Gang - I'm casually shopping for a support vehicle for detailing. Having just gone down to Atlanta to detail out of...a Honda S2000...I need to do something different. I should point out straight away that I have a huge preference towards something that will tow another car behind it, on an open trailer. If I'm going to the expense of getting another vehicle, I'd like to be able to tow the S2000 to big autocross events with it. So, things like Scion xBs and Honda Elements are out. I'm looking for something that's got some visual pop to it. Something distinctive. And, since I hope to pay cash for the vehicle, I'm hoping to keep it under $8000. What I keep coming up with is a Land Rover Discovery Series II (2000 and newer). Their resale value is extremely poor, so finding a 70K mile example at, or under, my budget, is pretty easy (example vehicles here, here, and here). Any of you know anything about them? I get a lot of "don't buy a Land Rover, they break all the time" responses to this question. But when I ask for evidence, I never get any. It's all hearsay, and that doesn't really count. Additionally, the customer experience numbers from Edmunds, and the reliability indices from msn.com, actually look pretty encouraging. What say you all?
I have heard of the unreliability, but like you have i never seen any evidence of it. What about a Ford Explorer? I bet you could find one around your price range, my buddy got almost 200,000 out of his.
I personally think the Range Rover looks cool, not sure I would purchase a brand new one my self...an old/used one yes but never a brand new one, they depreciate extremely fast...but then again what vehicle doesn't depreciate, vehicles aren't good investments...not unless you go with the old classics :shrug: Just my :2cents:
Carlos, that's the idea - I'm after a used one. Their resale value is terrible, so I'm taking advantage of that. Around here (central NC), 2003 Discoveries with 70K miles on them trade for about $7. That's full size van money.
:nod: to be honest I don't think I'll ever again purchase a brand new vehicle again, I'd rather let someone else take the hit...as for a few scratches..ect..ect...I can make the vehicle look better then new so that doesn't bother me anymore. I've had my fair share of brand new vehicles and it's really not that big of a deal. As long as the vehicle has all your looking for, options, colour..ect..ect..your good to go..but that's just me. Good luck with your purchase, lots of vehicles up for sale and good sales too :thumb:
Smart thinking, Carlos. Usually most car makes lose 50% of their value in 3 years. I've seen in areas like San Francisco and Los Angeles, you can get a 2 year used under 30k miles luxury cars for half of what it costs brand new. There are too many luxury cars in those areas...so why buy brand new? Some people say, whoa, you are doing the right thing paying full MSRP, and I tell them f*** that! I'm not paying full MSRP. I'm thinking of new (couple years used) X5 next year...
