Buying a Car Before Commissioning?

[Guest future16driver]

Question,

For active duty UPT guys, do you think it is a wise decision to buy a car before going to pilot training or to wait until one is finished. I have the oppertunity to take the USAA loan and get a good deal on a 2000 Wrangler Sahara.

Any Thoughts?

[Guest hokie00]

UPT aint like bootcamp. You do your training and at the end of the day you go home and do your stuff. If you're itching to get a new car, why not. Get it and enjoy it and have a blast !

I have 3 fresh out of school 2nd LT friends and all of em are itching to get fast and showy new cars. I have a brand new Honda S2000 but I'm gonna sell it when I go off to OTS and get something cheaper and more practical.

[Guest egghead]

It's amost a civic duty that a new 2Lt go buy a new car for themselves. I've wanted a Mustang GT since I was 14 years old. May 2002 it was mine. (only 3 more years 'til it's really mine!)

[Guest AirGuardian]

All 2Lt's need to start off right with a car loan. It just keeps piling on from there. Get something you want to drive since you may be limited to a minivan a few years down the road. Fortunately my better half despises vans of any sort, but you may not be so lucky. Plenty of new cars at UPT, you'll see, enjoy!

[HerkDerka]

IMHO Lieutenant-mobiles are a waste of money.

After I commissioned I decided to not get a new car. When you think about it, you're going to UPT where you won't have time to enjoy it anyway. Even if you do get yourself a pizimp ride, what's the point? There aren't a lot of hot women to pick up in the UPT towns. I suggest using the same old POS that got you through college. After UPT, you'll be driving alot from place to place for your follow-ons and that is the time to pick up your new wheels. I did it that way and was very glad that I did. Besides, by waiting a year I got a better intrest rate on my loan. Stay away from USAA and their (In order to get the new LT loan you have to direct deposit all of your money to us BS) IMHO, why start making payments on something when your not going to be using it anyway. And believe me you won't. You'll always have one of those people who don't drink in your UPT class and they'll end up being your chauffer for the next year.

PD

[Guest navobd]

I'll have to agree with PegDriver. I bought a new truck right after I got commissioned. Looking back, I would've bought a reliable used vehicle that was more economical. That way I would've had more beer money instead of spending it all on a new car note. Granted I did stay in an apartment during training vs. dorms but that extra $200 a month goes a long way as a Lt. When you pin on 1Lt you get a pretty good pay raise and that's probably a good time to start checking those new cars out.

[Guest jtpuro]

If you wait until you're a 1Lt or Capt you can get a good deal on an awesome NEW vehicle instead of an above average used one. Also, once you hit the magic age of 25 insurance will go down drastically. Not sure it the 25 issue applies to you, but it factored in my decision to hold off for a few years. To each their own though, I'm sure I'll get passed by my classmates in mustangs and SUVs while I'm driving the ol' Buick.

[GBock]

I bought a 2002 mustang after commissioning.

I drove it all over Oklahoma during UPT.

I picked up hot OSU and OU college girls all the time.

When you have a sweet ride, you'll drink less.

When you want to drink, you'll still have those DD's with the minivans (or a shaggin' waggon, in my case - ###!)

With the USAA loan, you will not really miss the money. Not like you're going to spend a whole lot during UPT anyway. Except alcohol and food.

[Guest Cider]

GBock your right on. You won't miss money that you haven't been seeing yet. I bought the brand new GT the day after the USAA and USPA bubbas gave us the "how to spend your money speech" Just seemed the thing to do after they discouraged it. Espcially since I didn't finance through them. There is a lot of good advice here, mine is...it's your money bro, do with it what you want. I had no regrets and still have the same car. She's still a hottie!

[M2]

Dudes

You are young, reward yourself a little and get a nice car. Don't go spending $35K on a new Beemer, but there are decent cars and trucks out there. You've been struggling enough, and you will be working your *** off at UPT. Having a nice ride will make you feel a little better.

Just a quick anecdote, I looked at a Nissan 300ZX in 1989 as a second lieutenant, they wanted $30K for it. Yes, it was a very nice car, but so was the 1989 Acura Integra LS I bought for half that. The Honda Accord I had through college was still a decent car, but I was no longer in college and felt I deserved something new. Oddly enough, now I drive a 8-yr-old Passat wagon, not quite a minivan but no longer a sports car either!

By the way, be cautious of the USPA guys, unless they have changed their tactics they are a rip-off as far as I am concerned. They went after my paycheck as an O-1E as well!

Cheers! M2

[Smokin]

Some people here seem to be ragging on USAA, slightly off topic, but what do you guys think about them? I was thinking similar to future16driver, but probably looking at a decent used car instead of a new one to replace my soon-to-be-wife's old junker. USAA seems like a good deal for a loan for that.

[Guest mrharvester]

I've had USAA insurance since I was 16, and have switched my banking over as well. I haven't had a complaint yet. The insurance sends you a rebate check every year that you don't file a claim. The bank refunds ATM fees, has free online banking and billpay. It's pretty good.

By the way, what is USPA?

[Guest IAGuardWife]

He wasn't talking about USAA. MajorMadMax was referring to USPA, which is now known as First Command. They are financial planners for military families. They help you with your investments and life insurance.

BTW, we use USAA and First Command and have been very pleased with both companies.

