4 1/2 year cost of ownership (not TCO!)

So... I wrote this once upon a time:

chnycs said:
Bought new last June

Local dealer wouldn't budge one bit... Which is weird - I walked in ready to buy a car. Whatever. I don't really like that family of dealerships, anyway. I did like driving their car - it has more pops and bangs than the one I bought.

We already own a FIAT so I called the dealer I got that from. They didn't have anything in stock and weren't super excited about dealing (they're not close by and weren't hungry to sell - certainly not for the price I wanted to pay).

I emailed a dealer that's kind of far away (a few flights or a 10 hour drive). There were a lot of red flags in the way things went down and in the end I wasn't comfortable going with them despite the fact that they were 1-2 days from handing over the keys (I had to get there first).

While talking with those folks I got a very short followup email from a dealer I'd emailed a month before. I told them the price I was getting and asked what they could do... And I drove down the next day and bought their car.

Anyway, I paid $24,300 for an Abarth with visibility.

If you wanted my great advice for saving big cash on your next car purchase it's, uh. Erm. Buy a car that people aren't looking for? Be patient? Be ready when it comes along? Do not be afraid to walk away? Don't be afraid to show a dealer another dealer's price? Have enough of your financing lined up (know your credit record, that you can get financed, have some cash on hand) and just chill -> it's better to buy when the right deal comes along than when you absolutely positively need a car the next day.

I paid $24,300 on a car with a $30,185 sticker. The insurance company just bought it from me for $23,594.80. Although this is a tiny bit disingenuous because I'm not including the sales tax in the first number and they are including it in the last one. Realistically it's more like I bought the car for $24,300 and they gave me $21,850 for it so the car cost me $2,450 for 54 months of use or $45/month. I guess I'm kind of OK with that. It makes me a bit sad and makes me think that WOW cars cost a lot of money! Dang! Could have been worse? Could definitely have been worse!

Anyway, I got a Miata on a deal. I know Miatas are ugly. But... I got a deal! I mean... How many times have you heard those words in the past year??? Anyway, sticker on a '22 GT M/T was $34,115 and I'm getting it for $30,743. I'll be driving that with snows mounted on Abarth wheels just to keep things real.

4 1/2 year cost of ownership (not TCO!)

Steele

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