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Opinions on whether to buy a used 2018 or new 2019 Wrangler?

iwishiwereadinosaur

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I am driving a 2006 Jeep Liberty that's about to need new tires and brakes and AC and an oil change.

I've started to see some decent deals on 2018 Wranglers.

My plan is to eventually order a fully loaded Rubicon or Sahara in 2022 ish in the second year of the electric as long as those are not reviewed horribly.

I still need a car right now and am curious if there are strong opinions on what would be a smarter plan with that in mind: buying a used 2018 and keeping in 3-4 years or buying a brand new 2019.
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SouthLeb

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I am driving a 2006 Jeep Liberty that's about to need new tires and brakes and AC and an oil change.

I've started to see some decent deals on 2018 Wranglers.

My plan is to eventually order a fully loaded Rubicon or Sahara in 2022 ish in the second year of the electric as long as those are not reviewed horribly.

I still need a car right now and am curious if there are strong opinions on what would be a smarter plan with that in mind: buying a used 2018 and keeping in 3-4 years or buying a brand new 2019.
It would depend on how much of deal you get on 18 with respect to resale value on 19.
I went with 19 JLUS because used 18 was only going to be 5k less and not color I really wanted.
 

TravisRogers

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With as much as I pick my nose in traffic, I feel sorry for the poor sap who’s going to buy my Jeep. Then there are snot rockets. I’ve never mastered them but I know guys who have.

From a reliability standpoint, I probably wouldn’t buy a JL Wrangler out of warranty. I have 25K miles and I don’t foresee the next 25K being trouble free. It usually takes three model years for a manufacturer to iron out major kinks so reliability from 2018 to 2019 is going to be about the same. They did update the dome light so there’s that.

So it really comes down to whether you’re a gambling man. Both in terms of problems and how much mucus you want on your hands every time you grab that hot steering wheel.
 

CT_LFC

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Never done a lease myself, but if the intent is to wait 3 years for a new purchase, maybe it makes sense to lease?
 

pablo_max3045

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Given the typically low deprecation of Jeeps in the first few years, the Wranglers are one of the few vehicles where it makes little sense to purchase them used.
You are better off to spend the couple extra grand to get the longer warranty AND more importantly, all the "fixes" from the bugs they worked out building the first run.
You are anyhow going to be spending a F-Ton of money. You may as well get the extra piece of mind, the knowledge that no one has beat it up on the trail, no fat sweaty ass has been sitting on it in summer and of course, that new car smell.
 

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ThirtyOne

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If you are looking for a deal to hold you over for a couple of years to get your dream Wrangler, maybe you should look at a different used vehicle? You can get a great used car for under $10k.
 

RichD

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Go for new if the price is close and you have the wallet.

Most 1 to 2-year-old vehicles were rentals or leases. I’ve had good and bad luck with these program cars over the years. A lot of risk with a used car. I won’t trust dealer “certified” cars. They buy from auction, wipe it down with Armor-All, put it on the lot. Flood cars are prevalent these days. Some can be just plain gross, as some of the other posters eloquently said. My previous mustang was a 1-year old lease – and it freakn STANK. Gross. I don’t know what the former drivers did in it, but nothing could get it clean.

Enjoy the “new car smell”. It’s a real thing. It adds to your satisfaction and pride of ownership.
 

TrailTorque

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So, I'm going to go into as much detail as possible here in an effort to help you.

You probably don't want to hear what I have to say.

Before I begin I will say I have been in your shoes at least twice that I can remember and BOTH times, as I recall, I regretted my decisions.

So here goes...
________________________

You have the ITCH to get into something newer (we've ALL been there)
________________________

Current State:

Worst case scenario.

Your current vehicle is paid off.
It's 13 years old (it's OLD).
Has 130K+ miles (meaning average).
Interior is 'good' condition (meaning average at best).

