New Car Buying

[BrianL]

My Hyundai 2016 Tuscon has the CVT and while it did have some issues initially, it was corrected with a software update and it has run flawlessly since. In fact, it's a heck of a fun car to drive because of the CVT ...it's strange because it feels somewhat like driving a stick, which I love. So, here I am 7-years and 120,000 miles later with near-flawless performance. But she's going to get a little break in the summer/fall because there's a new sheriff in town as of Saturday....

Good to know. I am liking the Subaru. I originally wanted a new Prius, but they just weren't around and Toyota just doesn't want to play ball, even with the Corolla Hatchback. They can't get cars and they're just like, "Oh well, we have what we have." They also want to jack up the prices. The Subaru guys want to sell me a car - and I think they have with this new Impreza.

It's going to be like that except with a roof rack.

 

[kymom99]

Good to know. I am likeing the Subaru. I originally wanted a new Prius, but they just weren't around and Toyota just doesn't want to play ball, even with the Corolla Hatchback. They can't get cars and they're just like, "Oh well, we have what we have." They also want to jack up the prices. The Subaru guys want to sell me a car - and I think they have with this new Impreza.

It's going to be like that except with a roof rack.

My nephew had an Impreza and kept it for at least 10 years.

I have had 2 cars with cvt, and now my husband has one. Two of them are Nissans, and we have had no trouble, despite tvguy telling me several years ago to get ready for it. Cvts are everywhere. The 2012 Nissan Altima is now our beater car. It has I guess about 150k on it and runs fine other than the ac not working. The 2018 Honda accord has a cvt. I love how it drives. It is a base model but that little bit of turbo gives it a great kick. My son drives that car. My car is a 2018 Camry with a regular transmission. It runs great but i hate how it shifts. It has 8 speeds and sometimes seems to not be able to decide which one it wants to use. My husband has a 2020 Nissan rogue with a cvt. After a disaster with a used ford explorer (2 transmission rebuilds and oil leaking), he has had no problems so far. He just wishes it had more horsepower. My step daughter has a Nissan murano cvt bought used. She had some weird transmission behavior that was corrected with a software update. Not sure of the year but she has 60k miles on it.

So don’t be afraid of the cvt transmissions. Just have them serviced according to manufacturer instructions

 

[BrianL]

My nephew had an Impreza and kept it for at least 10 years.

I have had 2 cars with cvt, and now my husband has one. Two of them are Nissans, and we have had no trouble, despite tvguy telling me several years ago to get ready for it. Cvts are everywhere. The 2012 Nissan Altima is now our beater car. It has I guess about 150k on it and runs fine other than the ac not working. The 2018 Honda accord has a cvt. I love how it drives. It is a base model but that little bit of turbo gives it a great kick. My son drives that car. My car is a 2018 Camry with a regular transmission. It runs great but i hate how it shifts. It has 8 speeds and sometimes seems to not be able to decide which one it wants to use. My husband has a 2020 Nissan rogue with a cvt. After a disaster with a used ford explorer (2 transmission rebuilds and oil leaking), he has had no problems so far. He just wishes it had more horsepower. My step daughter has a Nissan murano cvt bought used. She had some weird transmission behavior that was corrected with a software update. Not sure of the year but she has 60k miles on it.

So don’t be afraid of the cvt transmissions. Just have them serviced according to manufacturer instructions

Yeah, I hear good things about the Subarus. This was not the car I was expected when I started the journey, but it seems to be winning. I like the way the Corolla looks better, but the Impreza has all-wheel drive and just seems better in all the ways that matter. Also, I can actually get one from a dealership that wants to play ball. I thought about going used, but a used, low-mileage Corolla Hatchback would only save me a few thousand dollars over a 2024 Impreza! May as well jsut go for it!

 

[kymom99]

Yeah, I hear good things about the Subarus. This was not the car I was expected when I started the journey, but it seems to be winning. I like the way the Corolla looks better, but the Impreza has all-wheel drive and just seems better in all the ways that matter. Also, I can actually get one from a dealership that want's to play ball. I though about going used, but a used, low-mileage Corolla Hatchback would only save me a few thousand dollars over a 2024 Impreza! May as well jsut go for it!

Yes I think right now there isn’t as much advantage for choosing used. All the cars we gave now were purchased slightly used. The prices for those models now are ridiculous. Good luck with your new car! It’s always fun to have a new vehicle!

 

[DLgal]

My husband's 2017 Civic Sport Hatchback has the CVT and it just passed 100k miles and has had absolutely no issues at all.

