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Let me try to give you advice on a different perspective of thinking.
Dropping a 5k-10k down payment may not be the best move in your situation. I would not recommend dropping such a high down payment on a car because a car depreciates in value, meaning your car loses significant value over time so it's better to have that money spent on stuff that should not depreciate such as a house or future investment opportunities.
The general rule of thumb says you should drop a 20% down payment. I would recommend you math out the car payment using loan calculators. Most cars come with some kind of financing deal such as 0% financing for X years or 1% financing for the X years etc. You can math out how much money you would save from interest.
I recommend you figure out how much of a car you can afford. How much of monthly payments you can afford. Then drop a down payment accordingly so that you can afford monthly payments. (I would suggest you buy a car after you have began your job, I'm sure mama and papa bear can work out something with you for the time being.)
/brag
I recently purchased a brand new BMW taking advantage of December savings, I was able to haggle 7k off my car (This was a 60k car, you're only 20 once).The financing rates offered to me was 0.9 for 3 years or 2.9 for 5 years. I did the math and it would cost me 1.5k a month for 3 years or 800 a month for 5 years. The difference there was 5 years meant I would be paying an extra 4k to interest, since I can afford 1.5k monthly payments i opted to do 0.9% interest (only 500 to interest). Now I also did the math for the down payment, if I dropped a 0% down payment, I would be paying 1.5k/month and if I dropped a 20% down payment I would be paying 1.2k a month. In the grand scheme of things, 300 more dollars a month isn't that significant to me so I would rather have my 20% (12k) available for rainy day, other investment opportunities, or other splurges.
Hope this helps
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That does. I completely agree with all your choices there. I understand how interest works and how to make intelligent decisions. Money comes after I've vetted all the models and years of cars I can potentially get. $5000-10,000 is just to give a general price range for people to give me advice on models because I need avenues to investigate.
I also might be going overseas for a year or two, being over there would eliminate my student debt and be a good experience for me. More pertinently, the money I'll be using to get the car with comes from an investment I have for that purpose. If I go overseas for two years, it will have more time to grow with and continue on the rebound it appears to be on.
so right now, I'm looking for models to investigate and experiences I can learn from
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Insisting on a manual is really going to limit your choices on the used market. Most dealers don't stock manuals of most models so the people that do get them are the ones that special ordered them and tend to be happier with their car thus less likely to trade it in early. So you may have to go new to get what you want in a manual.
I never heard of a Toyota Selita though, not sure what exactly you're looking for. In general Toyota is the best in terms of overall total cost of ownership, followed closely by Honda and Nissan with Hyundai and Kia coming on strong in the past couple years. Anything American tends to break a lot more and anything European tends to be more expensive to fix (in America). This is a pretty good tool - http://www.edmunds.com/tco.html
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On February 21 2011 15:34 LuckyFool wrote:Show nested quote +On February 21 2011 15:12 Froadac wrote:On February 21 2011 15:07 LuckyFool wrote:500k miles? holy shittt thats insane. I'm buying a hyundai genesis like next week and I'm totally pumped.  I'm JEALOUS. BLOG AND GIVE PICS PLEASE What color? So pumped. My realistic dream car lol. I still haven't decided yet tbh, what color would u get? I like 3-4... haha. I haven't decided on trim either, probably gonna go with the 2.0t though, I will def pics/blog as soon as I get home with it.
I like the white tbh. Black is cool but gets messed up. THe light blue and grays are nice.. I'm clueless lol.
What options are you getting?
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On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge,
Whoa, really??
I was thinking about getting a used car sometime soon and people always tell me that repairing a Honda or Toyota is wayyy cheaper than repairing any other auto maker.
I can actually convince my mom to get me say an Audi or BMW (a really shitty old one, mind you, I'm not rich at all.. ), but I heard too many stories where the repair bill for European cars in North America cost almost as much as the car itself.
So I'm leaning on a Toyota, Honda or KIA... but if what you're saying is true... I might consider this Chevy Cobalt..
