Hello forum members!
First of, I want to thank everyone who contributes to the forum. I have already gotten so much help from all of you! Really appreciate all the time you put into it.
I am not an experienced car owner/driver, got my license in November 2022. Slightly before that, got a 2022 Rav4 (my wife was driving it for the first several months). Had an accident this past December, the car was deemed a total loss by my insurance company. Going with the used option this time around, and leaning more towards a car than truck/SUV.
My budget is up to $15k. I am planning to keep the car for 2-3 years, accumulate some money, then sell it and either get something newer (and keep it longer), or have enough for down payment on a new so that the monthly payments are not too high. So trying to choose a 8-12 year old car that will not depreciate too much while I am keeping it, and not become a money drain.
The car will be shared by wife and me. We drive around 18-20k per year, 2/3 highway, 1/3 city. The driving experience is not really a factor, I feel like anything would be more exciting or as boring as Rav4, which we lived with just fine. Realiability is a big factor for me, as I do not know much about cars and can't really do anything on it myself. I do have a realiable mechanic that's been recommended to me.
As of now, these are the options I found (can't post links yet, so please ask if any necessary info is missing).
1. 2012 Honda Civic, 140k on the odo, $11500
The car is sold by the second owner, she's kept it in immaculate condition inside and out, has all the service records, car drives great. Reason for selling - she's buying a 2021 Civic.
2. 2015 Lexus ES350, 230k on the odo, $15000
Also second owner, also has all the service records, pretty good condition as far as I can tell (very little superficial rust on the underbody), drives great. Reason for selling - owner can't keep 3 cars, he has a Rav4 as well and that one's more practical for him.
I am taking the Civic for inspection on Thursday, will also try to get Lexus inspected the following week.
Tomorrow I am also looking at:
2015 Civic with 70k on the odo, asking price $14000
2013 Accord with 147k on it, for $12300
Can't say anything about the rust on those yet, or how they drive, but the pictures look pretty good.
Out of these four options, what do you guys think would be best for reliability and depreciation in 2-3 years? Provided of course nothing pops up at the inspections.
I really like the Lexus. However, I am worried about possible service costs. If it starts breaking down, I will not be able to just throw money at it and fix things. The only reason I am considering it is because it's supposed to be very reliable, based on the information I could find.
Any advice is greatly appreciated!