Should I sell my unused second car or keep it as a backup?
People struggle to decide whether to offload an extra car they never drive or hold onto it for peace of mind in case their primary vehicle fails. This dilemma forces them to weigh the stress and unexpected maintenance costs of keeping the vehicle against the comfort of having a backup plan.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1relying on rentals or Ubers if the primary car breaks downDid this help you?
- 2saving up over time for desired purchases instead of dipping into savings or selling assetsDid this help you?
- 3Getting a full independent mechanical inspection immediately after purchaseDid this help you?
- 4Having the warranty/seller cover major repair costsDid this help you?
- 5Returning the vehicle within the return windowDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“this is where i’m unsure of what to do- carvana covered every repair except for the tires, cabin filter and oil change. $2.5k total in repairs that they did. i have a few days left before i have to decide if i’m going to keep or return it. a part of me is thinking that since it has so many new parts now, i should keep it lol. another part of me is pissed that i even had to go get all of this bs fixed.”source ↗
“yeah that’s what i’m thinking too. i’m probably gonna return it- i don’t need more stress 😭 i’m gonna stick to hondas i think”source ↗
“Should I dip into my savings to buy these things or sell the 2017? I never use it anymore, but I really like to the idea of having two cars in case something happens with one of them”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 5Should I sell my failing car for scrap?
- 15Should I sell my paid off car to invest the cash?
- 57Is it a smart idea to buy a new car right now?
- 27Is it safe to keep driving with needle bearings in the transmission pan?
- 11Is an old dry-rotted spare tire safe to use?
- 3What needs to be fixed on a car that sat unused for years?