advice i gave my gf on getting new car. what do you guys think?

[Aharami]

gf wants to get a new used car (likes the previous gen accord coupe and the jetta). so ive been helping her look...contacting dealers and all. havent gone in for a test drive yet, but on my drive to work today, something dawned on me. she doesnt really need a new car...and itd be wise for her to save her money now. she currently drives an '97 altima with about 95K miles. body's a little beat up here and there but the car runs fine.
some points to note b4 u read. tiffany is her sis who's a freshman in college...drives old corolla (lola). their dad drives a relatively new elantra. corolla's prolly gonna be the first car to die. her (gf's) options are to either trade her altima in/tiffany gets dad's elantra OR give tiffany the altima when corolla dies and gf gets elantra. gf isnt too favorable of the elantra (doesnt hate it...but doesnt love it either)

this is what i emailed her. give me your opinions

i dont think it'd be a good idea for you to buy a car now. think about it.
---is the altima giving u all that much trouble? if not, why not use it till the wheels fall off? it has 95K miles...which isnt all that much considering there are cars out there with 300K miles and still going
---its a japanese car...it can last a while..atleast till 150K miles if u take care of it.
---u were gonna trade this car in...which means tiffany was gonna get the elantra anyways. so why not let her have the elantra when lola dies...then u buy a new car when the altima dies. true, she'll have a better car than u for a bit...but does that really matter? this way u wont get stuck in a bind when lola dies cuz u'll still have altima
---if u trade it in or try to sell it now, it wont get u that much money cuz of the cosmetic damages (mirror, scratches, dent, etc).
---u said u have about 8K in ur bank acct. do u really want to spend all that money for a downpayment on a car? keep in mind, a car is a really bad investment...it depreciates like crazy.
---if u get a newer car, ur insurance is gonna be significantly higher...that plus monthly payment will leave u with no savings..especially with the salary you're getting now...trust me...i know..i was there. and its no fun having no savings whatsoever.
---think it over. i say u invest that money u got sittin in the bank into some kinda stock market. u work in ML...u can ask around about investment options that has good returns. make that 8K grow...instead of spending on something that will depreciate and most likely be replaced in the next 5 years anyways.
---all of this is merely a suggestion. its your own money...u can do whatever u want with it. if u still want to get a new car...u have every right to...and i'll still help u get a good deal

cliff notes :
gf drives altima with 95K miles...wants to get a newer car (new used)
i advised her to drive altima till it breaks then get new car for reasons stated above

 

[dabuddha]

Good advice. But don't forget it's her money, not yours.

 

[Passions]

Dumb advice.

You should have said, "Pumpkin, let's go get a IS300 now! You'll look sooooooooooo cute in it. "

 

[Iron Woode]

Whatever you do, don't buy a car today.

 

[Eli]

I agree, if there is nothing wrong with the car she has, she shouldn't be buying a new car just to have a new car. There are much better things she could be doing with the money.

 

[KK]

Originally posted by: dabuddha
Good advice. But don't forget it's her money, not yours.

I think he covered that in the last line.

KK

 

[Red]

Viper GTS, get in here, STAT. =)

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Passions
Dumb advice.

You should have said, "Pumpkin, let's go get a IS300 now! You'll look sooooooooooo cute in it. "

if she could afford it, hell yea! i'd take it out every now and then too

edit: come to think of it...she'd look better in a mini cooper S. she 5'1" and 105lbs. that car would fit her perfectly

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Iron Woode
Whatever you do, don't buy a car today.

how come? beginning of the month? april fools pranks?

 

[Iron Woode]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: Iron Woode
Whatever you do, don't buy a car today.

how come? beginning of the month? april fools pranks?

 

[Zombie]

yep nothing wrong with what you said.

I drive a 92 honda accord with 150K miles on it. I see car as a necessity not a status symbol. I could easily get a kickass car but I see no reason to shell out 25 - 30 grand.

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Zombie
yep nothing wrong with what you said.

I drive a 92 honda accord with 150K miles on it. I see car as a necessity not a status symbol. I could easily get a kickass car but I see no reason to shell out 25 - 30 grand.

well 25- 30 grand is way too much. she can get a 2001 accord coupe V6 with 25K miles for around 16K.
even then...monthly payments are gonna kill her

 

[StageLeft]

She wants a new car because people get sick of old ones. I would advise her to stay with the altima. Unless she has no debt, and already a strong savings/retirement account building, why replace the altima?

well 25- 30 grand is way too much. she can get a 2001 accord coupe V6 with 25K miles for around 16K.
even then...monthly payments are gonna kill her

What's her income and credit/student loan debt?

 

[Asharus]

Reminds me of the time I told my gf's parents I'm getting a new car (from a 1990 325i to a 1992 525i). They were like, "What's wrong with your car?" Also when I bought my girl a camera phone, and they said "Is her old phone broken?"

 

[JulesMaximus]

I'd take a slightly battered Altima with 95k miles over an Elantra any day of the week. We rented a brand new 2003 Sonata when my wife's BMW was in the shop last summer and that thing was the biggest piece of crap I've ever driven.

