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This may be better suited to the AI sub forum, but I'm in a bit of a predicament with regards to my truck. Water is getting into the combustion chamber of my 96 Toyota T100, and my mechanic thinks it could either be the heads or a crack in the block. He's thinking a rebuilt might be the best option, because I could spend a bit of cash getting the heads fixed only to find out it's the crack in the block that's letting water in. So I'm left with the dilemma of spending the money keeping my 14 year old truck running, or spending twice (or 3) times as much getting a newer (2000 - 2005ish) truck. I love my truck, and while there are a few things wrong with it (bit of rust, ac/heater not working, dog chewed a few of the console knobs) it gets the job done. I'm just hesitant about rebuilding the engine only to have the transmission or timing belt need replacing in a year. I plan on getting a few quotes for the rebuilt engine, as well as the cost of any major work that might need to get done within the next 2-3 years (just had the front ball joints done, but as I mentioned, I'm not too confident in the transmission or timing belt, as well as possibly new leaf springs). How should I compare these costs with a newer truck. I'm trying to look at this from the best dollars and cents point of view. If I can keep my current truck running at half the cost of a newer used truck, is it worth it to start looking at Craigslist ads?
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Jun 28, 2010 02:36
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What's a good ratio of car payment to income? I might be looking at buying a truck soon, and although I was originally looking at a 3-4 year old truck with low km's, the American companies are selling their trucks for cheap. I'm finding alot of 05-07 trucks on the market are the higher trim lines, whereas base trim lines of the 2010 trucks are only a couple grand more.
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Jul 4, 2010 08:09
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slap me silly posted:Zero. Zero is a good ratio. Jesus. Don't shop for cars by monthly payment. If you need a car and don't have the cash for it, buy cheap and take out the smallest loan you can manage. Your right. I just started doing independent sub-contracting, so I think my biggest problem is to start separating personal and business income a bit better ect ect, but that could be for another thread. I have personal mutual funds and stuff, but at this point it's more of a cash flow issue. Just invested a lot into tools and my truck just died. I need a truck for business, and although I personally have about $5-6 for a truck, I was looking at financing a brand new truck for it's warranty and image. (It sounds vein, but image means alot in the area I'm selling jobs (unless your a landscaper I guess). Reggie Died fucked around with this message at 17:47 on Jul 4, 2010 |
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Jul 4, 2010 17:44
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slap me silly posted:Well, I see where you're coming from. I still suggest you try to keep it cheap. How much is a $6k truck really going to damage business considering you already have a good rep? If you get a newer truck, don't go overboard just because you're able to get a loan. That monthly payment seems low at first but really starts to eat at you after a while. See what you can comfortably manage with a 3-year loan, don't stretch it out any longer than that, and be sure you get a good price on the truck and a good interest rate. I see your point, and I think I oversold how important image is in my last post. My main concern is with the reliability of a used truck. Up in Vancouver, $6k can buy you a late 90's F150 with ~150-200km on it. And I'm sure that'll last a long time. But I'm coming from a 96 Toyota T100, which I thought would be really reliable but has bitten me in the rear end over the 3 years I've owned it, despite proper maintenance ect. That's why I'm starting to look at 4-5 year old trucks with 50-100km. I'm just having difficulty finding such a truck that is significantly cheaper than buying brand new once you take into account the $9-$12k incentives that Ford and GMC are offering right now. I'm actually going to check out a 89 F150 later this afternoon, asking $1500 with under 100k. I can buy that with cash and start saving up for a newer truck. But right now I'm working 4 projects/7 days a week, and a few days without a truck can really screw up my timelines.
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Jul 4, 2010 20:03
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slap me silly posted:If you do get a loan, I would suggest to limit the price to ~$15k, and make it a 3 year term. At least it sounds like you see all the angles though. I'm doing my best to search out all the scenarios. Thanks for the feedback. You probably assumed this but whatever I do, I should be able to write off ~80% as a business expense, if that makes any difference.
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Jul 4, 2010 22:56
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With the price of gas rising and the price of new trucks falling, I was hoping to get some advice on my current situation. I'm definitely leaning one way but I'm confused and could use some insight. I currently drive a 1996 Toyota T100 which just hit the 300,000km mark (100,000km on engine). I was tweaking my Microsoft Money files, and found out I spent nearly $500/month on maintenance in the past 12 months on this thing. This is artificially high because it includes a major item (used engine), items which won't have to be done any time soon (new rad, plugs and wires, front ball joints), as well as wear and tear items which would have to be done to any vehicle I own (new tires, front brakes, oil changes). I replaced the engine a few months ago because I knew I could sell my truck for more than the engine repair cost, but it would be worth next to nothing without a working engine. I'm now setting money aside for a new timing belt/water pump, some front end work (shocks) and a canopy. There's also some rust on the rear wheel which I want to get rid of, since it's been rapidly getting worse. I love my truck, and since I know it's history for the past 4 years, I feel it'd be stupid to replace it with anything used. But for $400/month, I can get fairly well equipped F150/Silverado/Ram on a 4 year plan. I could probably have the truck paid off before the warranty expires. At what point is it a bad financial decision to stop sinking money into a 16year old vehicle?