[HerkDerka]

I'll agree that USAA is good for insurance. However, back when I was a brand new LT I called about the LT loan and they told me that I had to direct deposit my entire paycheck to a checking account with them because "They wanted a relationship with me outside of the loan". That was the biggest crock of sh-t I ever heard. They wouldn't just let me put it into a savings account which is what I normally do. That situation showed me that they were really out for my dough. I had a little experience with First Command too. The funny thing is that I probably would be investing with them, but their sales guy in Enid tried way to hard. I mean the guy came to talk to me at home etc. That really turned me off of First Command. I'm not downing on these two companies, but anyone who tries that hard to get my money has a reason that probably isn't in my best intrest.

PD

[Guest mrharvester]

In my experience, all banks and credit unions that give you a break on interest and defer the payments usually want something in return, such as direct deposit of your paycheck and direct withdrawl of their payment.

[Guest 130Nav]

I know a lot of people like First Command but those people drove me crazy!! They hound you to death to buy life insurance that you don't need!!!

USAA has a great reputation and I have never heard anyone complain about doing business with them.

[Guest IAGuardWife]

Peg, that's strange that USAA said that to you for the loan. Do you have your insurance with them? We have had 3 loans through USAA and we don't have any banking accounts with them, only our insurance.

The First Command guy in Del Rio is pretty bad too, but we had great luck with the agent in Omaha. We set up our investments and life insurance with them. I have also worked with an agent here in Atlanta, and she's been great, too!

[BFM this]

Young, single, 2LT UPT studs: this is what my bud did, I personally think it's the gouge and would follow suit if I wasn't years beyond single.

Drove his college ride through UPT and on to the FTU. Saved his money in the process and a few weeks prior to shipping overseas, bought something that would be, well, uniqe where he was going. Needless to say what it lacked in trunk pace it more than made up for in muscle. And with the money he saved by using a little restraint during UPT, it's anything but practical ($$$). More power to him. I hope to be in that position while I'm still young enough to enjoy it.

[Guest conversekidz]

Originally posted by flyinjunky:

Young, single, 2LT UPT studs: this is what my bud did, I personally think it's the gouge and would follow suit if I wasn't years beyond single.

Drove his college ride through UPT and on to the FTU. Saved his money in the process and a few weeks prior to shipping overseas, bought something that would be, well, uniqe where he was going. Needless to say what it lacked in trunk pace it more than made up for in muscle. And with the money he saved by using a little restraint during UPT, it's anything but practical ($$$). More power to him. I hope to be in that position while I'm still young enough to enjoy it.

What did he buy?

[Beaver]

If you are the heat in your UPT class and get a mighty Viper, there is a chance that you can't take your car to your first F-16 assignment, i.e. Kunsan, Osan, or Misawa. Your choices are park it or sell it, so if F-16's might be in your future I offer you this point to ponder.

[GBock]

Or KC-135, or MC-130, or P-3, or HH-60, or E-3, or RC-135, or F-15C...

...to Kadena.

The Government will store it and take good care of it if you want. I'm doing it. It's a non-issue.

[Guest mrharvester]

Pardon my ignorance, but why can't you take a car to Kadena, Misawa, Kunsan, or Osan?

[Guest chaw]

Probably something to do with local automobile laws and regulations.

[Bergman]

I agree that you at least want to wait until you get your assignment before buying that great LT Mobile. It would suck to drop $25k on a Mustang (or other rear wheel drive car) and then get that much-desired assignment to Grand Forks or Minot and not be able to drive the thing for 6 months a year.

As far as brining your shiny new ride overseas...there's the potential for damage when shipping there/back, the fact that Japan uses right hand drive cars (and the left side of the road), and just the additional hassle of having to worry about it (shipping, damage, etc). If it were me, I'd fly over there and drop $2k on a beater car that I can sell for $2k when I leave after 3 years of abuse.

As a side note, you can't get RC-135s to Kadena straight out of UPT. You have to do a tour at Offutt first (3 years or more). That's not to say you won't be TDY there so much you think you've PCSd....

[Guest Metalhead]

So it sounds like what you want to do is treat yourself right, but not drop a huge chunk of dough, get something with a shit-ton of horsepower, 4 wheel drive, reasonable insurance payment, and doesn't lose much value when You get stationed overseas?

Sound's like I want a lifted 4WD dodge dakota with a 400 HP motor, that the insur. company thinks I drive 10000 miles a year. :D

Hey there's definetly 2 schools of thought here and good arguements for both. Your money man. Either way you'll probably be fine. I do know that for my 1st year as a 2lt, I was net losing about $100 bucks a month, which ended up on the card. I bought my truck right before I got commisioned. I didn't really start making anything until about the 3 to 4 year point.

The discussion about USAA and First Command: I started saving money about the 2 year point of my career -- via USPA / First Command. Those guys are irritatingly persistent and you have to make your own decision weather or not to 'use their services'. If you do or if you don't, I think the important thing is to start saving some cash early as you can and keep up with it. Get yourself an allotment into a mutual fund or buy futures in crude oil. If I keep driving that truck of mine you'll make more money buying oil. whatever. Just start saving something.

As far as the bank. I used Nations bank for 4 years ('cause they MADE me direct deposite my entire check in order to give ma a loan -- sound familiar) and they sold out to Bank-of-America, whose service I think is pure shit. So I decided to switch banks. I did a bunch of research between USAA and the First Command Bank. Decided to go with the First Command bank. I have absolutely no regrets at all. The service is great, I've had zero problems. The guys do give some descent advice, you just have to be able to decide if the life insurance is what you want or if it's crap.

Oh also. Get yourself an internet bill pay of some sort if you are single. You will start missing payments when you start deploying otherwhise. Let the computer pay them on time. Whan you are deployed you wont likely know what day it is, much less that you had a power bill due last week.