Looking at a VERY used Honda CR-V, probably going back to 2005 or 2006 to get one we can afford. The vehicles we are finding on craigslist have more mileage on them than we are comfortable with. We would love to find 110,000 miles, but we are seeing 176,000 - 195,000 mile CR-Vs on the market.
What we don’t know is what kind of lifespan the CR-V has. Is 250,000 miles a realistic expectation? I figure I can subtract current mileage from expected mileage life and compare the sales price per mile left on the car. Is that a good way to think of it?
I am starting with the CR-V, and my backups are Toyota RAV or Toyota 4Runner. Just trying to find a sturdy first vehicle for our child.
My fdil is here and she got rid of her CRV with 270,000 miles. Her dad then drove it for she thinks maybe another 5 or 10,000 miles and sold it.
She didn’t have much trouble with it but said it might have needed a new transmission soon lol!
She was faithful with getting it serviced.
We’ve had good luck with Subaru and my H has a Hyundai Elantra with a 168,000 miles that he’s had little trouble with if you wanted a different model to think about
The main factor with older or well used vehicles is how well cared for maintenance-wise the vehicle has been. A poorly cared for or abused vehicle is probably junk at 100,000 miles, but there are well maintained examples with many hundreds of thousands or even millions of miles.
We had a Toyoya Rav4 that we gave to our son, it now has about 230K miles on it. We replaced our Toyota Sienna last year, it had 195K miles and didn’t completely die but would have needed a very costly repair to keep going. I think it’s a little bit of a crapshoot when you’re getting up around 200K and I would be leary about buying a car with that many miles on it without really knowing it’s ownership and history. One thing to consider is if the car has been in a Northern state where they salt the roads that can cause a lot of damage over time and shorten the life of the car. Our RAV4 seems to have fared pretty well despite that but the Sienna not so much.
Do you know a reliable mechanic you trust that could look over the car before you buy?
What is your price point? Perhaps there are other options to consider that don’t have that many miles on them.
We bought a Subaru Outback that was four years old and had 111,000 miles on it. But we bought it frimmthe dealer where it had been originally bought. And serviced. And they had all the service records.
I do not think I would buy a used car off of Craigslist because I would want to be certain the servicing had been regularly done…and all updated services completed (some folks skip the expensive things…).
@cellomom2 Thanks for sharing your car experience. Yes, we would get a trusted mechanic to check out a car before final purchase decision.
My H and I are having trouble agreeing on vehicles, price, and acceptable mileage level parameters. It makes for a more stressful search.
i want to spend more money to “Buy” the reliability of a Honda or Toyota. I am counting on more mileage/life span from these two brands. But I have not found proof to show my H.
My theory is it is cheaper to buy a better car. And our lives run pretty fast and get complicated by a car that breaks down. I am searching for the “perfect” car and I know that doesn’t exist. Kind of like shopping for the “perfect” college for your child.
I would pay a tad more to buy a used car where I KNOW the service has been done. To me, that would be as important as the brand name.
Our last several cars have been used cars with complete service records.
2004 Volkswagen diesel golf. It's a great car, and we bought it for $4000 from a friend's estate. He worked for Volkswagen...and the car had impeccable service records. It had 65,000 miles on it.
Subaru Outback wagon 2011 bought in 2015 for $12,000 out the door. It had 111,000 miles on it. Bought from the dealer.
Volvo S60 SE 2012. Was a year old when purchased for $23,000...30,000 miles on it. Bought from the dealer.
Toyota Camry LE...we got two...a 2011 and a 2012. They were three years old when we purchased them...and each had under 30,000 miles on them. Purchased through a third party dealer that specialized in Toyota and Honda. $15,000 out the door.
We sold a 2003 Honda Accord to a friend for $2000…it had 250,000 miles on it. They used it for a summer for a college kid coming home…and then sold it for $1000. It needed some work!
Since you like your Hyundai. Why aren’t you looking at used of those. Prices are modest.
We have bought 2 used cars in the last year and a half, we bought in a higher price range than you are probably looking for your child but I found some of the online car search websites very helpful, cars.com, edmunds. A lot of the cars available have a carfax report that shows all the maintenance. You can see a lot of cars that are available in your area. I only looked at cars that had a free carfax to look at and had impeccable service records. We are likely going to be helping our kids buy used cars next spring so will be going through the same process as you. I definitely agree with you that it is more cost effective in the long run to spend a little more money at the front end to buy a more reliable car. Agree with thumper1 also, we’ll definitely be looking at Hyundais this time around.
Just an FYI about Carfax. Only things reported to carfax come up. We bought a car…and when our insurance agent added it to the policy…HE informed us that the car had claims against it on previous insurance. It passed the whatever point inspection…
But they DID make us wary about the complete accuracy of Carfax reports.
Our S wants a small SUV. So that is where we started. But we are now open to small sedan as well.
So we will consider a Hyundai in addition to Honda and Toyota.
@thumper1 thank you for highlighting the importance of service records. That will move up to top of our priority list.
Just so many choices out there, and we know not every seller will disclose every truth about a vehicle.
My H finally agreed to call a friend who actually enjoys cars and helping others find cars. Hoping that happens later today. We need an intervention, this passive search has been going on for way too long.
We bought our D a 2003 CRV a year or two ago. It had 135k miles and was in good shape. We bought from a repair shop that also buys and sells used cars. It’s been a great car for her with no problems. I’m still driving an Odyssey with 210k. H’s Camry has 190k. We are big Honda and Toyota fans. Our cars have had no problems outside the normal replacement part needs of cars that old.
@thumper1 thanks for the info about carfax, will keep that in mind. The 2 cars I bought were very low mileage, coming off lease and single owner and looked like they had had all of the routine maintenance at the dealer with no incidents. I would think that the more miles and owners a car has had the less useful it is. Good to always be skeptical.
I might add looking at used Acura, Lexus and Infiniti. When my friend was searching for a used sedan they found that the premium brand was often cheaper. They ended up with a Lexus sedan for the same price as a Camry of the same year but with significant less mileage.
For our youngest we bought a used Masada Tribute which was the same as the Ford Escape. It had 170,000 miles on it but it had detailed service records. It came to us through our mechanic. My D drove it for several years and we passed it on to my nieces who both drove it. They sold it at over 200,000. The engine was still sound but the shocks were shot.
One thing to consider is that some cars need a major maintenance at a certain mileage. I would make sure that whatever car you buy that has been done such as the timing belt.
Toyota 4runners are great cars but at least in my area they command a high price considering the mileage. I think you pay a premium over Hyundai, Kia or an American car for Toyota or Honda. Nissan seem to be a bit less expensive.
I am at the car dealship right now getter no my Toyota Highlander Hybrid serviced. It is a 2006 with over 250,000 miles and going strong. It is the #1 car kept over 10 years by the original owners.