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Mar 12, 2011 08:27
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MrAmazing posted:You should looking at the differential costs going forward, not what you spent in the last year. Obviously past costs are predictive of future costs, but any truck would need tires and you shouldn't need to replace the engine or the radiator for the life of the vehicle now. Including it in the monthly maintenance inflates the costs going forward and would justify buying a newer vehicle when it isn't necessary. Your right, which is why I mentioned it was artificially high. I know the timing belt will have to be replaced, and I want/need a canopy for work, so those are some hard numbers I should evaluate and use when comparing new vs used. I haven't looked into insurance, but I'm assuming it'll be $20-40 more/month. Gas is somewhat irrelevant because I get comped for my gas (which is 80% of my driving). I did some quick maths the other day, and it costs me ~$875 in gas for every 5,000km. I get reinbursed $1,500 for every 5,000 work related km ($0.3/km....it's low but better than nothing). After the cost of an oil change that leaves about $575 that goes towards truck maintenance. Switching to a V8 changes all that. But I'll probably need a bigger truck in the next few years anyway, if work and my job descrition keeps increasing at the pace it has. I might go back to the drawing board and look at the possibility of becoming a sub-contractor. Would that change much between new vs used (in so much as both payments and maintenance would be partial tax write offs)?
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Mar 12, 2011 18:38
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Tell me about it. Which is why I'm leaning towards just keeping my current truck. While my truck is mainly used for work, it's also my only personal vehicle. My current Toyota is in great shape cosmetically (aside from a bit of wheel well rust), so I wouldn't want to go out and buy an old beater. I also don't chuck oil drums in the back or have a fork lift drop pallets of tile into the rear. It's mainly to haul my tools around, occasionally pick up some materials. My boss has a trailer for garbage, which I don't use since my truck is a v6 and isn't geared towards trailering. If it was only a work vehicle I'd buy a van.
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Mar 12, 2011 18:57
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I appreciate all the input and different perspectives. It's why I posted. Leaperfish, you are correct. However, here are my thoughts and you can tell me where I'm wrong. I currently have a 15 year old truck with a relatively fresh engine, new ball joints, rad, breaks(front and back) and other things I can't remember off the top of my head. My point is that i know the history. I fear that buying any kind of 5-10 year old used truck might bring with it unforeseen problems, and I'd be back at square one. I could go a bit younger, say a 3 or 4 year old lease return that is still under warranty but has already seen some substantial depreciation. This was my first intention, though I've been having a very hard time finding Ext cab and 4x4(most of what I've found has either been high end trim line in crew cab or reg cab rwd). Of the trucks ive found that fit into my search criteria, they are only 2-3grand cheaper than buying their brand new counterpart, with a shorter warranty. After typing it all out I'm starting to think im over thinking things. I've never had a car payment in my life, and I should probably keep it that way.
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Mar 13, 2011 02:26
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Leperflesh posted:The only other thing that confuses me a bit, is that you mentioned back in your original post that you were concerned about fuel economy. Frankly, you will not find a truck that gets good fuel economy. You can maybe do a little better than your old truck, but 23MPG is still poo poo. Really, really poo poo compared to virtually any economical compact car. It sounds to me like you might be well off getting a compact fuel-efficient car for all non-work driving, and keep using your truck for work. Fewer miles on the truck will reduce the monthly maintenance costs, and the car will help keep fuel costs down. Of course that means paying insurance on two cars, and parking two cars, etc., so I can understand if it's really not an option for you. Sorry for the confusion. I'm not concerned about fuel economy in the sense that I want a more efficient vehicle to offset the cost. I was just thinking that the recent spike might have been a reason for the bigger discount on trucks Ive seen recently (at least from the big 3). I'm sure there are other factors in play as well. And your right that I'm overly paranoid about used vehicles, but I think that comes from my current truck. The engine blew with pretty much no warning, despite being in what I thought was pretty good condition prior. It caught me off guard financially, since I had alot of my money tied up in new tools at the time. From personal anecdotes, I've had a coworker spend a grand just getting spark plugs pulled from his 5.4l F150, and a sub have the transmission on his 2 year old Sierra require a rebuild. Leperflesh posted:So I guess what I'd suggest is take a few weeks to really look in earnest at the used market. If you're just not finding what you want, then you can always revisit the idea of a new truck instead. I've been looking since my engine was replaced ~6months ago, almost obsessively so. I've always had the frame of mind that "new vehicle = poor financial choice", but my findings haven't really indicated that. It was my main reason for posting. I think that I might have better luck applying your advice to the American used market, because re-sale value of trucks in Canada is still relatively high to their *newer* counterparts. Eventually I'll need a bigger truck / replace my aging Toyota. I'm just trying to be as proactive about it as possible. Being without a vehicle for any length of time means no income. For the time being, I'm happy with my current truck. I just don't know long I should be putting money into it. Every dollar I put into it is lost (won't increase the re-sale value) whereas every dollar I put into a car payment is partly paying interest and partly paying for a depreciating asset. It's lose lose! Case in point, I'm about to spend $600-$1000 on a used canopy, which adds little to no resale value of my truck. Though it'll save me time in the long run from tarping up my tools every day its raining, so I guess in that sense it's priceless.
