Buying a Used Car

As for saving gas to afford a weekend getaway, it doesn't add up. I drive a TJ, gets 16 or 17 mpg. My wife has a civic that has averaged 35mpg, we were looking at what car to take to the mountains from Durham, it was $40 more round trip to take the jeep and not worry about the bad roads, and we ended up needing the 4x4. If you can't spare the $40 for gas, you can't really afford the trip at all. Even if it was $100 extra, if money is that tight, you shouldn't be taking the trip anyhow.
 
Ive been in the car biz almost all my life. a lot of good advice in here. but I have also bought a vehicle for my now ex wifes commute and to save $ . in my situation the math did add up and we saved $ each yr. it also gave me a lot of piece of mind when I was over an hr away if she did have car trouble and could just call the free road side assistance and she could be taken care of before I could even leave work. if you need any help feel free to call or txt my # in my sig. Im not working at a dealership at this time. but can get you with some honest people to help with your purchase.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Ron is right, math-wise at least. If you sit down and do the math, it is very rare that buying a much newer car, especially when you have no car payment now, is cheaper w/ the gas. You'd have to be going from like 12mpg to 35 and be doing LOTS of miles per year.
But the math is simple, just sit down and do it yourself and see. Maybe for your wife it is. Calulate estimated cost per month in gas + maintenance now, then compare that to gas + car payment.

MPGs aside, there are still plenty of valid reasons to want a new(er) car... just plain wanting something nicer, quieter, more comfy, more stylish... all perfectly valid. its just a matter of where your priorities are.
3.5 years ago, were in a bad bad accident and my wife's car was totalled. We have always had older used cars, I always fixed them. At that time she was 6 months pregnant, I was having chronic headaches w/ my 4Runner and my Mazda... we just decided, you know what, we've reached a point in our lives where the headaches aren't worth it anymore... w/ a young kid and another on the way I was tired of working on a car all the time, or juggling schedules so we could get around. So we said fuck it, we now make enough $$, we can afford to treat ourselves to this, it's time for a warranty an no more headaches.
So we bought a new car.
And let me tell you, it's been nice having that relieved off of me. I can be as lazy or busy as I want and my wife can still go to work and the kids can still get to school.
Will I buy a new car for myself? Nope. I can deal w/ maintaining it, and my trucks. Will I buy a new car again? Unlikely, but maybe in 5 years we'll get something 2ish years old for her again.

IMO that's what you're paying for. Peace of mind, and something nicer. And frankly that has value. Thats it. just be honest with yourself about it.
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This is kind of how I feel. piece of mind. My wife has to get up early in the mornings alot to go to the OR and really want her to have something reliable. neither of us have a car payment right now and yes, that is nice...but we are in a situation where things are getting ready to be payed off (not buying a car till they are paid off) and we both are making a bit more money, and it would just be nice to have something we can jump in on the weekends and just go.
again, we are not looking at spending alot on a car...something around 12k or so.
 
Cherokeekid88 said:
When going through a dealership to buy a used car, other than the price of the car...what else has to be paid upfront?
So lets say we find a Mazda 3 for 12,500 and get it for 12k..... what else am I looking at? I know there are title fees, taxes, etc like that.
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To go back and answer your question; As much money upfront as you can possibly can is what you need to take. The more you can pay upfront, the more you'll save later. But do not let them know how much you want to put down until you have whittled them down on the purchase price as far as you can go. DO NOT get sucked into the "How much a month do you want to pay" scam. They will push and push for a how much a month payment, and how much you want to put down. Tell them if that's all they are going to talk about then you're leaving. Then get up and walk out. I've done it before and they called me soon after with updated pricing. Go back and whittle them down some more. I like Ron's statement 80% of sticker price. But maybe start at about 70%.

After you get the price where you think it's fair, then discuss down payment and the terms. And go as short of terms as you possibly can. Every day you add to the payoff period is more money out of your pocket.
 
Ron said:
If the reason is, I want to drive a nice car for the impression it will give other people and change how they think of me and I am willing to pay thousands of dollars for their friendship and admiration...so be it. Carry on. Just realize that is the choice you are making.
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This is why I drive a new car.
 
Just offer the cherokee on CL to trade some kid his Honda or some other gas saving car. Boom! You got a gas saving car, and if you chose right you got a better car that's more reliable and the wife is happy.

It's amazing how many people trade things these days. No one has cash so they just trade. When I get back from Harlan in May my jeep is going up for trade.

Had a buddy trade a jeep worth about 8k for a mustang worth 13k. Guy liked it and just had to have it. You'd be surprised what people will offer. Especially if their parents bought it and not them.

Avoid payments as long as you can!
 