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On February 22 2011 06:16 jjun212 wrote:Show nested quote +On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge,
Whoa, really?? I was thinking about getting a used car sometime soon and people always tell me that repairing a Honda or Toyota is wayyy cheaper than repairing any other auto maker. I can actually convince my mom to get me say an Audi or BMW (a really shitty old one, mind you, I'm not rich at all.. ), but I heard too many stories where the repair bill for European cars in North America cost almost as much as the car itself. So I'm leaning on a Toyota, Honda or KIA... but if what you're saying is true... I might consider this Chevy Cobalt..
FYI Hyundai ~= KIA.
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toyota celica! not selita
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On February 22 2011 05:23 Froadac wrote:Show nested quote +On February 21 2011 15:34 LuckyFool wrote:
I will def pics/blog as soon as I get home with it. I like the white tbh. Black is cool but gets messed up. THe light blue and grays are nice.. I'm clueless lol. What options are you getting?
Good choice, Rob. :D
Red Genesis look REALLY sweet too, imo.
![[image loading]](http://images.dealertrend.com/companies/703/vehicles/10632903/4007113/b16e470efd918ab12d0c11afd3f6773a894146f3_medium.jpg?1289750114)
And taking a little snippet out from your comment...
Black is cool but gets messed up.
To everyone who ever wants to buy a car.
Black isn't a color, it's a part time job. Seriously. Rob has seen my car like...the dirtiest car ever and I'm like, well, I just washed it two days ago. I used to care about my car being shiny and epic but now it's just silt and road crap all over it all the time. 
+ Show Spoiler + Mine :D
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16938 Posts
On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge, such that if you watch your driving you can actually improve the mileage you get...it makes such a huge difference to know how your driving affects the mileage lol. I was surprised myself (I managed to get average 34 mpg when I was driving to/from school last year)
Last year I bought a 2005 model no frills Cobalt for $6900. With all the fees and everything it was $7200.
Alternatively you can look at Corollas, Chevy Prisms (they're old, 2001 is the newest year I believe), Accords. If you're okay with a bigger (more expensive) sedan you can look at Camrys and Civics as well.
You have your Honda vehicles backwards.
Toyota Corolla = Honda Civic
Toyota Camry = Honda Accord
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On February 22 2011 06:16 jjun212 wrote:Show nested quote +On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge,
Whoa, really?? I was thinking about getting a used car sometime soon and people always tell me that repairing a Honda or Toyota is wayyy cheaper than repairing any other auto maker. I can actually convince my mom to get me say an Audi or BMW (a really shitty old one, mind you, I'm not rich at all.. ), but I heard too many stories where the repair bill for European cars in North America cost almost as much as the car itself. So I'm leaning on a Toyota, Honda or KIA... but if what you're saying is true... I might consider this Chevy Cobalt..
as the former owner of an older audi, i can confirm that the story is 100% true. My brother and I both had our trannys redone about the same time a while back. He had an older civic, a 96 i think, vs my 98 a4. His total cost was under $1000, while I was about $2500+ Parts are more expensive, the car is assembled a little differently which makes it take a little longer to do shit.
theyre totally friggin awesome cars to own, German is great if you want style and performance, but they're a big time money hole if something goes wrong. Honestly, it only worked for me at the time because I got a very good deal on the car because I knew the dealer, and I knew a couple of mechanics which helped me by cutting labor costs as long as the issues weren't minor.
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Stay away from German if you want a car to last you ten years. That's the advice I'll give you. Volkswagen's are questionable though. Sometimes, their reliability is awesome and other times, you get a lemon. Either way, German is not the way to go for reliability.
If you want something to last 10 years, go for a Toyota or Honda.
On February 22 2011 06:16 jjun212 wrote:Show nested quote +On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge,
Whoa, really?? I was thinking about getting a used car sometime soon and people always tell me that repairing a Honda or Toyota is wayyy cheaper than repairing any other auto maker. I can actually convince my mom to get me say an Audi or BMW (a really shitty old one, mind you, I'm not rich at all.. ), but I heard too many stories where the repair bill for European cars in North America cost almost as much as the car itself. So I'm leaning on a Toyota, Honda or KIA... but if what you're saying is true... I might consider this Chevy Cobalt..
