Which vehicle should we sell?

[applecrispy]

Background: DH and I now both work from home for the foreseeable future due to Covid-19. We have 4 vehicles between the two of us. Since neither of us is commuting anymore we want to get rid of one of the vehicles since we're really not driving any of them very much. 

2012 Toyota Rav4 V6 4x4- this was the last model year Toyota made the Rav4 with a V6 engine so it's more desirable than others. We have an offer for $9k for it from a local dealership(before Covid-19 hit we had an offer for $12k, that just eats me alive!). It's paid off and has low miles for the year, we've never had an issue with it. I love this vehicle- it's fun to drive. However, it has none of the new safety features our Honda has (rear camera, lane assist, blind spot detection, etc). It's been my commuter vehicle since 2012. 

2017 Honda CR-V- We've gotten an offer to sell this from local dealership for $19,000 by selling it outright. We still have 2 years left on our loan and will need to pay $11,600 to pay it off. Current interest rate is 2.34% and our monthly payment is $514. There's nothing wrong with this vehicle, under 50k miles, it has all the Honda sensing and updated safety features. My husband was using this as his commuter vehicle but he bought something else. If we sold the Toyota I would use this as my commuter vehicle. I don't feel any particular emotions about this vehicle, it does exactly what it's supposed to and I feel safe in it. We use this vehicle to visit my family 5 hours away. The Toyota isn't the most comfortable to ride in for long trips but with Covid-19 who knows when I'll be visiting family anytime soon. 

What would you do? Sell the Toyota and have the Honda paid off in a couple months or sell the Honda? We aren't using the cash we get for anything specific- it would sit in our "put toward a new vehicle in 3-5 years fund". Any other ideas? 

Updated in thread- TLDR- we are going to sell the Toyota. 

[hbomdiggity]

Sell the Toyota. You’d clear about the same $$ and be left with the newer car you use for longer trips anyway.

[lemoncupcake]

Just out of curiosity - what are the other two cars you’re keeping? Are you open to getting rid of both of these and only having two vehicles rather than 3?

[sandandsea]

I agree with both PP.

[wildrice]

Why do you need 3-4 vehicles? What are the others? That might impact my choice. If you think you might need or want to replace either of them soon, I might pick the option that would put the most cash in your pocket (selling the CRV).

Otherwise, of the two you presented, I'd get rid of the Rav-4. I like that it's paid off, but since it's older and presumably has more miles, I think it makes sense to get rid of it first. If you used the money from the sale to put directly toward the CRV loan, could you pay the CRV off soon? I dislike having a car payment, but if you only owe around $2600 on it that's not bad.

[lemoncupcake]

And of the two you listed, I’d sell the Toyota. It sounds like the only feature of that car that you like is that it’s “fun to drive” which is an argument that makes no sense to me (but I know many people value it from a hobby perspective).

If your other two cars are hobby/enjoyment cars as well, then you could compare them vs the Toyota in terms of enjoyment to decide which to get rid of.

[flygirl]

I’d sell the Toyota, but wondering why you still need 3 vehicles.

[applecrispy]

Aug 25, 2020 9:25:38 GMT -5 lemoncupcake said:

Just out of curiosity - what are the other two cars you’re keeping? Are you open to getting rid of both of these and only having two vehicles rather than 3?

Tagging wildrice

You both had similar questions- the two vehicles we're keeping are a 2019 Ram 1500 (husband is a woodworker on the side and needs the bed for buying large quantities of sheets of wood), he'll also use this to commute back and forth to work. The other vehicle is a 2007 Pontiac Vibe- long story- it was willed to us by DH's grandma and we will be keeping it in the family- giving it to niece when she turns 16 next year. So I need to keep either the Toyota or Honda for my commuter vehicle. 

[applecrispy]

Aug 25, 2020 9:59:50 GMT -5 wildrice said:

Why do you need 3-4 vehicles? What are the others? That might impact my choice. If you think you might need or want to replace either of them soon, I might pick the option that would put the most cash in your pocket (selling the CRV).

