New vs. Used Car?

The strongest allure of owning a new vehicle is obviously its attractiveness. It is hard to beat that 'new car' smell.

With a new vehicle, you can assume you won’t be dealing with major repairs or maintenance issues for a while.

When everything is completely new, there’s no need to drag your prospective new car to the mechanic. It’s also easier to determine a fair price for the car.

Cars are getting more updates, and recent models have incredibly convenient technology, such as programmable settings, autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, built-in Wi-Fi hotspots, or lane-departure warnings.

All new cars come with warranty coverage for their first three years or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first.

Buying a used vehicle is usually the cheaper option over buying a new one. Consider this: according to the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), the average American owns 13 cars in their lifetime.

The savings on a used car don’t end at the dealer’s lot. With the previous owner absorbing the initial depreciation on the car during its first few years of ownership, your vehicle will only experience a minimal drop in value.

With your car weighing in at a lower value, your monthly insurance premiums may be more manageable. You may also be able to opt-out of full protection when your car isn’t a new model.

If you choose to finance a used vehicle instead of a new one, you’ll have a higher interest rate. However, since the loan amount is lower, you’ll save in total interest payments over the life of the loan. Check out our auto loan calculators below to help you see the impacts.

When purchasing a just-released car, you never know what issues might crop up in the future. But, when you’re buying a model that’s been around for a few years, you’ll have a wealth of research and ratings available on your vehicle so you’ll know what to expect.