fueledbymike Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 So it’s time for me to be purchasing my own car! And I’m coming here looking for some tips, advice, or problems you had when purchasing your first car. I will be student teaching a 3rd grade class this spring and will need a way to get to school. 1. Budgeting… I have about $8,000 saved up from the past 5 years of summer work, and have a for sure summer job where ill be making at least $7,000. Although idk how much you guys know about Illinois education but its in the shit hole, so I have NO idea if I’ll be able to get a job. Being a male I have a better chance than most bust most schools have little to no jobs even available…. So in turn I'm not sure on how much I want to spend on a new car. I plan on living at home for a year so I can save money and hopefully pay off most of my car. What would be a good payment plan… how many months.. etc. 2. When looking ive been looking into used Honda Civics priced about $12,000 - $14,000. I want a cheaper car and have heard great things from Civics (cheap, last a long time, decent gas mileage). Think this would be a good car, or other recommendations? 3. I was also looking at used Toyota Prius’s priced around 1$8,000 – $20,000. I’ve always loved this car but without knowing if I’ll be able to get a full time job in the fall I'm not sure I want to be risking putting this much down a car. 4. Have you guys had any issues with certified pre owned vs used 5. Lastly dealers vs individual buyers pros/cons? Hopefully you guys can give me some tips and move me in the right direction Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dynamitekid Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 I would look into subaru's too. I love mine. But i've heard nothing but good things about Honda's. Hyundai might also be a good way to go because they have a long warranty and are cheaper for a new car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icecream Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 you should have no problem finding a good used car in the paper/craigslist for 5-6 grand. also when going to look at the cars take someone who is pretty knowledgeable on the subject with ya. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fueledbymike Posted October 22, 2010 Author Share Posted October 22, 2010 you should have no problem finding a good used car in the paper/craigslist for 5-6 grand.also when going to look at the cars take someone who is pretty knowledgeable on the subject with ya. One thing I'm worried about with craigslist though is getting a car and it having problems a month or two down the road. Should i have my local autoshop look it over for me and see if they can spot out any issues? I'm not sure i trust people enough to just give them money right away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markalark17 Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 Chrysler LeBaron convertible. Done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icecream Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 you should have no problem finding a good used car in the paper/craigslist for 5-6 grand.also when going to look at the cars take someone who is pretty knowledgeable on the subject with ya. One thing I'm worried about with craigslist though is getting a car and it having problems a month or two down the road. Should i have my local auto shop look it over for me and see if they can spot out any issues? I'm not sure i trust people enough to just give them money right away. well i mean this is just all opinion but if you have someone with you who is pretty handy with cars they can give you an idea. but like you said it's always a good idea to get a trusted mechanic to check it out & also if you are still iffy a carfax report. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 nissan sentras are great. i love mine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick6ten Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 I was able to get a used 2001 Prius, from the Toyota dealer for under $8000. I'm not a big fan of the body style, but it kills on gas mileage. Right now I'm getting about 44mpg. I'm sure if you looked around enough you could find a similar deal. Highly recommended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattisr1984 Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 dont go to a dealership by yourself. car salesman will inherently try to fuck you over. bring a friend you trust, a sibling, a parent or a combination of the above - even better if they're somebody with car buying experience. im not trying to scare you. im just saying that car salesman are scum. dont let them play games with you and dont give the impression you are desperate for a car. thats a bad combination. also: try to get pre-approved through your bank (or another) for an auto loan BEFORE you go to a dealership and at what interest rate. unless youre getting 0% financing through the dealer, you will likely get a lower rate from your bank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olmec Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 Chrysler LeBaron convertible. Done. I only see one Le Baron, Freddy... I only see, I don't see two Le Barons... Where's YOUR Le Baron, Freddy? Where's your Le Baron? How many Le Barons? Are there TWO Le Barons?... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kittenmittons Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 nissan sentras are great. i love mine really? my bff has one and it's a total piece! his 2002 sentra is in the shop every other week it seems. my 97 sunfire is holding up better than his car! i gotta give pontiac props bc i've had very VERY few problems with my car over the past 8 years. i got it used with 69k on it for 6 grandish. i've heard the quality has gone downhill in the past few years though. also you may not know it or not but you want cruise control. trust. i don't have power locks/doors and cool with it, but i would knife a motherfucker for cruise control some days. seriously. two doors (coupes) will run you more on insurance so head for a sedan espesh being under 25 and male. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fueledbymike Posted October 22, 2010 Author Share Posted October 22, 2010 I was able to get a used 2001 Prius, from the Toyota dealer for under $8000. I'm not a big fan of the body style, but it kills on gas mileage. Right now I'm getting about 44mpg. I'm sure if you looked around enough you could find a similar deal. Highly recommended. Yea ive been checking mostly 05's and have found a few that are decent deals. And im with you not the biggest fan of the body but love the gas mileage and the inside is comfortable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fueledbymike Posted October 22, 2010 Author Share Posted October 22, 2010 dont go to a dealership by yourself. car salesman will inherently try to fuck you over. bring a friend you trust, a sibling, a parent or a combination of the above - even better if they're somebody with car buying experience. im not trying to scare you. im just saying that car salesman are scum. dont let them play games with you and dont give the impression you are desperate for a car. thats a bad combination. also: try to get pre-approved through your bank (or another) for an auto loan BEFORE you go to a dealership and at what interest rate. unless youre getting 