I mean absolutely no offense to you, but if you can't afford a newer BMW, then getting an older one is a mistake. BMWs are expensive as hell to maintain and are quite a pain in the ass at times. Replacement parts comes straight from Germany, which makes them even more expensive and most shops will charge you up the ass "because you have a BMW." I believe my local indy shop (a BMW specialized shop) charges something like $80-$100 an hour for labor. My stealership charges almost $200. You could test your luck though. I know a lot of people with older BMWs that are reliable and solid, but I also know others that have cars that aren't reliable. I lucked out with my '06 2 years ago. 45k miles and absolutely no problems, so far. It's out of warranty now so I pray nothing goes wrong. I can afford it, but it won't be pretty.
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People in TeamLiquid must show some love to the TV show : Top Gear in order to know something about cars. (am talking about the UK one, the US one is total rubbish).
as for what care the OP should get. I have no idea about whats going on in US. if you were in EU, lets see. you say:
-I want it to be reliable. this above all else
-Last 10 years
-good resale
-4 door. don't show me pictures of 2 door cars I'll drool over PLEASE
-Conservative on-my-own to help from parents estimate: $5000-$10,000 available for down-payment or purchase.
-Mileage doesn't matter so far as it doesn't affect above. As I narrow down I can give more info (carfax and more) to make informed decisions
-I don't care if its new or used. I will be calculating the total cost of insurance, maintenance, gas, and everything else over the 10-year span. If new is cheaper than used, I'm going with it.
-manual
- German or Japanese cars (anything else I dont suggest buying)
- Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Toyota, Honda lasts 10years
- they do have good resale ( but if u buy a really used one whats the point)
- skipping this one cause ur not too sure what u want urself
- With 10k $ as a downpayment u should get a new car and not a used car. if used then 2008+
- ok
- ok
- ok
so that leaves us with these options, some of my personal favorites:
Seat Ibiza Cupra
Polo GTi
Skoda Fabia RS
Audi A3 1.4 or the 1.8Turbo QUattro
a Golf GTi is really good
If u dont care on how much expenses will be on gas the best car ever to get imo is an audi s3(old one but in good condition)
BMWs I would say an 1 series or a 3 series (bit older)
Mercs I dunno if u should get one. (they are kinda for older people)
Toyota I own a Yaris they are pretty good cars but I want something faster
Honda Civic type R or normal versions
thats about it.
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On February 23 2011 02:04 Joementum wrote:Stay away from German if you want a car to last you ten years. That's the advice I'll give you. Volkswagen's are questionable though. Sometimes, their reliability is awesome and other times, you get a lemon. Either way, German is not the way to go for reliability. If you want something to last 10 years, go for a Toyota or Honda. Show nested quote +On February 22 2011 06:16 jjun212 wrote:On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge,
Whoa, really?? I was thinking about getting a used car sometime soon and people always tell me that repairing a Honda or Toyota is wayyy cheaper than repairing any other auto maker. I can actually convince my mom to get me say an Audi or BMW (a really shitty old one, mind you, I'm not rich at all.. ), but I heard too many stories where the repair bill for European cars in North America cost almost as much as the car itself. So I'm leaning on a Toyota, Honda or KIA... but if what you're saying is true... I might consider this Chevy Cobalt.. I mean absolutely no offense to you, but if you can't afford a newer BMW, then getting an older one is a mistake. BMWs are expensive as hell to maintain and are quite a pain in the ass at times. Replacement parts comes straight from Germany, which makes them even more expensive and most shops will charge you up the ass "because you have a BMW." I believe my local indy shop (a BMW specialized shop) charges something like $80-$100 an hour for labor. My stealership charges almost $200. You could test your luck though. I know a lot of people with older BMWs that are reliable and solid, but I also know others that have cars that aren't reliable. I lucked out with my '06 2 years ago. 45k miles and absolutely no problems, so far. It's out of warranty now so I pray nothing goes wrong. I can afford it, but it won't be pretty.
I'm quite sure you can get 10+ out of german cars (even VW, but they're more flakey). You'll just pay out the ass for it, which is obviously a huge detriment. I got under 160k under my 98 A4 that I bought in the 70s and I drove that thing into the ground. If it wasn't for my accident, I could easily take it another year or two. It really wasn't the frequency of shit happening, it was just that when it went, you'd pay a lot
My uncle still has his father's 80s or 90s Mercedes and it's at like 300k now. He obviously babies it to get it there, but still.
