What would you do?

[SMinGA]

Glad that worked well for you. Does not mean its ideal for everyone. Its not all about vanity. We're driving a '99 Nissan Altima with major passenger side damage, which we picked up for cheap when my car died in January. Have put more into it so far than I'd care to confess - and we're certain it won't last more than another 3-6 months without requiring even more $$$. Better to put that into a downpayment for a reliable vehicle with better gas mileage. Not that the Nissan is bad on mileage, but we do alot of driving.

Long story short: we will buy a used hybrid (Prius, 50mpg roughly from getting to drive one for 2 weeks a couple of months ago) that will cut our gas expense by about $225-250 per month. And that is based on current gas prices - I seriously expect prices to go up soon due to the recent gulf disaster and changes in drilling. Not to mention having a late model, decent car before going into a chapter 13 will help us make it to the end of a successful plan. If our '99 can't handle the 900-1000 miles we drive in a WEEK for 3-5 years, we will lose a major part of our income from lack of transportation.

Some people can't get over the "embarrassment" of driving an older car. For them I guess the car payments are just a vanity tax. Me? I don't care. I drove an 87 Nissan until it returned to it's base elements. I paid $1,500 for the car in '95 and drove it as my primary vehicle for 15 years. A few oil changes and brakes every so often and I figure my total cost to own was less than about $500 a year, including fuel, insurance and registration.

[ROB37LAW]

Glad that worked well for you. Does not mean its ideal for everyone. Its not all about vanity. We're driving a '99 Nissan Altima with major passenger side damage, which we picked up for cheap when my car died in January. Have put more into it so far than I'd care to confess - and we're certain it won't last more than another 3-6 months without requiring even more $$$. Better to put that into a downpayment for a reliable vehicle with better gas mileage. Not that the Nissan is bad on mileage, but we do alot of driving.

Long story short: we will buy a used hybrid (Prius, 50mpg roughly from getting to drive one for 2 weeks a couple of months ago) that will cut our gas expense by about $225-250 per month. And that is based on current gas prices - I seriously expect prices to go up soon due to the recent gulf disaster and changes in drilling. Not to mention having a late model, decent car before going into a chapter 13 will help us make it to the end of a successful plan. If our '99 can't handle the 900-1000 miles we drive in a WEEK for 3-5 years, we will lose a major part of our income from lack of transportation.

I agree. The deal is almost finalized. I'll be financing about 13k. The vehicle I chose has 11K miles so it's still covered under factory warranty until 36K. I'll refinance in 6 months according to the credit union. Car payment is quite manageable and no mechanical worries since I only drive about 8k miles a year. Everyone's situation is different. This works for me. At least this is the first time in my life that I purchased a "used" car. I used to buy 30K dollar new vehicles. What a waste. I plan on keeping my car payment the only debt that I have and will pay extra each month to pay down the loan sooner. Good luck to all.

[Amy26]

We've had this discussion many times on this forum! Personally, I have no problem taking out a loan for a vehicle. One that I like, one that is reliable and hell yes I like new cars. Just because we went through BK doesn't mean we're totally irresponsible with money and just because we went through BK doesn't mean taking a loan for a car is absolutely insane. Whether you also believe that way or not is entirely up to you.

Personally, I have no problem making payments on something I'm in debt for....within reason... IE: car, rent, mortgage, student loans. And just because you can't afford a down payment doesn't mean you can't afford a car payment. My car payment is 450 a month ... it was 650 before I refinanced it. A lot of you would look at that number and be like OMG THAT'S CRAZY! But to me it's cheap... I wasn't really happy with the 650 number but I refinanced it down to 450. That number is very reasonable to ME.

On the other hand, I would never go above 25k or 30k on a car. I cannot see the point of getting a super expensive car unless I planned to live in it! But, again, some people will think 25k is way too much to spend on a car.

Its all relative and there is no correct answer. Personal opinions aside, if it makes sense to you, it fits in your budget and you're comfortable with it, then more power to you. Of course, shop around and make sure you get the best deal but don't just take a really crappy rate on an expensive car just to have one.

