Why this may be one of the rare times buying a new car is a better deal than buying used While used cars will be cheaper, if there's not much a difference, a new vehicle could be the better deal. Author: John Matarese Updated: 8:02 AM CDT April 27, 2021 HOUSTON — You probably remember your parent telling you this: always buy a used car, because they are so much cheaper than used. However, in this topsy-turvy year, that's not always the case anymore. Conventional wisdom says a new vehicle's value plunges the minute you take it home. "We've all heard this, you lose 20 to 30 percent of the cars value when you drive it off the lot," Karl Brauer of automotive website ISeeCars.com said. "You almost always want to buy a used car when you are going for pure value."