4 ms·

Alas, the more likely scenario is "I need $500 to fix my car. Damn piece of shit needs repair at least once or twice every year. If I had a brand-new F350, I wo

by nikanj 5y ago

Alas, the more likely scenario is "I need $500 to fix my car. Damn piece of shit needs repair at least once or twice every year. If I had a brand-new F350, I would save so much money on repairs!" And they happily drive off the lot with a $80k car loan at 36%. People are, pardon my french, dumb as shit when it comes to car purchases. They are very happy to lose a guaranteed $10k/year in deprecation, so they won't get hit by a $2000 surprise bill.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
ModernMech 5y ago
The valuation of assets doesn’t matter when you have cash flow issues (especially when you can't sell that asset). It really doesn’t matter in the short term how fast an asset is depreciating as long as it’s doing the job in the short term. This is why people say it’s expensive to be poor. Someone with good cash flow can make better long term financial decisions.
- nikanj 5y ago
  You're absolutely right, and it's so frustrating to see someone opting for additional $150 per month in car payments, because they couldn't afford a $500 repair, because they're already doing $350 per month in car payments.
emodendroket 5y ago
Most people don't make great decisions buying cars, rich or poor, but that logic isn't entirely specious. If your car spends weeks at a time in the shop, and you need it to get around, it's a false economy to keep fixing it instead of buying one that is reliable.
- whatever1 5y ago
  But you don’t know it when you are in the process of fixing an old car. You pay $1000 and you think that you will be good for a couple of years. The reality is that after a couple of months you will probably need to fix something else. Flush and repeat.
  - emodendroket 5y ago
    Oh, after a couple goes at it you figure it out.
whatever1 5y ago
An old car is not a 2000$ surprise bill and you are done. It’s 1000 and after a couple of months another 2000 and after that another 1000. It never stops asking randomly for money. While I was a student over the span of 5 years I had spent to the mechanic more than what I had paid the dealer for my 10 yo used car. Without the help of my parents I am not sure how I would be able to spit enough money to pay all of these bills. So yes paying 400 per month for 7 years with high interest is a better deal that getting a car that you can afford with cash.
- ak217 5y ago
  I don't mean to downplay people's problems, but this very much depends on the car, your local climate, and your ability to spot problems before they become serious. Lots of Toyotas out there that you only need to budget oil and tires for, and the occasional strut/brake pads/spark plugs as needed every few years. And there is plenty of information out there on which used cars are more reliable and how to spot parts that will need maintenance, if one is resourceful enough to search for it.
wpietri 5y ago
I think it's pretty hard to measure people's actual intelligence here given the way they are manipulated. US carmakers spend something like $10bn/year on advertising, for example. And car salesman are a byword for making sales by any means necessary. Car makers and dealers do that shit because it works on enough people to keep the money rolling in.

by nikanj 5y ago

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

ModernMech 5y ago

The valuation of assets doesn’t matter when you have cash flow issues (especially when you can't sell that asset). It really doesn’t matter in the short term how fast an asset is depreciating as long as it’s doing the job in the short term. This is why people say it’s expensive to be poor. Someone with good cash flow can make better long term financial decisions.

nikanj 5y ago
You're absolutely right, and it's so frustrating to see someone opting for additional $150 per month in car payments, because they couldn't afford a $500 repair, because they're already doing $350 per month in car payments.

emodendroket 5y ago

Most people don't make great decisions buying cars, rich or poor, but that logic isn't entirely specious. If your car spends weeks at a time in the shop, and you need it to get around, it's a false economy to keep fixing it instead of buying one that is reliable.

whatever1 5y ago
But you don’t know it when you are in the process of fixing an old car. You pay $1000 and you think that you will be good for a couple of years. The reality is that after a couple of months you will probably need to fix something else. Flush and repeat.
- emodendroket 5y ago
  Oh, after a couple goes at it you figure it out.

whatever1 5y ago

An old car is not a 2000$ surprise bill and you are done. It’s 1000 and after a couple of months another 2000 and after that another 1000. It never stops asking randomly for money. While I was a student over the span of 5 years I had spent to the mechanic more than what I had paid the dealer for my 10 yo used car. Without the help of my parents I am not sure how I would be able to spit enough money to pay all of these bills. So yes paying 400 per month for 7 years with high interest is a better deal that getting a car that you can afford with cash.

ak217 5y ago
I don't mean to downplay people's problems, but this very much depends on the car, your local climate, and your ability to spot problems before they become serious. Lots of Toyotas out there that you only need to budget oil and tires for, and the occasional strut/brake pads/spark plugs as needed every few years. And there is plenty of information out there on which used cars are more reliable and how to spot parts that will need maintenance, if one is resourceful enough to search for it.

wpietri 5y ago

I think it's pretty hard to measure people's actual intelligence here given the way they are manipulated. US carmakers spend something like $10bn/year on advertising, for example. And car salesman are a byword for making sales by any means necessary. Car makers and dealers do that shit because it works on enough people to keep the money rolling in.