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Arzakon posted:Most Japanese economy cars have an inflated resale value because idiots like to buy them and slap fartcans and huge wings on them and will pay extra for the privilege of doing it. For most people a well taken care of Civic will be the same thing as a well taken care of Focus but reputation/rice factor make the Honda worth more. I get that would be an annoying, vague question to ask. I've never visited that forum, so thanks for the advice. If you missed my original post up there, it was: "sell my car that has $9500 left to pay and buy something outright for around $2k." For 2K I just assumed it was understood I want something that gets from A to B reliably. I'll take your advice for car shopping. A good approach that totally makes sense. Thanks 
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Aug 30, 2011 04:57
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Dead serious if you can find one cheap and don't mind a bit of a hit on fuel mileage or a tiny cab - any 4cyl compact truck, especially a Ford Ranger - they're cheap to buy, cheap to run, and so simple there's nothing to break really.
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Sep 2, 2011 23:21
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I want to refinance my car loan with a credit union instead of the lovely bank the dealership stuck us with. Is there anything I should know before I dive in? I checked our loan paperwork, they say we can prepay without penalty, so that shouldn't be an issue. My only concern is that my FIL is primary on the loan and my husband is the co-signer (which we did to get a sliiiightly better interested rate). Will FIL need to approve it or be involved in the application process at all? We don't need him to sign on the new loan; since we bought the car originally, my husband's credit score has become very good and mine is excellent. Since we're essentially just taking out an entirely new loan to pay off the balance of the other, my instincts tell me FIL shouldn't need to be involved - but I'm not sure. Does anyone have any experience with this? EDIT: I should mention that FIL is also listed on the title with my husband. It was supposed to be me, but in the flurry of paperwork I didn't notice that the dealership screwed it up. Does this affect anything? Jessi Bond fucked around with this message at 01:06 on Sep 7, 2011 |
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Sep 7, 2011 01:01
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So I posted about a year ago and eventually decided to stick with my car for now. Well now it's dying. My outlook has also changed to not wanting a car. Unfortunately I need one for the next year or two. After that, I'll be living in a major city and will probably use a bicycle and public transit to get around. I'd like to stick with my beater, but it's not really worth it. The transmission is slipping frequently, and a spring (and some other stuff now) in the front right are making awful sounds. I got a vague estimate of 800$ to fix the transmission, but I've already put 3400$ in to a 1900$ car, and something new breaks every few months. I have [st]1000$[/st] 600$ saved up (deposit on a secured credit card) saved up right now, so I can't afford a used car, and I still probably won't get a loan with just a year on a secured credit card. I might be able to get one of my parents to cosign, but Should I get my transmission (and whatever else I can afford) fixed? Should I drive my car until it doesn't start and then get a used car? A new car?
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Sep 13, 2011 20:45
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What exactly is wrong with the transmission? Have you checked to see if its just low on fluid (assuming its an auto)?
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Sep 13, 2011 21:58
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Don Lapre posted:What exactly is wrong with the transmission? Have you checked to see if its just low on fluid (assuming its an auto)? Yeah, it's automatic. I checked it a couple months ago, but I suppose I should do that again now. Also the sound(s) only happen at <25mph (99% of the time). edit: checked, and it's not low, but I completely forgot that it's getting burned up for some reason (it's brown). Cortel fucked around with this message at 23:06 on Sep 13, 2011 |
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Sep 13, 2011 22:53
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Cortel posted:Yeah, it's automatic. I checked it a couple months ago, but I suppose I should do that again now. Also the sound(s) only happen at <25mph (99% of the time). How old is the fluid? You should be changing it every 30,000 miles. edit: Also if something is making noise it could just be a bad strut, which is a wear item and replacing it is part of regular maintenance Don Lapre fucked around with this message at 23:20 on Sep 13, 2011 |
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Sep 13, 2011 23:11
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You should probably just throw some Lucas in there and see how far it takes you. Sometimes trannies can last a while once they start slipping.
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Sep 13, 2011 23:43
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Corrupt Cypher posted:You should probably just throw some Lucas in there and see how far it takes you. Sometimes trannies can last a while once they start slipping. Hahahaha, it's not just starting to slip; it's really bad to the point where I just get annoyed it won't automatically shift out of first. How long would it take to replace a strut?
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Sep 14, 2011 01:53
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Cortel posted:How long would it take to replace a strut? This varies greatly from car to car. You might want to post in AI to see if you can get some help, and give some details!
