Are Beemers getting ugly or Hyundai's getting cute?

PeeTex wrote

  I don't see myself in a rusty old F250 either

Cool, save that rig for ME!!

x10003q wrote

The gas savings plus the difference in price between the Tahoe and the Scion xb are not buying me a place in the mountains.

If I was to invest your gas savings (which are about half of what I'd have, driving twice as much, but whatever) and the difference in purchase price, which, as I see it, is $45,000 (Yukon Denali is $62,000, Scion xB is $17,000) over the course of 10 years (the period I want to own my car), and make 8% on the money, I'll have $102,366 after that decade. I'd have even more if I counted the difference in Insurance, Crazy expensive Tires on the Denali, and repair bills.

Maybe not enough to buy a condo, but about 10 years of rent at $1000 a month. Pretty good for just making a different vehicle decision.

Edmunds.com confirms Matt’s logic.  The 5-year True Cost to Own is $74K for the Tahoe and $46K for the Scion xb.  Extend the time horizon to 10 years, factor in Matt’s higher annual mileage (the Edmunds calc is based on 15K per year), compound the interest on the banked savings, and I think you’ll end up with a number that's at least in the ballpark of Matt’s $100K.

Everyone makes their own choices in life, but I could never justify investing more money than necessary in a depreciating asset.  For the record, I drive a 2011 Chevy Equinox.  Sexy?  No, but it comfortably hauls our family of 4 on winter ski weekends and to Cape Cod for a week of vacation in the summer.  I rack up the miles commuting, but since it’s all highway driving I average a respectable 26-28 mpg per tankful.  Surprisingly, the 5-year True Cost to Own for my Equinox  ($48K) comes in nearly the same as Matt’s little Japanese rattlebox.

True Cost to Own, Chevy Tahoe
True Cost to Own, Scion xB
True Cost to Own, Chevy Equinox

mattchuck2 wrote

x10003q wrote

The gas savings plus the difference in price between the Tahoe and the Scion xb are not buying me a place in the mountains.

If I was to invest your gas savings (which are about half of what I'd have, driving twice as much, but whatever) and the difference in purchase price, which, as I see it, is $45,000 (Yukon Denali is $62,000, Scion xB is $17,000) over the course of 10 years (the period I want to own my car), and make 8% on the money, I'll have $102,366 after that decade. I'd have even more if I counted the difference in Insurance, Crazy expensive Tires on the Denali, and repair bills.

Maybe not enough to buy a condo, but about 10 years of rent at $1000 a month. Pretty good for just making a different vehicle decision.

Let's at least try to do something like an apples to apples.
Cheapest new 2014 GMC 4x4/auto Yukon including delivery $47,460 (cheapest rear wheel $43,450).
Yukon
Cheapest new 2014 Scion xB w/auto including delivery $18,675.
Scion xB

The difference is $28,835. As I said, the difference is not buying me a place in the mountains.

Just to be clear - I do not own a Yukon/Tahoe or a Scion xB and do not see either one in my future.

$28,835 plus $30 a month in gas savings at your paltry driving rate, over 10 years, at 8% compounded annually is $67,467.

Okay, you can't buy a condo outright (but you can get pretty close!).

But 5-6 years of rent sounds pretty good to me. For a different choice in car. Which was my original point.

I know you like to win arguments, x, but come on, buddy. Give it up.

mattchuck2 wrote

$28,835 plus $30 a month in gas savings at your paltry driving rate, over 10 years, at 8% compounded annually is $67,467.

Okay, you can't buy a condo outright (but you can get pretty close!).

But 5-6 years of rent sounds pretty good to me. For a different choice in car. Which was my original point.

I know you like to win arguments, x, but come on, buddy. Give it up.

$7K/year will get you a nice seasonal rental at most ski hills.
Give it up MC - it's like trying to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig.

Yep, my mom had a sign that said "never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig likes it"

Ahhh, must be summer on a ski forum when the auto threads pop up and run strong.

MikeK wrote

And if you want the best resale.  VW TDI.  No questions asked.  I can't quite bring myself to pay the price of admission (and even used they are expensive i.e. high resale) but possibly the best built compromise between efficiency and comfort.

Probably because no one that drives one wants to trade theirs in (except those that do the new car every three years routine). I didn't buy mine for the resale value and I can't see ever getting rid of it. Excepting AWD not being an option, it is the perfect vehicle combining utility, efficiency, and fun. Only problem is you need to drive it well north of 120k miles for the fuel savings to add up and offset the original cost vs other 40 MPG highway vehicles (but none of the competition has the fun and utility of a TDI). Though if fuel prices kick up again, it won't take as long, calculated risk there for sure, but I doubt prices will ever go down again.

Any ways... to the thread topic. I drove a Hyundai when I was looking for a car three years ago. I was impressed with how far they had come. But the build quality was still shockingly cheap compared to how great the exterior design looked. I test drove a lot of cars but the Hyundai was one of the least appealing. Looks great on paper but still feels a bit cheap. I'm not even a car guy but the Hyundai left me wanting a bit more. Or at least that was true three years ago, I am sure they are still improving. And Beemers? Maybe I just don't understand because I am not in that income bracket... but I'd much rather have something practical and efficient.

Everyone has different needs and interests is the take away from this thread. Lots of different perspectives.

mattchuck2 wrote

Yep, my mom had a sign that said "never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig likes it"