I own a 92 Honda Accord. It’s in excelent condition, and has had very few and mainly minor problems (dead battery, broken tape deck, etc). However, the car just hit 102,000 miles. I have a job which could easily support a car payment. Am I better off financially to buy a new car now, or keep the old one. I’m afraid that after 100,000 miles, it may be getting into the age where it will start to need expensive repairs.
Also, how many miles can I expect to pull out of a car of this make and model?
have you owned the car since new? Have you changed the oil every three thousand miles and had the other fluids checked regularly? a properly maintained car, especially Japanese enigines, can run for 200,000 without major repairs easily. Unless you know of someting wrong with the car(suspension failing, electrical system going bad), then odds are it will keep running reliably as it has done for a long while.
But if you really want to buy a new car, and can confortably afford it, then go for it, and let financial responsibility be damned. Some college student will be more than happy to by your car, and you can have fun in your new one.
“Have you changed the oil every three thousand miles?”
That is unecessary. We talked about it before many times. 5,000 miles is alright.
Hondas last forever. I’d keep it. 100,000 miles is nothing for a Honda. For an american car, that is plenty of miles.
I have a 90 Accord, original owner, and I’ve always maintained it. I shoot for the 3000 mile oil change mark simply because it will likely be closer to 4000 before I actually do it. Reliable sources tell me that 5000 is ok for an oil change, but always change the filter with the oil.
My Accord has 103K on it, and I have never had a problem. I plan on keeping mine, and I would do the same with your car.
It’s hard to kill a Japanese engine, and they are very reliable cars (well, after 1990 or so.)
Why not put the car payment in savings and wait to buy the new car until it’s needed?
It sounds like you’re considering a new car to avoid an expensive repair bill. Consider the car payment as insurance. Is it worth hundreds of dollars each month to be ready when (if) the Accord’s transmission goes out? Like wolfman said, an engine can usually go a couple of hundred thousand miles without a rebuild (though emissions will suffer.) Personally, I’d just save the money and maybe buy a car whenever the old one wears out.
Take the first month’s payment for a new car ($400 - $500) and buy a really good battery ($70), a new in-dash cd player/radio tuner ($250) and some new speakers ($150). Then give your car a nice wax job and be thankful that you have corrected the problem for a minimal fee instead of shelling out the same amount of money every month for four or five years. Cars are the biggest unrecoverable drain on financial recources that there is. Invest that money in the stock market and see how much it becomes in four years.
I bought a new car because I was tired of repairing my old one. After about six months of payments, I missed the repair expenses.
I would say no. I’m currently in the same position. I have a 97’ Nissan Maxima with 113,000 miles on it. Yeah, I know it’s not as old as yours, but it has more miles. I have never had anything go wrong with it. I change the oil every 3,000 miles, despite what everybody else says, and I changed the spark plugs when it hit 100,000. It’s paid off, and I’d hate to have another $500/month car payment if I don’t have to. The money I’ll save by not getting a new car will be more than enough to cover any repairs I’ll have to do in the future. You have a Honda. They run forever if you take care of them. Mavpace’s suggestion is a good one. Fix all the minor things and I’d recommend getting it detailed. A clean car is noce to have. 