Car Payments

[simpleyme]

Drive Free, Retire Rich

watch the video it is good

(it is a little out of date but the message itself is solid )

[mommyof4]

I'm paying $230/mo for my 2006 Huyndai Elantra. It's a great car, only cost me 15k to begin with, and I've had no problems with it. I bought it used with only 1500 miles on it, and I got a good deal. I should be done in 24 months.

[tripods68]

Drive Free, Retire Rich

watch the video it is good

(it is a little out of date but the message itself is solid )

A great Dave Ramsey video A great lesson to learn.

[EEinNJ]

I haven't had a car payment since 1997, 2 yr lease on a Taurus SHO was 400/month. Nice car but a bad deal financially. Never again. Instead, I save $400 a month, and pay cash when it's time to buy. I bought used a few times, but if you don't get a good one, you'll spend just as much in repairs. Just keep saving, don't buy expensive cars, and eventually payments will be a thing of the past. Don't tell the Big 3, they're kinda sore about this idea

[Caoineag]

Our goal is to be car payment free and so we paid cash in full for our vehicle and will probably do the same for the next one (I don't like monthly bills so I tend to minimize them as much as possible). That said, I think 36 months would be the best option if you have to finance.

I think we will try to buy new for the next one but we will see when we get to that point. Currently our 300k+ mile Subaru is doing just fine.

[GREENBACK]

. I bought used a few times, but if you don't get a good one, you'll spend just as much in repairs.

Even though you obviously want something reliable and in good mechanical shape I'm not sure if this is fully accurate. If you pay 400/mo. for a vehicle for five years that's 24k. You can do a lot of car repairs for that amount and that doesn't take into account the repairs on the newer vehicle.

[disneysteve]

Even though you obviously want something reliable and in good mechanical shape I'm not sure if this is fully accurate. If you pay 400/mo. for a vehicle for five years that's 24k. You can do a lot of car repairs for that amount and that doesn't take into account the repairs on the newer vehicle.

I agree. Every time I do some repair on my car (a 1998 Camry), someone asks me why I don't just replace it. Let's say I spend $1,200/year on repairs. That's $100/month. I ask them to show me which new car I can get for $100/month. None that I know of.

[autoxer]

Three years ago, I was paying $460/month on a 5 year loan for a new car. I sold that car and for the past two years I have been driving a car that I bought for $1750. I love cars, but it didn't feel like a big downgrade to me. My 'jalopy' has a sunroof, a CD player, and a fun 5 speed transmission. I don't care if it makes funny noises or I have to roll the windows down manually. I don't think that it has depreciated at all, while I 'spent' about $10k in depreciation in the car that I bought new.

[Mr Hopkins]

We have a 09 Ford Fusion SE V6; we bought it new on a 5 year note for $416/month. We also have a 99 Pontiac we bought 7/02 for 16k. It ran $300/month on (I think) a 5 year note with 23k on the clock. You take a big hit when you buy new but if you keep it for a long time I think its worth it. As long as you take care of it, it should be less headache in the future.

[SavingCash]

2001 Hyundai Accent bought used in 2002 with 12k miles on it. Payment was around $150 per month. It's been paid off for years now and still kicking.

[project15]

03 VW GTI. Financed in August 2006 for $15k with $2k down payment for 60 months at a min payment of around $275. Just paid it off this week for a total of 30 months!

Both cars are paid off now! It feels great. We're currently funding our "future car" fund so we can pay cash or a significant down payment in about 5-7 years.

[mommyof4]

2001 Hyundai Accent bought used in 2002 with 12k miles on it. Payment was around $150 per month. It's been paid off for years now and still kicking.

Those Huyndais are great little cars. Not fancy, but they are very reliable, and get good gas mileage, too.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I agree it's cheaper to repair my corolla than replace it. Unless it's totaled, knock on wood. But I think I want to replace the focus in 2-3 years.

[Tree0164]

I like to only fiannce cars for 36 months with no bigger than a $250 car payment per month. We buy used 3-4 years old with no more than 50k on the car.

We will probably have to buy a new to us car since we have 1996 (bought in 1999) with 110k on it and 2001 (bought in 2005) with 50k. While not on its last legs the 96 is starting to show its age in repair needs.

I really don't want to take a car loan out for the next car-I got about 10k that I can either pay cash or do a downpayment on.

[asmom]

Lemme see,

I forget the actual purchase price but my monthly payments were $442/mo for a 5-year loan at 4.25% interest. I paid it off in just over 3 years. And yes, I see no reason to buy new again.