I did much the same for many years, never had a car payment, drove lovely Saabs and spent a fraction of what most people do to drive mundate boring cars. But it's not entirely free and like you say it works much better when you can do much of the mechancial work yourself. Access to a good mechanic and an active interest/knowledge of what's going on under the hood are also key. But I think the days of the "European Model" (well built cars that you can drive 200K plus when properly maintained) may be drawing to a close. Cars have gotten so ultra-complicated it's harder for owners to work on them and when of things start going wrong in can be very expensive to put right. Late model Saabs are one of the few cars I think it will still work well with, but I sure wouldn't want to try it with a any of the highline German brands (or VW's for that matter). Even the Japanese cars are very complex. My now departed, late model Subaru was every bit as complicated as an Audi, and after owning it and spending time on a Subaru web site, I found it pretty troublesome (and I wasn't alone) and expensive to maintain. Parts and nearly everything I did on it seemed to cost more than it did on my Saabs. Just changing the spark plugs was $400 at the dealer and was so difficult it wasn't something I wanted to try. My recent decision to lease a new car are based on some unique aspects of my life, but I still think there are cars where the "European Model" would work with (some are even American cars), but it's much more difficult and I think will continue to move in that direction.

posted by 68.40.170...

• The Nine Year Itch, No Snaab, Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:46:53
  • Re: The Nine Year Itch, Larry West , Wed, 14 Sep 2011 06:06:55
  • opposite view (and link to article?), James, Tue, 13 Sep 2011 23:29:33
    • The guy bought a 13 year old M3!??!?!, Mark from Toronto, Wed, 14 Sep 2011 08:00:47
      • Nothing wrong with that!, Noel, Sat, 17 Sep 2011 14:15:44
        • Absolutely right, No Snaab, Sun, 18 Sep 2011 07:14:07 <-- Viewing This Message
          • Agree with you (sadly!), Noel, Sun, 18 Sep 2011 12:54:29
            • ModuleMaster, Bill Homer , Sun, 18 Sep 2011 21:13:04
      • No, No Snaab, Wed, 14 Sep 2011 09:15:04
      • It is all a matter of ..., dmz789qqq, Wed, 14 Sep 2011 08:08:26
        • M3 parts are not cheap, Tim, Wed, 14 Sep 2011 08:27:51
          • it's a badge..., James, Wed, 14 Sep 2011 10:16:53
            • And a suspension package..., PGAero , Thu, 15 Sep 2011 03:23:12
              • Re: And a suspension package..., James, Thu, 15 Sep 2011 06:15:56
                • I think we agree..., PGAero , Thu, 15 Sep 2011 07:18:43
    • Agree..., PGAero , Wed, 14 Sep 2011 02:05:37
      • Article..., PGAero , Wed, 14 Sep 2011 02:08:01
        • yeah, I wasn't sure..., James, Wed, 14 Sep 2011 05:49:19
  • Forget this Ford, smt, Tue, 13 Sep 2011 21:04:38
  • The real question is...., nwas, Tue, 13 Sep 2011 17:42:37
    • Wise words!, Noel, Sun, 18 Sep 2011 13:09:10
  • I never finance a used car, Tim, Tue, 13 Sep 2011 17:13:16
  • Paying cash for a 3 to 4 year old SAAB is looking good, MI-Roger , Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:53:56

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