 

[BrianL]

My husband's 2017 Civic Sport Hatchback has the CVT and it just passed 100k miles and has had absolutely no issues at all.

Good to know. I knod of figured that since they are being implemented in so many models that it's probably fine, but I know there are some "car people" who are a little hyper-critical.

 

[tvguy]

CVTs are somethign I am just learning about since all the cars I have been shopping have them. I was concerned based on some reviews, but I think they have gotten better. It seems that all the midsize/compacts have them anyway, so I don't have much of an option. If I go with this Subaru it will have one - but I really think I'm going to do it. Of course, if I buy a Subaru I have to get a pair of Tevas and start drinking homemade wheatgrass smoothies....

Well, there are CVTs......and there are eCVTs. And those function differently. Hybrids and electric cars have eCVTs and those seem to be almost bullet proof.

 

[tvguy]

This was about 10-12 years ago.

The Nissan dealer here still is so overwhelmed with CVT warranty repairs that they are subletting the repairs to a local transmission shop. Probably a bigger problem now than it was 10 years ago.
https://lemonlawexperts.com/are-nissan-cvt-transmissions-reliable-consumers-say-otherwise/

 

[Dan Murphy]

Well, there are CVTs......and there are eCVTs. And those function differently. Hybrids and electric cars have eCVTs and those seem to be almost bullet proof.

We're looking at getting a 2023 Honda Accord hybrid for Marie later this year. The reviews online have all said how great the eCVT on the Accord is, no issues or negatives.

 

[tvguy]

We're looking at getting a 2023 Honda Accord hybrid for Marie later this year. The reviews online have all said how great the eCVT on the Accord is, no issues or negatives.

Yes, like I posted there is a huge difference between an eCVT and just a CVT

 

[BrianL]

Yes, like I posted there is a huge difference between an eCVT and just a CVT

I don't know the difference - the Subaru has the "Lineartronic CVT with incline start assist and 8-speed manual mode."

 

[5kidsmommy]

I bought last year before the interest rates starting skyrocketing. I didn't have a trade, gave my old car to my son. I did have to wait about a month for the car I wanted, VW Tiguan, and the price was marked up about $1,000 over MSRP. I still managed to get an interest rate under 3%. I am glad I bought when I did. My oldest son is looking to change cars and the prices are still crazy plus interest rates are so high. If she can wait, I'd say wait.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I thought I'd chime in with a car buying experience from this past weekend. My mom had an accident a couple weeks ago and her car was totaled, so she wanted me to take her car shopping. She thought she wanted to get a new or gently used Camry. Since we had recently bought a new Honda, I contacted the salesman we bought from to inquire what Accords they had in stock. They had several used ones available and some new ones on their way. The Honda dealership and Toyota dealership are only about a block a part, so we headed to Honda first. When we got there, Mom decided she might also want to look at CR-Vs. The salesman asked if she wanted to consider an HR-V. They had one that had been pre-ordered for a customer, but when it came in that week, the customer decided it was too small and didn't want it. We test drove the HR-V and a 2023 Accord. Mom liked the HR-V, but wanted to still go to Toyota.

The Honda salesman gave us what the "all in" price would be and I asked for an $800 price reduction as our possible negotiation. He went and got the manager, who came and offered another $900 off if we would buy it right then and not go to Toyota. Mom agreed. We thought it was a pretty good deal since there really isn't much negotiation going on these days - we got $1700 off the original price.

She's had the new car a couple days now and loves it. She likes that it sits up a little higher than a sedan, but isn't big like a traditional SUV.

The Honda dealership is going to send me a $150 referral check since we just bought our new car from them in March and then she bought hers there too

 

[tvguy]

I don't know the difference - the Subaru has the "Lineartronic CVT with incline start assist and 8-speed manual mode."

eCVTs are only installed in Hybrid and electric cars. An eCVT uses electric motors to drive the car
http://www.winnipegsynthetics.ca/articles/cvt-and-ecvt.html

 

[BrianL]

eCVTs are only installed in Hybrid and electric cars. An eCVT uses electric motors to drive the car
http://www.winnipegsynthetics.ca/articles/cvt-and-ecvt.html

Ah, I see. Still, it looks like a CVT is pretty ubiquitous in the models I am looking at. I am pretty much going with this Subaru at this point. They are bringing it in for me.

 

[hertamaniac]

I purchased a new Acura last month and got a pretty good deal using incentives and hard-line negotiating. It has a CVT, which is my first, and does just fine. If I want to "bypass" the CVT drone shifting, I can use the paddle shifters, but don't really see a need to.