0% financing through the dealer, you will likely get a lower rate from your bank. Thats what ive heard, but its actually one of the main reasons ive been excited to buy a car. I wana try my shot at it and really see how much i can save by talking down a salesman and saving as much as i can. I wana do my research and try to get some offers out of it. The "kids" car me and my sister share is a ford taurus and my dad was able to get free oil changes for about 4 or 5 years and i think one of the scheduled maintenance's covered, instead of knocking off say $500 I feel like i would try to weave in stuff like that because it saves you money by not having to pay for maintenance and more convincing to them because they dont lose as much. who knows but its something i feel like i may be good at. (at least in my head) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adammuzzy Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 TDI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattisr1984 Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 dont go to a dealership by yourself. car salesman will inherently try to fuck you over. bring a friend you trust, a sibling, a parent or a combination of the above - even better if they're somebody with car buying experience. im not trying to scare you. im just saying that car salesman are scum. dont let them play games with you and dont give the impression you are desperate for a car. thats a bad combination. also: try to get pre-approved through your bank (or another) for an auto loan BEFORE you go to a dealership and at what interest rate. unless youre getting 0% financing through the dealer, you will likely get a lower rate from your bank. Thats what ive heard, but its actually one of the main reasons ive been excited to buy a car. I wana try my shot at it and really see how much i can save by talking down a salesman and saving as much as i can. I wana do my research and try to get some offers out of it. The "kids" car me and my sister share is a ford taurus and my dad was able to get free oil changes for about 4 or 5 years and i think one of the scheduled maintenance's covered, instead of knocking off say $500 I feel like i would try to weave in stuff like that because it saves you money by not having to pay for maintenance and more convincing to them because they dont lose as much. who knows but its something i feel like i may be good at. (at least in my head) yeah, im not saying to let somebody do the talking on your behalf. you'll need to do it anyway. im just saying having an extra, more experienced set of eyes and ears will help you. car salesmen are high pressure and you really have to stick to your guns or they will swarm you (especially if you try to leave without actually buying). if you feel you may cave by yourself, it would be good to have somebody with you. thats all im saying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cesar11 Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 I have a Toyota Solara and I absolutely love it. Great on gas (I've driven from LA to San Fran on a full tank and only used up half of the gas. Same thing when driving to Vegas) and run smoothly. Never had any serious problems with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papermonsters Posted October 23, 2010 Share Posted October 23, 2010 I drive a fucking cougar. I lose at life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeian Posted October 23, 2010 Share Posted October 23, 2010 nissan sentras are great. i love mine really? my bff has one and it's a total piece! his 2002 sentra is in the shop every other week it seems. my 97 sunfire is holding up better than his car! i gotta give pontiac props bc i've had very VERY few problems with my car over the past 8 years. i got it used with 69k on it for 6 grandish. i've heard the quality has gone downhill in the past few years though. also you may not know it or not but you want cruise control. trust. i don't have power locks/doors and cool with it, but i would knife a motherfucker for cruise control some days. seriously. two doors (coupes) will run you more on insurance so head for a sedan espesh being under 25 and male. i just went 180k miles on my 2002 sentra. it has had a couple problems, but i drive a decent amount and it's still running great. i really like it, and if i could put 100k more miles on it, then i probably would. my main problem with it now is that the paint's giving up on me and i need to buy new tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kittenmittons Posted October 23, 2010 Share Posted October 23, 2010 really? my bff has one and it's a total piece! his 2002 sentra is in the shop every other week it seems. my 97 sunfire is holding up better than his car! i gotta give pontiac props bc i've had very VERY few problems with my car over the past 8 years. i got it used with 69k on it for 6 grandish. i've heard the quality has gone downhill in the past few years though. also you may not know it or not but you want cruise control. trust. i don't have power locks/doors and cool with it, but i would knife a motherfucker for cruise control some days. seriously. two doors (coupes) will run you more on insurance so head for a sedan espesh being under 25 and male. i just went 180k miles on my 2002 sentra. it has had a couple problems, but i drive a decent amount and it's still running great. i really like it, and if i could put 100k more miles on it, then i probably would. my main problem with it now is that the paint's giving up on me and i need to buy new tires. i'm starting to think my friend just drives it like an asshole bc i see sentras all over the place *shrugs* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goraiders Posted October 23, 2010 Share Posted October 23, 2010 honda civic '89wagon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyIceyo Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Go to a dealer that specializes in a car. When i bought mine, I looked at used car places. I then went to a dealer that only sells said make of vehicle. I was able to get 100,000 mile warranty, free oil changes, gotten any problem fixed, etc etc. I would never go to any random used car lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourfourtwo Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Get a used Volvo. Those things are fucking tanks. Last forever. I have a 2004 Honda Accord that I got for $12,000 and 55k miles and it is a beauty. It's gone 2 years with no problems and survived multiple 600+ (even a 1500) mile road trips. Just make sure you get it to a dealer and check the cars for any problems every half year or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillhole Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 I love my 2005 Grand Prix. Hasn't seen a shop in the nearly 4 years I've owned it. All I've done is tires and oil changes. Mileage could be better, gets about 21/22 in the city and low 30's on the highway. Plus the 3.8l engines are bullet proof and will last for well ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suburbanargyle Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Don't buy American! (unfortunately). I recommend Nissans wholeheartedly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melvinscam Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Chrysler LeBaron convertible. Done. did john voight used to own it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.