Buying a New Car, Bad or Good Idea?

Schema on 18/11/2015 - 09:54

Hi All.

I just got my P's earlier this year, i am 18.

So far, I've had two "shit" cars, i've owned a 1989 300zx z32 which has had an injector or two fail on me, rendering the car near-useless so i haven't driven it.

I then purchased a 2003 Subaru B4 twin turbo.. worst mistake of my life, so far i've spent about $3000 on the car, had 3 turbos fail on me while owning it, no mechanic can find out why and it's been taken to multiple of them.

Now, at the moment im sick to death of these cars just turning to shit on me, i never buy any 2nd hand electrical items for this reason, second hand stuff always is just horrible to me.

At the moment, i'm unsure on what to do for a car, i work and i earn about 40k/year after tax.

I have about 40k in the bank at the moment, and i am maybe looking at buying a 2015 Subaru Impreza from a dealership and financing it after downpaying around 10k on it.

I'm honestly not good with cars, and i would like to see if anyone would be more than happy to give me a few suggestions with on what to do, i would maybe be open to buy a second hand car.. again if it's newer such as 2009 +

Preferably Im looking into a sedan shape with leather interior.

Thanks

Automotive

Comments

  • Cheeper on 18/11/2015 - 10:27

    Will it be parked on the street 24/7?
    Used cars can be a smart move especially if it is going to be left out on the street and you have just begun driving…
    The thing is to pick the right used car.. and the right kind.
    Even with new cars you can choose the wrong one and still end up with a pos.
    What is most important to you… reliability and low cost of ownership or performance no matter what the cost?

    • Schema on 18/11/2015 - 10:51
      +1

      Will be parked in driveway/garage, i live on a property so i have no people coming close to it or whatnot.

      Honestly i'm happy to pay extra to be comfortable in the car and enjoy its features
      i'm pretty over the "racer" type of cars already.

  • geek001 on 18/11/2015 - 10:28
    +1

    I get the feeling that you like those racer type cars. Nothing wrong with that being 18, I can understand that. But just that previous owners driving racer type cars are likely to have "test the limits" of the car, meaning the car will probably be half trashed by the time they sell it.

    I have only bought second hand cars, which never gave me any problems aside from normal wear and tear being secondhand and all. But then again, the cars I look at and the cars you are looking at are probably at different ends of the spectrum. The only time we had a new car is I went to Melbourne for a week and my wife decided to buy a brand new Honda Jazz while I was gone.

    My advice would be get either get a second hand car that is just out of their manufacturer warranty period, which means it will have a large price drop. That way you are not locked into log book servicing as well to "maintain" the warranty. And not excessively high kilometres on it. Before you buy the car, pay $3 to do a check to see if the car has been written off before.

    When my son can drive, he won't be getting any "shit" car. I will getting him a Nissan Micra, no racing on a 1000cc engine. Lol. I don't understand the mentality of taking the trouble of raising your kids then putting them in a death trap to drive around.

    • Schema on 18/11/2015 - 10:50

      Yeah i was interested in the racer type of cars, ill be honest i'm already over it there is just far to many troubles.

    • Mad Max on 19/11/2015 - 23:39

      "When my son can drive, he won't be getting any "shit" car. I will getting him a Nissan Micra" I would not want to have an accident in a Nissan Micra… rather a Falcon or a Commodore. Or one of the old Volvo 240 types. Lots of metal to protect you a bit more than a Micra. And they are cheap to buy and run, especially if you find one with lpg.

    • tooblue on 24/11/2015 - 11:15
      +1

      The only time we had a new car is I went to Melbourne for a week and my wife decided to buy a brand new Honda Jazz while I was gone.

      LOL

  • shadowarrior on 18/11/2015 - 10:56

    If you enjoy driving cars which are not your average A to B machines, you need to learn about cars. I learnt this fact the hard and expensive way. But once you do, you will be way more comfortable in picking a good second hand car, diagnosing problems and fixing most of the stuff yourself. Mrs had an EVO 7 before, when I hated cars (I didn't even drove cars back then). She kept getting tickets. Made her sell it, get a Pajero so she couldn't speed that much. And I enjoyed my motorbikes. Things eventually changed and I started liking cars. Have a FTO now for the weekend drive and a MY15 Challenger for our daily drive.