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Sep 14, 2011 17:56
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Got a call today from my dealer. Said he was interested in buying back my 2010 Honda Pilot. Said I could have the same payment on a new 2012. I assume I lose in this deal, right? The way I see it is I owe about $20,000 left on my loan. They're offering me a new 2012 car for basically my original loan amount, $26,800. So that means I'm paying $6,800 for a new model. Which just doesn't seem worth it. I mean when I go to sell the car in 5-10 years, I'll get some extra money because it's 2012 and 2010, but no where near $6800. And I do get the benefit of the extra things the 2012 model offers, but I probably wouldn't pay more than maybe $500-$1000 for those.
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Sep 16, 2011 02:18
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Strict 9 posted:Got a call today from my dealer. Said he was interested in buying back my 2010 Honda Pilot. Said I could have the same payment on a new 2012. Do you really think the dealer would call you and make the offer if he wasn't going to come out ahead? I'd pass.
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Sep 16, 2011 02:58
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*double post*
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Sep 16, 2011 02:59
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Strict 9 posted:Got a call today from my dealer. Said he was interested in buying back my 2010 Honda Pilot. Said I could have the same payment on a new 2012. If you want to trade in your car then just trade in your car. The dealer that called isn't going to give you a special deal and doesn't actually need 2010 pilots regardless of what they tell you.
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Sep 16, 2011 06:13
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Don Lapre posted:If you want to trade in your car then just trade in your car. The dealer that called isn't going to give you a special deal and doesn't actually need 2010 pilots regardless of what they tell you. Thought so; thanks.
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Sep 17, 2011 21:01
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Current car loan: ~$4,500. Current cash on hand: $14,800 I've been holding out for a better investment opportunity but I'm not seeing one. Any reason to not just pay this off immediately and actually own my car? It's a 2008 Lancer GTS. I'm less than 2 years into the 5 year loan due to aggressive payments early on. I have no other debt and have been saving about $1k/month.
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Sep 18, 2011 08:55
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So I want to lease a car and here is why it is a great idea.  No but really, I am going to graduate in a year (oh god please let me graduate in a year), and I want to have something to drive for exactly one year. After that I will have a job (oh god please let me find a job) and very likely move. Moreover, I know exactly jack poo poo about cars (I have never owned one), so I am absolutely certain that if I try to get a used car I will get dicked with something that has hidden problems. I don't have the time to do the research it takes to get a good deal. Given that I need the flexibility and I don't have the know-how to get a good deal on a used car, it seems like leasing is the best way to go, right?... I have some questions about the exact mechanics of leasing. I understand that when you lease, the dealership calculates a residual, which is the projected value of the car at the end of the lease, given depreciation. At that time you have the option of buying the car for the amount of the residual, or returning it to the dealership. 1) Not counting interest, is the amount that you pay for the lease, plus the residual, equal to the price of buying the car outright, or is it more? E.g.: the price of the car is 15k (I want a really cheap car), and the residual is 5k. Does that mean you will have paid 10k over the period of the lease plus interest, or more than 10k? If more, where does that money go? Not depreciation because 10k represents the amount of depreciation over that time period. 2) Do you pay interest on the residual? Probably yes, if I were running a dealership I would make you pay interest on the residual, because time value of money etc. I am not really interested in paying interest, however. Could I perhaps pay for the cost of the car upfront, and then get the amount of the residual back at the end should I decide not to keep the car, and not pay interest? 3) Finally I would like to know very roughly how much a one year lease will be on a 15k-20k car. I saw that the MSRP for a new 2012 Honda Civic is about 16k. (This car is so famous for being cheap and reliable that even I, a complete car noob, knows of its existence. It's literally like the only car model that I know.) So how much would a lease on that be? Because if it's going to be like 5k then I might as well get a piece of poo poo car. Because then, at the end of 1 yr, at least I'll have a piece of poo poo car instead of jack poo poo.
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Sep 18, 2011 09:50
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Leasing a car for one year seems like a pretty bad idea. You're going to "own" the depreciation involved with driving the car off the lot, which is substantial. To that end, I would suspect the payments are going to be huge, even for a 20k car - the depreciation won't be spread across a longer leasing period, if that makes sense. To be honest I don't even know if dealers offer 1 year leases? I suppose they do because they can bend over dummies, but I haven't ever seen one on offer. I've never leased because I like to own, but I can tell you one thing, which I would consider the golden rule of leasing, which is "your goal is to drive the car off the lot with the minimum amount of cash outlayed. Do NOT put anything more than the minimum downpayment required down.
