This car is impossible to find

[spicyricecake]

which part of fl are you at?

[FingerDiddle]

Originally Posted by CelicaJoe

I'm in college and living on my own making $10 an hour, it would be pretty tough to manage a new car right now. I thought I could but I worked out all the numbers and I can't really take on that high of payments

So why are you willing to spend what savings you have on a depreciating asset?

I understand that being young you're also prone to stupid decisions but the wiser members here should be jumping on this post and helping you realise that you should put off the car until you have a better life situation, don't live outside your means.

You're still very young, you gave plenty of time to buy the car once you're better off.

[ARTBRZ]

I'm with @FingerDiddle on this. I'd hold off until you're in a better situation. At that rate your going to get it reposesed if somethings unavoidable occurs (medical, etc). I would advise purchasing if your your payments are < 10% of your income. As much as I love my car, there's always going to be a better one that will come out in the future.

[Hot Wheels]

I feel your pain. I live in Kansas, and had to buy one off Craigslist just outside New York City! With some crappy cell phone pics and video, I gave a deposit and flew up there and paid in cash. It looked clean and not too fussed with, but after driving it back 2000 miles, I saw the previous owner lied about a ton of problems and I've been fixing the car since. Take your time and just stay away from most that look modded. This car is a magnet for idiots learning how to rice their cars.

[iggy]

Originally Posted by Hot Wheels

I feel your pain. I live in Kansas, and had to buy one off Craigslist just outside New York City! With some crappy cell phone pics and video, I gave a deposit and flew up there and paid in cash. It looked clean and not too fussed with, but after driving it back 2000 miles, I saw the previous owner lied about a ton of problems and I've been fixing the car since. Take your time and just stay away from most that look modded. This car is a magnet for idiots learning how to rice their cars.

One way to avoid this, to a certain extent, is with a service called Lemon Squad. For a relatively small fee ($140) they will have an inspector check out the car, send you a ton of photos (I got 142 pictures), take it for a short drive and give you an overall rating on the car.

I did it with a car I was considering out of state and the report turned up a number of issues I wouldn't have known about until I was there in person. Saved me a full day of travel and all the money associated with it.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Hot Wheels

This car is a magnet for idiots learning how NOT to rice their cars.

FIFY

[CelicaJoe]

Originally Posted by FingerDiddle

So why are you willing to spend what savings you have on a depreciating asset?

I understand that being young you're also prone to stupid decisions but the wiser members here should be jumping on this post and helping you realise that you should put off the car until you have a better life situation, don't live outside your means.

You're still very young, you gave plenty of time to buy the car once you're better off.

I'm sure it's not the smartest decision I'll make, and I don't want to get super philosophical about my life views, but I've set up a pretty solid plan in case things get rough. I wouldn't be spending everything I have saved on the down payment, I'd be holding onto a year at minimum of payments that I'd dip into only if something unexpected happened. That's the primary reason I can't afford new, is the payments would be too high to keep that precaution. And I need to get another car because I'm met with countless issues with mine and spend more time working on it than is healthy.
I appreciate the suggestion! And I understand where you're coming from, but I also know when I graduate there's going to be more important things to be looking at rather than a car I don't need, and I also know having a coupe is going to be nearly impossible to rationalize down the line.
It definitely isn't a flawless decision I'm making, but I've been thinking what's the worst that can happen if I go through with it for a while, and it doesn't seem there's much that could really go wrong here if I follow through with everything.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by CelicaJoe

I'm sure it's not the smartest decision I'll make, and I don't want to get super philosophical about my life views, but I've set up a pretty solid plan in case things get rough. I wouldn't be spending everything I have saved on the down payment, I'd be holding onto a year at minimum of payments that I'd dip into only if something unexpected happened. That's the primary reason I can't afford new, is the payments would be too high to keep that precaution. And I need to get another car because I'm met with countless issues with mine and spend more time working on it than is healthy.
I appreciate the suggestion! And I understand where you're coming from, but I also know when I graduate there's going to be more important things to be looking at rather than a car I don't need, and I also know having a coupe is going to be nearly impossible to rationalize down the line.
It definitely isn't a flawless decision I'm making, but I've been thinking what's the worst that can happen if I go through with it for a while, and it doesn't seem there's much that could really go wrong here if I follow through with everything.

He is right ^^^
Joe has thought this out pretty thoroughly over the last year or so and I am pretty confident that he has a solid plan in place. This is not a case of a student/young guy running out and making an impulse buy without thinking through the consequences and impacts to his life style.

[CelicaJoe]

Originally Posted by spicyricecake

which part of fl are you at?

East Orlando

[Spacemane969]

It took me a year of relentless searching to find my used fr-s but it was all definitely worth it. Just download all the car apps(autotrader, cars.com, cargurus) and I would say after a few months if you're still unlucky then branch out to the fr-s and look for the monogram series to start. The scions are much more abundant. Good luck!

[CelicaJoe]

I thought about looking for a monogram, but I can only imagine how tough it would be to find one of those. I'm fairly certain I'll find something over the next few weeks, but it certainly is driving me crazy in the meantime

[lionbacker54]

have you thought about ordering one? that's what we did for our highlander hybrid. just went to the dealer and specified the car we wanted, color, options, etc. offered $1000 over invoice. car came in three months, and we paid. not sure if subaru does this, but i bet they would

[Side]

Originally Posted by CelicaJoe

I'm in college and living on my own making $10 an hour, it would be pretty tough to manage a new car right now. I thought I could but I worked out all the numbers and I can't really take on that high of payments

Regardless of whether you're purchasing new or used, I'd recommend waiting until your car payment would be less than 20% of your monthly income, and you have a 3rd of the car's value in savings.

Just my advice.

[Stang70Fastback]

I honestly thought this was a thread about how every time I walk back out to a parking lot, I have a momentary freak-out where I think my car was stolen because it's so low it hides behind everything.