    Just buying a brand new car doesn't guarantee a hassle free experience.

    Have you thought about insurance costs on a brand new Impreza for a 18 year old? And if you are financing a car, then comprehensive insurance is mandatory.

    Pay some decent money, get your car checked before purchasing if you are buying second hand. Save the deposit you have now for some long term goals. Career change retraining, deposit for a house/investment etc.

    I might sound like your dad, but it's more a case of 'been there done that' :)

    • Schema on 18/11/2015 - 11:00

      On the terms of learning about cars, a family member is a former mechanic and has been fitting and fixing my issues as it was his call on buying my Subaru b4 originally.

      Honestly i was shocked at the pricing and excess for comprehensive a brand new Impreza for my age with Bingle, it was $800 with $800 Excess

      I'd finance $15000 of it most likely and downpay 10k, then im only paying around 1.5k in Interest through my bank if i was to go through with them.

  • plmko on 18/11/2015 - 10:58
    +1

    Your troubles relate to the fact you've been buying second hand/old sports cars, these are either forced inducted or are high pressure, which means on top of the history of being trashed they wear out faster, especially if they're not serviced regularly.

    If you buy second hand simple cars that are naturally aspirated running with torque converter automatic transmissions, you won't have trouble and fixing them will be simple for mechanics.

    So you either buy a simple second car or you get a complete brand new sports car where you know the history.

    • spackbace on 18/11/2015 - 11:27
      +1

      ^^This. You're just picking the wrong cars.

      Given you like a bit of power, you'll find it hard going to something sorta mediocre. I'd suggest paying $15k cash, no finance, and get a used Commodore. Something like a series 2 VE SV6. That way there's no finance, 210kw, very very easy to work on. Still has Bluetooth & USB for mod-cons.

      Leave the rest of your cash to gather interest, and this way means you're not financing a big chunk of money.

      Oh and insurance will be decent as well :)

  • inherentchoice on 18/11/2015 - 11:23

    Cons of buying a brand new car on finance:

    • Massive depreciation, especially in the first year
    • Interest and loan charges
    • Higher insurance premiums

    Personally I would buy a maybe 1-5 year old second hand car with less than 100,000 kms.

  • PartyNextDoor on 18/11/2015 - 11:38

    Buy a year old car from a dealership and haggle for some extended warranty.

    I bought a second hand Toyota for $26,000 (brand new would have been about $42,000 drive away). It still had two years factory warranty and I got three years extended warranty thrown in. Fixed cost servicing costs me $120 every nine months for warranty to be valid. It felt like a brand new car and still has the new car smell after owning it for a year.

    Piece of mind is worth the premium for me over an older car, I would never buy a second hand car out of warranty since there could be issues not picked up in the inspections which may cost you money and defeat the purpose of buying an older car to save money.

    • spackbace on 18/11/2015 - 11:48
      +1

      Careful with this advice, extended warranties differ dramatically. Some (all the free ones that some dealerships include as standard) involve servicing as per their guidelines, at their dealership, and fixing whatever they say otherwise the warranty becomes null and void. Not to mention they don't fully cover the car like a factory warranty.
      Probably not the best thing to try to get included without knowing all the info involved. Better off haggling on price and price alone, and then using that extra money to buy one, that way you have the chance to fully discuss what's involved.

      If you're trying to get an extended warranty included, they'll give you the cheap sh*t one. If you're paying, they'll sell you the better one. Know what you're buying!

      • PartyNextDoor on 18/11/2015 - 13:46

        I meant haggle further after the price is agreed upon but I agree that you should understand what is exactly is included in the extended warranty if you are relying on it.

  • altomic on 18/11/2015 - 14:27

    you're 18. your premiums are crap. you say you're over sports cars. therefore go for 2nd hand car.

    if you want a "large" sedan then buy a camry or magna. or go for a smaller car like a mazda 3, suziki swift.

