Friend passed up on a minivan and bought an SUV.

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Lifer
Oct 11, 1999
15,581
1
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Originally posted by: datalink7
that used to be a lot of money.

Still is, at least for me and everyone I know.


38K seems like an awful lot of money to be putting towards a rapidly depreciating object, especially in this day when very high quality cars can be had for ~20k.

I've been wrestling with the idea of whether to keep driving my pos or to buy a new car when I start working and I can't really justify throwing away 20k+ this early in my life. I mean I like cars as much as the next guy, but when you think about how much it costs all together to buy a decent new car (tax, reg, payments, insurance), you kind of realize how much money you're basically throwing away.

My parents have offered to cosign a house for me when I have steady income so that helps. :)

 

LeeTJ

Diamond Member
Jan 21, 2003
4,899
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Originally posted by: ElFenix
but the mdx is a minivan...

no, minivans have less clearance and more interior room.

SUV's have 4 wheel drive and higher clearance.

 

toant103

Lifer
Jul 21, 2001
10,514
1
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Originally posted by: LeeTJ
hahahaha. what a perfect topic for ATOT.

His wife is pregnant with their 2nd child and so he decided to get a larger vehicle, he currently drives an older Volvo.

so he went out and bought an SUV. Acura MDX (?) to be exact. He started off looking at minivans but ended up w/ an SUV.

In the end he said it was between the Honda Pilot and the Acura MDX. he ended up with the Acura, he didn't want to wait for the Pilot.

What i find amazing is, people buy $38k cars these days as if it were the norm.

that used to be a lot of money.

MDX is not that big.
 

OrganizedChaos

Diamond Member
Apr 21, 2002
4,524
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i'd be more than happy to have a 3000 doller car, where the hell do all you rich people get this money
 

Mill

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
28,558
3
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Originally posted by: OrganizedChaos
i'd be more than happy to have a 3000 doller car, where the hell do all you rich people get this money

Most of them are in "debt."
 

Freejack2

Diamond Member
Dec 31, 2000
7,751
8
91
Lets see, for 38k I could buy 2 brand new fully loaded subcompacts and still have 6k left over for those once every 2 year times that I'll need to rent a moving van to move something big.
38k for a vehicle is insane from my standpoint. On the other hand maybe your friend makes 6 figures a year and 38k to him is nothing.
 

rufruf44

Platinum Member
May 8, 2001
2,002
0
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$38K for me means automatic payment of all debt, 20% down payment for mortgage (RMI won't get a penny from me) and if there's some left, an IRA. Driving my 4cyl doesn't feel bad at all knowing I'm debt free except for the mortgage :p
 

LeeTJ

Diamond Member
Jan 21, 2003
4,899
0
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Originally posted by: rufruf44
$38K for me means automatic payment of all debt, 20% down payment for mortgage (RMI won't get a penny from me) and if there's some left, an IRA. Driving my 4cyl doesn't feel bad at all knowing I'm debt free except for the mortgage :p

a mortgage isn't really debt, since whether or not you have a mortgage you will be making a similar payment in order to remain housed.

 

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
126
Originally posted by: LeeTJ
amazing. ATOTers must have tired of flaming SUVers. :)
I'd rather rank on you instead. ;) All the anti-SUV remarks can be anti-flamed too. Everybody's a hypocrite.

While I'm sure the MDX is technically worth the $38k, it's one ugly mofo IMO. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and state that mid-sized SUVs should have stayed the only "SUV"s.
 

TrueBlueLS

Platinum Member
Jul 13, 2001
2,931
1
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Originally posted by: Spoooon
Originally posted by: Paulson
well LeeTJ, the chevy "trailblazer" isn't really like an suv... I mean it can haul 7 people, but it isn't up to today's standards of bigger suv's having v8's or even larger motors in them...

Hell if I remember correctly, a trailblazer is only a 4.2 liter v6...

The Trailblazer EXT is the seven passenger version. You can get the 290hp v8 as an option on the EXT. The 4.2 liter engine is a straight 6 that's provides plenty of power.

