The cost of fuel is only one part of the equation. If you purchase a $30K car to save fuel, that same $30K will buy you 10K gallons of gasoline. Not to mention the higher insurance on the new car, higher taxes, and depreciation. I was thinking of buying a new car, probably an Accord, but now I'm seeing owners experiencing some gremlins in the electronic system. Displays on the dash light up, virtually making the car not drivable. They are also having problems with the turbo's, especially in the 2.0 liter engines. The more "goodies" you have in the car, the more likely there will be a problem. .

 

Jet sitter, everything you said is probably true, but goblue and I bought the 2018 Camry XLE hybrid to replace a 1992 Toyota Camry. (I think we really did need a new car. )

 

After 9,334 miles I've been averaging 28.4 miles per gallon in my 2017 Si. I've gotten as high as 36.5 mpg on the highway and as low as 26.03 in stop and go traffic. I generally sit in traffic for my 8.5 mile, 40 minute commute to and from work. If not for that I'm sure my average mpg would be in the 30s.

After 39,413 miles in my S2000 I've averaged 22.62 mpg.

 

We didn't expect the Camry hybrid to save enough on gasoline purchases to make up the extra cost ($3800) of buying the hybrid vs. the non-hybrid Camry, but we have enjoyed not having to stop so often to fill the gas tank. And, the new car purchase is giving us a more reliable car that is warranted for 5 years. All routine maintenance is free for the first two years (i.e. Toyota Care). And, the new car is also safer with a host of safety features like 10 air bags, blind spot monitoring, lane keep assist, dynamic radar controlled cruise control, front and rear cameras, heads-up display, etc. I haven't yet mentioned that we are doing our part in helping improve air quality because the car burns less gas and doesn't run when stopped at intersections.

In our neighborhood, the gas stations routinely charge quite a bit more for premium fuel ($2.87 per gallon for regular vs. $3.30 for premium), so filling up the S2000 isn't all that inexpensive.

 

Goblue... you really don't need to defend buying "the future". The Camry is just a couple generations from "whatever term best describes the future-future".

 

well guess I'm screwed....

 

Thanks for your vote of confidence, Dave.

We really did need to replace the 1992 Toyota that I was driving. It was no longer safe to be driving because it needed a lot of repairs (expensive) and it didn't seem worth putting so much money into such an old car.

Goblue had been wanting to replace it for a very long time, but I resisted, but after the last time when we had a few problems fixed and found out all the other things that needed to be fixed, I caved in.

Unlike most of the other people on this forum, I do not like getting a new car, learning how to drive a new car, etc.

Goblue has "taken over" the new Camry even though it was replacing "my" old Camry. It just makes more sense for him to be driving the Camry back and forth to work each day since it gets such good mileage, rather than me using it for my 2.5 round trip to the senior center each day for my exercise classes.

Even after getting the new Camry, I still drove my old Camry until just this week, but this week I finally drove the 2015 Genesis. (We got the new Camry the end of December 2017.)

As I said...I do not like learning to drive a new car. I still haven't driven the new Camry; I have finally just started driving our "new" Genesis, which we got in September 2015.

 

I'm with you, got my wife a new Impreza in Feb, I've only driven it once . I would rather drive my beater 03 Ranger around town.
Levi

 

1992!! I guess you don't like new cars! Amazing that the vehicle lasted that long! My daughter in law also does not like new/different cars. She loves her Nissan Sentra and is comfortable with it. She got rear ended last week and the car is going in for repairs next week. She will take my son's car (the new to them Corolla) and he will drive the rental.

 

Although our old Camry is a 1992, we did not get it until June 1999.

Before that, it belonged to my mother, and I took the car instead of some of the money in her estate.

It has served us very well. My mother took very good care of it, and it was in very good condition. My mother lived in California, so the car had not been exposed to snow, salt on the roads, etc.

I'll be sad to see it go, but we can't keep it forever.