[cars] buying my first car- entry-level SUV/crossover

buy a used car for maybe $10k. why do you want to spend so much money when you've just graduated. and get a car you enjoy, unless you have kids
 
mjoe said:
buy a used car for maybe $10k. why do you want to spend so much money when you've just graduated. and get a car you enjoy, unless you have kids
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im making a fairly good income so its not going to be too big of a hit. looking for something that can move a lot of stuff (as i have to move cross country) and also is comfortable to drive in all sorts of weather (hills and snow included)

since i was a kid Ive heard that buying used is equivalent to buying "someone elses' troubles" so im a little hesitant to go the used route
 
well buying new means that you are giving some car dealership a $3,000 bonus. you can take the car to your own mechanic to check it out, and any car is going to have problems.

and these chick city-SUVs don't really help you on either front.. it would be cheaper to get a Uhaul and then buy a car that actually has 4-wheel drive.
 
poof said:
im making a fairly good income so its not going to be too big of a hit. looking for something that can move a lot of stuff (as i have to move cross country) and also is comfortable to drive in all sorts of weather (hills and snow included)

since i was a kid Ive heard that buying used is equivalent to buying "someone elses' troubles" so im a little hesitant to go the used route
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Thnking that way made sense in 1988. If you go the Honda route (which I recommend having driven the Tucson the rav4 and the crv for more than a test drive) buying used is a great option.

Hondas can't be used as rental cars, hence their very high resale value. If you get a certified used Honda from a dealer they will have given it a top to bottom inspection. You won't be dealing with hidden issues and if something does go wrong it's on the dealership to deal with it.

On buying new vs. used, get over it. You're young, buy used. The moment you drive a car off the lot it loses $2k worth of value, spend about $15k on a nice used car and pay it off in 3 yrs. That way when you're late 20's, you'll have way more money to play around with.
 
whoever told you that poof is a cynical old piece of shit you probably shouldn't listen to again. Buying new off the lot is a mistake I've made twice and won't do again. If you have money to spend, spend it wisely. You'll lose up to $10k in value the moment you drive it out of the dealership. You may also find that you purchased yourself a lemon. Find something used with super low miles on it. Find the model that fits EXACTLY what you're looking for. Search craigslists and auto listings and go take a few for test drives. Have a mechanic friend or an auto shop inspect it for you, check the carfax and if everything checks out, buy it. If you go through a used or new dealership you can even slap a warranty on it.

SUV's are lifestyle vehicles. If you are extremely active and will be out in the boonies all the time then yeah, it's probably a good choice. If you will be living in an area with extreme weather conditions then the vehicles you listed probably aren't what you're looking for. Also, I don't know about you but every one of those vehicles on that list are eyesores and lack a lot in regards to performance. If you go used, you can probably upgrade a level of luxury and purchase a 4runner/pathfinder/murano/mdx.. the choice is yours.
 
TooSmoothe said:
Thnking that way made sense in 1988. If you go the Honda route (which I recommend having driven the Tucson the rav4 and the crv for more than a test drive) buying used is a great option.

Hondas can't be used as rental cars, hence their very high resale value. If you get a certified used Honda from a dealer they will have given it a top to bottom inspection. You won't be dealing with hidden issues and if something does go wrong it's on the dealership to deal with it.

On buying new vs. used, get over it. You're young, buy used. The moment you drive a car off the lot it loses $2k worth of value, spend about $15k on a nice used car and pay it off in 3 yrs. That way when you're late 20's, you'll have way more money to play around with.
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I was a branch manager at a rental car company for 5 years and we used tonnes of Hondas. We had a fleet of 50 civics and 10 crvs just to supply loaners to a local dealership....

There are zero cars that don't have the option of being rentals.
 
Buy used. You'll end up regretting purchasing new after a year or two.

If you're just "moving a lot of stuff", why can't you rent a truck to do that with? If you want the versatility, what's wrong with an AWD car, maybe a hatchback?
 
agree w/used 100%

i bought new over and over for about a decade after college, was constantly upside down on payments, will never do it again

the first year or 2 on a new car all you're paying is interest, then you have a car that you start paying off as new when it's already a few years old

slightly used is the best way to go, hands down, or, if you can get over yourself, just buy something that you have no payments for

now that's the best feeling as a vehicle owner
 
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only poor people buy used shit

you have to be a sad lonely motherfucker to buy someone else's trash

example: vee
 
I agree with the idea of buying used: I've owned 10 vehicles so far, most of them used, so I've seen a reasonable sampling of what you might run into.


But I'll also take it a step further, and suggest that you intentionally don't get your ideal car right away. If this is really your first car, why not get something that's good for learning, then 2-5 years from now switch to a better option?

You could pick up a nice used 4x4, RWD, manual, for $2k or less. It will move your things for you, teach you to handle RWD, will have 4WD when you want it, and it will be more or less disposable.

And after a year or two of driving it around, you'll really have a better idea of what kind of car you're really looking for, and there will be no rush to find it, either new or used.
 
i bought my truck used for $14k and paid it off in ~2 years
that was a couple years ago--it's awesome to have a vehicle with 70k miles on it and not have to pay for shit

as opposed to my friend who bought a 30k+ sports car, and then traded it in on a 40k sedan 4 years later for less than half what he bought it for. his commute is probably 10x further than mine too. pure genius
 
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