I developed some car problems yesterday that is going to cost about $2000 to repair. I still owe about $4500 on it thanks to my subprime days. I did some checking and got approved for 4.9% financing on a new Sentra GXE(I have a 200sx), with a $2000 rebate and no payments til Sept. I can apply the $2000 towards the residual and with trade in value I will come out ok. My current car has 107,000 miles on it and is a '98. I bought it new and the day after I bought it, with 12 miles on it, someone hit it and did over $8000 worth of damage. I'm thinking with this kind of mileage on it that this probably is the start of problems to come. I think I would be smart to jump on this and take it. Of course, a year ago I never would have gotten what they called tier 1 financing. Anybody have suggestions as to whether I should fix it and keep it or get the new one. Thanks
I love the new car smell (they now say it's bad for you!). So I am a bit biased. Do you go new? Do you need reliable transportation for work? (Buy new car). Are you buying a house soon? (Don't buy new, may upset ratios. Just my 2 cents
Nobody likes new cars more than I do, but being a Master Auto Tech and Smog Tech I have a hard time justifying spending more than a couple grand on a car. 107K isn't a lot of miles on today's cars. In fact, it's really just getting broken in (no pun intended) LOL! I'm not a collision specialist, but if the frame is straight and the drivetrain didn't take a hit, I might fix it. I buy all my cars at the local tow yard and recycle them for my use. Currently driving 86 Accord, 88 Accord, 89 Probe GT and 86 Isuzu P'up - total investment $3,650. Matt (trying hard not to look at all the newer cars whizzing by me)
WHO SAYS IT IS BAD FOR YOU??? Is it the same people who say what food you can and can not eat...a.k.a. FOOD POLICE??? CENTER FOR PUBLIC INTEREST or some such thing???
Good choice on the SENTRA!!! It was my first car and I never HAD ONE PROBLEM with it, traded it in at 180,000 miles. You know, I was 18 when I bought it and just abused the heck out of that car (really did not know any better), I once went almost 50K without a tune-up or oil change.
I have a sentra, paid 350 for it, has over 300,000 miles on it, Looks rough, burns some oil but damn it won't die. I am poor.
I'll see your Sentra and lower it by $275. I paid $75 for a 1985 Sentra, rebuilt the trans for $100, threw a cheapy paint job on it, drove it for 2 years and sold it for $1390. The best place to buy cars is at the tow yard lien sales (if you or a friend/family member knows something about cars).
smogtek, I am poor. I am female, I can put gas and oil in it. I can turn a key, and drive. I can multi-task switching gears and writing instant messages while driving. What state are you in smogtek? Sorry my family is in jail or dead.
So Cal. Just make sure you keep all the fluid levels up. Don't run it low on oil or let it overheat and you should be OK.
Oh its not that bad, LOL its takes like a quart of oil every month. OOOh wait you might be able to help me out! I need A/C in my car. How can I tell what it needs to get it fixed? The belt worked on it, I tried the freon doohikey, a friend said it won't take. So what is next to check?
LKH, I just bought a black '02 sentra gxe a little over a month ago....I love it. My first car was an '85 sentra and it ran forever...I finally junked it when the timing belt broke at around 300K miles. When I was looking at cars, Sentras were the best value by a landslide. I elected for every option on my car (except for ABS and it's a 5speed) and paid a little under $16K (which includes TTL and the $950 extended warranty). No regrets so far. It's up to you about your existing car...$2K is a lot for repairs if you ask me--it must be serious. I mean, it's not like that money is going to make your car worth so much more down the road. If I were in your shoes, I would probably trade it in and take what they give you plus the $2K and put that down on the car, finance the rest and be done with it. Then you have a BRAND NEW car. I've noticed that it's definitely a head-turner...unless they're looking at me and not the car.... Kidding. Well...good luck!
Well, you are correct about the repairs not increasing the value of the car. My situation is that I do a lot of driving for work 35k a year or so. The repairs needed are several, not just one. I guess what it comes down to is after all the repairs are done, it's still a car with 107k miles and probably just starting to get into the period of time where everything starts to go out. When the repairs each month equal your monthly payment, it's time to get out. My main hesitation on this is that I have been looking for a house to buy and was hoping with about 10 payments left on my car, it wouldn't be too much of a negative come mortgage time. Oh well. Hopefully with the substantial down payment I have for the house, it won't make a difference. Actually, if I didn't need the car for work, I'd go for the BMW like Dogman. LOL
Ha me too... Well let us know what you decide. The sentra has received raving reviews by just about everyone...it really is a nice car for the money. Check epinions.com...there's a lot of reviews on there for the -01 and -02's (they're the same I think).
If all you consider is that the reapirs and monthly payment balance - that is true, but there is also the increased registration and insurance (need to add some comprehensive if it's financed). I'd love to get a newer car too, but I need to get a home first. If your set on a new or newer car, there are some good options if you can get the financing; Hertz Car Sales has good low mileage one-year old vehicles and you can reveiew the maintenance records and negotiate the price if they miss some of the scheduled maintenance. Another option is, what I used to call the "Bic Lighter" or "throwaway" car, Chevy Metro, any Hyundai, Kia or to a lesser extent Daewoo. A friend just purchased a Daewoo Leganza for $10,200 and got payments of $202 at 6.9%% and it came with a 10 year, 100K warranty. That might be a problem though with what Daewoo is currently going thorough financially.
LKH, If it were me, I'd buy the car. that is a good deal on the 4.9 plus rebate, just think about the pymts... If you are looking to get a house soon, how are your other monthly bills? If they are relatively low, I'd buy the car, if you'll be borderline in qualifying for the house you want, I'd wait. Just depends on your other ratios. When were you going to try for the house? I agree w/ you about after the repairs its still a car with 107k miles on it. My thoughts, personally, if a car is starting to have troubles costing $2k, thats just more troubles to come. Just my thoughts... Jamee
