Can I afford this car?

[Racecomp Engineering]

One other thing I would add is that while you are patiently biding your time to get your hands on one of these cars.......READ. Read and learn as much as you can about cars and go to meets and talk to people, go to install days, maybe go to a few autocrosses (yes even in your civic or just to watch). Might as well be ready to swap out your own brake pads, learn what sort of modifications make sense if you're into that, change oil, etc etc etc.

You'll have a much greater appreciation and understanding of the machine and feel more confident with it when the time comes to get one. Even if you're not into the car scene all that much and just want a fun daily driver, being able to do basic maintenance (or understand what a mechanic is talking about) gives you such a huge edge in the future it's absolutely worth it. And if you are into playing with things then you'll have a little more confidence talking to people and vendors.

- Andrew

[dookie11]

Originally Posted by Racecomp Engineering

One other thing I would add is that while you are patiently biding your time to get your hands on one of these cars.......READ. Read and learn as much as you can about cars and go to meets and talk to people, go to install days, maybe go to a few autocrosses (yes even in your civic or just to watch). Might as well be ready to swap out your own brake pads, learn what sort of modifications make sense if you're into that, change oil, etc etc etc.

You'll have a much greater appreciation and understanding of the machine and feel more confident with it when the time comes to get one. Even if you're not into the car scene all that much and just want a fun daily driver, being able to do basic maintenance (or understand what a mechanic is talking about) gives you such a huge edge in the future it's absolutely worth it. And if you are into playing with things then you'll have a little more confidence talking to people and vendors.

- Andrew

Yup. I've learned so much about cars n all that since registering on ft86club.com. Still can't say I can fix a car though haha, aside from all the general maintenance stuff and replacing seals. Nothing a little googlin can't fix though

[SpeedR]

Originally Posted by poormans_LFA

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.

QFT

[GT86 Redneck]

Im in a similar situation thought i'd throw my 2 cents in. I'm 18 and starting a 4 year college in the fall and I really want this car. So i'm using this as my motivator to finish college. Just think what these things are gonna be like in 4 years!

[zAnSh1n]

yea, but you will miss out on driving/enjoying it for exactly that much longer as well...

though, i will be holding off until next year to save up and see real-world feedback...

[FujiwaraTofuShop]

I'm in a similar boat as the last few, I'm getting the Argento for my family as a daily driver. I'm getting ready for have one final year of school, but half of it is clinicals where I'll be driving an hour or more a day to get to a large enough hospital to do clinical rotations 5 days a week. So I decided to sell my 1968 Camaro so I can buy myself an FRS of my own. I could wait a year but my current daily driver isn't holding up too well.

[MRZ415]

Originally Posted by zAnSh1n

i'm slightly older than you [op], since i had a few year blank in my life, but i'm going back to school [junior] starting this fall...

i shouldn't buy this car, but i'm going to... cuz i do wut i want !

ima throw down roughly $12k for dp and use my disability checks for the monthly payments, insurance, gas, etc...

$220/month for 72 months @ 8%... but screw that, ima pay off that shit in 36, y0 !

yea yea, pretty stupid to take an 8% interest rate, but i need a car once school starts and i really want the fr-s... if 8% is the best i can get, so be it; i almost lost my life in an auto accident back in 2008 and now i really live by the motto: "you only live once..."

i'm a type_0 and a huge car nut, so getting a used car is out of the question and if i'm going to buy a car, i want one that i will keep for a very long time... get a cheaper car now [that i don't want] and a better car [i really want] later??? nonsense...

at the end of the day, you make the final call, so just do whatever the hell you want... because in the grand scheme of things, buying a car is such a small factor in your life...

good luck~

wow, 8% apr ?
and here I was being unhappy since my credit union
show me I was " A class " borrower instead of " A+ class "
I am looking at 2.5-2.75% apr , but I guess it could be worst.

[SVTSHC]

Keep the civic bro, in your situation you don't need to put yourself in debt with an unnessary expense like a new car. Wait until you're done with school and have about a year into your job before you start considering a new car. You'll be in your mid twenties so you'll have extra BS money if you aren't already piled up with debt.

[dookie11]

Originally Posted by FujiwaraTofuShop

I could wait a year but my current daily driver isn't holding up too well.

[iDerek]

Same situation.. I'm 20, however, going back to college next month for automotive technician and that's like 2 years (w/ coop) + 3 years of full time working..
By the time i get my AST after the 3 years, I can purchase the car (cash) and keep working wherever I will be working at.. hopefully a Toyota/Scion dealership hehe~

So now.. to your answer, make sure you have a sure win plan in your future, but hearing from your current situation, DON'T DO IT~
even if I have this plan.. I still have to work that 5 years to be ABLE to afford it on my OWN, and I still haven't included finances, maintenance, etc.

[SuqMadiq]

Originally Posted by iDerek

Same situation.. I'm 20, however, going back to college next month for automotive technician and that's like 2 years (w/ coop) + 3 years of full time working..
By the time i get my AST after the 3 years, I can purchase the car (cash) and keep working wherever I will be working at.. hopefully a Toyota/Scion dealership hehe~

So now.. to your answer, make sure you have a sure win plan in your future, but hearing from your current situation, DON'T DO IT~
even if I have this plan.. I still have to work that 5 years to be ABLE to afford it on my OWN, and I still haven't included finances, maintenance, etc.

Not going to knock your plan but, financing a car isn't a bad route to go even if you end up paying a little more for it in the end. For someone young, inexperienced, and doesn't have any credit, financing a car can be good thing. It's important to build good credit so that when you do need financing it's available (buying a car, buying a house, starting a business).

Anyways, just my 2 cents...

-Accounting/finance major

[dookie11]

Originally Posted by SuqMadiq

Not going to knock your plan but, financing a car isn't a bad route to go even if you end up paying a little more for it in the end. For someone young, inexperienced, and doesn't have any credit, financing a car can be good thing. It's important to build good credit so that when you do need financing it's available (buying a car, buying a house, starting a business).

Anyways, just my 2 cents...

-Accounting/finance major

The back and forth on this topic is starting to frustrate me lol. Of course, taking on debt is a bad idea. But, "financing" was invented for a reason, right?>>>It's for those of us who can't afford to pay it fully on the first day...

Now, to figure out if they'll finance to a full-time student who has a co-signer (or no co-signer). I don't really care what the percent is as long as it doesn't exceed 6% because that's what my student loans are at. Also, I have an "excellent" 756 credit score, according to creditkarma, so that should have some clout, right?

[MRZ415]

6% is kinda high, you should seek out a credit union.
About creditkarma.com I used their credit simulator,
and I was able to do some # crunch because for some ODD
reason I open my new American Express card and my credit score
nose dived from 770 ->739 with $6000 limit , but if the credit limit drop
from $6000 to $5000 my credit score jumps to 750 yet faulters to 746 @ $4000( I called AMEX and reduced my credit limit to $5000).

Any finance majors here to explain why ?

[dookie11]

Originally Posted by MRZ415

6% is kinda high, you should seek out a credit union.
About creditkarma.com I used their credit simulator,
and I was able to do some # crunch because for some ODD
reason I open my new American Express card and my credit score
nose dived from 770 ->739 with $6000 limit , but if the credit limit drop
from $6000 to $5000 my credit score jumps to 750 yet faulters to 746 @ $4000( I called AMEX and reduced my credit limit to $5000).

Any finance majors here to explain why ?

Kk. Hope I can find something lower then. So nothing higher than 3%? What should I be aiming for?

RE: your dilemma, that is kinda weird that it would go down like that. Id like to know why also.