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Thread: keep cars or sell them?

  1. #1
    God/dess papillonluvr's Avatar
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    Default keep cars or sell them?

    So when I move to Japan, military isn't going to pay to ship our vehicles over. We plan on buying a used car from the resale lot on Yokota when we get there. But...

    We have one '05 Nissan Sentra in decent shape, completely paid off. I own it.
    We also have an '06 Nissan Murano is decent shape, but we still owe on it.

    So what I'm asking is your all's opinion. Should we sell them both, keep them both, keep one and sell the other? If we keep one or both, my mother and father-in-law would hold onto them for us and start them occasionally, etc.

    Just looking for opinions and advice.
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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    If it won't cost you anything to store, keep the one you own. Sell the other.

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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    Quote Originally Posted by papillonluvr View Post
    So when I move to Japan, military isn't going to pay to ship our vehicles over. We plan on buying a used car from the resale lot on Yokota when we get there. But...

    We have one '05 Nissan Sentra in decent shape, completely paid off. I own it.
    We also have an '06 Nissan Murano is decent shape, but we still owe on it.

    So what I'm asking is your all's opinion. Should we sell them both, keep them both, keep one and sell the other? If we keep one or both, my mother and father-in-law would hold onto them for us and start them occasionally, etc.

    Just looking for opinions and advice.
    Sell them both!

    Primarily the one you owe money on as you pay more in insurance.

    Japan will be two, three, even four years.

    Convert the money into
    A) Debt reduction
    B) Emergency fund (family emergencies and funerals will be expensive to fly back to on short notice from Japan.)
    C) Top Notch Dental care before you go.
    D) Health Savings Account/
    E) Childs College fund.
    F) The return to the USA family car fund.

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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    I'll take a 'halfway in between' position. Dlabtot is correct that if you own a vehicle outright, if you can store it for free, and if someone is willing to start it occasionally, then hanging onto that vehicle is a very low cost proposition. However, such long term storage without the vehicle actually being driven could involve significant 'calculated risks' that weren't mentioned relating to necessary repair expenses when the stored vehicle must pass inspection to be put back on the road in 2013-4.

    On the other hand, Sarge correctly points out that every auto is subject to depreciation with every passing year ... even if additional miles aren't being racked up. Thus selling off vehicles in 2011 will bring far more money than selling the same vehicles in 2013-4. And along related lines, even if stored for free, the periodic oil changes, probable battery replacement, annual vehicle registration fee / insurance costs etc. necessary to avoid rapid vehicle deterioration aren't free. Arguably, simply starting up the vehicle but failing to drive it ( i.e. not using brakes, not allowing transmission to shift gears, not allowing wheel bearings and driveshafts to rotate etc. ) could result in significant and expensive future repair issues in 2013-4 to the point where potential cost of repairs might become a significant fraction of the car's future value. I'm not saying that this is a high probability scenario, but it is a definite possibility !!!

    We're all in agreement that selling the vehicle you still owe payments on is a 'no-brainer'. So the question of selling or storing the other vehicle probably boils down to questions such as 'how well do you like that vehicle ?', 'would you be happy continuing to drive that same vehicle in 2013-4 ?' , 'would a family member benefit from having an extra vehicle available for occasional use while I'm gone ? 'etc. as well as 'are you willing to invest say $1000 a year in the 'quasi-stored' vehicle in order to keep it in road-worthy condition for your eventual return' ?

    Based on Kelly blue book, the current value of your '05 Sentra is somewhere around $8,000. The current value of an 03' Sentra is somewhere around $6,000 ... which also serves to indicate how much value your '05 Sentra will lose during 2 years of storage. So even on a 2 year quasi-storage basis, spending $2,000 to keep the vehicle registered, insured and occasionally driven during those two years so that it remains in roadworthy condition, combined with a $2000 depreciation loss that will make the vehicle only be worth $6,000 two years down the road, sure sounds like a LOSING PROPOSITION to me. And if the period of quasi-storage is 3 years instead of 2, the equation only gets worse with another $1000 in annual costs plus another $1000 in vehicle value depreciation.

    After seeing the numbers, I vote sell it now ... bank the $ 8,000 proceeds ... bank the $2,000 that you would otherwise have to spend to keep the quasi-stored vehicle roadworthy !!! When you return in 2-3 years, use that $10,000 to buy an 09' Nissan Sentra instead of continuing to drive your '05.

    ~
    Last edited by Melonie; 10-02-2011 at 05:09 AM.

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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    Here in New England it is common to store sports cars over the winter. All of us who do have our own techniques / rituals for putting them away, but I'll quote a Porsche factory engineer when asked his opinion on what to do to prepare a car:

    "Next to crash testing, winter storage is the worst thing you can do to an automobile!"

    Cars need to be driven regularly, at least a couple thousand miles per year to keep oil seals lubricated, etc. (Just starting it without actually driving it is worse than putting in fresh oil, fogging the cylinders, etc.) Keeping it registered and insured will cost you, so unless you are giving it to someone that will drive it gently, that needs a car, I'd recommend to sell.

    (Just please don't ask me if I take my own advice....)

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    God/dess papillonluvr's Avatar
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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    Well, it would be driven occasionally, just not regularly.
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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    I would sell anything that you owe money on - its not going to be worth the balance to keep it, and pay for occasional driving/maintenance/storage/insurance/etc. Of course, that is something that you will have to balance depending on how much you owe on it.

    The car that you own - I would keep. This is a situation where storage etc will work out cheaper than buying a new car when you return.

    But the only way to really work it out is to consider cost of keeping (storage etc) compared to cost of buying new when you return. Obviously have the cars evaluated and look into storage and insurance options before you make any decision.
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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    Sell the one you owe. Are you sure they will pay for two cars? Insurance might be crazy over there. Check that, too. Buy a clunker when you get there while you wait for your other car to make it's way over. Taking shuttle buses and relying on someone to drive you to the grocery store is annoying. Also, check to see if you need to get another license. When I was in Germany, to drive, you needed to get a USAREUR license.

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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    Sorry, I misread when you said that they won't pay.

    Sell both of them. Check out the online lemon lots around Yakota and see what cars are going for now. If your 5000 dollar car costs 2500 to ship you might as well get rid of it.

    edit--it seems that Yokota is small. Don't forget to check other bases, posts or camps around you.

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    God/dess papillonluvr's Avatar
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    Default Re: keep cars or sell them?

    I didn't think of checking the lemon lots at the other bases. Good idea. :-)
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