Car loans and interest rates

[FLEA]

State school. 

[the g-man]

This conversation makes me salty about an expereince I had being beraded by a squadron commander for $50K of debt. $40K student loans, $10K to finance my car, as a Lt. Said commander was an academy grad and it occured to me he was incapable of seeing a problemset faced by a lot of people. He was making the presumption that everyone started off in the Air Force at 0 and could not rationalize what i spent all the money on or why. He presumed i would be better off as a debt free airmen than a debt free Lt. Now im a debt free captain and presume im way better off than a debt free TSgt. 

And let me know how exactly your commander was able to berate you about the amount of debt you held?


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[VMFA187]

On ‎10‎/‎19‎/‎2018 at 10:41 AM, HeloDude said:

Why are people purchasing luxury items on credit... 

Because Uncle Sam only lets us fly jets when he wants us to.

[FourFans]

1 hour ago, JohnyTodd84 said:

Hi, guys. I’m sorry if this thread is wrong to ask for such help. I’ve not found a better place than this thread. So, I’d like to know if a student can have a car loan. Is it actually possible, guys? Though my father can buy me a car, I want to buy it myself, so I’d like to know if it’s actually real. As for a car, I’m currently looking for an rx7 fd for sale. I fell in love with that car when I was a kid, so I’d be very happy if I bought it. So, guys, thanks in advance for your help. I’ll be waiting for your replies.

When you say "student", what exactly do you mean?  What year in school?  ROTC?  Are you working?  Need more data to compute.  

As for your dream RX7 FD, if you're the standard in-debt college student, here's my advice: DON'T.   At least not yet.  Don't go into debt for a car you can't afford.  If you can't buy it outright, you can't afford it.  I fully understand the desire to break the yoke of mom and dad, but dude, wait.  You'll get there, but your finances as a college student are very unlikely to be able to afford a 30k loan.  

Bankers will say you can, but trust me, you can't.

[Blue]

4 hours ago, JohnyTodd84 said:

So, I’d like to know if a student can have a car loan.

As for a car, I’m currently looking for an rx7 fd for sale. I fell in love with that car when I was a kid, so I’d be very happy if I bought it. 

Can a student have a car loan?  Only way to find out is to ask the bank of your choice.  If your a ROTC/Academy cadet, or otherwise associated with the military, look into USAA.

You've been given some good advice by @FourFans130 already, so I won't repeat that.  I will say, some personal anecdotal experience: I did the "buy a used performance car" fresh out of college.  It was fun, but looking back, I wish I hadn't.  Assuming you buy as a student and keep it through your first couple years after graduation, it's more important to have things like: reliability, cargo space, etc.  Hearing the whine of the turbo was fun, but I quickly got jealous of my buddy with the four door whatever, when he didn't have to tear into his car on the weekend to fix things, and could easily fit stuff in the trunk.

An old man's two cents.

[FLEA]

4 hours ago, JohnyTodd84 said:

Hi, guys. I’m sorry if this thread is wrong to ask for such help. I’ve not found a better place than this thread. So, I’d like to know if a student can have a car loan. Is it actually possible, guys? Though my father can buy me a car, I want to buy it myself, so I’d like to know if it’s actually real. As for a car, I’m currently looking for an rx7 fd for sale. I fell in love with that car when I was a kid, so I’d be very happy if I bought it. So, guys, thanks in advance for your help. I’ll be waiting for your replies.

You don't want it. Trust me. Its going to cause you more heartburn than its worth. I'm saying that as someone who's been there/done that. 

If you're graduating and entering the career world shortly, you are going to want something that is very reliable and cheap to get work done on. The last thing you want is to have to get up at 6am to be early to work for an important event and the engine wont turn over, or you flooded the motor (common problem on rotaries). 

Once you have a primary set of reliable wheels, then you can look at a hobby car. 

[Prozac]

I totally get the car thing & an FD RX7 is certainly a lustworthy sports car. But….like many here I’ve made my share of financial mistakes & taking on a load of debt on a car you don’t need, especially if you’re a full time student & your future isn’t secured, is probably not a smart move. Suggestion: there are some “cool” cars out there that are also practical and affordable. Think used GTI, Civic Si, Focus ST, etc. A car like that can scratch the performance car itch while also providing reliable transportation for four, fit a mountain bike in the back, and probably move you into your first apartment. If your parents are willing to help, but you want to be self sufficient, maybe see if they’re willing to do an interest free loan to get you into something reliable. Then, after you’ve been working a few years, living within your means, and (most importantly) still single (FOOT STOMP!), you can buy that RX outright, do a track oriented alignment, throw some sticky tires on, keep it garaged, & drive the beans out of it on the weekends while you put all the wear and tear of your commute on your still fun, trusty hot hatch. 

[brabus]

All these years later, my wife still reminds me about the stupid money/time suck of my younger self’s obsession with classic muscle cars (she’s not wrong). Somehow she hasn’t correlated this to airplanes - better lucky than good as they say. Just adding some levity to the fact you should follow the advice above…at least for a few years. 

[nsplayr]

6 hours ago, Prozac said:

Suggestion: there are some “cool” cars out there that are also practical and affordable. Think used GTI, Civic Si, Focus ST, etc. A car like that can scratch the performance car itch while also providing reliable transportation for four, fit a mountain bike in the back, and probably move you into your first apartment. 

Fantastic advice right here. I still drive and love my 2010 4-door stick shift GTI. I’ve also slept in it, cross-country PCS’d in it, and brought home 2x kiddos from the hospital in it. 27 mpg for the highway commute, but fun enough to throw around the back roads on the weekend a little bit. And it didn’t cost me an arm and a leg as a 1Lt back in the day which is the key here.

Now after having promoted a few times and enjoyed no car payment for ~8.5 years, I can more realistically lust after a R1S or Taycan or whatever my heart desires next.

[CaptainMorgan]

Fantastic advice right here. I still drive and love my 2010 4-door stick shift GTI. I’ve also slept in it, cross-country PCS’d in it, and brought home 2x kiddos from the hospital in it. 27 mpg for the highway commute, but fun enough to throw around the back roads on the weekend a little bit. And it didn’t cost me an arm and a leg as a 1Lt back in the day which is the key here.
Now after having promoted a few times and enjoyed no car payment for ~8.5 years, I can more realistically lust after a R1S or Taycan or whatever my heart desires next.

GTI and performance car are only something a Nav would confuse.


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[nsplayr]

11 hours ago, CaptainMorgan said:

GTI and performance car are only something a Nav would confuse.

I mean it’s not objectively fast, but it drives fast/fun.

Kinda like your mom…she’s not actually hot but it all pretty much feels the same on the inside 😁

[Biff_T]

If you’re trying to be cool on a budget I recommend this:

 

[VMFA187]

Echo all of the above. 

As a 2ndLt - 1stLt, the list of vehicles I had owned

- 1999 Corvette

- 2006 Kawasaki ZX-6R

- 1981 Suzuki S-60

- 2001 Jeep Cherokee

- 2011 Ducati 1098

- 2003 Dodge Viper

Save your money, buy something used, keep it for a long while. Buy a house, then later you can splurge. An FD RX-7 is going to require at least $30k and a lot of maintenance to keep it running. Definitely better options.