Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

It's probably one of those cars that will go up in value, and in the short term too. Here is Aus the first cars were $39,000 delivered. Now the RRP is $50,000. And used ones are even more.

Talk about car appreciation...

FWIW I'm hoping that the V Class will cost me less, and I'm probably going to run it for around 40,000 miles, so I can report as I go.

Generally speaking, modern cars use a lot of plastics and composites in the engine. Cooling system, water pumps (often integrated into larger components) valve covers etc. Heat cycles kill them and after 5 years or so they can start to fail. Also you get to the point where the suspension might need a few bushes refreshed or dampers might need replacing. It's not end of world stuff, but it's necessary to keep the running. Personally I'm ok to fix things if I'll be driving the car for 5 years or so.

My own experience is with 2 Audi's. A 2010 A3 that had the dreaded oil consumption issue. Full Audi service history meant that even though I was the second owner they covered the cost of repairs. $11,000 thanks very much. Other small things failed. The egr diverter valve cracked... Plastic. And and a/c components. Not huge costs, but not exactly cheap. Also the brakes needed discs and pads which was around $1600.

My current A4. No major issues so far. It's a 2015 and again, bought second hand with full Audi history. Just maintenance. Tyres, went fancy with pilot sport 4s and new brakes. In two years of ownership service cost and tyres has been about $4000. I don't keep track of the fuel, but it's a lot!
Oh, I did have a hid headlight ballast replaced under warranty. A $1200 component! This is all relevant to Skoda as they share the many parts.

I forgot about having to replace the rear brakes on my E Class - please add £1,000 to the total.

And this is why I don't read car threads online. As a balance, less nasties, just depreciation;

'10 BMW 320D
Run for 2 years, 40K miles - 60>100k
Maintenance 3 tyres.
3 Services (Oil + filters)
£10k > £6.5k

'07 Volvo V70
Run for 2 years, 40K miles - 90>130k
Maintenance - 2 Tyres and a EGR arm (£4)
3 Services (Oil + filters)
£6.5k > £2k

'14 Volvo XC90
Run for 2 years, 20K miles - 60>80k
Maintenance - BRAKES! Front calliper, 2 rear discs and handbrake. £500. 4 Tyres £300.
2 Services (Oil + filters)
£12k > £12K (YEY COVID!)

'15 Volvo XC90
Running.... hopefully for 4 years - 5K miles thus far.
Maintenance -4 Tyres
1 Service (Oil and filters)
£Spendy > less spendy (probably).

So in +100k motoring, nothing mechanical.

I like to change tyres, i.e bought car with crap ones and change ahead of time as I deem it safer. I want matched axles or I want all seasons etc.
I also like to whack it in for a dealer service immediately after purchase and whilst under whatever limited warranty there is. The idea being they will find anything awry.

Motoring is pure luck though, you can do all the preventative stuff i.e oil, filter changes as much as possible but if a turbo wants to go it will.

Life's a big depreciation - unless you're a house.

2019 seat Leon estate bought 11 months old (at 2/3rds original price) on hardly any miles, has cost us 1 service and two tyres (puncture) in a year and a bit. Quote from dealer to buy it is more than we paid for it, although that is obviously unrealised. Original warranty runs for a few more years and extending it is cheap.

How come you guys track how much every service on your car costs?

I think I budget about a grand a year for mot + service + repairs but don't really keep track. I just take it for a service every year, repair stuff as it breaks and intend to keep driving it until someone says I can't anymore. (It's a 2007 Mazda 6 that I put about 10k a year on, at 125k rn, hoping I can get to 150. I actually can't remember how much it cost me originally, or when I bought it.)

By comparison, here's how much it costs to run a used supercar.
(no arguments please. It had a 6 litre V12, did 190mph, had useless rear seats, terrible luggage space, was hand-made from aluminium, and cost its first owner £120292,91 in 2009)

I bought my Aston Martin DB9 in April 2017 for £59,950 with 14261 Miles on the clock.
I sold it in September 2020 for £40,000 with 27411 miles on it.

So that's 13150 miles over 1239 days.

