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Comment by xwdv | Hacker News Reader

$30k Cars are not for people earning minimum wage. Take a bus or buy something sub $5k. Minimum wage uses the minimum viable transportation.

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I've heard too many horror stories of how many repairs are needed for < 5K cars. When I was shopping for a car in 2021 I was comparing a ~100K mile Kia Rio Hatchback (no power windows, scraped up, pretty rough shape) for ~12K + tax (~13.5-14K total), or a brand new one of the same model (ended up paying 20K out the door). This was at the same dealership.

I got the new one, could probably sell it for almost the same price as I bought it for 1.5 years and 25K miles later (though to be fair, I got a pretty good deal on it).

Due to depreciation curve being out of whack right now (and labor being expensive), a new car can actually cost you less than a 5k clunker - not to mention loss of income if it breaks down.

>or buy something sub $5k.

And spend shitton on regular repairs :)

Cars are very efficient when it comes to keeping the poor - poor.

It depends on what you buy. My 1996 Toyota is at 125k and I drive it super hard. I've charged the AC once and replaced the fuel pump twice.

My son daily drives a 1963 Dart. My friend drives a 2018 Kia. My friend spent $700 on a replacement door control panel. My son spent $30 on a replacement head (swapped in 3 hours).

Your 1996 has remarkably low miles on it. Apparently the average miles a year is ~13,500[1], so you should be ~364,5000.

[1] https://www.caranddriver.com/auto-loans/a32880477/average-mi...

I'm surprised that the dart has never been redone in that time.

I bought the Toyota with 40k about 7 years ago. It had been parked in a garage for 10 years. A client of mine was an attorney and no one in the estate wanted the car.

My son bought the Dart off FB marketplace, pulled it out of the weeds and put it back on the road. He drove it for a year before finally welding in floorpans (prep for 3k mi trip). 1960-1963 made a lot of cars that aren't popular now. No big rush to restore those.

The average new car price is $48k now: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a43611570/average-new-car-...

Where are people going to find a $30k or less new car? Lol they don't exist.

Nothing that can drive reliably is under $10k used too.

Be as smug as you want but at the end of the day if minimum wage earners can't get affordable transportation then none of the treats you depend on and demand every day, like your coffee barista or your overpriced sandwiches, or your dog walker, etc. will be available.

I paid 29K+tax for my brand new Mazda CX-5 Select (not the cheapest model) 3 months ago.

Mitsubishi Mirage is $20k at most, last I checked.

Not luxurious, but simple, reliable, and even has Android Auto/Apple CarPlay.

Mazda dealer down the street will sell you a mid-range Mazda 3 for $25k. And those are quite good cars. A Kia Soul can easily be had for $22k, or a Rio for $20k or less. They're not quite as nice, but they'll work.

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