Return of the Stripper

[tasdrouille]

A new car often offer peace of mind, something a used car rarely can. Comfort would seem to me as the main reason stripped cars don't sell. It's surprising how much more money people are willing to throw at a car to get that option they want. I'll just take our Elantra as an example. I would have got the base model, but my wife insisted on AC, which was bundled with heated seats and mirrors and a couple of other gadgets. It cost 3k more than the base model, but whatever makes her happy. I guess the reasoning is that if you're going to spend over 10k on it, you might as well spend a "little" more and get the comfort you want. It does not make much sense to me, but we don't all have the same cost/added comfort ratio. I would think ecomodders have a significantly lower ratio than much of the population.

[robbiewt]

I found it odd that my old 2001 Elantra had a/c, power locks and power windows standard but ABS was not included. When I got the Yaris, Toyota had strange option packages where I could not get ABS without getting $2500 in "luxury" options.

I would like to see more basic cars offered, but I feel that buyers have been spoiled by standard luxury.

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by tasdrouille

A new car often offer peace of mind, something a used car rarely can

It seems a very strange way of getting peace of mind. You spend what, $20-30K or more on a new car, which for most people means several hundred a month in car payments, more on registration & expensive C&C insurance. Then they have to worry about losing jobs, not making the payments, and having the repo man come around to haul away their wheels. (Was an article about it in the local paper the other day - seems the repo business is booming.)

Meanwhile I buy something used, for not much money - the $8K I paid for the Insight 5 years ago was the most I ever spent on a car. I can pay cash, and have money left in the bank. I don't have to worry about car payments, insurance & registration are a few hundred a year. If it breaks, I can fix it myself for cheap (not being a mechanical incompetent), or worst case just buy another. And I don't have to worry about how I'm going to make a payment every month, which is a lot more peace to my mind :-)

[tasdrouille]

There is something wrong if people worry how they're gonna make their monthly payment. It does not have much to do with the car being new or used. It probably have everything to do with living over their means. Putting aside the financial aspect, there is a lot less uncertainties associated with owning a new car. Lets say you change every 4 years. Generally, not much should wear/break during this period. Anyway, we're drifting a bit away from the subject here.

[Christ]

Actually, I know about 15 people that own Civic CX's. And 14 of them are imports. (From Canada)

So that makes me uncivilized?

You, my friend, may not like it, but the reality is that people in this country have (for quite some time now) spent money they didn't have. And since the economy is finally catching up with it, it's almost the perfect time to start unleashing stripped down models for the lowest price possible.

Imagine... who bought the $500,000 dollar house on a $44,000 income? That guy is going to need a car after he's bankrupt... and guess what he's going to go for? He'll be too scared (and unable) to get a loan of any real large amount, so he'll go around thinking "I have $15,000 to spend... and I'd like to keep some in case I can't pay my loans for a month or two... to cover my own ass..."

Guess what that means? It'll be 7 years before he can file bankruptcy again, so that loan has to last him... which means he won't be buying a car that's going to nickel and dime him to death 3 years from now.

Fact is, there are ALOT of people right now who are buying used cars for high prices because there is no real alternative. Once there is an alternative, I believe the market will shift toward new products.

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted by tjts1

I'm not going to blow $10k or $15k on some poverty spec POS and the car makers know it. Every stripped out cheap car on the market has to compete with millions of slightly used yet much better spec used cars.

If you had $10000 to spend on a car which would you pick?


2001 525i 91k miles, asking $9900

Actually never mind. Most of you guys are nuts and don't represent the majority of Americans.

The stripper is dead. Good riddance.

I think that BMW might be a candidate for "I can't afford a Porsche/BMW/Benz even if you gave it to me" phrase. I would bet even if the BMW was free, the total cost of ownership over 100,000 miles would be way less with the Versa. Compared to many used cars, the total cost of ownership will be less with the Versa. Also getting a car loan is much easier with a new car.
Most people don't buy new cars rationally, its a rapidly depreciating asset, around here unless you garage it in the winter, every car is worth $100/ton in 15 years if you are lucky, and many don't get that far.
My car isn't a fashion accessory, needed to stroke my ego, a personal reward, or needed to impress people. Most people don't seem to feel the same way which is fine if you can afford it. I think many are realizing that basic transportation is now their priority. For me, cars get me to work, get me to the good icefishing spots, tow stuff around, and occiasionally transport livestock in the back seat...
Its also way more fun spanking "sporty" cars in autocross with a 14 year old POS stripper Neon than with a car everyone expects should win.
Ian

[trebuchet03]

Originally Posted by tjts1

Anybody remember the Ford escort pony or the base 95 neon or the civic cx? No? Neither does the rest of the civilized world.