For what its worth, I have this conversation with myself daily as I drive my beater to work. Its ugly, dirty, smells, sounds like s Cummins cause it rattles and leaks like an oil well. Its just an old Nissan sentra, but its paid for and I hope to squeeze another year or two out of it while me and the fiance pay down school loans and other debt. I hate it, I work hard, I make great money, but I look like an idiot in my old beater car. I want to ride around in smoothing nice and better looking. But at the end of the day I just don't care. Now I know you can't make the wife understand it so easily, but an old man once told me "do without while your young". Simple statement but its very true. I keep it in mind daily and stay focused on the fact that if I live a little tighter now and make some sacrifices I will be living much better in the long run. Some of the best advice I've ever had has come from previous posters on this thread. Take note of it, think it over hard.

Getting rid of the jeep for a gas saving car is a good idea. But 12k is not a "cheap purchase". Shoot for something 5k or less and get the car y'all really want later.
 
77GreenMachine said:
I keep it in mind daily and stay focused on the fact that if I live a little tighter now and make some sacrifices I will be living much better in the long run. Some of the best advice I've ever had has come from previous posters on this thread. Take note of it, think it over hard.
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Reminds me of the Dave Ramsey saying "live like no one else will so later you can LIVE like no one else can."

Then again my wife drives a fawking 1 year old Mercedes...I think its stupid as hell...but she wanted it we set a budget, she drover her last car 3 extra years and we wrote a check for it...I hate the car but it makes her happy and it was in the budget..

So do what makes you happy. Just understand what you are doing.
 
mbalbritton said:
And go as short of terms as you possibly can. Every day you add to the payoff period is more money out of your pocket.
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Keep in mind these days interest rates are really low. If you can get one of these ridiculous 1% loans... do the math... the amount you lose on that w/ 10k is really not that much cash. In fact depending where the payoff $$ is coming from (e.g. from an investment or annuity), sometimes its actually better to pay it off slowly.
Just like paying off a mortgage is often not the best investment for extra cash.
 
I haven't had a car payment in over 6 years, pay only liability insurance, damn it feels good not to have those hanging over my head every month. without the payments, I can put a whole bunch in gas and spare parts, not to mention manage to go on vacation pretty much anytime I have the days off
 
I understand what you guys are saying, I really do.
Its not that we can't save money now, we are just trying to find a cost effective way to be happy.
We don't take trips, we don't go out to eat much, don't go to clubs or bars. Right now, we are doing good financially. In about 3 months, we will have 2 major bills payed off. One being a School loan for her, which has been hanging over our heads for 5-6 years.
By doing the math, I figure with paying off the 2 bills...owning a car would only cost us about $80 more a month than what we are putting out now for those 2 bills and that includes insurance for the car.
So technically, $40 from my paycheck and $40 from hers every month, which I think we can live with.
But, we are going to wait till both bills are paid off...then go back to the idea of a car payment. just wanted to get an idea and some advice to plan ahead.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Keep in mind these days interest rates are really low. If you can get one of these ridiculous 1% loans... do the math... the amount you lose on that w/ 10k is really not that much cash. In fact depending where the payoff $$ is coming from (e.g. from an investment or annuity), sometimes its actually better to pay it off slowly.
Just like paying off a mortgage is often not the best investment for extra cash.
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True, If you are comparing paying off a car vs investing the cash at a higher return than the interest rate paid on a loan, but that wasn't his question. :D
 
mbalbritton said:
True, If you are comparing paying off a car vs investing the cash at a higher return than the interest rate paid on a loan, but that wasn't his question. :D
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Even without the investment comparison...
A $10,000 loan at only 1% interest, paid over 48 months... costs you only $205.50 in interest.
Even at 2% and stretched over 5 years, its still only $512 lost to interest.

That kind of loss is really pretty small, especially since its stretched out over years... and is really not much money in comparison to other "life-enjoyment" kinds of expenses. Look at what we spend on 4x4 upgrades.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Even without the investment comparison...
A $10,000 loan at only 1% interest, paid over 48 months... costs you only $205.50 in interest.
Even at 2% and stretched over 5 years, its still only $512 lost to interest.

That kind of loss is really pretty small, especially since its stretched out over years... and is really not much money in comparison to other "life-enjoyment" kinds of expenses. Look at what we spend on 4x4 upgrades.
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And one can also put a value on peace of mind of your wife driving a reliable comfortable vehicle. I'd say $100 a year is well worth not having to hear my wife complain about her vehicle. :D
 
mbalbritton said:
And one can also put a value on peace of mind of your wife driving a reliable comfortable vehicle. I'd say $100 a year is well worth not having to hear my wife complain about her vehicle. :D
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No joke. I'd pay 5x that just to get her to stop complaining about... anything
 
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