Trade it or drive it

If there are a bunch of little things driving you nuts about it and you want a new one trade it in. If the concern is simply the upcoming repairs, why not wait until something actually breaks and then buy. Could be a while on a Prius. Trade in value won't depreciate much more at that mileage. In a couple years it will be worth maybe 1,000 less than now but you will have saved for a couple years. Maybe you can get one of the new gen4s when they come out and prices fall back down to earth if you aren't in a hurry.

 

In my opinion (and this is what I plan to do with my personal car) I would keep up with the maintenance and drive it until something serious happens to it , then look at the cost of repair vs resell value. I plan on trying to get my prius over 300k miles and im only at 60k. Maybe my daughter will get this car, and she is only 6.

 

That's funny silvertn my daughter is 4 and I have had the same thought my with my 40K mile 2012 Prius

 

If you are putting 150k miles on a car in 4 years, it would be best to just keep driving it until a major repair comes up. You will be faced with heavy depreciation on anything new.

 

A hit on depreciation is imminent since the vehicle drove of the dealer parking lot as new.
We are in a similar situation also, my wife's 2011 with 125K miles is working perfectly and we inquire for a trade in price; it was horrendous and a slap in the face.
She will keep driving it until a major repair will show up and them, some.

 

If you decide to sell at that price, LMK. lol

 

57 hundred.............and that was almost a year ago

 

Read the first part of that sentence, and judging from your avatar, it was "wait, what?". Then read the second part, sounds about right.

 

Yeah, that's my wife and I . I am (almost) 27 lol. Daughter is 6 also have a son that just turned 2! Man they are fun at that age........

 

I have no qualms about spending maintenance and reasonable repair money on a car, especially when the dollars-per-mile are low. New car depreciation is expensive.

 

Cars over 125,000 miles traded in at a Dealership goes straight to auction. Whether you take the pencil whip value now or after a major cost repair really depends on cash flow for most. A Prius is not and investment item, it's a cost item like most other vehicles. Making the Wife happy is an investment. Just don't forget...it's always your fault regardless.

 

What would you be replacing it with? Is it paid off?

I would keep up with minor and regular maintenance and only consider trading it if something major needs replaced. The "free" warranty that a $25k new car comes with ends up costing a lot more than little things like brakes and shocks for your existing car.

 

It's only 4 years old.
Running well.

Why NOT just keep driving it?
Your tires are good.
The HV battery is still under warranty.

I'm assuming it's paid off.
What would you trade it in on that is going to give you economical efficient transportation at such low immediate cost?

You say you "Know Future Problems Are Coming", but really....no you don't.

All machines break down and need maintenance with usage and the passage of time, but just because it has 150,000+ miles doesn't mean it is on the verge of "anything".

If you are not experiencing any immediate problems, and you have kept up with regular maintenance, I might invest a little into some preventative maintenance and just keep driving. Just because a vehicle is high miles doesn't mean you have to apply the idea of driving it until it "drops". Machines can be maintained indefinitely, and often just a minimal amount of preventative maintenance can result in a lot of longevity.

Unless it's giving you signs of a catastrophic failure, I'd just keep it and keep on driving.

 

happy wife = happy life or get ready to give up half your stuff

 

As others have said, if wife wants something new as piece of mind ok, but if she is really putting 40K miles per year on it then maybe get a used one a couple years old with low miles. Will be much cheaper and she probably won't get much less use out of it. Otherwise you will get slaughtered on depreciation having to buy a new car every few years without much value to trade in with so many miles.

 

As I read the OP, wife is happy to keep driving it until it won't go, it is the hubby worried about potential repair bills.

I'd say, let wife keep it, but overrule her unwillingness to put some maintenance money into it. Otherwise, "won't go" will happen prematurely.