Used car purchase before residency?

[blendermd]

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I have a old European car right now, early 2000s model with 160k miles clocking..

I already did various repairs to the car to keep it in tip top shape and probably spent at least $3000 in all repairs and parts replacement.

I’d really hate to have any car trouble when you are bat **** busy during residency and I’m thinking whether I should get a good used reliable mode of transportation before the start of residency...

I’m looking at 1~3 year old Honda Civic ~$15k dollar max with low mileage...~$2000 down pay + ~$200 monthly payment for 5 years

It would’ve been much better if I had done this BEFORE spending a fortune on all the repairs I’ve done...

What should I do...should I go get a used car now? Or just keep the beater until it dies?

 

[omegalulz]

how much does the beater sell for according to KBB?

 

[dj-Roomba]

Civics are great cars. I have a 2007 w/ 100k miles and have not had any trouble with it.

 

[CoomassieBlue57]

Toyota/Lexus run forever, and are easy to work on (cheaper if need repairs).

 

[blendermd]

how much does the beater sell for according to KBB?

I’d be lucky if I get $1000 for the car...

 

[IntheClouds4ever]

Keep the car for at least another 2 years. If you are only doing a 3-4 year residency, you’ll likely be able to sign a contract the year before finishing (or earlier if you desire) then you can use a sign on bonus and pay for a decent used car in cash to avoid interest.

Make use of the repairs you paid for and avoid interest and unnecessary payments during residency

 

[IMGASMD]

I like your plan. If it’s already a money pit, cut your loss now. Unless you live on campus and don’t need a car.....

Maybe if you can sell it to get your down payment.

 

[omegalulz]

As someone who has switched 3 cars now, I think it makes much more sense financially to get a 5-6 years old car in your situation. I would assume that going into residency you are already having a mountain of student debt (bless you if that's not the case). Still, if you just want a reliable car there's absolutely no need to buy something 1~3 years. Here's my experience with car purchase:

- Honda Civic 2005 - bought for 4k in 2013 at 150k, ran like a champ. Not a single problem ever. Sold because I saved enough to upgrade to a newer car in cash
- Toyota Camry 2011 - bought for 7k in 2015 at 104k. still in my garage, sitting on 120k and also running like a champ. Have been serving me faithfully every single day for the past 3 years with not a single problem with just regular oil change
- Toyota Rav42016, $16k for 88k. Runs smooth like butter. Bought because spouse's Hyundai Elantra 2016 has already died after multiple problems.

Moral of the story:
1. Toyota and Honda is the way to go
2. You can get a reliable car without going into a significant amount of debt. You have plenty of time till residency so start looking. If I were in your shoes I'd get something >80k and around $8-10k

 

[Dr. Death]

I'd ride it til it dies. It might surprise you and make it all the way through residency. With that low of value though you should have a low threshold for cutting bait if something else goes wrong

 

[ciestar]

I have a 2002 CR-V that still runs great. 215k miles!

Basically, Honda is reliable.

 

[scubascuba]

Sell it and buy a newer car. I really regretted holding on to my beater as long as I did and putting more money into it when I had to buy a new car anyways once it did finally die. Also don't underestimate how hard it is to buy a car once your's fully dies. Unless you have friends that can drive you around to look at cars, it's difficult/expensive to get around. And you'll be so desperate for a car you'll likely settle for something, instead of finding the ideal cost/condition balance.

 

[throwaway1000000]

Ride it till it breaks down.
Is the sale price of the car going to change whether you sell it now vs wait until it breaks down?
Buying a new or used car literally takes a few hours these days unless you are shopping for the best deal possible.

 

[Tenk]

This totally depends on a lot of things. When do you need new tires, new brakes, what parts did you recently replace, what's the KBB right now?

If you will soon need new tires or other equipment on the car and the KBBB is decent, I would sell.

If you don't need any new equipment for the time being and the KBBB is not good, I would hold until it breaks then buy.

 

[AMEHigh]

I'd ride it til it dies. It might surprise you and make it all the way through residency. With that low of value though you should have a low threshold for cutting bait if something else goes wrong

Yeah I agree with this.
If it's running fine now then I'd just continue with it.
Buying a car really isn't that big of a hassle if you need to do so.
I was hoping to keep my old car all through residency, but then someone rear-ended it and totaled it.
I had a rental car for a few days then one day when I was free I went a leased a car. It literally took less than 2 hours.

 

[ACSurgeon]

How long is your anticipated residency?

how much do you value peace of mind vs making the financially best decision?

I’m pretty sure you can lease a Honda Civic with zero down and under 200/month.

If you buy a 2 year old civic it’ll be 7 years old when you’re making 200/month payments still. During this time, you’ll certainly have to replace breaks, tires, battery and potentially more.

I won’t argue that buying a 2 year old car and keeping it for 10+years is financially cheaper, especially if you’re handy with cars or have a trusted mechanic. It might not be that much cheaper compared to lease, and you have to be ok with paying that money for an older car (ie comfort/luxury) and less reliable (towards the end of your ownership).