Korean cars...blech.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
I'd take a slightly battered Altima with 95k miles over an Elantra any day of the week. We rented a brand new 2003 Sonata when my wife's BMW was in the shop last summer and that thing was the biggest piece of crap I've ever driven.

Korean cars...blech.

Agreed & confirmed!

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
She wants a new car because people get sick of old ones. I would advise her to stay with the altima. Unless she has no debt, and already a strong savings/retirement account building, why replace the altima?

well 25- 30 grand is way too much. she can get a 2001 accord coupe V6 with 25K miles for around 16K.
even then...monthly payments are gonna kill her

What's her income and credit/student loan debt?

income is in the 30-35K range. i dont think she has any student loans

 

[Asharus]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: Skoorb
She wants a new car because people get sick of old ones. I would advise her to stay with the altima. Unless she has no debt, and already a strong savings/retirement account building, why replace the altima?

well 25- 30 grand is way too much. she can get a 2001 accord coupe V6 with 25K miles for around 16K.
even then...monthly payments are gonna kill her

What's her income and credit/student loan debt?

income is in the 30-35K range. i dont think she has any student loans

Honestly, I'm not planning on buying a Brand New car until I'm filthy rich, if that ever happens. I will never take out a loan for a car. If I need to take out a loan that means I can't afford it...

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: Skoorb
She wants a new car because people get sick of old ones. I would advise her to stay with the altima. Unless she has no debt, and already a strong savings/retirement account building, why replace the altima?

well 25- 30 grand is way too much. she can get a 2001 accord coupe V6 with 25K miles for around 16K.
even then...monthly payments are gonna kill her

What's her income and credit/student loan debt?

income is in the 30-35K range. i dont think she has any student loans

What about CC debt and living situation? If she has no significant savings she would do well to keep a car of its worth and save up some money. Plus that car will easily keep running for many, many more miles. Many more miles. And regardless of how much people say they have paying for repairs on an old car in 99% of cases an old car plus ocassional repairs is much less than a new one. Remind her of that

 

[Aharami]

maybe we should get her altima inspected to see if there are any underlying problems that might surface sooner or later...if so...might be a better idea to get a new car no and get rid of the altima b4 the any problems arise

good idea? bad idea?

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Aharami
maybe we should get her altima inspected to see if there are any underlying problems that might surface sooner or later...if so...might be a better idea to get a new car no and get rid of the altima b4 the any problems arise

good idea? bad idea?

I'd say it's a waste of time. Let's say that you bring it in and the mechanic says your engine is a mile away from dying. So what? Pay $2k and you've got a new engine (that's your worse case scenario, and on an altima with that many miles almost inconceivable). And this vs what, selling the car and buying a new one with big payments - one that is going to run out of warranty pretty soon anyway? There is almost never a financially sound move in selling a used car to buy a new one.

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Skoorb

What about CC debt and living situation? If she has no significant savings she would do well to keep a car of its worth and save up some money. Plus that car will easily keep running for many, many more miles. Many more miles. And regardless of how much people say they have paying for repairs on an old car in 99% of cases an old car plus ocassional repairs is much less than a new one. Remind her of that [/quote]

no CC debt. living with her parents for now, but doesnt enjoy it. wants to move out within a year or two. another reason why she needs to save money now.

basically she's in a stable financial situation right now. but car payments (as opposed to none right now) and increase in insurance payments might ruin that stability she's enjoying

 

[Aharami]

Originally posted by: Skoorb
I'd say it's a waste of time. Let's say that you bring it in and the mechanic says your engine is a mile away from dying. So what? Pay $2k and you've got a new engine (that's your worse case scenario, and on an altima with that many miles almost inconceivable). And this vs what, selling the car and buying a new one with big payments - one that is going to run out of warranty pretty soon anyway? There is almost never a financially sound move in selling a used car to buy a new one.

thats exactly what dawned on me on my drive here. no point gettin a newer car if she doesnt need to. when the time comes an the altima breaks down, she can start looking. almost seemed like a waste to be throwing away a car that works fine

 

[Vette73]

My old buick has about 150K and my Firebird before that had a little over 200K.

So I say keep riding till you can't anymore.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: Skoorb

What about CC debt and living situation? If she has no significant savings she would do well to keep a car of its worth and save up some money. Plus that car will easily keep running for many, many more miles. Many more miles. And regardless of how much people say they have paying for repairs on an old car in 99% of cases an old car plus ocassional repairs is much less than a new one. Remind her of that

no CC debt. living with her parents for now, but doesnt enjoy it. wants to move out within a year or two. another reason why she needs to save money now.

basically she's in a stable financial situation right now. but car payments (as opposed to none right now) and increase in insurance payments might ruin that stability she's enjoying[/quote]Another consideration is can you think of the times that people, be it on ATOT or in real life have expressed regret later at buying a new car? I can think of quite a few, and yet never a single person has mentnioned to me "damn, I should not have kept that old junker as long as I did."