But yeah, if cost and money factor anywhere into the equation, it's probably best to stay away from german.
here's a quick question: What's a reasonable or average amount you can haggle off of a list price on a car? like if there's a 25k car i want, do i even have a prayer of getting it to about 20 or should I change my expectations?
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Well how long a car last really depends on where you're driving and how often you are driving it and for how long. I see plenty of older cars, esp vans and trucks in my area. There is also a shit ton of like 60's mustangs i wonder where all these people get them i few blocks down from me a guy is restoring one as well.
As for haggling it depends on dealer, my sister was able to get 3k off a 2010 or was it a 2009 nissan that was like 24k, end of the year deal they were trying to get rid of the cars for new models. (my family pays off the whole thing as once not all dealers like to haggle when you do that they make less then if we took a long ass loan so we never really get a car over 30k they last a good 6+ years though)
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as for haggling I have a couple things in mind,
theres this site which gives the real price dealers pay for cars from manufacturers, so if I know what car I want and I have the money to spare I'll walk in and tell them "I'll buy that car at $500 above invoice right now."
OR I'll haggle them down to a really low price while seeming like an idiot and having them think they'll make money on interest. then after I've signed some papers ask them "do you take checks?"
otherwise I'm going to want to make the largest down payment I can.
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On February 24 2011 03:23 KurtistheTurtle wrote:
as for haggling I have a couple things in mind,
theres this site which gives the real price dealers pay for cars from manufacturers, so if I know what car I want and I have the money to spare I'll walk in and tell them "I'll buy that car at $500 above invoice right now."
If only salesmen were desperate to sell a brand new car to the first person who walked in the door and take a huge hit on their comission.
The only way you can get a really good deal is if you wait until the end of the month and find our which salesman hasn't hit his quota yet for the month. Then the real deal swinging can begin.
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On February 24 2011 03:23 KurtistheTurtle wrote:
as for haggling I have a couple things in mind,
theres this site which gives the real price dealers pay for cars from manufacturers, so if I know what car I want and I have the money to spare I'll walk in and tell them "I'll buy that car at $500 above invoice right now."
OR I'll haggle them down to a really low price while seeming like an idiot and having them think they'll make money on interest. then after I've signed some papers ask them "do you take checks?"
otherwise I'm going to want to make the largest down payment I can.
Here are my tips for haggling:
For a new car:
go to http://www.edmunds.com and find the factory invoice price. You must understand that these factory invoices may not always be accurate, but edmunds is a reliable source. The general rule of thumb is factory invoice + 5%, I would pay something close to that.
For a used car:
// I never bought a used car before but this is what information i gathered.
This is a different animal but generally I believe you want to aim to get a few k's off. I would say if you are able to get a 1.5k - 2k discount after promotions you are Solid. I've heard as high as 5k-10k before.
Just remember to ask for the "on the road" price. The only fees you should be paying are, the cost of the car, the sales taxes, title (200-300). If they slap on any other fees you never heard of, ask for it to be removed, say no other dealer has asked for it before. Don't forget to bring your own calculator/laptop just because its written on paper doesn't mean it's added up correctly.
Be prepared to be firm with your price, if you don't get your price, get up and leave. A common dealer response I've heard is "What's another 300 to you?" as in why can't you just pay the extra 300 and get your car. Obviously, 300 when rolled into a loan isn't a lot but stay firm with your price. Remember 300 is like worth an Xbox!
