We have owned probably half a dozen cars between the two of us.  In almost every case, we have held on to these cars for longer than the average car is kept – if you accept the average to be around four to five years.  We just figured that keeping a car for as long as possible is would be easier to manage financially.  But I think the experts would actually say that trading a car in after four to five years makes a lot more sense.  That way you can get more from the trade-in value of the car.

We found that out the hard way when we eventually brought our old cars in to trade and learned that our “clunkers” were worth way less than we’d expected.  That’s why, now, I wish I’d heard about http://www.carangel.org/ before.  A car can be worth a lot more to persons or certain groups in the real world than the pittance that most dealers appraise them for.