my benz just hit 100k miles.
not bad for a 2013 e350
its prolly valued between 10 to 13k.
i just got a repair bil lestimates for 1700 this year.
i have gotten second opinion. and its looking like i’m prolly going to spend 1300.
but i got me thinking. at what point should i replace the car…
my initial hope is i can keep this car until i retire or something. so 5+ years.
my repair bill has been about 3.3k in 3 years or 1.1k per year and its value is prolly falling by 1.5k per year.
when i first bought this car. i literally lost like 5k to 7k per year. lol. so net net its relatively cheap.
I think in most cases, it’s cheaper to keep fixing what breaks than to buy a new car. Depreciation on almost all cars is brutal (but you do get the enjoyment of driving a new car). Are you going to an independent mechanic or the dealership?
Will say, if you get unlucky and the transmission lets go or something, you’re going to be out $$$$$
5k a year? You are blowing money man do you include this in your forecasted networth?! I’ve been driving a 10k car for a decade now with zero repairs needed except for a busted tire once. Let’s hope it lasts another ten years
What do you need to fix? Mercedes are a pain to work on yourself but many things can be done DIY style for a fraction of the cost - you can find just about any fix on youtube.
I keep repairing my beater, I’m determined to cross 200k on a vehicle. I think there is generally a wave of costs around 100k since that is where most warranties go to but once you go though that wave the maintenance settles down. Usually involves a significant amount of suspension work, belts and standard stuff like brakes etc.
Totally agree. My Audi is 8 years old… I bought it used 3 years ago and it’s had a nice run. Those imports can get pricey when there are issues so you have to stay on top of the maintenance. I put a few grand into it recently and it runs like new. Funny enough the issues came up almost exactly at 100k. Assuming it’s in decent shape I’d fix it up Nerdy, there is no bigger waste of cash than a new car imo.
Time for a cybertruck Nerdy, make us proud.
hpr - yea i just dont know what a good general rule is. if say repair estiamtes were 5k for 1 year. but was 300 the previous2 year, should you just pay up for the repairs. or should it be 5k per year for 3 years. but it feels kinda dumb to spend 5k a year for the next 3 years on a car valued at 10k and declining. so it has to be substantially lower. like what is the right way to comapre it? depreciation + maintenance for old car vs new car cost or dep and maintenance as well. maybe put a higher price on old car since its ugly and old.
raw- i dont include cars on my net worth since it usually has a loan which cancels it out. i see it more as an expense.and i know im blowing money. but the most expensive part is already paid. i lost 6k per year when i first bought it used but that was all deprecaition. now i’m losing 2k per year with repairs. so expenses have come down hard! if i bought a new camry. i think thats how much they deprecaite as well.
king - dont like to fix it myself. dont even kno how to change tires. plus i dont like to get my hands dirty. for me the most important thing is a good honest mechanic. and if they come to me with a list of fixes. i will fact check them. and if i find they did not give me the best price. i will switch and write an ok yelp review.
repair quote1 quote2 quote3 low est high est
| oil change | 159.99 | 230 | 237 | $156.00 | $188.00 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MB Drive Belt | 211.62 | 160 | 180 | $112.00 | $146.00 | https://repairpal.com/estimator/mercedes-benz/e350/serpentine-belt-replacement-cost |
| MB Spark Plugs | 520.31 | 380 | 322 | $311.00 | $359.00 | https://repairpal.com/estimator/mercedes-benz/e350/spark-plug-replacement-cost |
| CAbin FIlter | 123.34 | 80 | 60 | $87.00 | $111.00 | https://repairpal.com/estimator/mercedes-benz/e350/cabin-air-filter-replacement-cost |
| MB Air Filter | 113.1 | 74 | $92.00 | $154.00 | https://repairpal.com/estimator/mercedes-benz/e350/air-filter-replacement-cost |
MB timing cover seal 587.38 ? ? $300.00 $860.00
yep agreed. but i think think this is my last luxury car. until im worth like 2 millie. i just degaf anymore. more likely to buy a used minivan. or a tried and true 3 row suv. at what point do you say im not fixing ■■■■ anymore though? whats teh value of ur car right now?
E series…thats not very alpha
I continued to fix my beater even when it was basically worth nothing. I own it outright and don’t like the idea of tying up additional capital or taking debt. Eventually when it is truly and sincerely falling in on itself I will upgrade. It’s a personal decision on fixing it because you can’t predict whether something new will break in a month and cars vary individually, but if you feel confident the rest of things are running well then go for it. At 100k you should still have plenty of mileage left on that IMO. If you want luxury and longevity Lexus is really the way to go, I know so many people that kept with their maintenance (which was low) and have those things running towards 300k miles, they owned them from new though.
Be careful bickering with the auto shop on part cost if it isn’t egregious. It’s part of their profit calculation and you don’t want to get screwed, but having a good relationship and having them not cut corners comes back to help you as well.
I’d say my car is prob worth 12 - 14k if I had to guess. It’s in mint condition with fairly low KM’s (~106k). I think if I had a major issue with the transmission or something I’d likely ditch it, but putting in 2k/yr on average is worth it to me when the alternative is laying out another 20 - 25k for a “new” used car. Decent probability I keep that thing for another 2 - 3 years, barring the unforeseen.
And I agree with BS there. That price isn’t outrageous anyhow and if it gets it back to solid condition I’d take that and run.
but i mean. after fact checking. i undertstood their business model. which is give low prices on oil changes. and upcharging me on the big stuff. which imo is not cool. i dont ■■■■ with teaser rates. imo hte already upcharge me on the labor. so they can easily give a discount. l dunno if repairs are ■■■■ and my repair costs get higher every year. gives me incentive to just upgrade to a new car. avg age of cars nowadays is 12 years btw!
Well, your call, there’s a lot of overhead in these businesses that I think is underappreciated.
i went through a similar predicament a couple years ago. My audi was approaching 100k miles and after putting in 2k worth of repairs only a few months later the check engine light was back on and dealership estimating another 1-2k more in repairs. during all the repairs the dealership wisely provided me an s6 to drive around in.
I ended up trading it in for a new subaru crosstrek (hacksaw) but if it wasn’t for my wife i probably would have purchased a new s6. I gotta say, it feels pretty damn good not to stress having your card parked on the street or when you accidentally hit the thousands of pot holes. Was pretty pleased with my decision up until a few months ago when my neighbor decided to buy a M6 (picture him the east coast version of nerry)
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Dealership repairs will kill you.
dealershiips usually cost 2x the price. anyways i feel like thats a transition ppl do. when ur young and successful u buy a luxury car. then when you are older and wiser you buy an ok car.