Otherwise, of the two you presented, I'd get rid of the Rav-4. I like that it's paid off, but since it's older and presumably has more miles, I think it makes sense to get rid of it first. If you used the money from the sale to put directly toward the CRV loan, could you pay the CRV off soon? I dislike having a car payment, but if you only owe around $2600 on it that's not bad.

If we sold the Toyota we have two options: we can either put the money toward paying off the CR-V and only owe $2600 on it. Or we can just bank that money, continue making our Honda payments (since the interest rate is only 2.34%), pay off the Honda in two years and still have the Toyota money available toward a new vehicle in 3-5 years. 

[wildrice]

Aug 25, 2020 10:33:01 GMT -5 applecrispy said:

Aug 25, 2020 9:25:38 GMT -5 lemoncupcake said:

Just out of curiosity - what are the other two cars you’re keeping? Are you open to getting rid of both of these and only having two vehicles rather than 3?

Tagging wildrice

You both had similar questions- the two vehicles we're keeping are a 2019 Ram 1500 (husband is a woodworker on the side and needs the bed for buying large quantities of sheets of wood), he'll also use this to commute back and forth to work. The other vehicle is a 2007 Pontiac Vibe- long story- it was willed to us by DH's grandma and we will be keeping it in the family- giving it to niece when she turns 16 next year. So I need to keep either the Toyota or Honda for my commuter vehicle. 

This makes total sense! 

How long is your H's commute? Would driving the Ram instead of his current CRV add a ton of gas costs to your budget? I guess that would be my only other thing to weigh here. I still think you'll likely come out ahead by getting rid of a car, but I know trucks are expensive to drive, too.

I think getting rid of the RAV-4 would be my choice here. 

[lemoncupcake]

Aug 25, 2020 10:33:01 GMT -5 applecrispy said:

Aug 25, 2020 9:25:38 GMT -5 lemoncupcake said:

Just out of curiosity - what are the other two cars you’re keeping? Are you open to getting rid of both of these and only having two vehicles rather than 3?

Tagging wildrice

You both had similar questions- the two vehicles we're keeping are a 2019 Ram 1500 (husband is a woodworker on the side and needs the bed for buying large quantities of sheets of wood), he'll also use this to commute back and forth to work. The other vehicle is a 2007 Pontiac Vibe- long story- it was willed to us by DH's grandma and we will be keeping it in the family- giving it to niece when she turns 16 next year. So I need to keep either the Toyota or Honda for my commuter vehicle. 

Thanks - that makes sense. I still vote to get rid of the Toyota now.

How long is your Hs commute (in non Covid times)? Driving the truck now makes sense, but if he goes back to an office M-F that’s a far drive, having a more economical/environmentally friendly commuter sedan might be a good option when you’re ready.

[lessel]

If I *really* liked my niece I might give her the RAV4 and get rid of the Pontiac Vibe. But generally I agree with RAV4 sale.

[applecrispy]

wildrice, lemoncupcake,DH's commute is 60 miles round trip but he was already working from home once a week. His boss has agreed to let him work from home at least 3x times a week if not completely remote going forward. He's a business analyst and none of the people on his team are at his physical office location anyway, so he's not missing out on anything being in the office. So no, the gas difference shouldn't be an issue going forward.

We're definitely leaning toward selling the RAV4 but man do I like the idea of getting rid of the Honda's monthly payments up front with $6500 to bank

[farfalla2011]

Aug 25, 2020 12:13:28 GMT -5 applecrispy said:

We're definitely leaning toward selling the RAV4 but man do I like the idea of getting rid of the Honda's monthly payments up front with $6500 to bank

While I totally hear you on this since paid off vehicle & cash is awesome, I'd like to offer a different perspective. You've mentioned that you'd put the money towards a future car. Getting rid of the RAV4 would likely push your new vehicle purchase out more than the 3-5 years since you'd be left with a much newer vehicle, thus not needing to be replaced for even longer, so that will give you additional time to build up those additional funds. 