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Mar 14, 2011 16:02
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That's the plan, though it hasn't been going so smoothly. I put aside $100/month for maintenance and $500/month for new truck savings. Have been doing the savings since the engine replacement, but I had to pull from that for the post engine items because the maintenance fund was depleted for the engine. Once I buy a canopy it'll be pretty much empty but I will keep it up.
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Mar 14, 2011 16:42
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CornHolio posted:Wait, I always thought that if an insurance company totaled the car and paid you the value less deductible, that the car was then their property and if you wanted to keep it you had to pay something like 10% of the value back? I *think* that occurs when the car is a write off. If the car is repairable, he will keep the car and the check for repairs (even if not done).
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Aug 13, 2011 21:21
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I'm looking for a little advice, plus an excuse to write down everything in my head for some clarity. I currently own a 1996 Toyota T100 w/200,000miles (62,000 miles on used engine). It was bought used by my parents when we did a full renovation on their house. It was bought to assist with the big project, but it was "gifted" to me afterwards (an exchange for an ungodly amount of free labour) and I have been driving it daily for the past 3 years. Over those 3 years I have spent a good deal of money on it, but have kept it in good shape. Replaced the motor, radiotor, water pump, ball bearings, rear brake drums, new set of tires and just recently a new set of front pads/rotors. I have all the receipts. Unfortunately, it's starting to show signs of rust around the wheel wells. Typical toyota, the paint is starting to bubble right above the wells. Because of this, I'm considering getting out of this vehicle before the rust spreads and drastically reduces the re-sell value. Is that a good justification, or am I just trying to rationalize getting something newer? I'm having a hard time finding a realistic asking price for my truck as it stands, since the T100 is relatively rare, and most of the ads I can find are American. In Canada, especially BC, Toyota trucks have a huge mark up, and I have seen my truck go for insane prices (8-10k) in the past. However, if the rust spreads exponentially in the next 2 years, I might get 2k for it as a work truck. I was originally looking for full size trucks, but anything that fits my criteria (3-4 years old, very limited km, 4x4, extended cab) is looking to be 18-22k minium. I'm now looking at Rangers, and can find 2009-2010's with under 20km for 12-15kish. I know an extended cab Ranger is pratically a single cab F150 when it comes to rear seats, but the rear seats in my T100 are never used except for storing tools. From a financial POV, I currently have about 9k cash on hand, and make 2,800 post tax/month. In Aug of 2010, when I replaced the engine, I started setting aside $500/month, to see how manageable it would be to have a car payment. It was tight but doable, but since I'm now looking at a compact truck, this has giving me a sizable downpayment. I also have a ~75k inheritance but have earmarked that for retirement or a house down payment. I have the next week off, and plan to use that time to test drive some vehicles and get a ball park figure for what I can get for my current truck. I also have to make sure a Ranger fits the bill, since I will be using it to transport all my tools on a daily basis. They are not heavy enough to justify getting a V8, but might not all fit into a Ranger's narrow box.