    I agree with inherentchoice's post as above

    you've said you have approx $40,000 in the bank. buy a $10,000 car and invest the rest.

    throwing a lot of money at a car that will depreciate massively is not a productive move.

    don't buy new. it's not worth it.

    investing $30,000 (especially in a good investment fund) now will yield excellent returns for you when you retire in 45 years time. seriously.

  • Karlos101 on 19/11/2015 - 07:58

    If you want a nice car to drive around in thats comfortable and has great warrantys. Go have a look at some of the kis or hyundai hatches. 7 year warranties on kia and 6 on hyundais. If you go second hand and you want something a little bit punchy.

    I loathe to say it but a commodore might be up your alley or a falcon. Another suprisingly good car if you want something thats cushy and has a bit of oomf when you put your foot down thats older is a mitsubishi verada but can be a bit leaky if lots of kms, but stay as low km as you can find. Shit loads of parts around for them and not overly expensive to look after. Just try and get something under 40,000 km as new and cheap as possible.
    Download the carsales.com.au app for ypur smart phone. The search function on it is amazing, way better than the website ona computer.
    You can put in price ranges, minimum dates, kms, power, cylinders, etc etc.

    If you earn 40k a year dont go spending more than about 10 to 15k on a car. If you have a mechanoc that you know or trust, go speak to them about reliable second cars.

    They will know which models have the most problems and are the most expensive to maintain.

    New subarus are pretty bad to be honest. Very plasticy inside. Not made like theyre used to.

    Mazda seem to be the japanese car to be the most reliable for the last few 5 to 10 years. Toyota have fallen behind and are too expensive. Honda are now too expensive. Suzukis are surprisingly good. And kia or hyundai after 2012 or 2013 are pretty good. Ford and holdens can be hit and miss and best to chat to a mechanic that knows them. Mitsubishi used to be pretty good more recently have turned to shit.

    But like i said, best talk to a trusted mechanic that knows about cars from experience.

  • GOFYS on 19/11/2015 - 09:05
    +2

    Before you buy any car of any value, please confirm that you have already had the mandatory road accident that was the other guys fault.
    If not, save yourself a lot of trouble by driving nothing but shitboxes until they track you down.

  • jimtulloch on 19/11/2015 - 09:09

    Horses for courses…With a second hand anything, but especially a motor vehicle, the less complicated the better…makes sense, less to go wrong.
    i.e. A conventional Corolla,Pulsar or the likes 10years old one owner around 100,000km been looked after, and if you drive it sensibly, keep it well maintained,you will stand a good chance of having trouble free motoring for the next 200,000 km. The bottom line is a $5-6000 outlay every few years for a motor vehicle makes sense. Get a reputable mechanic to do a thorough check before purchasing, could be cheap insurance in the long run

  • Speckled Jim on 19/11/2015 - 11:22

    There's nothing like that New Car Smell ;)

    While a bad financial proposition, I believe everyone should buy a brand new car once in their lives.

    To that end, you can't go far wrong with an Elantra for 20K drive-away. Nice safe sedan, five year warranty. About as far from "racey" as you can get, but still pleasant enough to drive.
    You could splurge and get the higher model with leather if you really want, but I'd use the remaining 20K on an appreciating asset or investment to help offset the 30% you'll cop when you drive away from the dealer. So cheap out, get the base model and then get leather seat covers from eBay!

  • Hello Stranger on 19/11/2015 - 15:38

    I agree, there is nothing like the new car smell and the feeling of having a brand new car.

    But, it also hurts the bank since the depreciation on new cars are crazy. Better off getting a second hand sedan that is newish as you won't need to worry about that.

    You could pick up a Honda Accord Euro pretty cheaply and they don't take much to maintain - the 2005'ish models.

    On a side note, do you still have that 300zx ?

    • Schema on 01/12/2015 - 20:33
      -2

      Hey sorry for the late response.

      I do still own the 300zx.. going to sell it now, ended up buying a 2013 Corolla Sport.

      • TheOneWhoKnocks on 01/12/2015 - 21:15
        -1

        What about all the people who gave you advice? Going to thank them?

      • Hello Stranger on 02/12/2015 - 07:43
        -1

        No worries, could you please link me to the ad when it's up?

        And hope the Corolla goes well for you :)

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