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Sep 18, 2011 12:47
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That sounds like a great rule if you're living paycheck to paycheck but my goal is to minimize my total payment over the entire course of the lease. I don't want to have to pay interest on the lease because I know I'm going to get dicked in the face. You're right about the first bit of depreciation being the biggest, though. Hmm.
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Sep 18, 2011 18:51
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chiyosdad posted:That sounds like a great rule if you're living paycheck to paycheck but my goal is to minimize my total payment over the entire course of the lease. I don't want to have to pay interest on the lease because I know I'm going to get dicked in the face. You're right about the first bit of depreciation being the biggest, though. Hmm. The car maker websites usually have calculators to figure out payments and stuff. Yes you pay interest on the residual. There are ways to offset this with luxury cars like BMWs and Audis, usually called a "multiple deposit" or some such, where you pay them money in the form of a deposit and get an interest offset, and at the end of the lease they return it to you. I don't think this is common with Hondas though. If you are OK with a $5k car then buy a $5k car. Hell why not buy a $3k car and save yourself $2k? If you have more time than money, go read AI and learn about cars and then you won't feel so lost with a used car.
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Sep 18, 2011 19:05
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I'm not sure you're going to find someone willing to lease you a car for one year. Even if you could, you're going to have the car during the biggest depreciation hit (the first year) and what your lease payment really covers is the deprecation and some for profit/financing. Why do you need a car so bad? How old are you / where do you live? Have you looked at rental options?
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Sep 18, 2011 19:22
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Throatwarbler posted:If you are OK with a $5k car then buy a $5k car. Hell why not buy a $3k car and save yourself $2k? If you have more time than money, go read AI and learn about cars and then you won't feel so lost with a used car. I don't in fact have time. If I can find a $3k car that is reliable and won't give me a lot of maintenance trouble I will gladly do that, but I can't invest the time to learn enough about cars to be able to do that. Daeus posted:I'm not sure you're going to find someone willing to lease you a car for one year. Even if you could, you're going to have the car during the biggest depreciation hit (the first year) and what your lease payment really covers is the deprecation and some for profit/financing. Well, yes, all lease payments cover the depreciation and some for profit/financing, no matter the length of the lease. I'm in my mid-20s, live in LA. What do you mean by rental options? Like renting a car? That will be much more expensive than leasing. It's at least 20 bucks a day, which is more than 6k a year. Unless there is some sort of rent by the month deal that I don't know about?
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Sep 18, 2011 20:55
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chiyosdad posted:Unless there is some sort of rent by the month deal that I don't know about? Zipcar or similar? I know they're in LA, although I'm not sure if it works out economically for you - those deals tend to be best for someone who doesn't need a car every single day all day. You don't necessarily need to know all that much to buy a decent used car. Be willing to take any used car you consider to a mechanic for a full inspection, and you're in good shape. If you want, you can run cars past us for opinions. Or maybe you can find an agent to buy you a good car? You say that you don't have time to learn about a good car for $3k. Honestly I think a good car in LA is going to be more like $4-5k, if by "good" you mean consistently reliable in LA traffic. For $3k you're going to get a car with a lot of miles on it which has (presumably) been driven for most of those miles in horrible LA stop-and-go traffic and heat. It's not impossible to get a reliable beater under those conditions of course, but you'll need to be patient. The best thing about buying a used car, though, especially at the $3k to $5k range, is that it will retain most of its value (unless you gently caress it up). So after your one year you can sell it for almost as much as you bought it for, and that offesets all of the higher maintenance costs and then some. Also, although the LA area will be full of high-mileage beaters, the best thing is it's a gigantic market. There are literally thousands of used cars for sale every day, so you have a large number to pick from. And, they'll all be pretty much rust-free, due to the climate, so the main things to look for will be something with OK miles (I'd say under 150k) that passes inspection by a mechanic and has no title problems (do not buy a car with a rebuilt or salvage title).
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Sep 18, 2011 21:10
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chiyosdad posted:
You weren't kidding when you said you didn't understand leases. You don't want to pay the depreciation hit and then only use the car for a year. On a $20k car consider you've got about $4k in drive it off the lot depreciation and then you've got to pay for whatever the year's use is going to cost. If you had the lease for 3 years that 4k would be spread along that timeframe. I suspect 1 year leases don't exist widely because there is no one dumb enough to sign them (or not enough dummies) My comment about down payments on a lease are geared toward risk. If you make a large downpayment to lower your monthly payments, and get in a an accident which results in the car being written off, you lose that downpayment. The insurance company will pay the owner (auto-maker) what the car is worth and you're hosed out of that downpayment. A "security deposit" is a little different and often is recoverable. If you're going to lease you need to understand this paragraph inside out.