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Dec 25, 2011 18:14
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Well the new V6 Ecoboost is a bit out of my price range, but when I started looking a V6 F150 was on the top of the list. Did the 4.6l V6(either manual or auto) come in 4x4 ext or just regular? Either way in my area, I would argue a v6 150 is harder to find than an 4-banger Ranger. I have heard the 4.6l V8 is almost on par with the 4.0l v6 on the highway, though takes a bit of a hit in city driving (which is most of what I do). Gas isn't a "huge" deal for me, because most of my miles are reimbursed. I only get about ~16 mpg in my Toyota anyways. But to fill my base requirements (4x4, ext cab, less than ~30,000kmk, less than ~4 years old) I'm looking at around 20-22k for an F150, unless I remove 4x4 (have been thinking really hard as to whether or not I need 4x4) or up the KM to the ~80,000 range, in which case I feel I'm better off sticking with my Toyota. I probably could afford the price bump to an F150, but I'm really hesitant to spend that much. This sub-forum has broken me (or fixed me). Reggie Died fucked around with this message at 18:10 on Dec 27, 2011 |
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Dec 27, 2011 17:53
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At what point should an old car be abandoned? I have a 17 year old vehicle with ~350K KM (220K miles), with a slightly newer engine (100k KM). It's looking like the front end now needs some substantial work, to the tune of maybe $800-$1000. It looks sharp for it's age, fairly clean, and drives well, but it also recently failed aircare (which will probably be $500-$600 worth of repairs if I can't circumvent the system). It also has the following wrong with it; - no front passenger seatbelt (incident with the dog...Toyota wants $300 for a new one and I can't for the life of me find one at a junker) - the windshield wipers work, but I can't spray fluid. It's only really a big deal during the winter months when salt/soot spray up from the road, limiting visiblity in the sun and forcing me to pull over and windex. During the summer I wash it weekly, and if it get's really bad I just head to the gas station - AC broken (don't really care as I've never owned a car with AC), but the volume controls for the heater are touch and go, which gets annoying when it's raining and the cab fogs up - it cannot be taken out of OD (i've been told by my mechanic and a transmission specialist that it's not a big deal and probably not worth the headache of fixing) - 3.4L V6 offers adequate power and speed for my needs, but I'm sure something newer would be more fuel efficient On a positive note, it fits all my needs, looks great, relatively cheap to insure, and is bought and paid for. On the flip side, I've been researching and monitoring prices on the used truck market, and it appears that $20k seems to be the sweet spot for age/km to price ratio. In Canadian dollars, this would get me a 2-3 year old ext cab truck, with under 20,000KM, in a fairly basic trim level. Would that be a stretch on a average monthly income of 5k gross (roughly 4k net). After rent and other mandatory bills, I'm typically left with $1,500/month, which used to go towards debt but now goes towards savings.
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Jan 24, 2013 06:52
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I've re-read the previous posts for leases, and was wondering if any Canadian goons knew how similar it would be up north? Basically, my 17 year old truck with 350kms is back at the shop (alternator sheared off from front engine block, wtf?), and while it will almost always be cheaper to keep it and make these small repairs, the need for reliability is starting to outweigh my love for the truck. I'm looking at two options, and was hoping for some advice and feed back as it's all very overwhelming. A) Spend 18-22k on a lightly used truck with low km's (2011 or newer, under 25kms, probably a somewhat loaded Ranger or lower trim F150). B) Have my boss lease me a company vehicle, splitting the cost 50/50, and paying my portion with pre-tax dollars. Also, payments would come out of my bonus's, not salary, which would help with monthly cash flow (My payment structure is somewhat bizarre, and can go into further detail if needed, but I'm 50k/year salary, plus 2.5% bonus of gross revue of each job I manage, paid upon completion. This results in small monthly bonuses, 2-3k bonuses every few months, and usually a sizable bonus at least once a year). I would also have priority to buy back the truck at end of term, with the benefit of having only paid 50% of the monthly payments, thus only half of the depreciation.
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Nov 16, 2013 19:29
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| # ¿ Apr 26, 2024 07:11 |
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Uncle Jam posted:How much is bonus taxed in Canada and can you pre-tax draw from bonuses? Someone can correct me as I'm not an accountant, but pretty sure bonus's in Canada are counted as any other income, so the with holdings will vary based on tax bracket. For instance, my last bonus of $4200 came to ~ $2,300 after taxes. The lease payment would be deducted before the bonus was assigned. For instance; there was a 3 month window between my last two bonsues, so under this plan, my pre-tax bonus would have been $3,300. - 600/month lease split 50/50 = $300/month - 300 x 3 months = $900 I somewhat see your *risk* as a benefit, to be honest. If the job were to go away, I would be free and clear of any obligations, compared to financing a vehicle personally. I could then asses my financial situation and see how much vehicle I could afford at that point in my life. I would, of course, be out of pocket whatever lease payments I made. I think I need to figure out how much $300 pre-tax is worth post-tax, and asses the situation from there.
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Nov 16, 2013 22:32
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