There are plenty of incentives out there to buy a new vehicle these days. You don’t have to look far to find some business or federal government entity trying to convince you to throw away your old car and buy something new. Why not buy a “beater” instead? Beaters are beautiful and here’s why.
Beaters are cheap to buy!
Spend 15 minutes on your local Craigslist and you’re likely to come across more than a handful of running, drivable cars or trucks for $1000 or less. If the car appears as advertised, you can trade a small wad of cash for keys and a title, and then you can drive it home. If the car isn’t the cream puff it’s made out to be, you can haggle with the seller for a better price. There’s no guarantee you’ll get your way, but it can’t hurt to try. Not like this guy has to run back to talk to his manager.
Beaters are cheap to register!
Most states base vehicle registrations on the taxable value of the car. Here in Phoenix, Arizona, it’s not uncommon for people with brand new SUVs to be paying upwards of $500 a year for their tags! The older the vehicle, the less it’s worth in taxes to the state, the less you pay to renew your license plate. It’s that simple.
Beaters are cheap to insure!
It costs more to insure a new vehicle than it does an older one. Why? Because if someone runs a light and t-bones your new sedan, an insurance company is going to be coughing up a lot of money. On the other hand, your $1000 car is practically disposable to them! In fact, you might not even have full coverage on the car. Why would you?
Beaters don’t really depreciate. At all.
Once a car gets down to this price range, it’s likely to stay there unless something catastrophic happens to it. If it runs when you buy it and it’s still running when you go to sell it, you’re only going to be out the cost of ownership, which is inescapable regardless what vehicle you buy.
Beaters are an all around great value.
Assuming you do your homework and find a good one (perhaps some of my author friends will link back with their suggestions on “the good ones”), a $1000 vehicle allows you to save a great deal of money over even the customer who purchases a five year old model from the local lot. Even if you buy a $1000 car and have to put another $1000 into it, you still come out ahead compared to the person who bought from a dealership.
How much can a beater save you?
Consider the Volvo pictured above. I bought it for $1000 in March of 2008. It ran just fine. I drove it home from Tucson the night I bought it. Not so much as a hiccup. Registration ran me about $30 for a full year and my monthly insurance premium (liability only, one step up from state minimums) was also less than $30 a month. Aside from gas and a comprehensive tune up I performed myself (for peace of mind), this Volvo cost less than $400 to own and operate for a full year. How can you beat that?
When I came across the opportunity to pick up my second Galant VR4, I quickly listed the Volvo for sale back on Craigslist where I found it for $1000. I got four emails in four hours from people insisting that this was exactly the car they were looking for and could they come pick it up either that very night or the next morning. None of them took delivery, however, because my father-in-law was so impressed with the car that he offered to buy it for himself.
Now I’ve been retained as chief mechanic on “The Pantechnicon,” which has been utterly reliable aside from a corroded battery cable draining and killing the battery that came in the car when I bought it over a year ago. We’ve replaced the rusted, likely original muffler with a new OEM unit and that’s pretty much it. It’s got the smoothest shifting automatic transmission and the absolute comfiest driver seat I’ve ever known. I actually miss it!
Beaters aren’t perfect!
And this is something you need to bear in mind when you’re shopping for one! In the case of the Volvo above, the AC didn’t work (still doesn’t), the rear window wiper motor was broken, the seats were chewed up, an interior door panel was missing, two of the other three were re-done in a hideous fake blue leather, and there was no radio. It made for a hot and silent commute, but it was refreshing to know that my car cost almost nothing to own or operate.
Do your beater homework!
Is there a particular make or model out there that you think you might enjoy owning for next to nothing? Hit Google and find an enthusiast community built around those cars. These are where other owners share information how to troubleshoot and repair problems; they live with these cars every day and are the experts capable of answering all your questions. If you’re excited about this beater, they’ll be happy to help you save one from the crusher.
The $1000 car truly is a grand idea.
I hope you don’t subscribe to the idea that someone driving a beater is less of a person for doing so. Remember how they probably only spend $100 a month for gas and insurance (since the car is paid off) when you’re making out your car payment to the finance company. These days, debt is normal and, everywhere you look, there are people trying to encourage you to dig yourself deeper into debt. Be weird.
