im 17 should i face paying car payments?

Question

i have an 89 escort gt.
graduated a year early because i was homeschooled.
the car has 285k miles on it.
rebuilt engine and tranny ONCE in june.
needs tires brake booster, etc.
should i just go ahead and get a car thats about $6,500 or less?

i may be working as an assistant manager when i turn 18 in june.
but school.
haven't started. don't know whatr i want to do. if i will have the time i need to be working.
but the pro's
i have a house. a bedroom until i graduate out of college.
unless they sell their company and go move 2k miles away, then i may be on my own..





should i just go ahead and get a car?

Answer 1

The '89 Escort wasn't a very good vehicle as far as dependability when it was new. I'd opt for a different car.

Answer 2

having faced similar problems in the past (didn't graduate ahead of time but did have the job changes and bought new cars) i'm going to tell you that your best bet is to wait and see how much money you'll be making. Once you know that, you should check how much your insurance will go up if you do get a new car(remember--if you get a loan for it, you'll be paying for full coverage...which is always more expensive) and for a teenage white male, with any kind of car from the past few years, it'll be at least $300-$400 a month(and something like $2000 for a 6 month period) plus the payments for the car itself. even if the car only costs you $100, the insurance will make the price unbearable if you don't make enough money.

a few good things to look for if you decide to buy a new vehicle anyways:
- a buy here, pay here place. they don't make you get a loan, so you can just put liability insurance on it(usually $100 or less if you haven't got any accidents) but they are a little less reliable than an actual dealership. not always a good quality on the car, so you should have someone look at the car before you make the decision. and if one car on the lot is bad, then a good deal of them are.
-save up some money for a down payment. a nice starting point for a new vehicle is $2000, since it reduces your payment(not too much, but it makes a difference in the long run) and most dealerships will give you a discounted price if you can pay a portion of the price up front.
-Check the newspapers. you can usually find several cars that aren't as costly as the dealerships, and are in reasonable to excellent condition. more often than not, though, you'll see that the cars owned by middle-aged to elderly people are better maintained than other younger drivers(note: this is not me being a jerk or stereotyping, there are always exceptions.)
-finally, the best thing to do is wait and save up some money, shop around a little, and do some homework on the dealerships and buy-here-pay-here's in the area. maybe while your looking you'll find a really nice car that you can afford and even save some money with your escort as a trade-in plus your downpayment(maybe even pay the car off outright...which is a real good feeling)

your escort will probably trade-in for around $900-$1200, depending on how good of a shape it's in, cleanliness, etc. it's not a bad start, but the more money you have up-front, the better the salesperson will work with you.


on a personal note, i can vouch for the '89 escort holding up as it was my own first vehicle. with proper maintenance and care, they'll last you forever(mine is still running...sold it to my sister). Since you just rebuilt the engine and transmission in june, and tires for the car only cost about $75-$90 each for that particular year,you'd be paying less for the repair and maintenance on the escort than if you buy a new car.

p.s. that must tell you something about maxinebootie(no offense to her) and what she said about them.

Answer 3

Don't buy a car unless you know you won't have trouble with payments. Do you have a relative that would loan you money to buy an inexpensive car? When my son was 18, he used $2000 of his savings and borrowed $4000 from his aunt. It took him 2 years to pay for it, and she didn't charge him any interest. However, he was faithful to pay. If for any reason he had lost his job, his aunt would have given him a short break from payments - - - she was very flexible. And if we felt we needed to, we the parents would have also helped out. He was in college and also working part time and working very hard. He commuted a lot and so he needed a reliable car.

Advice - -- don't stress yourself out on a car payment you cannot afford unless your parents are willing to back you up if needed. Also, avoid used car dealers like the pleague, unless you personally know one you can fully trust. Do your homework and know which models you might want to consider buying. You can find out which models are reliable and good through the Internet, like on epinions.com or kbb.com. Don't jump on the first thing that looks good. Take it to a local service station and get them to check out the car before you buy from an individual. They will check for leaks and unseen damages like flood damage or where the car has been repaired from being wrecked. Check prices on kbb.com to make sure it's a good deal before buying. Don't get ripped off. Take someone with you when looking and don't be afraid to bargain.

One other thing - - - is your parents paying for your insurance? Insurance is very high and may be even higher depending on what kind of car you get.

Good luck.

Answer 4

That's alot to face at such a young age.....well, you do need a car that will be reliable and can get you to point a and point b. There are the newer Hyundai's out now with college incentives if you are in school and you could get a low car payment with it because you are starting out. I know the Kia dealership had a 99$ down, 99$ a month. Honda's are the best bet but they are very expensive. Wishing you lots of luck in whatever endeavor you choose..

Answer 5

Hi there, alas I cannot relatively support you with your query because the excuse the organization gave is proper, however what the fellow above me has said is most likely the excellent thing to do, get a loan of a household member or shut buddy and pay them again month-to-month, however I was just wondering in case you would please go into my open questions and answer considered one of them with the identify of the coverage enterprise you received a quote of £1600 with since that's low-cost haha, it would be so much appreciated, thanks

Answer 6

I have to agree with 9 lives

Answer 7

dont buy a car unless you know for sure how much you will make and be able to afford.

Answer 8

no