Should I replace my car? – PART TWO!!!

WOW!  What a tremendous response to my post about my MOM telling me via the blog to REPLACE THE CAR!!!

There was a multitude of well-thought out responses that have me thinking …

Here are some of my thoughts about the responses:

  • "Steve_Sr1" cracked me up when he said that I should have listened to my dad about checking the oil occasionally – He's right!
  • "Indiana Pal" knows WAY TOO MUCH about me – he brought out a reference to a 1981 Datsun B210 that I used to drive
  • "Joe D." needs to understand that I will pay cash for a car – car payments – did he say CAR PAYMENTS?  May my voice never utter the words CAR PAYMENT ever!!
  • "Julie Brown", "Rich Brott", "Moneymonk", and "Paul Moyer" all just flat-out agreed with Mom.
  • "Mark Asbell" and "Chip" offered excellent responses that indicates that they may have encountered this situation before.
  • "Just Me" needs someone to help her out with her car!

The amount of responses to this topic really have made me think a lot about this.  There are so many people who have to deal with making the two key decisions when it comes to their car:

1.  Should we replace the car?

AND

2.  If we decide to get rid of the car, what should we replace the car with?

Tell me some of your stories about how you made these decisions in the past, and I will post a consolidated group of those stories to help us all make a more informed decision.

PS:  The Sangl's HAVE made a decision and HAVE TAKEN ACTION in regards to the car situation.  Details to follow … Smile

6 Comments

  1. Paul Moyer on July 2, 2007 at 4:09 am

    Since I tend to also drive old beaters my decision has always come down to whether it will cost more to fix the car or purchase another old beater.

    The last time I replaced my car was 2.5 years ago. I paid 1,200 dollars for an old Ford Tempo that had less that 100k on it. It is still running and I have only put another $150 in to it. That is a total of 45 dollars a month and the AC still works!!



  2. -joe d. on July 2, 2007 at 8:36 am

    Uh oh Joe, I’m washing my mouth (and wallet) out with soap for wandering near the term car payment 🙂

    I understand and totally agree: Stay Away from the Payment Monster!



  3. Jon Smock on July 2, 2007 at 9:46 am

    I agree with Paul Moyer. While cars can have some great features (excellent safety records, nice sound system, GPS, quick ride, speed), for me it usually comes down to what does it cost me to drive. We all want to get from point A to point B, and what does it cost me annually to do it.

    While I don’t have any trade-in stories, I’m looking for my first car now (just graduated from PSU – woot!), and I’d love to get some tips as to evaluating whether a car is a good deal or not. I was a math major at PSU (woot! again), so I tend to be a little analytical when evaluating things, and I keep searching for figures on what it will cost me to maintain the car, gas-mileage, etc. to analytically tell me, “it will cost x to drive per mile.” This is probably unrealistic, but I’m sure shrewd people (like Paul M) look at things with these principles in mind.



  4. Jon Smock on July 2, 2007 at 9:47 am

    Also, that was supposed to say “quiet ride.” 😉



  5. Just me on July 2, 2007 at 10:55 am

    Im not sure if i should be excited or embarrased! On one hand i made it on the first page of a blog … whoot whoot .. on the other hand how horrible that Mr. Sangl with all his car trouble plugged me 🙁 I have put my foot down and crushed my hubby.. he was hoping he could just get a new car with a car payment *YIKES* I personally think that would be the worst move we could make, and i have expressed such! Joe I will try to find you Sunday and shake your hand for teaching me that much.



  6. John X on July 2, 2007 at 6:38 pm

    1. You should keep the car & make it a planter in your front yard! (Saves money spent on planters, looks GOOD!, makes neighbors your friend & adds iron[or plastic] to the soil(great for root strength))

    2. You should buy a new 3-seater Tricycle – black & gold, of course. Use the extra cash on chrome fenders & low-profile tires.

    I’m personally never letting go of the ’97 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo, green in color, transmission accessorized with steel shavings, brakes that are replaced biweekly. But if I did, I’d buy a ’97 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo, green in color. All this despite the wife’s intense desire to buy a new Ford Extradonero Expedition.

    Just remember that Dave Ramsey says you should buy a garage-sale beater that is so ugly it has a NAME.



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