The TrailBlazer's standard 4.2-liter inline six puts out 275 horsepower (up from last year's 270) and 275 lb-ft of twist. That's more power than most of its competitors' V8s, allowing the TrailBlazer to tow 6,400 pounds (on properly equipped two-wheel-drive models). New for this year, the TrailBlazer EXT offers an optional Vortec 5.3-liter V8 that kicks out 290 hp and 325 lb-ft or torque, giving it the capacity to tow up to 7,200 pounds when properly equipped.

mmm... GM's good old inline 6 :D
 

GroundedSailor

Platinum Member
Feb 18, 2001
2,502
0
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Originally posted by: ElFenix
but the mdx is a minivan...

Agreed. Yes it is built on the same platform as the Honda minivan. Although it is better than ANY van - it's not an SUV chosen by people who want to buy SUV's. It's designed to appeal to those who basically want a van but also want to feel they have something better.

Still, not a bad vehicle.

 

LeeTJ

Diamond Member
Jan 21, 2003
4,899
0
0
Originally posted by: rh71
Originally posted by: LeeTJ
amazing. ATOTers must have tired of flaming SUVers. :)
I'd rather rank on you instead. ;) All the anti-SUV remarks can be anti-flamed too. Everybody's a hypocrite.

While I'm sure the MDX is technically worth the $38k, it's one ugly mofo IMO. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and state that mid-sized SUVs should have stayed the only "SUV"s.

rolleye.gif
 

radioouman

Diamond Member
Nov 4, 2002
8,632
0
0
$38k is a crazy amount of money. My max is $20k for a car, and it had better be a darn good car for that amount. My wife's 2002 midsized sedan was $17500 since it was a year end deal. Also got 0% financing on it. I am driving a 10 year old truck with 140,000 miles that I paid $3500 for a few months ago.

One of the guys I work with came up and asked us about the new Nissan QX45. We asked him what he wanted to spend on a car, and he said "somewhere around $50k!". I told my manager that I wanted to move out of engineering and into purchasing if they have salaries where they can afford $50k cars!

That's a year's salary for me. No car is ever worth a year's salary.
 

Spac3d

Banned
Jul 3, 2001
6,651
1
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Originally posted by: rh71
Originally posted by: LeeTJ
amazing. ATOTers must have tired of flaming SUVers. :)
I'd rather rank on you instead. ;) All the anti-SUV remarks can be anti-flamed too. Everybody's a hypocrite.

While I'm sure the MDX is technically worth the $38k, it's one ugly mofo IMO. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and state that mid-sized SUVs should have stayed the only "SUV"s.
So what do you think about full size SUV's like the Range Rover, Lexus LX470, Landcruiser and others?
 

ElFenix

Elite Member
Super Moderator
Mar 20, 2000
102,407
8,595
126
Originally posted by: LeeTJ
Originally posted by: ElFenix
but the mdx is a minivan...

no, minivans have less clearance and more interior room.

SUV's have 4 wheel drive and higher clearance.

its not all that changed from its origins, which is the honda odyssey. which is a minivan. in its first edition, the odyssey had 4 regular doors. just like the mdx. still a minivan. the only other thing it could possibly be is a station wagon.

from its description the mdx's "4WD" looks more like AWD
 

djheater

Lifer
Mar 19, 2001
14,637
2
0
Originally posted by: datalink7
that used to be a lot of money.

Still is, at least for me and everyone I know.

Many people are foolish with money.

Me for one. :(

Still I'd never buy a car that expensive.

I have looked at the Odyssey, but why on earth would I buy a new one when a used one is so much less expensive.

 

BooGiMaN

Diamond Member
Jul 5, 2001
7,955
0
0
if you can swing the payments...and you want the car i dont see why you shouldnt get it..i mean what you gonna do..save save save and never buy something nice?

then why even bother living at all, all i see is people drooling and fighting over what car is better than what car in threads on ATOT all the time.

If you can afford a nice car i say go for it.