So far, I am averaging ~36.4 MPG in non-highway use and with the start/stop mode enabled.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

I'm posting for my sister. She's thinking about buying a new car, a Toyota Rav4. She's been to 3 dealerships. The first dealership marked the car up $9k. MSRP was $32K and they wanted $41k. Would not talk trade, gave her a Carmax number to call and Carmax wasn't interested. She went to 2 more dealerships today and they would not negotiate price. 2023 Rav4's are all in transit. My sister has a 17 year old Honda CRV. It's in good condition with decent mileage. She's not hard on a car, takes care of it and works from home. The one dealership today she specifically went to because their website said "top dollar for your car, even if you don't buy from us." Donating her car is an option for her if it came to that. And she can pay cash for a new car. She doesn't tell the salesperson that though. I know experiences vary from state to state, but wondering if anyone has purchased a new car lately and does this seem to be the norm right now with car buying. My sister doesn't need a new car right away. She's thinking of waiting till Fall and maybe she can get a 2023 leftover or maybe the market will change by then and get a 2024?

Well unlike $100,000 pick up trucks, CRVs and Rav 4s are not piling up on lots. The former are still carrying insane mark ups despite not selling. The latter two, are selling. Of the two, I prefer the CRV unless you just have to have the plug in hybrid. CRV doesn't yet have one. But their standard hybrid is very nice. That said, I only buy used at least two years old, preferably 3-4. Let someone else pay the depreciation. CRVs here are going for list. If you want the top of the line hybrid, you'll have a wait. Same pretty much for Rav4s. There's no mark up but some of em have those expensive dealer packages on em.

 

[tony67]

Your sister's experience with car dealerships sounds frustrating. It's disappointing when they mark up prices so steeply and refuse to negotiate.

One of the most ridiculous things that was going on recently was charging 1500 fee if you did not have a trade in. Then they would only give you pennies on the dollar for the trade in. "Well its more like you are getting 2000 for the trade in because you don't have to pay that fee."

Even worse - this was Subaru (a Subaru Dealer) and they really don't negotiate prices at all... for the most price the price is the price.
I went elsewhere, but still only got 500 for the trade in - which they turned around and sold for a lot more - I think it was listed at 7000 when I looked it up on car max. I assume they sold it at auction and whoever got it did nothing to it and put it on the lot. Was still a better deal overall than the first place.

I feel bad for the person that bought my trade in. It was a 2006 Ranger and looked perfect, but had lots of issues that needed to be addressed. I wish I had just sunk the 2k into that I needed to. Cant find anything like it there days.
All pickups are 4 door now, something to do with the EPA I guess. They are also much bigger overall, even the new Ranger. Ans as someone else said - they are way too expensive, and used ones that have problems are easily 10k, if you can find one.

I miss the days of beat up pickup trucks for $500 you could run into the ground.

 

[BrianL]

One of the most ridiculous things that was going on recently was charging 1500 fee if you did not have a trade in. Then they would only give you pennies on the dollar for the trade in. "Well its more like you are getting 2000 for the trade in because you don't have to pay that fee."

Even worse - this was Subaru and they really don't negotiate prices at all... for the most price the price is the price.
I went elsewhere, but still only got 500 for the trade in - which they turned around and sold for a lot more - I think it was listed at 7000 when I looked it up on car max. I assume they sold it at auction and whoever got it did nothing to it and put it on the lot. Was still a better deal overall than the first place.

I feel bad for the person that bought my trade in. It was a 2006 Ranger and looked perfect, but had lots of issues that needed to be addressed. I wish I had just sunk the 2k into that I needed to. Cant find anything like it there days.
All pickups are 4 door now, something to do with the EPA I guess. They are also much bigger overall, even the new Ranger. Ans as someone else said - they are way too expensive, and used ones that have problems are easily 10k, if you can find one.

I miss the days of beat up pickup trucks for $500 you could run into the ground.

That's interesting. My Subaru dealership did not charge me for not having a trade-in. They did not really negotiate on the price either, but did not jack it up. It was fair.

 

[tony67]

That's interesting. My Subaru dealership did not charge me for not having a trade-in. They did not really negotiate on the price either, but did not jack it up. It was fair.

Yeah - it was the dealer - not Subaru - so I went to a different dealer.

I think that's why it was a fee and not part of the price I think.

They also didn't want to give me Guaranteed Trade Value in on another Subaru I was thinking about trading in.

Probably should have reached out to Subaru.