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Sep 18, 2011 22:04
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Leperflesh posted:Zipcar or similar? I know they're in LA, although I'm not sure if it works out economically for you - those deals tend to be best for someone who doesn't need a car every single day all day. This is another very good point. If you live in LA, leasing is a super dumb option when you're driving 40 miles a day to get around. Why exactly do you need a car? Can you literally not get around to work at all or do you just want one for social purposes? I know its tough in LA without a car, but can you use the bus or trains? If so, you should suck it up, because it's going to hurt a lot less than leasing a car or outright renting for a year.
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Sep 19, 2011 00:02
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chiyosdad posted:Well, yes, all lease payments cover the depreciation and some for profit/financing, no matter the length of the lease. So you understand that your lease payment if for the depreciation, yet don't understand why we think it is a bad idea to lease the car for the first year which is where is takes far and away the biggest depreciation hit? All major car rentals have monthly terms available. Often you have to call a particular location to get a quote but I know several people who did month long rentals. With a rental like this you aren't responsible for car maintenance either which will include some costs over a year. If you don't need a car all the time, it can be much cheaper to just do zip car. Pay only for when you actually need it, and it starts are $8/hour and that includes everything (gas, maintenance, insurance, etc). This is probably the best option.
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Sep 19, 2011 05:46
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Daeus posted:So you understand that your lease payment if for the depreciation, yet don't understand why we think it is a bad idea to lease the car for the first year which is where is takes far and away the biggest depreciation hit? Zipcar in Los Angeles is pretty lovely and hard to use outside of a few lucky areas. You basically need a car of your own in this city, but his best option is to find a $3-5k car instead of leasing a new one.
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Sep 19, 2011 07:44
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Daeus posted:So you understand that your lease payment if for the depreciation, yet don't understand why we think it is a bad idea to lease the car for the first year which is where is takes far and away the biggest depreciation hit? I understand that a car depreciates the most during its first year. Where I'm coming from is that buying a used car is like rolling a die. Sometimes you get a good car, sometimes you get a piece of poo poo that will require a lot of repairs. I don't really want to have to deal with the possibility of having an unreliable car and the headache that comes with it, so I'd like to reduce that uncertainty. With a new car, I know what condition it will be in. I don't have the time to research how to buy a used car and I want the easy way out, basically. Edit: the easy way out being buying a new car. But there is no difference between buying a new car and leasing a new car because you take the hit in depreciation either way, etc. chiyosdad fucked around with this message at 08:34 on Sep 19, 2011 |
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Sep 19, 2011 08:27
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chiyosdad posted:That sounds like a great rule if you're living paycheck to paycheck but my goal is to minimize my total payment over the entire course quote:Sometimes you get a good car, sometimes you get a piece of poo poo that will require a lot of repairs. I don't really want to have to deal with the possibility of having an unreliable car and the headache that comes with it, so I'd like to reduce that uncertainty. You could learn in a couple hours how to find a reliable used car that will cost you less over the year than leasing a new Civic. Seriously, for the kind of budget you're effectively talking about, it'd be no sweat. Here's a thread that you could read in 10min that will prevent you from rolling 3 or lower or whatever your analogy needs to be. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3437928
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Sep 19, 2011 08:35
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Thanks for the tip about that thread! I looked in AI before but didn't see anything.
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Sep 19, 2011 10:27
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chiyosdad posted:Where I'm coming from is that buying a used car is like rolling a die. Sometimes you get a good car, sometimes you get a piece of poo poo that will require a lot of repairs. A little bit of knowledge will weight the dice an incredible amount in your favor. Find a car you like that is in your price range. Before you buy it, go home and research it. It might take 20 minutes. Find some automotive forums. Ask AI. Check consumer reports. No car is perfect. Go back to the car, and go over it keeping in mind what you read. Ask to take it to a mechanic (if they don't let you, this is a huge red flag by the way). Have the mechanic check it out, especially looking for the problem areas you found online. Maybe have a compression test done if you have a few bucks to spare. If everything checks out, go for it. Is it a waste of time if something comes up? Maybe. But it will save you either thousands of dollars in lease payments or thousands of dollars in repairs, which if that isn't worth a few hours of your time you must be making some serious money.
