Buying a used car is smarter than buying a new car.

I'd like to first summarize the points of my opponent, make my counters to them, and then present my arguments that "Buying a used car is" not always "smarter than buying a new car. " My opponent claims "Used cars cost less than new cars" based on the following criteria, 1)"they cost less to insure" 2)"taxes are lower" 3)"The fastest depreciation occurs in the car's first two years" 4)"they cost less to buy. " To all of these, I say, my opponent is absolutely correct, in close enough to all cases, with the exception to classic cars, which actually grow in their value over time. However, I am not going to argue on the extremely slim group of cars that actually grow in value (and so in insurance costs). But all these points do not distract from my argument, as we shall see. I would first like to go back to the definition of "smart," as provided by my opponent, "showing mental alertness and calculation and resourcefulness. " I'd like to point out that money is not the only "resource" one should take into account when making any important decision, and we have both agreed that buying a car (new or used) is a very important decision. Time and stress are also very important resources to consider, especially since time can equal unknown amounts of money, such as missing days at work (due to a breakdown). Money is not a fixed amount. $10,000 to one person is not equal to $10,000 to another. For example, $10,000 would be far more significant and important to me then it would be to Bill Gates. For someone with a high paying job, where time is extremely important, like perhaps a salesman that needs individual accounts to make or break a year, a broken down car can completely ruin a career. In cases like those, the extra money can very well be worth the peace of mind. My opponent does bring up a good point, in that you can buy extended warranties for used cars. I would like to say that these warranties can often be very expensive (after all, they want to bring in more then they pay out). I looked at a 2005 F-150 (with 4x4) with 45,000 miles on it and the costs for complete coverage was around $150.00 a month [1]. Let us also look at the kelly blue book value of that same truck, we find that it is $15,600[2]. A new F-150 starts at $22,400[3]. Now let us look at getting a loan for these cars (since most people do not have $15,000 of spare money just lying around). We can see that a new auto loan has a better rate then a used[4]. The new rate (assuming perfect credit) is 2.99% over 60 months, while the used is 3.49% over 60 months. We see that the new truck is about $400 a month, and the used one is about $280 a month[5]. However, with the extended warranty, we see that you are no longer saving any money. Each person must look at their own situation and decide what is truly best for them, and for some people, in some situations, the new car is, in fact, the smarter choice for them. Thank you very much (P. S. 4,000 characters is a little short). [1] . https://www.warrantydirect.com... [2] . http://www.kbb.com... [3] . http://www.fordvehicles.com... [4] . http://www.bankofamerica.com...= [5] . http://www.mlcalc.com...