Buying A Used Car? Is Age or Mileage More Important?
When buying a used car, there seems to be two ways consumers gauge the worth, the number of miles and the vehicle’s age. Both of these factors also affect pricing.
For example, a car that’s eight years will carry a lower price tag than one that’s two years old. And a car with 100,000 miles is usually less costly than one with only 20,000 miles.
But what if the vehicle is two years old and has 100,000 miles on it? Or, a vehicle is 7 years old and only has 15,000 miles on it?
Which should cause you more consideration before buying? Here at Joe Bowman Auto Plaza, we sell lots of used cars, trucks, and SUV’s. We’ve been doing it for 60+ years.
Here’s our take on it.
Mileage
A car’s odometer tells the story of much life it has lived. So mileage should be a big consideration before purchasing. A car with 60,000 miles is more valuable than one that has 160,000 miles.
You also have to consider the parts on the vehicle, engine parts, suspension components, and so on. These parts don’t have an infinite life span; it’s important to take that in consideration.
You want to be careful, but you also want the full story. A car that has all city miles will have way more wear and tear than one that has all highway miles. That’s because stop and go traffic is a lot harder on a vehicle than smooth sailing highway miles.
However, there is a caveat. Joe Bowman Chevy sells both low mileage and high mileage vehicles, and our customers are very happy with both. Why is that?
There is a hidden factor that you should always consider when buying a used car. That is, a car may have higher mileage, but the owner took meticulous care of the vehicle. They took care of every problem or issue that came up and performed maintenance according to the manufacturer’s schedule.
A vehicle that has received that kind of care is likely to last longer than one owned by someone who doesn’t regularly perform maintenance or address issues as they arose.
That’s why you should have the whole picture before deciding to buy. If the better maintained car has higher mileage, it’s a better buy than one that hasn’t received good care.
Age
Age is an important consideration. Sometimes it’s even more of a consideration than mileage. Here’s why.
A car that’s 15 years old and has 30,000 miles on it may sound appealing but consider this. The owner didn’t drive it much, so did they do much maintenance on it? How about repairing items that broke?
Older cars with low gas mileage have rubber parts that don’t age well if the vehicle isn’t run regularly. A car that’s 7 years old might be more of a concern than one that’s a decade old but has received regular maintenance.
Our View
Age and mileage aren’t the issue so much as how the vehicle has been maintained. It just depends on the kind of car it is, the type of owner, and how much maintenance the vehicle received.
With every used car we sell here at Joe Bowman, we have either a 30-day or 90-day warranty, depending on mileage and age.
Buying a used car is stress-free with our Harrisonburg car dealership. That’s because we are a Carfax dealership; the large majority of our used vehicles come with a Carfax used car history report.
When you’re ready, we can help you find the car you want!
Stop by our Harrisonburg dealership or learn more about us online at our website.
For example, a car that’s eight years will carry a lower price tag than one that’s two years old. And a car with 100,000 miles is usually less costly than one with only 20,000 miles.
But what if the vehicle is two years old and has 100,000 miles on it? Or, a vehicle is 7 years old and only has 15,000 miles on it?
Which should cause you more consideration before buying? Here at Joe Bowman Auto Plaza, we sell lots of used cars, trucks, and SUV’s. We’ve been doing it for 60+ years.
Here’s our take on it.
Mileage
A car’s odometer tells the story of much life it has lived. So mileage should be a big consideration before purchasing. A car with 60,000 miles is more valuable than one that has 160,000 miles.
You also have to consider the parts on the vehicle, engine parts, suspension components, and so on. These parts don’t have an infinite life span; it’s important to take that in consideration.
You want to be careful, but you also want the full story. A car that has all city miles will have way more wear and tear than one that has all highway miles. That’s because stop and go traffic is a lot harder on a vehicle than smooth sailing highway miles.
However, there is a caveat. Joe Bowman Chevy sells both low mileage and high mileage vehicles, and our customers are very happy with both. Why is that?
There is a hidden factor that you should always consider when buying a used car. That is, a car may have higher mileage, but the owner took meticulous care of the vehicle. They took care of every problem or issue that came up and performed maintenance according to the manufacturer’s schedule.
A vehicle that has received that kind of care is likely to last longer than one owned by someone who doesn’t regularly perform maintenance or address issues as they arose.
That’s why you should have the whole picture before deciding to buy. If the better maintained car has higher mileage, it’s a better buy than one that hasn’t received good care.
Age
Age is an important consideration. Sometimes it’s even more of a consideration than mileage. Here’s why.
A car that’s 15 years old and has 30,000 miles on it may sound appealing but consider this. The owner didn’t drive it much, so did they do much maintenance on it? How about repairing items that broke?
Older cars with low gas mileage have rubber parts that don’t age well if the vehicle isn’t run regularly. A car that’s 7 years old might be more of a concern than one that’s a decade old but has received regular maintenance.
Our View
Age and mileage aren’t the issue so much as how the vehicle has been maintained. It just depends on the kind of car it is, the type of owner, and how much maintenance the vehicle received.
With every used car we sell here at Joe Bowman, we have either a 30-day or 90-day warranty, depending on mileage and age.
Buying a used car is stress-free with our Harrisonburg car dealership. That’s because we are a Carfax dealership; the large majority of our used vehicles come with a Carfax used car history report.
When you’re ready, we can help you find the car you want!
Stop by our Harrisonburg dealership or learn more about us online at our website.
