My Toyota has 138,000 hard driven miles, I haul a lot of soda and goods to my deli.
It is running o.k. just replaced battery and tires. should I think about getting a newer car now or finish riding it into the ground?
What is the best time of year to buy a used Toyota?
thanks
There is no such thing a good time for used vehicle purchase . And right now used vehicle prices are really high. And I really doubt if you could get a good opinion about your present vehicle with out actually seeing it.
You can easily double your current milage on your Camry.Keep it until the wheels fall off.
I have 189,000 on an 02 Camry that sees a lot of delivery type driving. Just keep up the the regular maintenance, make necessary repairs in a timely manner, check the oil level and top off if needed on a regular basis. 
2006 is not old at all, and 138,000 miles is not much for a modern car. I like to keep a car until it is at least 20 years old, and has at least 200,000 miles. Your 2006 Camry should have lots of life left in it, unless it has rust and body damage.
I have a 1991 Camry with 180,000+ miles. A/C still works, heater works, most everything works, in some fashion. I’m retired now but I used to drive it about 50 miles a day round trip to work. Unless you have a major repair I’d say just keep driving it. When it costs more to repair it than what it’s worth, then it’s time to sell… or if you’re just tired of it. You shouldn’t have any trouble selling it. I get people knocking on my door 2-3 times a year wanting to know if I want to sell it.
The best time of the month to buy a new car is at the end. Some salesmen may not have met their quota and would be interested in making a better deal.
Your Camry is one of the most durable cars out there. If taken care of, it will be an excellent car for years more. The question is whether for you or someone else. If you want a new car for whatever benefits it may provide (longer life, better safety, electronic do-dads, etc.) and can afford one, I say go for it.
I have rented a few new cars over the years and none has overcome my preference for my 1999 Honda Civic EX with a 5-speed transmission. It’s OK to prefer the car you have!
Here’s my take and of course others will disagree. At some point you will need to buy a new car so there is some benefit but not much in waiting. If you delay buying a few years, you haven’t really saved much, just prolonged the eventual purchase. Sure if you prolong the purchase enough times, when you die, you may have saved buying one or two cars, but at what cost? Just from a long view perspective. The other thing is sure you may get another 150K out of it, but then you might not either and be faced with a major repair or junk value on the car. Another thing to think about is the what they are now doing to cars in terms of the turbo engines and all the gas saving gimmicks that may make now a time to lock in a better car.
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I say only you can answer this question. You own a retail business that has other assets, so you already make decisions like this one. There’s no bright line test that tells you that, yes, it’s time to sell and buy another versus keep what you have.
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It depends on how important reliability is to you and your business. I have a 26 year old Corolla with 200k miles, and if it stopped working b/c the alternator conked out, I’d just drive my truck until the Corolla was fixed. So a Corolla-conk-out wouldn’t be much of a problem for me. Annoying, but not much of an actual problem. But a back-up vehicle might not be an option for you. And your requirements to be a certain places at certain times may be more stringent than mine. At 140K your Camry isn’t going to be as reliable as it was at 40K. Doesn’t mean it won’t be any good, just that it’s more likely it will have to be at the shop for a day or two to fix something, more likely at 140K than at 40K. I sort of get the impression that if you experience a CCO (Camry-Conk-Out) the effect will be pretty negative on you and your business. If so, time to start looking for a newer car with less mileage. Like a 3 year old Camry/Accord with less than 40K. Price some out, see what you think. Your current Camry should still bring a good price on the used car market, so that’s an upside to switching to a newer car. A friend of mine with a 2004 Corolla which ran perfectly other than a slower than normal crank and a little serpentine belt noise just sold it to a college student, and bought a new 2018 Corolla, no regrets. It made sense for them, b/c being on time for their job is critical to their income. I asked them why they didn’t consider a 3 year old used car, and they said “If I wanted a used car, I’d keep the 2004”. Made sense to me.
Camry is built tough. A buddy of mine got a 2002 with 198k miles on the clock without major issue.
You can expect to start replacing suspension parts, brake calipers, and other items that wear out as you approach 200,000 miles. I was in this situation with my 2005 Accord last year. I had 180,000 miles on it. Starting at 140,000 or so, I replace the rear brake calipers, air box tube, and hood struts. The seat belt clasp sensor got flakey as well, causing the air bag light to illuminate if I unbuckled and rebuckled with the engine running. You will have similar issues at some point. If you can be without your car for a day or two occasionally, keep it.
thanks so much for taking the time to respond.
thanks so much for responding! So many members said the same thing and thanks it’ll save me $$$
I will drive it until we are both very old!
You are right on the money I have replaced struts due to heavy loads and other things like that.
I will take your advice thanks for responding
I have a few dents due to the fact I live across the street from a town common and old guys are always pulling out and banging my car parked across the street. I laugh how shocked they are that I am not hysterical and let them off the hook.
thanks for responding I love this site!
thanks for the response and info. I have had great feedback and most tell me to keep on driving. I am happy not to spring for a new/used car.
It isn’t the prettiest but than neither am I haha… a little car talk humor!
thanks for responding, I got great responses mostly say drive it into the ground. Happy to!
You are too nice . . .
If you hit their cars, do you think they would let YOU off the hook . . . ?!