By Steve Huffman
shuffman@salisburypost.com
Jerry Alligood said he’s heard it more than once in recent months ó people complaining about what it’s going to cost to keep their cars on the road.
“They’ll say, ‘I can’t afford to fix it, but I can’t afford a new car,’ ” said Alligood, owner of Jerry’s Shell Service on Jake Alexander Boulevard.
“What we’re hearing is that $500 to $600 in repairs is cheaper than a $500 to $600 monthly car payment.”
Until recently, trading a car every few years was a habit for many. Easy credit and inexpensive lease deals made doing so simple.
The practice can be traced to the 1960s and beyond when American carmakers changed the look of their vehicles every year. It was easy to tell who traded cars on an annual basis, and easy to tell who held onto their rides.
Trading cars became part of staying abreast of the Joneses.
Though carmakers no longer change the looks of their vehicles as often, for many buyers, the practice of trading cars every few years continued to make sense.
Frequent trades meant less money spent on repairs and a decreased likelihood of breakdowns. But the economic situation of the past year has caused some to rethink that line of reasoning.
Alligood said he’s seen several people work to put a car back on the road after they’d parked it for a year or more. That’s easier and cheaper, he said, than buying a new or almost new car for a family member in need of a ride.
“I think there are deals out there on new cars,” Alligood said. “But people still aren’t buying. They just don’t have the money.”
Tom Crosby of AAA Carolinas agreed. He said the median age of cars on the road is 9.2 years, the highest it has ever been.
AAA’s car-buying service, Crosby said, has witnessed a decrease in demand for new cars and an increase in demand for used vehicles.
He said the car-buying service used to sell 60 percent new cars and 40 percent used, the numbers now are 25 percent new and 75 percent used.
“People either have no money or think it’s going to be tougher to get credit,” Crosby said. “That’s not necessarily the case, but we’re definitely seeing a lot more used cars being sold these days.”
He said there are both good and bad things associated with the sale of more used vehicles.
Obviously, there’s a cost-savings factor involved.
Crosby said while the average new car depreciates 20 percent the minute it’s sold (“It’s no longer a new car,” he explained), depreciation on a used vehicle is less dramatic.
And regardless of whether a buyer is shopping for a new or a used car, there are deals available.
“If you’re looking for a bigger vehicle, there are some wonderful buys out there,” Crosby said. “When it comes to SUVs and minivans, especially, it’s a great time to buy.”
But for a motorist who decides to keep a car a year or two longer than anticipated, there are simple rules to follow that can help make that extra motoring time trouble-free.
“Treat your old car like a new car,” Crosby said. “Give it lots of loving care.”
He said the most important thing to remember about any vehicle is to keep the oil changed.
“That’s the heart of your car,” Crosby said.
He said motorists often forget the simple rules of car repair ó things like changing air filters and keeping a watch on belts. At best, failure to take care of those repairs will cut into a vehicle’s gas mileage.
At worst, they’ll result in breakdowns.
Crosby said people who have grown accustomed to trading cars sometimes forget about necessities like replacement of tires and belts.
Keep a car longer than usual and forget to check those essentials and you’re begging for trouble, he warned.
At Salisbury Motor Co. on West Innes Street, Donald “Donny” Clement III, general manager, said his business hasn’t witnessed much of a change in car-buying habits as a result of any economic downturn.
Nor, he said, has he seen people holding onto their cars longer than in years past.
That means, Clement said, that business at Salisbury Motors continues at a steady pace.
“If you’ve been somewhere 90 years, your shop business is going to stay about the same,” he said. “We just haven’t seen much of a change.”