bagwell

not if its still under warranty tho....a 3 year old Lexus is considerably cheaper than a brand new one and you still have warranty (even if its not CPO'd).

JDR76

For me, it depends on the individual situation. I've bought both new and used. I am not "for" or "against" one or the other.

When we bought our Acura TSX, we bought used, because we stumbled across a low mileage one in great condition, for the right price. When I bought my 4Runner (07), I went out searching for a new one, but couldn't find the exact configuration I wanted, but stumbled across the right one, used, with only 10k miles on it, so I bought it.

My Tacoma (11) was new, because I wanted to lease it. My RX and IS were both new as well, for the same reason (leasing).

mmarshall

................Among mass-produced cars, probably no more so than among Mercedes, BMW, and Porsche products, especially when they are out of warranty. The prices that these typical dealer-shops charge for parts and labor can be ludicrous.

So, my advice is....if you buy one of these vehicles used, make sure it has a warranty or a credible service-contract.

rustyd

Mostly used. Why pay $50K when I can get it 8 years and 50K mi later for less than half price.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

Mostly used in the 3-5 year range depending on miles. Higher miles used is a nightmare waiting to occur. The initial 2-3 year depreciation is what has me. Even though I'm a long term owner where this is less, the initial wallet bite of new factors in.

Pops buys new but in his case, he wasn't as thorough to select good used so he got burned on a few. When he bought a new Saturn, he also go burned from his past Toyota and Nissan experiences. Those Japan made versions in the day went 300K+ miles. The Saturn was junk yard material by 120K and he stuck it out till 160K. Dealer didn't even offer a trade-in allowance. LOL.

Harbinger

I tend to be attracted to vehicles that are no longer in production, so I have no choice but to buy used...however, I always know what I am looking for in a specific vehicle, so there are rarely any surprises(except for the dsm's ).

Gekko

price new and price used (negotiate hard on both). if the relative difference is marginal given benefits of new, buy new.

i used to always buy used - but when i bought my last Lexus, the price difference wasn't worth buying used since these cars don't depreciate much. so for me, it was worth paying a few dollars more and getting exactly what i wanted and being able to in theory drive the new one for ~3 years and ~36K miles LONGER vs. a used one.

example - Lexus ES350 with Navigation

NEW = 2014 with 0 miles = $38,000
USED = 2011 with 36K miles = $33,000

so if you buy new you can drive the car an extra 3 years for $5,000 or $1,667 per year ($139 per month!!!). and you get brand new, known maintenance/usage, exact options/colors you want etc. and the NEWEST BODY DESIGN (Typically 5 Year Redesign Cycle).

ALSO - you will get some of that extra money back on the trade someday because your car will be 3 years newer and have less mileage on it.

of course, this only works with cars that don't depreciate much.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

A '11 ES for $33K is nuts.
Low mileage CPO '11's w/Nav are going for $26K-$27K asking prices in my area.

http://www.prestigelexus.com/Vehicle...MPG=2147483647

keyframe13

I was about to say the same thing. It's @ $26k before any negociation. No matter the brand any new car would get the biggest hit in the first 2-3 years.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

True and those numbers are asking prices.Haggling brings that number down.

Blackraven

Personally, I would prefer to buy new...........IN CASH

lamar411

Agreed. but we bought our first lexus used. It all depends on the car and how long I will keep it and how many miles I will drive them.

Whitigir

Usually for Lexus or even Acura, beside the Domestic Brands such as Ford or GMC. The depreciation is very slow. For that said

Used car have to be 2-3 years old. Less than 40k Milages, One Owner, Clean record (how do you know it is clean ?) Well you don't, even with Lemon check, car fax, you don't get the full story. Unless you do CPO. 80% of CPO is clean and no accident happened. Again, how do you check the 20% ? You can't.

By the time you are researching the 20% and CPO, the depreciation is no longer worth it, 10K ? even 15K off ? You can take in considerations of the Followings

1/ Paint conditions....Body works, and Paints are very expensive. My uncle used to work for a Bodyshop for 18 years. A Bumper Repaint for a common vehicle is $2,000.

2/ Older Parts....Lexus and Acura don't usually have problems with the little things, such as Wheel bearings, Ball Joints...etc. Still, you need New Brakes/Rotors+ Labors soon. Recent Lexus pricing on those are $800+. Together with any down time you may have. If you are unlucky, and get into those 5% of Worse purchase, you will ended up spend more than just that. So let's put another $2,000 a side

3/ Scars, and Interior Damages, and or Spill, Bogeys...etc. A Thoroughly Interior Detailing runs about $100-250. Upholstery maintenance and fixing damages, will set you back another 1-2k. Let's set $2,000 a side.

4/ Dealer Amenities, such as Free car Wash, Free Oil changes for life, Valet service, Airport pick up. Not to mention the Negotiation you may get on a Brand new Vehicles.

5/ Most important to me is the Vehicle Color, and Options. You are very limited on this section with Used car

Those are seemingly $6,000 lost you get when you are purchasing a Used vehicle. I was on that boat.

A used 2-3 years old AWD RX350 went for 31k to 38K. Milages on it ranged from 12k to 38k miles. After all things considered. I bought my Brand new AWD RX350 for 43,200 Out the door.

I got 5 miles on the car, Plastic wrapped every seat, smell New, everything new, Perfect paint condition, Boosted my Ego, fully 4 years warranted, free 10,000 miles maintenance.

So with 5-10k, I can get a New car instead of saving 5-10k, and the stress of checking the vehicle Back Ground ? I chose New

mmarshall

Agreed..............that's the way to go, if at all possible. Not everyone can afford to pay cash, though. But, for those who can and do, they own the car and its title, period. It removes any worry about losing the car to a bank or dealer repo-agent if one loses his/her job and/or otherwise can't keep the payments up.

Also, don't forget leasing. Even in a relatively high-income region like the one I live in (D.C. suburbs), leasing is basically what keeps a lot of luxury/upmarket auto dealers in buisness. Those who can't afford to actually buy a brand-new Mercedes S-Class, BMW 7-Series, Audi A8, etc.... often end up leasing one instead for a few years. It allows one to drive an upmarket vehicle (and get a new one periodically) witout completely emptying one's bank account.

grabber2

New for Family car, gonna keep for 8~10 year, new & taking good care = trouble free!
Used for fun car, change every 1~2 year & love to mod it. No point to get new & take big hit!