Can I afford this car?
 

Hello ft86 community,

First of all, I realize taking financial advice from people on the internet is a bit silly but I figure that some of you have to be in similar situations so I need your help. Lately it seems I have been going a little crazy asking myself the same question over and over again without making any real headway, "Can I afford this car?" First, let me describe my current situation. I'm 20 years old, work part time and attend a local community college until the fall of next year when I will be transferring to a four year university. I currently only work about 20 hours a week which earns me just about $800 a month, and a net income of $600 after expenses. I live at home so I don't pay for anything but school, food, and gas. I currently drive a 2010 Honda Civic EX Sedan that is has a little over 15,000 miles on it; I have owned the car for a little over a month. I was given a 2006 Santa Fe when I turned 19 and it was recently totaled so the insurance gave me $10000 for it and I paid the other $7000 for the Civic.

I pay for half of my tuition out of pocket and the rest I finance through college loans; I currently owe about $5000. However, the universities I am looking to attend next year will cost around 25k a year. I have about $4000 in the bank, not counting $2000 which I keep in an emergency fund. I found out about the FR-S about three weeks ago and I absolutely fell in love with the car aesthetically, unfortunately I haven't been able to find one to test drive. I have only been driving for about a year and half now and am hesitant to purchase a manual because of the traffic where I live, however I am not entirely against the idea. The model I am currently interested in is the Asphalt FR-S AT. The out-the-door price of the vehicle that I have calculated is as follows:

MSRP- $26,030 (Including destination fee.)
Dealer Fees/Licensing/Etc. - $250-$300 (Could be more?)
Tax - $700 (In Ohio the tax is calculated based on the difference in value between the new car and your trade in, which is $9000 in this case.)
Total Price - $27,030

I am hoping to get $17000 for the Civic based on the Kelley Blue Book trade in value. So that would leave me with about $6000 I would need to either finance or borrow from my parents, who think I'm crazy for wanting to buy a new car just after getting the Civic a month ago. My questions are:

1) Can I afford this car?

2) Am I crazy?

One of the things that comes to mind is that I still live at home, mainly because it's practical and saves money. You would think that I would want to get a place of my own instead of buy a car but I only have to live here for another 4-5 months max until I leave for school. The other obvious option is that I save the money and invest it in mutual funds and pay off my $5000 debt, but that's not very fun is it! I can pay off the $6000 loan in just about 30 months if I pay $200 a month and save the other $400 for school. That is of course if I borrow it from my parents at 0% interest, if I finance however I think I will get raped by the interest rate due to my non-existent credit history. I doubt my dad will co-sign a loan because he is against the idea of me getting this car in the first place. So if they don't loan me the money they I am forced to wait about 8 months until I can afford to buy it all in cash. Thanks for reading and I would greatly appreciate your opinions/advice! :thanks:

The old saying goes: "if you have to ask..."

As a fellow 20 year old university student... Not a prayer.

Especially considering that you have debt, I don't think anyone else will give you a different answer. You won't be working while away at school, will you?

I dunno, seems like a no brainer...

A car in current situation should be getting you from point A to B.

Suffer now and enjoy later.

looking to the internet for answers to these kinds of questions is always a bad idea. be prepared for a few bone heads to say some unkind words....or not, but yeh. wait a few years and find an old guy who's only put 10k on the odometer and wants to sell it for cheap. it happens.

College students with debt can only really afford cheap beaters or hand me downs. You're not going to be looking at this car (or any other new car for that matteR) until you land a job after graduation. And not just any random low paying job, a career job that you know you'll be in for the long haul.

Don't forget gas and insurance will add to the monthly expenses of the car.

Selling your Civic and using that money would help a lot, you'd end up owing around $10k-11K.

I'm on the same page as you, but I'm planning to get one next year and not this year. I'm 19 though. My plans are to work for a year, sell my car for 10k and then finance the rest. Since my dad's a salesman, he can probably work something out for me.

I don't do loans from College as I know it will add up. If you know how to manage your money, do it. If not, you can always get a used one.

Start saving and see what happens!

Sometimes even i question myself if i can afford this car..
and i make 45k living at home with parents...

A wise man once told me...

"The uneducated pay interest, the smart make interest pay them"

AKA, more money in your pocket, the more money you will have. Don't buy the car, man. NOT WORTH IT. Suffer the pain of discipline with your money now, make it work FOR you so that in the future you won't be working as hard.

I would NOT buy this car in your current situation if I was you.

I started college in 2000 right when the S2000 came out. It was my dream car.

I couldn't afford it until 2006. After college after I was in my job for about a year.

And even then there was more expenses than your average car.

I'd say buy a used miata, have some fun, don't think about this car and pick one up used for about half.

Don't do it. You're young. Wait a few years and finish college...then find a job that can cushion yourself financially so you can happily enjoy the FR-S at a later time.

I've been down that path before when I bought a BMW a few years back. Yes, I enjoyed the car but I was financially miserable because of the costs and upkeep.

You should wait. There will be a lot of opportunities later on.
I'm also a college student. I don't buy this car now even I have 20K of saving because I want to have some saving to make me feel secured. I will get the car later after graduated next year. There is nothing wrong about buying a "fun" beater.

Its not a smart move for you right now. A car payment will be half - if not more - then what you make a month.

Keep the Civic for another year or two and get the car then.