Toyota will live up to its reputation.
     
    #12 lauren80ryan, Apr 6, 2009
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