[ssmjlm]

Sell the Toyota, it's the oldest and doesn't have the safety features.

The CRV is already at least 3 years old, if not 4, depending on when you bought the 2017 model year. I would pay off the CRV with the funds from the Toyota because it's already into year 4 of a loan.

[definitelyO]

I would sell the Rav4 - but would look to sell to a private person vs. dealership. looking at FB marketplace -in my area they're listed between $10k - $18,000. a little effort but potential forr high upside.

We sold our 2006 Toyota 4runner in January - dealership offered $6,000 sold to private party for $12,500 in 48 hours.

[pierogigirl]

I would sell the Toyota. I have a RAV-4 (DH uses it as his commuter lately) and it is so uncomfortable. We both hate it, so that's why it gets my vote. But, from a $$ standpoint, I'd want to keep the newer car and put off buying a car for a few more years.

[sadlebred]

I would sell the RAV-4 and put the money towards paying off the CRV. I love my CRV!

[Deleted]

Based on your update I would keep all three. My H drives a Ram 2500 and it is a gas guzzler, no way I'd want him to drive that as a commuter vehicle. Luckily he has a work vehicle so the truck is only driven locally/short distances. But, if you still really wanted to get rid of one, I'd sell the RAV-4 and use the proceeds to help pay off the loan for the CRV. I realize that isn't the most MM response. 

[sloan]

Aug 27, 2020 11:42:54 GMT -5 @sameoldstory said:

Based on your update I would keep all three. My H drives a Ram 2500 and it is a gas guzzler, no way I'd want him to drive that as a commuter vehicle. Luckily he has a work vehicle so the truck is only driven locally/short distances. But, if you still really wanted to get rid of one, I'd sell the RAV-4 and use the proceeds to help pay off the loan for the CRV. I realize that isn't the most MM response. 

I think this is worth considering but depends- how far is your normal commute? If YH’s boss changes his mind (or gets overridden or replaced or whatever) and he has to commute again would it make sense for him to drive “your” commuter car and you take the Ram? 60 miles in a truck daily is YIKES on gas if that happens, though I suppose you could always get a 3rd when that happens if it does.

If you sell one I’d sell the older car- the newer one having the safety features and low mileage will push off your next car purchase.

[circa1978]

I'd sell the older car. We kind of just did the same thing with a Subaru of the same model year for many of the same reasons (we had three cars for two drivers who are working from home for the foreseeable future.) It seemed silly to let it just sit around and get even further out of date/lose value when we could sell it and move on.

[applecrispy]

Aug 27, 2020 11:42:54 GMT -5 @sameoldstory said:

Based on your update I would keep all three. My H drives a Ram 2500 and it is a gas guzzler, no way I'd want him to drive that as a commuter vehicle. Luckily he has a work vehicle so the truck is only driven locally/short distances. But, if you still really wanted to get rid of one, I'd sell the RAV-4 and use the proceeds to help pay off the loan for the CRV. I realize that isn't the most MM response. 

sloan circa1978, 

We thought about keeping them all but between the insurance payment, not really having room in the driveway and them just sitting there, depreciating away we decided to sell one of them. To your point of commuting in the Ram- yes, if DH has to start commuting more for some reason, he wouldn't be commuting in the Ram 100%. He'd definitely be driving the Honda or Toyota. I am actually 100% remote now- my office's lease expired and they didn't get office space elsewhere so I have no idea if/when I'll be commuting to a physical office. My company is all over the US and it's split 50/50 between people who go into physical locations and our remote workers so it wouldn't surprise me if we stayed 100% remote. 


Update: DH and I decided this morning to move forward with selling the Toyota. We're going to spend some time tomorrow doing some interior/exterior cleaning and get some nice photos of it to post. definitelyO , I looked on our local buy/sell auto craigslist and on Facebook and you're right- they are going for WAY more than the dealership had offered. We'll start there first. Thank you everyone for your insights!

[madringal]

I'd sell the Rav 4. Have you checked to see what Carvana would offer you? I have had so many friends get a really great deal from them to buy their cars!