> Everybody could save a lot of money by following your plan. Just buy an old junker and get it fixed up one dent at a time.

Well, maybe not. I didn't pay for it, but the other driver's insurance did and it was $600 to repair a saucer-sized dent plus over a hundred to rent us a car while it was in the shop.

If you can do the work yourself, you might save a little money. My younger son, Sam, bought an old Camero for almost nothing. It leaked oil, coolant, transmission fluid, and power steering fluid. It ran, but now very well. He got the leaks stopped, tuned up the engine, fixed a few small dings and painted it white. He sold it for $1700. After buying paint and a few parts, he made about $1000 for a couple of weeks of his spare time. That was several years ago when $1000 was real money.
Howard