[karan85]

Amazing thread. Thanks for kicking it off. I actually had a little different situation when I was buying a car 3.5 years back. I had the budget for a 16 lakh rupee car but got fixated on a 22 lakh rupee Jetta highline diesel with the idea of keeping it long term.

With a financial check and a little nudge from my wife I ended up dropping the idea of spending 22 on a car which we could have afforded hindsight with a little high EMI. Next we started evaluating the Vento highline but I ended up buying the Polo GT Tsi - saving me a dent through EMIs.

But now, things have changed. We have an addition in the family and the Polo which was more than adequate for 2 is a compromise on space for me, my wife and my daughter given we have to carry a stroller a few bags and car seat for most of the journeys we make.

My plan - Keep the Polo and replace our i20 (which is used only for short drives and is 8+ years old) with a larger car with 30 lakh budget early 2020. The Polo will become our short distance/city car when we need space for 2 and the new car will be for trips when we have to carry all the baby stuff with us.

[aniyo]

I am a victim of this. I wanted to buy the Ecosport in 2015 but ended up buying a Brio then (pre-worsipped the only good thing). After almost 4 years, I bought a Nexon. Had I bought the Ecosport then I would not be changing my car for another 2-3 years.
In this case there was no meaningful upgrade in the segment above (Creta: expensive, Duster Terrano not sure of future, seltos could have been a decent buy)

If ever I will buy another car it will be a 7 seater. Nexon will be staying with me for atleast 6-7 years.

[Mortis]

Also keep in mind that if you for example buy a 10lakh Dzire today while wanting a 15 lakh City, when you go to buy that City 4-5 years down the line it will most likely cost 18-19lakhs !! Also it might be worse than the previous model that you fell in love with.

[lamborghini]

Can't agree more, especially if you have resale disasters / workhorses in the stable.
As a principle, when we buy a car from the higher segment, we try and avoid the lure of discounts and try to get the newest model, in top most variant because over time it is just that much more competent.

Even when there is a generation change - more often than not buying the newer car just makes you hold on to it for much longer to easily recover your money back - unless the plan is to switch it up every 3-5 years.

Case in point - the A6 when we picked it up was a CBU (higher taxes), and had nil discounts. Even after 8 years it still feels contemporary thanks to the extensive feature list & more modern interiors.
If we had an older gen A6, I am sure we would have sold it a couple of years ago because it feels so much more dated!
Of course, this theory doesn't necessarily hold true when you are getting a segment upgrade at a steal - like the 7 series which was discounted heavily before the new gen / LCI came in but that still just goes to prove the point of this thread.

[Storm2.0]

What you said makes complete sense GTO. My dad made a mistake by buying gxi IDSi variant of Honda City Zx instead of VTEC because VTEC was around or close to 10 lakh (this million rupee figure did have some psychological impact I guess) back then and gxi was 8.5 l otr back in 2008 Bangalore.
But gxi model feels terribly outdated and unsafe now because in 2008 the Vtec + (10th anniversary models) came with dual airbags, abs+ebd , all round disc brakes and the much superior 100bhp Vtec engine (compare to IDSI of gxi which produced only 77bhp and lacked all the features mentioned above).
I think one should try buying a car of a variant having relevant feature list and better engine gearbox combo instead of buying a barebone entry level variant.

[fz_rider]

Excellent thread.
Unless there is stellar resale value, or the car has turned out to be really buggy, there is hardly any point in selling a car at 5-6 years of age point.
I know someone who jumped from a 5-6 year old indigo to straight C-class, instead of a executive sedan, and he has held on to it.
One more point is, the vehicles are getting expensive, day by day. A Dzire costs as much City did at one time. So if you have a car in mind, better have it now, than regret later.

[Santoshbhat]

Lovely write up GTO. Thoroughly enjoyed reading it . Some great points in there which I could relate to.

Another advantage of holding on to your car for a long time is that you need not worry about resale value and let it affect your purchase decision. You can go out and buy the car you love and use it to your full satisfaction over a long period which will cover most of it's useful life. After all those years, the difference in resale value between a fast moving car and a slow seller is really quite insignificant. Besides, a well maintained first owner car moves quickly in the second hand market.

[ani_meher]

Suppose one is buying in cash. If you have a budget of 15 lakhs, and yet buy a car of 10 lakhs and invest remaining 5 lakhs (or if on EMIs, invest EMIs of that 5L each month), then a good investment will double your money in 5-7 years easily. Which means at the end of 5-10 years, you have an EMI free car, as well as 10 lakhs to purchase another one!

While buying the best one can afford is perceived to be better, I believe in 'diminishing utility curve', that is after certain point, the additional benefit of the expense will decrease dramatically. The difference between a 5 lakh and 10 lakh rupee car is far more than cars costing 15 lakh and 20 lakh rupees.

So just because you can afford, don't splurge it all, because the saved amount can become far bigger to allow better cars in future too.

[ghostrider]

Originally Posted by GTO

[i]
Ever wondered how & why I keep my cars for so long? It’s simple = I buy the better car, even if it’s more expensive at the start, but retain it for 9 – 10 years (it's very EASY to hold onto a top-class car for longer). Yes, this might work out costlier initially, yet it's cheaper in the longer run.

Thread summary: Buy a 'great' car and use it for 8 – 10 years instead of buying 'good' cars & replacing them every 5 years.