What about the Hyuandai Accent...

Current base model is $11,070.... according to KBB, it led entry level sales from 2000 to 2005, but is now competing with the Fit, Rio, Yaris and Aveo.

I know three different people that own that car I know at least one of them gets free oil changes for as long as he owns the car He got the base model in 2006, which was $10,500 - fairly close to the "stripper" price, with more features. Sports a manual gearbox, air conditioning and tape deck

[dichotomous]

Originally Posted by Big Dave

What would today’s version of that old Biscayne look like?

Not as big outside as that old chromium bulldozer but something about the size of a Pontiac G8. (Physical size does not much affect vehicle manufacturing cost). Big enough to carry two adults and three teenagers. A big trunk. Make it front-engine, rear drive. You still cannot beat the old Carden drive scheme for ease of manufacture. Use the GM 2.0 liter EcoTech engine with a five speed manual. “2-70” air conditioning. Roll-up windows, manual door locks. (Let the Chinese keep their permanent magnet devices). You’d need power brakes – discs need power assist. Gotta have the air bags to satisfy Uncle Sam. No navigation. No built-in DVD player. In fact, minimal electronics. Vinyl interior. Minimal chrome (chrome has gotten expensive). What you do is to emulate the Scion and make it easy for the customer to hang aftermarket goodies on it as he/she can afford it. Make it a bit more sturdy than a Kia Rio. Try to get it built under 2,800 lb curb weight. Sell it for $15,000 sticker. They’d fly off the lots.
.

(Let the Chinese keep their permanent magnet devices).
.[/QUOTE]

you'd prefer constantly filling up and burning fuel instead of letting a permenant magnet motor coupled to a generator recharge batteries constantly for the life of the vehicle with no outside energy, eliminating any need to refuel or recharge? Personally I would take the latter

[cfg83]

jamesqf -

Originally Posted by jamesqf

It seems a very strange way of getting peace of mind. You spend what, $20-30K or more on a new car, which for most people means several hundred a month in car payments, more on registration & expensive C&C insurance. Then they have to worry about losing jobs, not making the payments, and having the repo man come around to haul away their wheels. (Was an article about it in the local paper the other day - seems the repo business is booming.)

...

I used to be in the peace-of-mind crowd. I bought a new 1990(1?) Honda CRX "DX" without AC or radio and a new 1997 Saturn SC2 coupe. I switched from the SC2 to a used Saturn Wagon *only* because I got the wagon at 36K with a full 36K warranty to 72K. That was my "excuse" for buying used. Since then I have spent a lot of time, energy, and money learning about how to keep my car alive and healthy. It may be less money than buying new, but I can understand that the *effort* to keep a used car going can be fraught with as much nightmare as the monthly payment.

My first used car lesson was a $1800 transmission repair estimate at 115K miles for my SW2. I considered getting a new car then. Eventually I found an honest mechanic 26 miles away from where I live and got it knocked down to $1100. Without saturnfans.com and my honest mechanic, I would probably just stick with new cars.

If your not a "car person" (I'm not), then doing all the homework to understand what your car needs is a major energy drain. And, if you or your advice is wrong, the egg is on your face.

CarloSW2

[jesse.rizzo]

Originally Posted by trebuchet03

What about the Hyuandai Accent...

Current base model is $11,070.... according to KBB, it led entry level sales from 2000 to 2005, but is now competing with the Fit, Rio, Yaris and Aveo.

I know three different people that own that car I know at least one of them gets free oil changes for as long as he owns the car He got the base model in 2006, which was $10,500 - fairly close to the "stripper" price, with more features. Sports a manual gearbox, air conditioning and tape deck

Amen to that. My 2001 Accent with manual transmission, non-powered windows and locks, does have AC, and does have AM/FM/Tape Deck.

It cost around $10k new. I bought it I think in January 2006 with 57,000 miles on it for $3300, which as far as I was concerned was basically a new car.

It's still kicking around now, about 20,000 miles later. The most I've spent on it at one time is for four new tires.