How old are you?

Ill be 21 in december.

 

20 in September.

 

BSP Sport MT
18K OTD
7k down
$252/month for 48 months @4.59 apr

 

7K down?!! shitttttttttttt lol, There's a 09 black fit sport, USED here!! 489 miles on it and they want $15,900 for it.....

I cried when I saw that deal and wish I hadnt been layed off

 

There are so many factors that come into play. It's not just final price of the car or credit rating, but might have to do with income level and cost of living etc.

So that some things are considerably more affordable in some areas for some people. LOL!

To give you an idea, my area (San Francisco) is costly. Here's a place for sale, pretty close to where I am. $278K for a one bedroom, one bathroom, with a homeowner's monthly fee of $365.00.
8200 Oceanview Ter #104, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132 | MLS# 40350094

But if you were to buy elsewhere, you could get a home for that monthly fee alone. Obviously that frees up whatever income you have. There are people who scrimp and save for their car. There are people that have a very good income who can easily afford a car under 20K.

The overall costs have to be considered when you look at the people driving by in their cars. And we don't KNOW what their financial situation is.

Yes, used Fits hold their value. That was one reason I bought new and not used. The cost was about the same. The used Sports costing MORE than a new base when I first started looking.

Look around at insurance. And check interest rates and payments and prices of the cars. Then start putting that much money away every month. Because you'd HAVE to put that much money away each month if you HAD the car.

Eventually you'll have enough for the down payment AND you'll know that you can easily meet the payments for insurance and the car. If you have to dip into that fund that you put away for the car, then you can't afford the car. If it's a struggle, you can't afford the car. Yet.

Just keep plugging away with putting more money away, and by the end of this year, you could have stashed 4-5K for the down payment!

 

Just dug out my form. MSRP after destination was $19,700.50, the 6.25% sales tax was $1049.22, and my down payment was $1900 (I forgot about my $500 deposit that went toward the down payment), so the amount financed was $18,849.72 @ 5.49% (not counting the ~$300 processing fee) for 66 months at $331 a month.

 

09 fit sport auto.
$16,950 - $7250 trade in value.

 

meh...why buy used when you can get a new one for $16950 (sport/auto).

It was an easy purchase for me, i went on the internet and visit the dealer's website. Chatted online with the sales rep asking what's his "online" price for the 09 fit automatic in blue. He said $16,950 and I asked what other fees are there or is he going to make me buy the mandatory $500 floor mats to go with it. He said "None" and I said can You do the sale in less than 2 hours because I got to go to work afterward. Yep, i drove to work in the new car w/9 miles on the odo.

 

Good job on the internet purchasing! That's pretty much what I did. I chatted via email with the dealerships Internet guy.

I think that is the way of the future. Buying our cars online. Or doing most of the legwork online. Many of the Honda dealers have their new car AND used car inventory online.

The insurance people have online quotes available. And there are a bazillion auto-related sites to check out reviews and driving opinions and cost of ownership and gas mileage and pollution.

It certainly makes it much more convenient to research many cars before buying. And it was so important for me not to buy a dud. Because I just can't afford to have the darn car in the shop as often as any of my old cars.

 

I paid $15,300 with destination, and tax and title. It works out to $300 a month, because I didn't get a very good interest rate as it's my first auto loan.

I got a bare base-model. No mats, no pinstripe, no anything. It did come with two tanks of gas though. I put in the floormats, and had the dealership cut the keys, I probably spent $300 on what would have cost $600+ installed, plus whatever interest I'd wind up paying on floormats.........

I played three dealerships against each other, and used each one as leverage against the other ones. I'm happy with my purchase, and that's what counts.

 

The nice thing about the Honda FIT is that the "bare base model" has just about everything you could need. They don't have 15 different option packages. I have a base automatic, and it's fine. It has more than I need, really.

I haven't used the CD player. I don't have an iPod. It doesn't get that hot to use the a/c (except that the a/c also works with the defrost). And I keep the back seats folded up, so they don't get dusty and to give me access to the floor area, all the time.

It took me this long (months) to even roll down the rear windows. At which point I discovered a sound on rolling up one of the windows, like it's squeaking against the weatherstripping. So I guess it has to go in to the shop.

 

I only put the $500 deposit down, 60 month loan, 5.75% interest...
$405 for a Sport Auto w/Navi with cargo tray and all season mats and 6 year 100k mile warranty and gap insurance...

 

whats gap insurance?

 

I didn't have much luck with shopping via internet. The dealers would contact me but not give up much information or commit to any deals except for their initial offer which was MSRP. I had one guy give me a "special internet price" which was in fact MSRP and made sure he put a big "WOW!" at the end of the e-mail. When I called him out on the fact that it was MSRP, he stopped replying to me. Wonder why?

However, I ended up getting my deal on a site called Drive Your Drive which was linked from carbuyingtips.com. They gave me a good fair price. I had all the invoice and holdback data so I knew what I should be paying. I got that fair price on the first offer. No hassle and no bait and switch.

 

If you get in a car accident and the car is totaled out, the insurance company will only give you book value for the car. If your loan is worth more than what they gave you, you are left covering that amount yourself. GAP insurance pays out that amount.

Example:

Loan currently at $18,000.

Wrecked car is totaled out at $16,000.

GAP insurance covers the left over $2,000.

 

how much is gap?

 

It can vary. Typical cost for me runs between $200-$300. I usually finance through the Navy Federal Credit Union and have it added on to the loan amount. Purchasing through the dealer can easily run you $500 or more.

I think it's well worth the cost!

 

Most people that understand this concept don't have payments

 

So true.

+1

 

You can also save yourself the $200-300 on the GAP insurance by putting down a good down payment. If you still total the car, you are out that value of the car but at least it was already paid for ahead of time. Even without the down payment, I would take my chances without it. Chances are you are not going to total the car so GAP insurace is pissing money away if you ask me.