Can completely corroborate everything you've said based on my own ownership experiences. I've just upgraded Cruze that I bought in early 2012 - after eight years. I can gah-ron-TEE that if I'd bought a Honda City, I'd have swapped it out in half the time. Eight years later, the Cruze still looks fresh (albeit with the right alloy upgrade), is comfortable, fast, and has a bunch of toys and gizmos that you wouldn't find in more expensive cars eight years later.

Every time I dispense car advice, I ALWAYS tell people to buy something a little nicer than what they've budgeted for, because it'll save them money in the long term AND they'll enjoy themselves more.

[speedmiester]

Very relevant thread.
This is one of the reason, I always spend top money for the top end variants, it feels good and definitely will retain it's charm over the years.
Only reason I will change my current set of cars is if my requirement for space changes and definitely it will be an EV. I have already bought my last IC engine cars.

Also have advised my friend on similar lines when he wanted to buy his first car in 2009. He wanted Vista, I suggested him to go for Punto back then. He kept the car till end 2018 before exchanging it for Nexon. And yes, he was looking at Tigor before I suggested him to get Nexon. Again, I pushed him to go for XZA variant over XM as I know he keeps his car for longer tenure.

[BoneCollector]

We've generally stuck with our cars for around 7-8 years. Our range had always been with budget hatchbacks till we went ahead with the Brezza. The least time for which we had a car was the second Santro which was with us for just 1 year. Current rides are Wagon R which is nearing 8 years, and Brezza at 3 and half. Sister-in-law has a 7 and half year old City which is running fine. Brother has a S-Cross bought last September after the Ritz was sold off being with us for nearly 8 and half years. We also prefer to go in for the top variants.

But there is another point that I would like to make here. There are times when budget is not a constraint but the city is. My place, Wagon R is used exclusively for city runs now and Brezza is exclusive highway man barring a few occasions. So when we plan to change our Wagon R, we will be looking at a hatchback with a genuinely small footprint. Buying a Swift or Baleno or i20 or Jazz with more width is going to give us more of headache than peace of mind. Leoshashi can vouch for the traffic here. Suppose I've to replace my Wagon R, I'll prefer a car with near similar footprint or lesser than that. And Brezza replacement will be after atleast 4-5 years with a similar or larger vehicle, again for highway runs only.

[Rajeevraj]

Great thread GTO. Although I had not thought in the terms you have put down, I realize I had done exactly the same. In my initial days, bought only pre-owned cars to get a better car at lower rates. But was guilty of changing frequently. When I planned for my first new car back in 2013, I booked the Polo GT TSI (coming from a sedan-SX4). In my heart, I knew that I would need a sedan and a cramped hatch would not cut it. Fortunately I took the decision to stretch beyond what I could and picked up the Vento TSI over the Polo TSI. Was a little bit of a compromise from drivability- but from an overall package, for me it was definitely a much better choice.

For my standards, it is a great car, and every time I see it gobble up luggage, I am thankful I took that decision.

End result, 6 years now and no itch to upgrade at all.

[V.Narayan]

Cars and homes are two assets where I have always, but always bought the highest standard practically attainable with my economic resources at that stage. In the material world they define who you are to some extent and for your business or career or even just self confidence it is valuable to never feel apologetic about the locality you live in or the car you drive.

One more point to the arguments GTO has presented is that the capital cost per kms that keeps dropping the more you drive and the longer you keep.I have typically kept cars for 8 to 10 years. The current lot too will continue for that tenure.

And one more thing - talk to your car, pat & stroke it, tell it how happy you are with its service. All sailors and most pilots believe their ships and aircrafts, respectively, have feelings and respond to good care. Same with our cars. I talk to my cars, my wife talks to her plants.

[vikramvicky1984]

Great thread.
I am owning the following for long:
1. 2008 i10 51k run- its in its 12th year. Using sparingly but pretty handy for driving within city. No problems with the car- requires one service 7-10k per annum including TLC. If I sell it, will get 1.5 lakhs, a replacement will cost me another 5 lakhs with little value add plus higher insurance+ depreciation costs. I added 14" alloys and Pirellis some years back to give a makeover. Plus I dont mind if friends and family borrow it or if I get some scratches. Has great memories- lived in Bangalore (2 years), Mumbai (4 years), Delhi (1 year), Jaipur (1 year) and now jamshedpur (4 years). What I miss is airbags & ABS- era model

2. 2011 Innova 72k run- great car if one can ignore gizmos. Boring but very dependable- added Racedynamics box in its five year to add some fun. The Crysta has more jazz but this feels more comfortable and simple. Will add a new audio system when I feel the itch to change. 8 seats feel great when you go for outings (All friends/family together)- though I drove it alone 80% of the time. Wish it had a better engine and maybe AT. Its a V model (top one at that time)

If one maintains the car well, they definitely pay back in the long run. Try buying the highest version too- especially with safety features which cannot be retrofitted later. Regret it in i10.

I earlier had a spelndor and victor for 15+ years each which were sold against my wish.

I sold my w124 & karizma R within 2 years which I deeply regret

[KarthikK]

Lovely thread and nice points to support the advice given. Just to add to all the aspects being pointed out about new car purchases, there are some folks who will simply be unable to drive the same car for so long (8-10 years) and feel the itch to upgrade even if the current car serves their needs.

This is where pre-worshipped cars come in and allow the flexibility of changing cars / upgrading often without getting huge depreciation hits everytime you change (the first owner already took that burden for you ). So for all those frequent changers or those who don't believe you can hold out that long, hit the pre-owned market for some more juicy choices (read as choices from a few segments above) and you won't feel guilty the next time a car change itch comes up What's more - nowadays the used car loan interest rates are pretty competitive too!