In that time I spent 11823.22 on servicing, maintenance and presents for it

Presents were 714.44 for new glass and spare keys, £399 for a private plate, £60 to have plates made, and £80 to transfer it when I sold it, and £2295 to have Carplay and front-rear cameras installed)

Extras over regular servicing were new brake pads, I had the wheels refurbished more than once, and I had to spring for £2758.80 to have the front strut/spring assemblies replaced.

Add to that 2172.14 for Aston's legendary bumper to bumper 12 month warranty when I first bought it. Never needed it.

So excluding fuel and insurance, we have
19950 depreciation
11823.22 maintenance
2172.14 warranty for the 1st year
Total: 33945.36

That works out at £27.40 a day, £191.78 a week, or £2301.38 a year.
£2.58 a mile.

Insurance was about £1000 a year, but so was almost every car I owned in London.

I never totalled the cost of fuel, as why would you do that to yourself, but it drank it in huge quantities.
Driving from London down to my in-laws in Cahors it would require at least 2 complete refills at 100€ a time. Usual range was 300-350 miles. Best MPG was actually over 30 but I once used half its 80 litre tank driving from London to Guildford and back, and getting caught in two traffic jams. Result: 4mpg.

God, I fucking loved that car.

I won't point out that my estate car was faster. That would be churlish.

155mph limited I believe?

More of a suggestion than a limit, given how easy it is to remove.

Did you?

These cost breakdowns are fantastic people.

That works out at £27.40 a day, £191.78 a week, or £2301.38 a year.

Is this year figure pro-rata for the 12 weeks you used it? ;)

Genuinely interesting break down and not anywhere near as scary as I'd have thought. Removing the 'nice to have' i.e car play / cameras £3k a year it isn't in the realms unacceptable maintenance. And factoring depreciation over ownership it's approx 3/4 of a S-works bike a year. I've definitely made worse financial decisions (current s-works Sl7 owner!...)

Shall we do a lease? Picked this up in December 2017.

Seat Leon Cupra 300 - £1929.79 lump sum, 29 x £230.71 monthly payments + one service at £360 = £8,980.38
26,000 miles in 2.5 years, so that works out at something like 34.5p per mile before insurance and fuel. Insurance was about £650 a year and averaged about 31 mpg.

Rotated tyres and somehow managed to not need to buy any tyres during lease.

On second Cupra lease at the moment which I got a little bit cheaper, due back in June though...

Did you?

Given that I almost always had two bikes on the roof, no.

The stock limit is 155, which means the car runs to around 167, the AMG Drivers Pack raises that limit (in theory) to 186, and then if that is removed the car will run to around 205 - given a stretch of tarmac long enough.

Not, I hasten to add, that it's very useful to have that top speed.

My van tops out at 120 I think.

The defence rests, m'lud.

(The fastest I ever drove the Aston was 165mph but I ran out of derestricted autobahn and had to slow down. Sadly it was the only chance I got, as the rest of Germany seemed to be digging it up. I was all the rest of the way to Austria on a coned off single lane behind caravans and trucks)

And, of course, Aston have now replaced the engine that was in your old car with the engine from my estate.

£3k a year it isn't in the realms unacceptable

Sorry, read your reply wrong but there is an error in the annual sum in the OP.

Yeah, spotted that too - hence my 12 week comment 🙃

Thank you, that's really helpful.

And thanks everyone else for sharing their figures. Lots of stuff to process and look at but yeah I guess I'd better start saving...

Christ, I keep thinking 'why am I running old cars', always something breaks. But from owning new cars I remember the constant stress of coming back to it to find some twat has taken another corner off it, the night before it goes back to lease company. Do not miss that stress for sure!

Was totting up numbers the other day and think Volvo will be on for around 30p/mile this year in straight costs, fuel, insurance, mot, things that broke so far, things that will likely break

I'm lucky with secure underground parking so reduces the chance of dings and scrapes somewhat. I managed to argue the few nicks to the alloys and odd tiny scratch as fair wear and tear, no charge. I'm 4 years into leasing and I've actually found it no stress; new car, little to go wrong and if it does (which it hasn't) it is under warranty, breakdown cover included. From that perspective it has been hassle free and decent price for a very capable (read fast) car.

EDIT: Highly unlikely to lease again this year, prices are ridiculous.

My car is worth more now than I paid for it three years ago (at a year old) and it's cost me £390 (excluding insurance and fuel) in that time. I'll take that.