Did you buy a new or used car anytime after 2022?
Let's look at the inflated costs of buying new versus maintaining the car you already own.
Interest rates started rising that year and the average rate on a car loan has been 6.8% on a new vehicle and 10.26% on a used one. The average cost of the vehicles for that same period has been $50,000 new and $28,000 used meaning the total cost of the loan is roughly $61,031 with a monthly payment of $848 for 72 months on the new vehicle and $37,613 with monthly being $522 for the used for 72 months.
If you did not buy during that time CONGRATULATIONS but there's more:
Had you bought new car or truck during that time, here is just a glimpse of the major recalls you would be dealing with.
* GM (Chevy/Cadillac/GMC): A recall of nearly 600,000 trucks and SUVs (2021-2024 models) due to potential 6.2L V8 engine failure from manufacturing defects.
* Ford: Recalls on 2022-2023 Bronco Sport and Escape models due to a cracked fuel injector that could leak and cause an engine fire, and a 2021-2024 recall on various models for a loss of drive power from a low battery.
* Stellantis (Chrysler/Ram): A recall affecting over 211,000 Ram 2500/3500 and Dodge Durango vehicles from 2022 for a software malfunction in the anti-lock braking control module that could disable stability control.
It is a time like never before to keep that old car running in tip top shape. The savings by doing that are WAY more than you can imagine. This is the where Chuck's Garage shines!!
On top of all this you would still need to factor in the rising cost of full coverage insurance which could easily add hundreds more per month.
