New Car

[MrsC]

I'm afraid to go in with my car at 200k miles, needs a new engine and they will laugh at me and tell me to just junk the car lol


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If it still drives it's worth a try! They told us they'll take pretty much anything that you can drive in there. There were a lot of people there with older cars.

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[Howfunitis]

New Car

Good to know

I'll probably tow it a block away, jump start it and let it die again on the parking lot
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[MAPPLEBUM]

DH called AAA they replaced the battery. He says he's not getting a new car unless he has to do 1k in repairs. He thinks it'll last. But now I just don't feel like he's safe!

[MAPPLEBUM]

We just got DH a new to him Jeep. His 173k miles was having transmission issues and needed front suspension replaced. It was paid off, but I didn't want to put 3k in to it just to put another 3 in a few months.


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That car is beautiful!! I want one...

[poky]

Carmax was pretty good to us when I got rid of my old car that was starting to need repairs that would cost more than it was worth. They gave us more than I expected to get, based on kbb/edmunds. Completely painless, too. They did drive it around the lot, I think just to confirm that it ran. They auction the older cars they buy, they only sell relatively recent ones. I can also recommend looking at assuming a lease from someone who wants out of it, if you want a new car for a known, limited amount of time, and don't mind adhering to the lease rules on mileage, not modifying it, etc. There are a couple sites that do it, I think the one I used was leasetrader. The original buyer has already paid the up-front costs, you're usually only on the hook for transfer costs, the monthly payment, and then any return fees. The guy I got my smart from needed a bigger car because his wife was pregnant.

[MsSassyBaskets]

What do you feel is so unsafe about it?

[gcuthbe1]

Oh man this is really tough....
We're talking about getting a car in the next year, and debating a lot of the same things. DH wants what he wants. His dream decked out jeep. His friends mentioned to us last weekend the same point you bring up about the low interest rates. Personally I just hate debt and I hate spending a lot of money. This is my first time buying a car (no car through college, and yay nyc public transit). I'm also concerned we should keep costs to a minimum to save for a house. Although interest rates are low, going all out for a dream car means a higher down payment, and higher monthly payments.

I'm interested to see what else everyone posts in here!

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[Thirteen]

Oh man this is really tough....
We're talking about getting a car in the next year, and debating a lot of the same things. DH wants what he wants. His dream decked out jeep. His friends mentioned to us last weekend the same point you bring up about the low interest rates. Personally I just hate debt and I hate spending a lot of money. This is my first time buying a car (no car through college, and yay nyc public transit). I'm also concerned we should keep costs to a minimum to save for a house. Although interest rates are low, going all out for a dream car means a higher down payment, and higher monthly payments.

I'm interested to see what else everyone posts in here!

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A decked out Jeep is $$$$ to insure and fill up. Is it the idea of a fully loaded car, the jeep, or something that can handle the outdoors/elements that he likes the most?

There are many new, cheaper options that are equally "rugged" with ground clearance, and better fuel economy. As for fully loaded - does that mean sunroof, leather, nav? Purchase packages are better now, and you may be able to dodge a few of the pricey extras he doesn't care as strongly about by just adding the singular one he does.

Cars depreciate so much the moment you drive them off the lot, that I'd be hesitant to drop serious cash like that. More conversation will help clarify everything better, and perhaps a compromise can be reached?


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[gcuthbe1]

[MENTION=1497]Thirteen[/MENTION] I definitely agree with everything you're saying. The insurance cost makes me nervous, plus we'd be parallel parking on the streets of Brooklyn! I don't want him to be upset when his beloved jeep gets side swiped... he's definitely on board with buying used. I think you're right, I just need time to negotiate him down to a more reasonable car for this time of our lives haha!

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[ides]

Fyi: Jeeps are the most unreliable vehicle over all other vehicles. We chose one year old cars and paid cash for them. We are out of training though. While in training we bought off Craigslist. We paid cash then as well. We just didn't have money for a monthly payment. My car was a 2004 Subaru Forester with 124k miles on it. I paid 6k. That thing was a rock. Dhs was a 98 Chevy caviler. He paid 2k. It definitely took stalking and patience. Both were reliable and lasted until we could afford newer cars three years out of training. It's easy to get caught up in the wants of a flashy car but it's better to be level headed and financially realistic.

[spotty_dog]

To me, financing a car makes about as much sense as financing a couch or a TV or a blender. It's one of those consumer items that if you can afford it, you buy it; if you can't afford it, you make do until you can, or buy what you *can* afford. It doesn't matter how low the terms are -- I wouldn't buy a washing machine I didn't have the cash for, even if the dealer offered me 0% interest for a year, you know? Low interest doesn't make it free money. Compare the growth of your net worth if you take out a five-figure car loan, vs. if you scrape together four figures of savings and buy something free and clear. In one case you're spending your income to dig out of a hole, and in the other, you're at least starting at ground level and climbing from there.

But I know my perspective has been shaped by my luck: in my adult life, I've not ever been desperate for transportation. Our elderly cars for the most part hung in there until we could buy newer, helped along by our ability to avoid driving. We walked, biked, took the bus, and drove only as a last resort for many many years. DH even biked to work during residency. And when he was ready to give up his 20-year-old Toyota at the end of residency, his parents were willing to give him a lower-mileage 16-year-old Toyota free and clear, which he then drove (what little he did drive) for the first five years of his post-training job. So, pretty lucky all around.

