I looked at Hyundai for the price and warranty. That's what got me into the dealership to take a test drive. I was thinking about a $6995 base model Accent at the time. We test drove one and we were fairly impressed considering that I didn't have high expectations. We test drove an Accent GT and it was enough of an improvement that we went for it despite the $3500 penalty.
Since buying it I've truly been impressed with the quality. I've been left stranded twice, once was entirely my fault (for hiring a shoddy electronics installer) and the second time I used Hyundai roadside assistance and the total repair bill was $92. The roadside assistance is nice because it's unlimited miles. I was over 100k in less than 5 years but was still able to get towed to the dealer. I break cars, that's just what I do. I've broken 5 vehicles beyond the point of being driveable since buying the Accent. The only thing I've bought since then that I haven't broken yet is our 05 Tiburon SE.
Compared to other cars my only complaint is that it's expensive to mod them. They respond very well and they are quicker than many cars which are similar but cost twice as much. I disagree about the handling issue, in my opinion they don't inspire a lot of confidence but if you push them and put up with the body roll they'll do a good job of keeping you on the road. Our Tib SE actually came with reasonably stiff suspension compared to the competition.
For the price of a new base BMW 328i you can buy a new base Tiburon and a Sonata. For the price of a loaded 335i convertible you can get a new base Tiburon, Elantra, Sonata, Accent, and Tucson. Or you can just buy a fully loaded Tiburon and spend the other $48,000 on mods and get a thousand times more attention than a stock 335i convertible. I'm not saying BMW's are bad, I would love to buy an e36 or e46 M3 and plan to before too awfully long. I just can't justify their cost when new. My main reason to buy a new car is reliability issues. I can buy a used BMW and a brand new Accent at the same time and save money and I have the Accent to drive if the BMW has an issue or if I'm just getting from point A to point B.
The depreciation issue is propaganda. You tell me how my Accent has ripped me off for depreciation.
Price new: $10,500
KBB value now: $4500
Sure, that's 57% depreciation, but I've only lost $6000 in 120,000 miles and 5 years. Try to meet that with anything else.
A 2003 BMW 330Cic convertible:
Price new: $42,900
KBB value now: $16,115
62% depreciation and $26,785 lost. That BMW owner lost $20,000 more than me in that time. To some people it may be worth it and that's perfectly fine. To me it's not. I get frustrated when people talk depreciation and use percentages though. Hyundai has some of the best values regarding depreciation when you consider the actual amount of money lost.
Not to be combative or anything, it's just been one of those days. I don't mean anything bad.
That's assuming private party value and same mileage and condition as my Accent.
