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Honda Civic vs. Hyundai Elantra
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Warner
4d Sdn GT ELANTRA - MSRP $17,439
ALG Residual Value
24 months 36 months 48 months
$6,700 $4,775 $3,425
38% 27% 20%
4d Sdn EX CIVIC - MSRP $19,610
ALG Residual Value
24 months 36 months 48 months
56% 45% 37%
$10,950 $8,825 $7,325
The Elantra GT is more like a $14,500 + TTL purchase for me with current rebates right now (not as good as they were 20 months ago). So there is about a $4000 difference up front between the Elantra GT and the Civic EX. So shouldn't the Civic EX be worth at least $4000 more down the road?
Warner
Warner
I tend to agree with Warner on this one. I also agree that cars lose the most appreciation in the first 2 years.
Anyway, in October of 2000 I bought a 2001 Elantra GLS for 13800 plus TTL. At the time of purchase this was a good deal and there were no rebates. It was an auto with moonroof, upgraded CD and mud flaps. I drove it for next 2 years and put 35K miles. The car was nearly in mint condition and I never had a single failure (oh I forgot a headlight bulb blew out). Anyway, I traded it in for a 2003 Suzuki Aerio SX in September of 2002. 1 month shy of it being 2 years old. The dealer originally only offered me 5200 for it but I worked him over and got 7200 for the trade. This at the time was a little under the KKB trade in value as I remember with those miles for a 2001 Elantra GLS. Also you need to note what type of car are you trading it in for is a part of equation. Had I decided to trade the Elantra for a more popular and in demand car such as the 03 Civic the dealer probably would have given me such a good price as did the Suzuki dealer did. Because I was doing the opposite - trading in a car that was in more demand that the Suzuki.
Happy motoring
Sure, you can... if you buy with an eye to maximizing the rebates and discounts. So for example, I would not buy an Elantra with the current rebate picture. (At least, I wouldn't buy a new Elantra... when you buy used, the depreciation works in your favor.) But let's see what happens come spring. If the big rebates return, and I can get a loaded Elantra for between $11-12k, that could be too good a deal to turn down.
If you're someone who trades cars in after 2-3 years, then maybe the Civic is a better value. But then again, I think anyone who trades their cars in every 2-3 years is not getting the best value out of their cars by a long shot. Cars- even the cheap ones nowadays- are designed to last for 100,000 miles or more. I put 117k on a Ford Aspire POS and it was still running great when I sold it. With regular maintenance, just about any car will last that long.
It's DEPRECIATION. Both vehicles will go down (DEPRECIATE) in value; neither will increase (APPRECIATE) in value.
It's quite a lot of fun to play with!
I have lost a similar percentage over 2 years on my Elantra GT--but that is because I bought it at a large discount. I am wondering if a big initial discount has anything to do with the good resale price you got.
I traded in my '04 Civic LX manual and lost about 21%. (I paid $15,100 and got $11,900 in trade in) My car had 41,000 miles on it. You'll have a VERY tough time beating the Civic's resale value!
Warner
Don't try after 5 years, though. And this logic holds true if you believe the Hyundai will have no more problems in those 10 years that the Civic. My bet would be on the Civic from a reliability and maintenance standpoint. I owned a 2000 Elantra Wagon and did have some problems with it inside of 4 years (and 82,000 miles).
Warner
Did you actually trade your car, or are you talking WRT book values. If you think any dealer will offer you book values (in actual cash value, not overallowance) for your Hyundai in trade you are sadly mistaken.
Go over to RWTIV and post the details about your car to get a true market value evaluation from the experts.
On the other hand, I do think dealers are going very high on trades right now because their sales managers are tying their hands with regard to the price of the new civic. Trade is the only area where they have room. I think trade values will drop this Spring. But, I could be wrong.
mcap
That's impressive! I don't have anything against the Hyundai at all...I just think that Honda builds a much higher quality vehicle. That's my opinion. And for people who don't keep their cars for 10 years, the resale value contest is NO contest. Everyone has different ideas about how long they'll keep their car for. Honestly, I don't know how long I'll keep my current Civic for...I thought I'd keep the 2004 until the wheels fell off, but ended up trading it in after only making 17 payments on it...go figure.
Warner
Ordered a 2006 Civic Si.
MidCow
Although I would really miss the driver's seat and traction control on my Elantra if I had to swap it for a Civic. Also, the Elantra 5-door beats the Civic 5-door in every way--because there is no Civic 5-door, in the U.S. anyway. :P
I wonder if Hyundai can create an Elantra as safe as the Civic. Honda set the bar quite high, and if Hyundai can match it, GREAT !
The thing I keep coming back to on the Elantra is just how well the car "fits" me. It's nothing flashy and the interior design is getting dated, but the driving position is great, the seats are firm and comfortable on long trips, the displays are clear, the switchgear is straightforward and silky, the ride is quiet and smooth for a small car. The Civic is a fine car also, but other than its better fuel economy (especially with the automatic) and "Good" IIHS side impact result, I still prefer the Elantra--and I much prefer its price! If the price were the same or close, I'd opt for the Civic due to its crash safety, fuel economy, and historically high resale value.
Wow. I could have almost written that word for word, Backy. And thanks for convincing me to take a second look at the Elantra last fall. It turned out to be a great choice.
Personally, I just like having either a wagon or hatchback in the family for hauling. I'm not about to buy a pickup truck, so the utility of a hatchback is the next best thing. I've already used my 5 door for hauling oversized items that would not have fit into a sedan, even one with fold-down rear seats.
It is easy to read the wrong ones, when you are used to them all being up to date. Hopefully the Edmund's crew will get all of these little bugs fixed where we can see the recent, and those since we last looked posts, sometime soon. They were hoping that it would be fixed this week, but....as you can see "the best laid plans of mice and men" sometimes comes back to bite us.
Hey a new Hyundai might have advantages over a 6 year old competitor :P
Double Sixes,
MidCow
As I said a while ago, I'm looking for a second car in the July-August area. This car is on my list. The only worry I have at the moment is safety. The new Entourage scored a gold rating. I hope the Elantra does well. Crash safety is very important to me.