Needs the following:
  1. Tires
  2. Brakes (PADS & ROTORS)
  3. A/C (COMPRESSOR & REFILL)
  4. Oil Change
You're probably not going to get anymore now for a trade-in than you would in (3) years believe it or not at this point.
________________________

You clearly have a goal of purchasing a JLUR in 2022.
________________________

2006 JEEP LIBERTY 4WD SPORT:
130K MILES
'GOOD' CONDITION
ROUGH TRADE-IN: $1,400
AVERAGE TRADE-IN: $2,100

2003 JEEP LIBERTY 4WD SPORT:
180K MILES
'GOOD' CONDITION
ROUGH TRADE-IN: $500
AVERAGE TRADE-IN: $1,100
________________________

The difference in 3 years:

ROUGH TRADE-IN: $900
AVERAGE TRADE-IN: $1,000

NOT MUCH IF ANYTHING..
________________________

Upfront fixes SWAG cost:
  1. TIRES: $419 Shipped + $15 per tire to install = $479 (Yes, you can get (3) years out of them.)
  2. BRAKES: PADS ($30 set) & ROTORS ($25 ea) ($100) DIY Install (SUPER EASY) = $130
  3. A/C: COMPRESSOR ($650 parts/labor) REFILL (Included in Compressor replacement) = $650
  4. OIL CHANGE: $80
TOTAL (and it doesn't all have to be done at once) = $1,339

Hell your A/C Compressor may not even need replacing..
________________________

SWAG cost:

2018 JLUS USED W/14K MILES = $28,000 - $31,000

2018 JLUS NEW = $29,000-$35,000
2019 JLUS NEW = $29,000-$35,000

(all just to drive a new-to-you vehicle for 3 years??..)
________________________


Moral of the story, keep what you have for -3 more years and save lots of money on interest/payments.

Once you knock out some of those maintenance items all you'll need is a few oil changes and maybe a battery over the next 3 years and I can tell you that it will NOT cost you $28,000-$35,000..
 

MoltenJeep

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I agree with Morton on all but 1 thing.

We are talking about a jeep liberty with over 130K miles on the clock. it is a time bomb, waiting to happen. We had a properly loved 2006 Liberty, was rock solid, till the engine threw a rod at 125K miles. Shortly after that 3 other friends with liberty's had catastrophic failures around 125-150K miles. Now replacement engine is not that crazy, but who want to do that on a truck worth $1500.

So what I am saying is you would be lucky to get another 3 years 50K miles before another big time issue.
 

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Gropax

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if you are getting a Sahara or Sport get a 2019 the dana 44 axle is worth it. and you will have all the recalls fixed before it gets to the lot.
 

TrailTorque

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I agree with Morton on all but 1 thing.

We are talking about a jeep liberty with over 130K miles on the clock. it is a time bomb, waiting to happen. We had a properly loved 2006 Liberty, was rock solid, till the engine threw a rod at 125K miles. Shortly after that 3 other friends with liberty's had catastrophic failures around 125-150K miles. Now replacement engine is not that crazy, but who want to do that on a truck worth $1500.

So what I am saying is you would be lucky to get another 3 years 50K miles before another big time issue.
My point above is ride it until it blows up or lasts you (3) more years.

Whichever comes first.

You’ll still save interest and payments.

At this point to me it isn’t worth anything anyways.

Replacing a motor in a sub-$1500 vehicle is dumb and an obvious don’t do.

I personally think he gets 3 more years..
 

twisty

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Morton of course is right. Money wise it's almost always smarter not to go new or newer when you have a paid off rig.

Research shows if you do buy new and you keep a vehicle 10 years you can retire 5 years earlier then someone who keeps buying ( likely leasing too) vehicles every 3 years or thereabouts.

The OP has easily met that threshold. If the rig still works and meets his needs, run it into the ground. If it's problematic, doesnt suit his lifestyle any longer, whatever, go new or newer. You've done your do diligence in keeping your present vehicle, the ball is in your court.
 

wrangster

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if you are getting a Sahara or Sport get a 2019 the dana 44 axle is worth it. and you will have all the recalls fixed before it gets to the lot.
18s have the dana 44 rear also, built after August that is.
 

wrangster

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I am driving a 2006 Jeep Liberty that's about to need new tires and brakes and AC and an oil change.

I've started to see some decent deals on 2018 Wranglers.

My plan is to eventually order a fully loaded Rubicon or Sahara in 2022 ish in the second year of the electric as long as those are not reviewed horribly.

I still need a car right now and am curious if there are strong opinions on what would be a smarter plan with that in mind: buying a used 2018 and keeping in 3-4 years or buying a brand new 2019.
If I were in Chicago and still working buy something like a Santa Fe better on gas and cheaper to own.
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