First car advise

Go for small second hand reputable brands. Stay the fsck away from older 'luxury' cars.

Some mostly very sensible advice in this thread.
 
If you are under 25 years of age then anything higher than a 1.6 would most likely be considered a performance vehicle and you will be hard pressed to even find insurance less than 2k a month.

And rule of thumb I reckon is you should be able to "afford" at minimum twice or more safely three times the monthly cost of the vehicle you want to buy to compensate for services, damages, petrol etc... unless you want to be stressing over finances every month.
 
Thanks guys, it was just looking at the awesomeness of a Jetta 4/Merc with leather seats and all the features etc that made me consider it.

I'm also seriously considering saving up for 4 months to get to R35-40k and just buying a car straight. No R10k wasted over 3 years in interest and no monthly payments will be amazing, however then this will be say a 2000 model Tazz, maybe older Polo or Opel etc.
However this all delays my being able to afford to move out (or buy just about anything else) and could get me a dodgy car more easily.

Is that still recommended over buying a similar newer car and making repayments? If I'm buying cash I could really ditch the car after my first pay rise so it'll only have to last a year.

And thanks for the insurance advice, I thought it might be crazy on a >2l old "luxury" car. I am indeed under 25, first car and recent license. ATM A 2000ish Polo Playa is looking good to me. Even if I have to maybe loan say R20k with 30k deposit.
 
Last edited:
genetic said:
BMW and reliable don't go together. A BMW will cost him an arm and a leg in servicing costs anyway.
Click to expand...

I disagree. I had a 1999 E46 318i (M43 motor) and the cost of the oil/air/fuel filters were very similar to a Corolla 160i (had one of those before also). The only thing more expensive was the oil. Sold it on 270k with nothing but the radiator and water pump changed as breakdown parts. Still running happily with the new owner till today.

RSifan, the oke can get a 1998 Corolla RSi for like R60k. The cost of maintaining it is not an everyday thing and imagine how happy he will be:)

Anyways, fella rather buy something reliable as a first car, dont worry about image.
 
Alestorm said:
Thanks guys, it was just looking at the awesomeness of a Jetta 4/Merc with leather seats and all the features etc that made me consider it.

I'm also seriously considering saving up for 4 months to get to R35-40k and just buying a car straight. No R10k wasted over 3 years in interest and no monthly payments will be amazing, however then this will be say a 2000 model Tazz, maybe older Polo or Opel etc.
However this all delays my being able to afford to move out (or buy just about anything else) and could get me a dodgy car more easily.

Is that still recommended over buying a similar newer car and making repayments? If I'm buying cash I could really ditch the car after my first pay rise so it'll only have to last a year.

And thanks for the insurance advice, I thought it might be crazy on a >2l old "luxury" car. I am indeed under 25, first car and recent license. ATM A 2000ish Polo Playa is looking good to me. Even if I have to maybe loan say R20k with 30k deposit.
Click to expand...

I bought my second car cash for R45k, and it was awesome. But I was lucky, the next car I bought (another old Merc of course) was R40k cash, but it needed about R20k worth of work. The one I bought for R45k only needed the bushes done.

That being said, I love not having any interest payments. I have never paid a cent of interest on any motor vehicle loans, and I'm quite happy about that.

However, I saved up for a few months while living in the UK, before buying that R45k car, and same thing with the R40k, I had the money in the bank. I'm also 26 now, so I've been working a bit longer. What I'm trying to say is that, buying a car cash suited me very well because I had the cash. However, you dont. You can buy a cheaper car, as you say, the problem is A) as you said, it delays things, and B) cars below R40k can start getting dodgy, and you need to have money to repair them if necessary.

So, in your case, I would see interest as a regrettable but unavoidable fact. Paying interest allows you to get a more reliable, safer car, which will lead to a lot less headaches and worry in the long run. Dont go crazy of course, but with R2k a month you should be fine I would think.

Does anyone versed in finance know if the OP could get a personal loan from a bank and use that on any car he wished? I mean, whats the difference between vehicle finance and using a personal loan to buy a car? Interest rate?
 
Just buy a fugly reliable car to get you from A to B , that way noone will want to steal it or get you to drive them around using up your fuel . :-)

Fancy car needs a fancy bank account and most people are impressed by it for the first couple of times they see it then it just becomes another car as new fancy models come out.
 
Go for newer with less specs.Its more economical in the long run.Saw all the entry level Hyundai's on display at Easgate.
Lovely cars and the prices are good as well.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X