Buy an older car for a grand. Throw a couple hundred dollars into it if you have to. Save a ridiculous amount of money in the process. Remember why people still say that the car is a symbol of freedom. When you get tired of it or you decide you’d like something different, sell it for what you paid and try a different $1000 car. Go ahead. Give it a try. I dare you.
on Jul 16th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
In warm climates the $1,000. car makes sense, and there must be a good demand for these older vehicles.
In colder climates like Canada, and places where salt is used extensively in winter, older cars even with current metal treatment technologies still rust and corrode especially after a 12-15 year time frame. usually the brake lines and gas line is affected besides the body.
In addition there are areas that require Emission Tests, and older cars often no longer pass emission tests. In addition to Safety Inspections which can negatively impact older cars.
on Jul 16th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Well, my old Volvo did come with paperwork showing it was originally imported to southern California and I can definitely see the point about snow and salt. It's too bad you guys up north don't have as many options when it comes to the older cars like this. They really can be a joy.
on Jul 16th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
I bought a $900 car off a high school kid in 96 or so… put 400,000 miles on it over the next 8 years. In the same period, the high school kid went through 5 newer cars. Imagine how much money the finance company made as well as the garage, being those newer cars were in the shop and broke down much more frequently than the one I bought.
As far as northern climates go… yep, fuel lines, brake lines, and chassis failure do happen… but it doesnt matter whether its 3 yrs old, or 15. It all depends on the manufacturing process, owner care, repair etc. New or slightly used doesnt mean the factory got it right, or that when they blew it, the repair was a good one.
I've seen as much or more corrosion on late models than old, probably because bad builds end up in the junkyard well before 15 years pass. There is a major activity in rework at the factory, as well as the distribution chain… it can visually pass as new, but that doesnt mean that underneath the car didnt undergo significant damage either in production or transit, or that the processes were running correctly the day(s) it was built.
on Jul 16th, 2009 at 5:33 pm
You mention the manufacturing process, Ron, and that gets me wondering (if not necessarily on topic). As I was reading Tino's comment, I was curious if the age of a car in various climates could be used as evidence to support theories relating to the general quality of the vehicle.
For instance, is the resilience of an old Volvo wagon like mine up north reflect superior craftsmanship or simply that, as a car designed by Swedes, it was designed to weather this sort of climate? And would such an accomplishment render a 30 year old specimen here in the dry desert any less noteworthy? Conversely, if some other make were to generally rust-through up there in half as many years, might that imply poor engineering or just a lack of interest in longevity under those circumstances?
Just curious.
on Jul 17th, 2009 at 12:07 am
There is an aspect of process control. Certainly tight process control, including rework is going to result in better corrosion resistance… and if the controls are good in surface finishing, they likely are in other areas as well… but not always. Sometimes purchasing pushes for amazing deals, which result in corners being cut, ie manufacturing right at spec limits for specific parts or sub-assemblies, or non documented specs not being upheld.
I think there is an aspect of design for the climate of intended use, although all try to cover a wide range, some will emphasize one geographic areas more than others. Ie resistance to salt spray may be counter to UV, and or abrasion. SAE standards give quite a bit of lattitude, but internal standards documents are often much tighter in one area more than another… or if under budgetary pressure, less so.
Usually, its not great, nor poor engineering, but the tradeoffs chosen… but not always. In some cases, a engineer will go on vacation midway through a design, and another guy comes in, and doesnt fully understand or even know whats in the vacationing engineers head. Significant massive screwups start out that that way, design docs dont tell the whole story… Its the same with process operators. The old guy who has been there done that forever, often does a much better job than the guy reading the process sheets. If nothing goes wrong, end quality is the same… if something throws up, the old codger will often save the day.
My experience is a bit dated though, and things do change. Otoh, hearing mechanic friends fuss and some other engineering friends, suggest its still business as usual.
on Jul 25th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
this is right on… but stradablog has a good point. we out here in California have it so good in that regard.
on Jul 31st, 2009 at 8:34 am
Frugal motoring. Love this, makes me want to fix some of the dents on my own car.
on Jul 31st, 2009 at 3:34 pm
Frugal motoring. Love this, makes me want to fix some of the dents on my own car.