Can I afford this car?

[Annahra]

If you need a reliable car anyway, trade in your current one for a used FRS with a good warranty (make sure your dealer will put you in a loaner if you DO have an issue). Reliable and economical DD and you will get your payment down a good bit. Problem solved!

[AG74683]

Originally Posted by Annahra

If you need a reliable car anyway, trade in your current one for a used FRS with a good warranty (make sure your dealer will put you in a loaner if you DO have an issue). Reliable and economical DD and you will get your payment down a good bit. Problem solved!

Can't really do that. Need room to haul my dog around, and I'm not intersted in a scion anyways, even if they are basically the same car. I thought about trading the cherokee in on a new wrangler unlimited though

[Prog]

Originally Posted by AG74683

Can't really do that. Need room to haul my dog around, and I'm not intersted in a scion anyways, even if they are basically the same car. I thought about trading the cherokee in on a new wrangler unlimited though

Well then you can't afford the car.

Do the smart thing here and wait until you're in a better situation financially and the prices of used BRZs drop, or an amicable combination of the two.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by AG74683

I know this isn't the standard post for this forum, but I thought I'd ask since the group here is either in my same situation, or has "been there done that" and knows if this would be something I regret ten years from now.

I laugh at the "if you have to ask" kneejerk reaction whenever this question comes up. Most of the time it's in response to some high school graduate making $19K per year selling hats at Lids in the mall, and in those cases it's easy to see that he really can't afford it. But at your salary level and earning potential, nobody here can really give you a definitive "yes " or "no" answer. You're right in the gray zone, and you're really the only person who can answer that based on your expenses, your credit history and your understanding of finance.

However, there are a few considerations that haven't been brought up.

I own a 2000 Cherokee myself, so I have been in a similar situation to yours. I had to get a second car because at 14 years old, the XJ became unreliable as a daily source of transportation. Your Jeep is aging, even if you have low miles. Do you have alternate transportation if you have to take the Jeep out of service for repairs? Do you have space to repair it yourself? Do you have the time?

Even if you do have alternate transportation, consider the potential cost in money and time of keeping it running. What will repairs cost you? Will alternate transportation cost you anything? What if you have the dreaded 0331 head on your Jeep, and it cracks like mine did? What if you have to pull out the dash to replace the heater core (or pay $1500 for someone else to do it)?

The book value of these Jeeps is rapidly dropping also. The book value of mine dropped about $600 over the past two years. You may not be offered as much in trade as you're expecting, especially if it has issues. For me, it made more sense to keep my Jeep than to try to trade it. (It's now getting a second life with a Golen stroker and a lift, so it worked out all right. )

All that is to point out that with an old truck of a model with known issues, you may need a second car or replacement car, depending on your transportation situation. You may not be planning to use it as a daily driver right now, but it might become one quicker than you think. You said your commute is short, which is a plus. In my situation, I had no choice but to get something economical and reliable because I drive fairly long distances every week for my job. I have put 8000 miles on my BRZ since February.

Once upon a time, relatively recent used cars could be great deals. But because of the demand for used cars over the past several years, clean, low-mileage used cars cost almost as much as new ones. They just aren't that great a deal any more. For a while there, Clark Howard was recommending against used cars altogether. I ruled out used cars early on in my decision because the cars that fit my needs didn't have enough of a discount to justify the lost miles.

When I became serious about buying, I first got pre-approved for a car loan at a local credit union before ever taking a test drive. I was approved up to $40K at 1.45% on a 48 month loan, so I knew how much I had to work with and could easily and quickly recalculate the payments (using online payment calculators) for anything cheaper. It was so easy that I did the whole pre-approval process online and over the phone and didn't actually meet the loan officer in person until the morning I went to pick up the car. Having actual, concrete numbers that I could pull the trigger on at any time made the whole "can I afford this" question much easier to answer.

When I put everything together, the BRZ was a perfect match for me. It gets very good gas mileage on the highway. It's fun. It's cheap. I could have gone cheaper and bought an econobox, but with a few exceptions most econoboxes don't actually hold up all that well or hold their value over time, and many of them do not get anywhere near the gas mileage that this one does. And I'm keeping the XJ for getting around town on our horrible roads and maybe for some off-road fun, depending on how far I mod it.

