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minivan or not?

June 2nd, 2015 at 01:23 am

Can you believe we are still struggling with buying a used minivan? We can't decide. I want one more and my DH is hesitant. Which by the way we've flipped flopped back and forth the past month. He's been yes then no. Then yes then no.

Right now there is a 2013 off lease Honda Odyssey for $18k with 32k miles. It's a certified preowned from a dealer. We haven't seen it but I'm curious since it's 1 owner and certified.

I think it might be a good buy. I think that we could drive it cross country and then sell it since my DH isn't sure we need a minivan. I think we do. I also think we are moving somewhere that we are likely to be going on more road trips.

But it's a lot of money outlay right now. Granted we could borrow it and we'll have a down payment from the trade in or sale of the sonata.

Thoughts?

6 Responses to “minivan or not?”

  1. creditcardfree Says:
    1433205203

    I love my Honda Odyssey! That seems like a decent price and I think it is good it is certified preowned since you are going on a long road trip. It is a lot of money and I would hesitate on some level too during the home sale process. I think you should at least go look at it...so you know how much space you are likely getting. Smile

  2. ceejay74 Says:
    1433205961

    I guess it depends on what you mean by "more" road trips. You could rent a minivan for 4 days for about $400. Just on the principal amount of $18,000, you could go on 45 road trips for that price, and you wouldn't have to pay for repairs or pay interest on the debt or buy tags, extra insurance, all that. Counting all that other stuff you could probably go on far more than 45 rental-van road trips. But, if you're going every weekend, it makes sense. If you mean like 5-10 times a year, I'd say it's not worth it.

    But I'm always looking for alternatives to car ownership. Big Grin

  3. wowitsawonderfullife Says:
    1433206369

    Based on what I've seen that's a great price. I have a 2010 Dodge Caravan purchased at the end of 2011 because no one was in the market. It was 18K. Cheaper than buying used. Having a minivan is fantastic. I use this to move my kids in college every three months. Lots of space in it and I feel very comfortable on the road because I am up pretty high compared to most other vehicles. I took out the middle seats because I don't need them and that's saved a lot of gas. The only down side is that I'd like to have an adult car, not one just because we haul sports stuff and move people.

  4. MonkeyMama Says:
    1433253084

    I will say we personally wish we had just rented a minivan for trips. We maybe go down to LA every other year and never take the van because it's such a gas guzzler. I only remember driving it more than 100 miles on one occasion (bigger road trip). That's in 9 years of owning a minivan. We only drive it 100 miles so much because we have family in Bay Area and they will often ask us to bring it to haul stuff or drive people around. I'd probably never drive it more than like 30 miles otherwise.

    I'd probably leave it on the back burner until having 3 kids. Maybe then it would make more sense. That said, if it makes sense for moving (cheaper than renting a minivan) then maybe it makes sense. I would think you would want a minivan for your trip. It is very roomy. I think it's great for a trip like that. It's just you know, at most we are only going to do that every year or two and I wish we had saved all that gas money and rented on those occasions.

  5. CB in the City Says:
    1433256425

    I'm not sure I understand the reasoning. You want to buy a van for the trip and then possibly sell it immediately when you arrive? Are you expecting to recoup the cost in the sale? Maybe it's possible -- I've never done anything like that -- but it seems like it would be a lot of hassle, and renting would make better sense, if you can't use the vehicle you already have. I do think you need to look at whatever will be the cheapest option, since you are going into a situation of unemployment and unknown housing. I'd be squirreling away money like CRAZY myself!Smile

  6. LivingAlmostLarge Says:
    1433342767

    Either way the minivan was gone. It was sent to auction. No idea if we'll buy one now, but we'll see.

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