If you’re working a regular job, you need a reliable car in the US. New cars should be, and nowadays are, more reliable than used cars with unknown provenance.

If you’re working a regular job, you need a reliable car in the US. New cars should be, and nowadays are, more reliable than used cars with unknown provenance. Just donated a sedan I bought new 25 years ago that didn’t have a spot of rust and the motor was still great. Desert living… Just didn’t want to chase down exotic material failure modes at that point and wanted the enhanced safety features available on new cars to protect my old body. I don’t own a lift nor an air compressor. I’d feel like a damn fool if I got hurt working on my own old car. Fixing my broken old body would be much more expensive than having a professional with the proper tools repair my old car. Can pass that dealer-maintained car with a clean conscience to someone who has the tools and expertise. Nowadays, you can expect 20-30 years from a new vehicle, properly maintained. Especially in the desert. When you spread that buy-it-new premium over 25 years, it’s worth buying new just to know the exact provenance of the vehicle you’ll be driving over the next quarter century.