Current Events > The smart people on the finance advice subreddits gave me bad news.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Me: I needa new car because mine is crappy and makes me sad
Them: No you don't. you're going to drive that car into the ground motherfucker, right up until the doors fall off.

Financial advice on the internet in a nutshell :(

New cars are not smart buys, best to get a few years used japanese car. And regardless interest rates are so dn high right now it's just a horrible time to get any loan. Best to just keep driving and old car and keep fixing it up.

Go buy a new Ram to boost my profit sharing.

Every month you get out of a car that costs you 0 dollars to drive is additional money in your pocket.

technically theyre not wrong. But if the car is breaking down constantly or youre looking at a large bill to fix it up then of course its not worth it.

but if the car was cheap and handles regular maintenance, fuck yeah drive it into the ground while saving the money youd have spent on a purchase and invest it to make money.

when the time comes, buy a newer car and do the same.

Dan_Haren- posted...

New cars are not smart buys, best to get a few years used japanese car. And regardless interest rates are so dn high right now it's just a horrible time to get any loan. Best to just keep driving and old car and keep fixing it up.

I own outright a 2006 Volkswagen passat with 180k miles on it. Engine wise it seems ok. It's everything else that's annoying. Just things falling off, rusting, breaking, etc.

In cold financial terms, not paying out a loan with interest is wonderful. And if I go through my mechanics bills it's still less than I would be paying for a newer car.

On the other hand, having a car that's at the mechanics nearly every month is just fucking annoying. Maybe I don't want to be thinking about what is gonna break on my car each week and when I need to next book it in.

If you want to buy a new car then do it. Sure, financially it isnt the ideal choice, but thats not really what youre considering here.

If youve got the savings set aside to buy it flat out, then do that so youre not getting stung on financing. But if youve got to finance it, then cover as much as you can with the down payment and finance the rest. Maybe find one of those 0% financing deals (they just adjust the purchase price to negate the interest amount over the life of the loan, but it works out the same way.)

Buy something reliable that you will want to drive for awhile and you should be fine.

I think Pinky is referring to buying a used car that's new to him and everyone else is referring to buying a completely new car

I only bought new because what I wanted cost more used and at least new has a warranty.

It'd have been a solid chunk of my down payment to get my last car back on the road

teep_ posted...

I think Pinky is referring to buying a used car that's new to him and everyone else is referring to buying a completely new car

Yes, this. Sorry, should have specified. To me, a 2017 car with 30k on the clock is "new".

Sell your car and buy a set of legs and just walk everywhere. #financialadvice

Were_Wyrm posted...

Sell your car and buy a set of legs and just walk everywhere. #financialadvice

I seriously would ditch the car if my commute wasn't 10 miles through perilous country roads with murderous locals.

pinky0926 posted...

I seriously would ditch the car if my commute wasn't 10 miles through perilous country roads with murderous locals.

Even better, just think how much money you'll save if your dead!

Why Do people even bother visiting such advise forums ready to dunk on it and any and all advice given?

If you're smarter and have a better idea it still doesn't hurt to hear others opinions on the matter.

Well, it does sound as if they're right. You don't NEED to replace the car right now. I'm just now on my third car after driving for 20 years. All my cars are bought with around 100k miles on them. I finally got rid of my last car at 235k miles, only because I found a good deal on a replacement. Mechanically there was nothing wrong with it.

Basically, they're right financially, but if you can afford to replace it and want to, then go ahead. Not sure why you felt the need to ask for permission

Prismsblade posted...

Why Do people even bother visiting such advise forums ready to dunk on it and any and all advice given?

If you're smarter and have a better idea it still doesn't hurt to hear others opinions on the matter.

I guess it's nice to get a variety of opinions and see what most people think. I don't have to agree with every word said.

There's definitely a certain kind of person that will tell you that your phone should be worth no more than $100 and that guy is often upvoted on forums like reddit where other guys like that frequent, especially when the subreddit is about money saving and not gadgetry.

That said, I did learn some things from it.

pinky0926 posted...

There's definitely a certain kind of person that will tell you that your phone should be worth no more than $100 and that guy is often upvoted on forums like reddit where other guys like that frequent, especially when the subreddit is about money saving and not gadgetry.

Maybe you just need to find a subreddit that will tell you what you want to hear. I hear Reddit is great for that.

It's good financial advice, but not necessarily the best life advice. You probably just need to look at how tight money is. If you're in good shape, no need to deal with that shit daily.

If you buy new and plan to keep it for longer than that extended warranty, then it's worth it.

I got the loan on my vehicle in June of 2020, before everything went tits up with interest rates. The interest rate on my used vehicle is locked in at just over 7%. It's closer to 10% now. Not a great time to be buying used, unless you have the cold liquid cash to buy something cheap and newer privately.

Dat_Cracka_Jax posted...

Maybe you just need to find a subreddit that will tell you what you want to hear. I hear Reddit is great for that.

True!

Squall28 posted...

It's good financial advice, but not necessarily the best life advice. You probably just need to look at how tight money is. If you're in good shape, no need to deal with that shit daily.

Exactly, thank you for concisely summarising what I was hamfistedly trying to say. Sometimes, dealing with an annoying issue every day outweighs the financial burden of sorting it.

pinky0926 posted...

I seriously would ditch the car if my commute wasn't 10 miles through perilous country roads with murderous locals.

They're local roads for local people, pinky

I just don't understand this internet generation consulting with strangers online for every decision of their life. There's already established school's of thoughts on this that could be looked up.

Dat_Cracka_Jax posted...

I just don't understand this internet generation consulting with strangers online for every decision of their life. There's already established school's of thoughts on this that could be looked up.

Think of it as this generation's version of having a coffee date with all of your closest friends, except all of your closest friends are venomously antisocial.

Fixing up an old car is only as good as the material supply and labor costs. Some places are hiking. Some parts are getting harder to source.