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On February 23 2011 03:27 Hawk wrote:Show nested quote +On February 23 2011 02:04 Joementum wrote:Stay away from German if you want a car to last you ten years. That's the advice I'll give you. Volkswagen's are questionable though. Sometimes, their reliability is awesome and other times, you get a lemon. Either way, German is not the way to go for reliability. If you want something to last 10 years, go for a Toyota or Honda. On February 22 2011 06:16 jjun212 wrote:On February 21 2011 14:23 wherebugsgo wrote:
Try a Chevy Cobalt. It's cheaper than an equivalent Toyota or Honda, replacement parts are cheaper, etc. etc. It's just as reliable, and the mileage difference isn't huge. In fact, they have a mileage gauge,
Whoa, really?? I was thinking about getting a used car sometime soon and people always tell me that repairing a Honda or Toyota is wayyy cheaper than repairing any other auto maker. I can actually convince my mom to get me say an Audi or BMW (a really shitty old one, mind you, I'm not rich at all.. ), but I heard too many stories where the repair bill for European cars in North America cost almost as much as the car itself. So I'm leaning on a Toyota, Honda or KIA... but if what you're saying is true... I might consider this Chevy Cobalt.. I mean absolutely no offense to you, but if you can't afford a newer BMW, then getting an older one is a mistake. BMWs are expensive as hell to maintain and are quite a pain in the ass at times. Replacement parts comes straight from Germany, which makes them even more expensive and most shops will charge you up the ass "because you have a BMW." I believe my local indy shop (a BMW specialized shop) charges something like $80-$100 an hour for labor. My stealership charges almost $200. You could test your luck though. I know a lot of people with older BMWs that are reliable and solid, but I also know others that have cars that aren't reliable. I lucked out with my '06 2 years ago. 45k miles and absolutely no problems, so far. It's out of warranty now so I pray nothing goes wrong. I can afford it, but it won't be pretty. I'm quite sure you can get 10+ out of german cars (even VW, but they're more flakey). You'll just pay out the ass for it, which is obviously a huge detriment. I got under 160k under my 98 A4 that I bought in the 70s and I drove that thing into the ground. If it wasn't for my accident, I could easily take it another year or two. It really wasn't the frequency of shit happening, it was just that when it went, you'd pay a lot My uncle still has his father's 80s or 90s Mercedes and it's at like 300k now. He obviously babies it to get it there, but still. But yeah, if cost and money factor anywhere into the equation, it's probably best to stay away from german. here's a quick question: What's a reasonable or average amount you can haggle off of a list price on a car? like if there's a 25k car i want, do i even have a prayer of getting it to about 20 or should I change my expectations?
You definitely can get 10+ years on German cars, but it's the unexpected fixes that bite you in the ass like you said.
Haggling is quite easy. Look up how much the dealer actually pays for the car themselves and start from there. I suggest offering $500 above invoice. Getting a car for $500-$1000 over invoice is pretty easy to do during the desperate sales months. Your best bet is to find a good online forum such as E90Post (if you're going BMW) and ask the people there for help on best dealers and what not.
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Bumping this again. I'm looking to buy at or before december of this year because graduation got delayed.
I only want to spend $3,000 at most and I'm looking for used. I've been throwing out to a ton of people in my network I'm looking so hopefully a good deal comes along.
Let's limit the options here to a honda. I trust them, my family trusts them, and my gf's uncle works for a honda dealership (haven't talked to him yet) so I can get the lowdown on everything.
So new requirements:
Honda
$3,000 or less
7-10 years of required use, longer if lucky!
New Questions:
I'm a total greenhorn here. I've been doing a lot of reading and researching BUT please answer my questions like I know next to nothing. Be thorough and if I have any further questions I will ask!
When asking with private dealers, what specifically am I looking for? (if I found some guy on craigslist & called em up what would I do?)
+ Show Spoiler +On February 27 2012 14:53 Pawsom wrote:Show nested quote +On February 27 2012 14:44 KurtistheTurtle wrote:
When asking with private dealers, what specifically am I looking for? (if I found some guy on craigslist & called em up what would I do? All you can really do is check it out superficially, before you buy it you should take it to a mechanic and have them look at it for anything that needs to be fixed now or soon. If the seller is serious about selling he'll probly knock this off the cost of the car if you do buy it.
What are some good resources on buying used cars?
When I finally get the car what will I need to do?
What items and costs are associated with upkeep that I'll need to keep in mind (i.e. checkups, keeping handy shit in car like jumper cables, spare tire, first aid kit, etc etc)
Anything else you'd like to add?
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On February 27 2012 14:44 KurtistheTurtle wrote:
When asking with private dealers, what specifically am I looking for? (if I found some guy on craigslist & called em up what would I do?
All you can really do is check it out superficially, before you buy it you should take it to a mechanic and have them look at it for anything that needs to be fixed now or soon. If the seller is serious about selling he'll probly knock this off the cost of the car if you do buy it.
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EPT![[image loading]](http://imgur.com/F0jkc.jpg)