You mentioned above that you're also considering trading your XJ for a new Wrangler Unlimited. If you can afford the Wrangler, you can afford the BRZ, because the prices are pretty close. The BRZ is going to get much better gas mileage and will be a LOT more fun to drive on the street (unless your streets are full of potholes and worse like mine). I'm guessing you're considering the Wrangler in part because you're hesitant to give up off-road capability. I also considered getting a new Jeep for exactly that same reason, but I decided to get the BRZ AND keep my XJ instead.

So when people here tell you that you can't afford it, take that with a grain of salt. They do not know your needs or your entire situation. It may just be that you can't afford not to get another car, and if that's the case, the car you actually want may end up being the best choice after all.

Originally Posted by Jac

All sports car purchases are unnecessary and bad investments.

Baloney. That is simply an untrue statement.

[Jac]

Ok, you got me, all non-classic/old/rare sports car purchases.

[sshole]

I was told by a few people that spending up to 1/3 your salary (pre-tax) is okay as long as you're not struggling to meet your other financial obligations. This is also after you've saved up at least 6 months worth of expenditures in the event of job loss.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by Jac

All sports car purchases are unnecessary and bad investments.

Originally Posted by Jac

Ok, you got me, all non-classic/old/rare sports car purchases.

I still say baloney. Why exactly do you think this car is any less necessary or any worse an investment than any other car?

[kuhlka]

Work is a mile away? Get a bicycle and BANK as much money as possible. Unless you're doing trackdays, have fun canyon roads around, or have other sports car focused stuff in mind like SCCA, I don't see the point of owning a BRZ if it's going to possibly leave you financially strapped. What if you get into an accident, have unexpected medical bills, etc? Having less than a grand left over at the end of the month can quickly turn into massive debt if an emergency happens.

If you must have the BRZ, work your ass off and get a raise/promotion, or get a side job sorted to buffer your income. You probably won't be happy with the stock exhaust sound, weird powerband (power suddenly comes on halfway through the rev range and the car goes into drift mode), and crappy stock tires. POOF goes your savings.

[Turbo95eg6]

Originally Posted by kuhlka

Work is a mile away? Get a bicycle and BANK as much money as possible. Unless you're doing trackdays, have fun canyon roads around, or have other sports car focused stuff in mind like SCCA, I don't see the point of owning a BRZ if it's going to possibly leave you financially strapped. What if you get into an accident, have unexpected medical bills, etc? Having less than a grand left over at the end of the month can quickly turn into massive debt if an emergency happens.

If you must have the BRZ, work your ass off and get a raise/promotion, or get a side job sorted to buffer your income. You probably won't be happy with the stock exhaust sound, weird powerband (power suddenly comes on halfway through the rev range and the car goes into drift mode), and crappy stock tires. POOF goes your savings.

I agree… A mile away and you're not even planning to DD the car? That's just silly. I'd stay put and just keep the car you have now.

[kuhlka]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

I still say baloney. Why exactly do you think this car is any less necessary or any worse an investment than any other car?

Because he's young, not making a ton of money, has a dog that needs to fit into the vehicle...

Let's be honest. Any 2-door sports car with no leg room in the back and a tiny trunk is a hobby vehicle, not a family/dog grocery getter. You COULD put a dog in a BRZ, but you'd have to really not give a crap about your interior getting scratched up and filthy.

If you've got lots of disposable income, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better hobby investment. Well, this assumes you don't stance the shit out of it and put a bunch of hideous crap all over it... #devaluinginvestments

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by AG74683

BUT, I do need a car, something I can rely on for longer trips. I really want something that is at least fun to drive in addition to being reliable.

Lots of reasonable options out there for a fun reliable practical DD (Celica, RSX, Tc, Focus, GTI, Miata), $10k should get you something that will be hassle free for a few years, decent on gas and when the time comes you'll get good resale value out of it for a nice downpayment on a BRZ.

[Tgionet]

Originally Posted by kuhlka

You COULD put a dog in a BRZ

My dogs LOVE the BRZ

Now I'm going to get back to defurring the car with painters tape

[kuhlka]

Originally Posted by Tgionet

My dogs LOVE the BRZ

How do you get them in and out without destroying your interior? My collie jumped in with dirty paws one time and I nearly shit a brick. The passenger seat and driver seat were filthy.

[MeehowsBRZ]

Pay off your student loans first. No point in paying interest on two things if you don't have to and its better in the long term financially.