I doubt theres many of us that would not like to be driving a brand new corvette!
or maybe your checking balance is more likely to look kindly on a corvette thats only a few years old?
if you can afford it thats certainly a great way to go, but many of us would like to go that route but due to reality our expenditure on automotive related toys are limited, by factors such as affording houses, and food, or we need access to a larger seating capacity so our corvettes a second car, so we are driving an older corvette. .
ok , lets say like many of us, your driving a corvette thats 5-30 years old and theres a seeming endless progression or repairs, and you start thinking about trading it in on a newer model, now naturally the condition your cars in and what needs to be replaced,repaired or adjusted is a major factor here as is your skill level and familiarity with tools and having the time and place to do the work, but theres also a huge tendency to look at a newer car as a car that's far less likely to need repairs, which is not always true, because at some point you've replaced or repaired a good deal of the potential problem areas, in your current car.
yes I know your goal is to have a fast car that looks good, obviously you need to make personal choices, just remember that, you can replace interior components like seats,, do paint jobs and replace engines a whole lot cheaper than the cost of a new corvette in many cases.
paying $600 for a complete brake upgrade ,and $1200 for new tires on your current car, is usually going to be a whole lot cheaper, in the long run than monthly car payments on a new car.
personally, since IM retired and reasonably well versed in corvette repair and maintenance, Id rather spend "$1k or $2k a year fixing stuff" on an older C4 than have a $600-$1100 car payment per month (thats $7200-$13,200 a year)
on a newer corvette! its all a mater or balancing your skills and cash flow vs your ability to maintain your car
the need to do repairs will be an intermittent part of ownership with any used car , so get used to occasionally replacing parts or adjusting things, if you step back and total up the cost over a long time period it tends to cost less than the constant car payments, of having a new car.(especially once you realize once you drive any car off the lot its a USED CAR, and in most cases you pay a good deal extra for a bumper to bumper warranty after the first few years and that many "WEAR ITEMS" like belts,hoses and brakes and tires, are seldom covered in any warranty)
look at it this way, you may need a new clutch, or transmission,new tires,new brakes, a new water pump, a valve job, etc. over any given time period, its part of owning a car.some parts have a rather predictable life expectancy, for example you can reasonably expect to replace brakes every 60K or water pumps at 80K, and tires depending on your driving style at between 30K-50K
purchasing a newer corvette could easily cost $35-$75K, every choice is a compromise in some area,but while you can occasionally delay repairs car payments must be made on a set schedule.
over a 72 month payment time frame that,s a monthly payment of at least $500-$1100 OR MORE a month and those month roll by rather fast, your almost always ahead maintaining a used corvette, especially when you factor in the far higher cost of insurance on a newer vette, into the financial picture.
[/c]besides theres always the option to do something special to an older c4 corvette, that youve already paid off that will make it almost unique and faster than almost anything else you could be driving, at a cost thats still lower than a new corvette...why be one of the crowd when with a few weeks of hard work you can have something special & unique [/b]
http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=151
or maybe your checking balance is more likely to look kindly on a corvette thats only a few years old?
if you can afford it thats certainly a great way to go, but many of us would like to go that route but due to reality our expenditure on automotive related toys are limited, by factors such as affording houses, and food, or we need access to a larger seating capacity so our corvettes a second car, so we are driving an older corvette. .
ok , lets say like many of us, your driving a corvette thats 5-30 years old and theres a seeming endless progression or repairs, and you start thinking about trading it in on a newer model, now naturally the condition your cars in and what needs to be replaced,repaired or adjusted is a major factor here as is your skill level and familiarity with tools and having the time and place to do the work, but theres also a huge tendency to look at a newer car as a car that's far less likely to need repairs, which is not always true, because at some point you've replaced or repaired a good deal of the potential problem areas, in your current car.
yes I know your goal is to have a fast car that looks good, obviously you need to make personal choices, just remember that, you can replace interior components like seats,, do paint jobs and replace engines a whole lot cheaper than the cost of a new corvette in many cases.
paying $600 for a complete brake upgrade ,and $1200 for new tires on your current car, is usually going to be a whole lot cheaper, in the long run than monthly car payments on a new car.
personally, since IM retired and reasonably well versed in corvette repair and maintenance, Id rather spend "$1k or $2k a year fixing stuff" on an older C4 than have a $600-$1100 car payment per month (thats $7200-$13,200 a year)
on a newer corvette! its all a mater or balancing your skills and cash flow vs your ability to maintain your car
the need to do repairs will be an intermittent part of ownership with any used car , so get used to occasionally replacing parts or adjusting things, if you step back and total up the cost over a long time period it tends to cost less than the constant car payments, of having a new car.(especially once you realize once you drive any car off the lot its a USED CAR, and in most cases you pay a good deal extra for a bumper to bumper warranty after the first few years and that many "WEAR ITEMS" like belts,hoses and brakes and tires, are seldom covered in any warranty)
look at it this way, you may need a new clutch, or transmission,new tires,new brakes, a new water pump, a valve job, etc. over any given time period, its part of owning a car.some parts have a rather predictable life expectancy, for example you can reasonably expect to replace brakes every 60K or water pumps at 80K, and tires depending on your driving style at between 30K-50K
purchasing a newer corvette could easily cost $35-$75K, every choice is a compromise in some area,but while you can occasionally delay repairs car payments must be made on a set schedule.
over a 72 month payment time frame that,s a monthly payment of at least $500-$1100 OR MORE a month and those month roll by rather fast, your almost always ahead maintaining a used corvette, especially when you factor in the far higher cost of insurance on a newer vette, into the financial picture.
[/c]besides theres always the option to do something special to an older c4 corvette, that youve already paid off that will make it almost unique and faster than almost anything else you could be driving, at a cost thats still lower than a new corvette...why be one of the crowd when with a few weeks of hard work you can have something special & unique [/b]
http://forum.grumpysperformance.com/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=151