[ROB37LAW]

We've had this discussion many times on this forum! Personally, I have no problem taking out a loan for a vehicle. One that I like, one that is reliable and hell yes I like new cars. Just because we went through BK doesn't mean we're totally irresponsible with money and just because we went through BK doesn't mean taking a loan for a car is absolutely insane. Whether you also believe that way or not is entirely up to you.

Personally, I have no problem making payments on something I'm in debt for....within reason... IE: car, rent, mortgage, student loans. And just because you can't afford a down payment doesn't mean you can't afford a car payment. My car payment is 450 a month ... it was 650 before I refinanced it. A lot of you would look at that number and be like OMG THAT'S CRAZY! But to me it's cheap... I wasn't really happy with the 650 number but I refinanced it down to 450. That number is very reasonable to ME.

On the other hand, I would never go above 25k or 30k on a car. I cannot see the point of getting a super expensive car unless I planned to live in it! But, again, some people will think 25k is way too much to spend on a car.

Its all relative and there is no correct answer. Personal opinions aside, if it makes sense to you, it fits in your budget and you're comfortable with it, then more power to you. Of course, shop around and make sure you get the best deal but don't just take a really crappy rate on an expensive car just to have one.

Very well said Amy.

[BobMango]

Glad that worked well for you. Does not mean its ideal for everyone. Its not all about vanity. We're driving a '99 Nissan Altima with major passenger side damage, which we picked up for cheap when my car died in January. Have put more into it so far than I'd care to confess - and we're certain it won't last more than another 3-6 months without requiring even more $$$. Better to put that into a downpayment for a reliable vehicle with better gas mileage. Not that the Nissan is bad on mileage, but we do alot of driving.

Long story short: we will buy a used hybrid (Prius, 50mpg roughly from getting to drive one for 2 weeks a couple of months ago) that will cut our gas expense by about $225-250 per month. And that is based on current gas prices - I seriously expect prices to go up soon due to the recent gulf disaster and changes in drilling. Not to mention having a late model, decent car before going into a chapter 13 will help us make it to the end of a successful plan. If our '99 can't handle the 900-1000 miles we drive in a WEEK for 3-5 years, we will lose a major part of our income from lack of transportation.

You're right, it's not all about vanity (I did say "some", not all.) It sounds like your plan is the best financial decision for you. You've actually sat down and run the numbers. Some folks simply decide they need a new car and their first and only thought is to finance something.

The OP started the thread with "What would you do?" and that's what I responded to. After filing bankruptcy many folks focus on one thing over another. For some it's houses or credit card debt, I guess my thing is cars.

I have trouble imagining a scenario where I "need" to finance a car, it's as simple as that. Doesn't mean people that do are stupid or delusional or foolish, maybe they just have a different approach to it.

[teacher]

We've had this discussion many times on this forum! Personally, I have no problem taking out a loan for a vehicle. One that I like, one that is reliable and hell yes I like new cars. Just because we went through BK doesn't mean we're totally irresponsible with money and just because we went through BK doesn't mean taking a loan for a car is absolutely insane. Whether you also believe that way or not is entirely up to you.

Personally, I have no problem making payments on something I'm in debt for....within reason... IE: car, rent, mortgage, student loans. And just because you can't afford a down payment doesn't mean you can't afford a car payment. My car payment is 450 a month ... it was 650 before I refinanced it. A lot of you would look at that number and be like OMG THAT'S CRAZY! But to me it's cheap... I wasn't really happy with the 650 number but I refinanced it down to 450. That number is very reasonable to ME.

On the other hand, I would never go above 25k or 30k on a car. I cannot see the point of getting a super expensive car unless I planned to live in it! But, again, some people will think 25k is way too much to spend on a car.

Its all relative and there is no correct answer. Personal opinions aside, if it makes sense to you, it fits in your budget and you're comfortable with it, then more power to you. Of course, shop around and make sure you get the best deal but don't just take a really crappy rate on an expensive car just to have one.

I agree with the majority of your posts, but this one concerns me just a bit. What you're basically saying is that you're okay with living in debt. You shouldn't be. I'm not saying it isn't okay to take on debt, but this is what generally gets people into trouble. You're doing perfectly fine until something happens (job less, death, injury, etc.) and then you get behind of your "manageable" payments and end up back in the same boat.

The problem with the "if it makes sense to you" strategy is that all/most of the preBK decisions "made sense to you".