MB, I second MSB's question. Now that the battery is good, what else makes it seem unsafe? Rear wheel drive (which is what he's got if he needs weight over the back to get traction) isn't the best for snow, but if my parents could manage for almost a decade in Alaska driving a Chevy Econoline van by putting 40 pounds of kitty litter over each rear wheelwell, I feel like C can get through just this one last winter without making a hasty decision?

[MAPPLEBUM]

To me, financing a car makes about as much sense as financing a couch or a TV or a blender. It's one of those consumer items that if you can afford it, you buy it; if you can't afford it, you make do until you can, or buy what you *can* afford. It doesn't matter how low the terms are -- I wouldn't buy a washing machine I didn't have the cash for, even if the dealer offered me 0% interest for a year, you know? Low interest doesn't make it free money. Compare the growth of your net worth if you take out a five-figure car loan, vs. if you scrape together four figures of savings and buy something free and clear. In one case you're spending your income to dig out of a hole, and in the other, you're at least starting at ground level and climbing from there.

But I know my perspective has been shaped by my luck: in my adult life, I've not ever been desperate for transportation. Our elderly cars for the most part hung in there until we could buy newer, helped along by our ability to avoid driving. We walked, biked, took the bus, and drove only as a last resort for many many years. DH even biked to work during residency. And when he was ready to give up his 20-year-old Toyota at the end of residency, his parents were willing to give him a lower-mileage 16-year-old Toyota free and clear, which he then drove (what little he did drive) for the first five years of his post-training job. So, pretty lucky all around.

MB, I second MSB's question. Now that the battery is good, what else makes it seem unsafe? Rear wheel drive (which is what he's got if he needs weight over the back to get traction) isn't the best for snow, but if my parents could manage for almost a decade in Alaska driving a Chevy Econoline van by putting 40 pounds of kitty litter over each rear wheelwell, I feel like C can get through just this one last winter without making a hasty decision?

Yea, I agree with you on financing. Maybe I just got it into my head that it's time to buy. He's right, if we have to start pumping money into it we'll have the cash to get him a pretty good car. In the meantime maybe I'll just make him put something heavy in the bed.

[SoonerTexan]

New Car

I agree on financing too except it's been a big help for us. With my van, we financed at 3% and paid it off in 2 years, so we really didn't pay that much interest. And what we could afford with cash at the time wouldn't have been a good long term bet for our family. I'm not happy with the amount of repairs we had to do with so far (never buying a Chrysler again), but it should get us through residency. With DHs car, we financed the portion not covered by the check for the totaled car at 2.6%. It was through the dealer but we for preapproved through the bank in advance so used that to negotiate. When I get my profit sharing at the end of the month, we will pay off another 4-5k. Then we will only owe 5-7k on an almost new car and can make extra dents in that amount with moonlighting cash. I think we will be in a much better position at the end, paying a few hundred in interest vs buying whatever junker $4200 might have bought us. Keep in mind we have 4.5 years of residency left.

If you qualify for low rates, you can probably make up the cost of financing something by selling the car yourself vs trading in and negotiating hard with a dealer. I'm not even a fan of Carmax. We got both cars for 3-4k under what a similar car was priced through them. And both cars were under the KBB price. It just took a ton of research.


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[OrionGrad]

We had some car triumphs and fails in 2015. Basically DH bought a new car he LOVES with moonlighting money, then 7 months later my 13-year-old RAV4 died and we had to decide whether to buy right away (new it used) or borrow a family member's car temporarily. Luckily, DH's weekend moonlighting gig during chief year helped A LOT ... so basically in one year we both got our *dream* cars. As much as I LOVE my new Volvo, I would still rather be driving my old RAV4 and have the money sitting in my savings account. But that wasn't an option, so...
I'm with [MENTION=985]spotty_dog[/MENTION] about not financing, but I think there are also lots of cases like [MENTION=1889]SoonerTexan[/MENTION]'s where it makes sense to do so. I'm also with ST on always selling used cars yourself. Heck, we got a couple thousand for my RAV4 by selling it on Craigslist and it didn't even run anymore! The dealer wouldn't have give.n us anything for it.
I really hope we don't have any more car issues in the coming year. I'm sorry you're having to deal with all this, MB!

[MAPPLEBUM]

We had some car triumphs and fails in 2015. Basically DH bought a new car he LOVES with moonlighting money, then 7 months later my 13-year-old RAV4 died and we had to decide whether to buy right away (new it used) or borrow a family member's car temporarily. Luckily, DH's weekend moonlighting gig during chief year helped A LOT ... so basically in one year we both got our *dream* cars. As much as I LOVE my new Volvo, I would still rather be driving my old RAV4 and have the money sitting in my savings account. But that wasn't an option, so...
I'm with @spotty_dog about not financing, but I think there are also lots of cases like @SoonerTexan's where it makes sense to do so. I'm also with ST on always selling used cars yourself. Heck, we got a couple thousand for my RAV4 by selling it on Craigslist and it didn't even run anymore! The dealer wouldn't have give.n us anything for it.
I really hope we don't have any more car issues in the coming year. I'm sorry you're having to deal with all this, MB!

Oh we totally will sell it ourselves. I drove a '93 Cavelier until a few months before moving to the Midwest. It was starting to have some MAJOR health issues. I Blue Booked it and lets just say as the girl was in the bank drive through to get the ...$2000? I was asking for the car was overheating. I was watching the dial go hotter and hotter and was like "Oh, I like to turn off the car when it's idling." as I turned it off. Poor girl. I feel kind of bad I sold her a lemon but she said a good friend was a mechanic and had talked to her about that kind of car.

Thanks for the thoughts, everyone!