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Sep 19, 2011 13:52
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Spend $50 and have the used car looked over before you buy it. Even if you spent a thousand dollars in repairs you still didn't buy an expensive new car. When you are done with the used car, resell it for what you paid or keep it, its yours and paid off.
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Sep 19, 2011 17:21
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Also keep in mind that if you buy a reasonably reliable used car worth 5k (something like a late 90s Civic, Corolla, etc.), keep it in decent shape while you drive it for a year, and then sell it, you're going to get most/all of that 5k back. You'll have to pay for maintenance, but even in the worst case scenario of finding something serious and spending 1-2k to fix it, you still recoup most/all of that original 5k. Or hell, maybe you'll be in a position where keeping the car around is more useful than selling it for cash. It gives you flexibility. If you lease a car for 5k/yr, you've got nothing at the end of the year. I'm not one of those "NEVER EVER LEASE" people, as there are situations where it is a good option. This isn't one of them.
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Sep 20, 2011 00:21
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So here's my current auto/financial dilemma: Back in 2008 my father and I cosigned on a 2009 Hyundai Sonata. I forget the initial principal but I currently owe about $8500. According to KBB, the car is currently worth 12500. I feel I should take this opportunity to try and get rid of it and get some equity out of it. Here's what I'm planning. Pay the car off completely. Allow the car to remain titled to my father and I. -Start looking for a replacement car. -Purchase replacement car. -List the Sonata on craigslist. -Find a buyer. -Get the buyer to pay the fees in order to change the title. Pros: -The Sonata will be paid off and I'll save $300 bucks a month while I try to find another car and a buyer for the Sonata. -I may get some equity out of the sale. Cons: -?????? Any input would be appreciated.
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Sep 28, 2011 16:57
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Orange_Lazarus posted:Any input would be appreciated. Are you keeping up with maintenance, is the car in good repair overall? Are the monthly payments smothering you? If you can afford it and can pay it off in the next year or two, my vote is to keep the car. If it's been a money pit and unreliable, then get rid of it.
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Sep 28, 2011 17:03
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I've never had a problem with the car, I keep up with the scheduled maintenance and the mileage is between 40-41k. The wife and I have about $20k sitting in our savings account and we're about to get 5-10k back from a family member we loaned money to. So we can definitely afford to pay the car off and we would be able to net an additional $300 monthly since we would no longer have the car payment. Not to mention the insurance savings which I haven't factored in yet. Thanks, ^, V and VV. I'm going to talk about this with the wife tonight. Sephiroth_IRA fucked around with this message at 17:26 on Sep 28, 2011 |
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Sep 28, 2011 17:08
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A 2008 Sonata with only 40k miles has A LOT of life left in it. If you take care of it, it's got another 10 years/100k miles in it at the very least. A good condition, reliable car that you have owned and know the history of is a very valuable thing if you depend on a car. Selling it and buying some unknown, older used car is a big gamble that could very easily end up costing you more than you 'save' by selling the Hyundai. The devil you know versus the devil you don't. From a strictly financial perspective, unless the payments are killing you, just hang on to what you've got. Of course there are other valid reasons for wanting to swap cars (being a car enthusiast, needing a different style for hobbies/family, etc.), but if your car to you is just an appliance that takes you from point A to point B you've already got exactly what you need. If you can afford to pay off the balance of the loan right now, just do that and enjoy owning the car outright with no more monthly payments. Maintain it and drive it for as long as it continues to be reliable (likely years and years). Also, don't count on getting book value for a used Hyundai on craigslist, or anywhere for that matter. Guinness fucked around with this message at 17:20 on Sep 28, 2011 |
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Sep 28, 2011 17:14
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If you don't have experience with getting a decent buyer on CL, I would be careful with how much time you've modeled for having to keep both the replacement car and the Sonata. At the very least, see what other like Sonatas are going for on CL. What are you looking for in a replacement car, exactly?
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Sep 28, 2011 17:15
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Keep the sonata. Nothing better than a paid off car.
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Sep 28, 2011 17:28
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Orange_Lazarus posted:So here's my current auto/financial dilemma: Doesn't that car still have multiple years of warranty left? If I recall correctly the warranty only transfers if the car is purchased used from a Hyundai dealer so it would be kinda silly for someone to purchase it off Craigslist. I'd probably keep it. It's too bad the 2010's got redesigned and look 20x better though.
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Sep 29, 2011 06:26
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