Getting a new car....

[TheHaitian]

Since everyone seem to be getting one I guess I might as well too.

Currently: 2008 Kia Sportage with 161,000 miles

Not sure what I want to replace it with yet but my wife has a few ideas:
- Kia Sorento
- Jeep
- Subaru

I only have the following requirements:
- heated seats
- satellite radio
- GPS
- 4WD
- I would like a 3rd row seating just in case we have more than 1 kid Or extra passengers.

Price: 30k-35k
Thinking : 5k down and finance the rest.

[Deleted]

[yogiii]

Is it April Fools already?

[phil5185]

For reliability, the Subby is the winner (they invented AWD & every Sub has it).
The Kia is my second 2nd choice. And the Jeep is a distant 3rd, not known for reliability.

How is the Sportage holding up - has it had any problems (other than normal wear items)  ?

And why tie up $5K? (I like to buy with zero-dirve-away cost. I finance the car, the license, the tax, everything.) 

[Deleted]

Is the Kia you are driving paid off? Is there a pressing need like a major repair (engine, transmission, etc.) that makes buying more of a necessity than a want?

If you could, I would wait until you aren't driving so much.  The kind of mileage you are putting on a car these days will really hurt the value of a new car just as the instant depreciation will. You could find yourself upside down in a hurry.

But then I don't really get new car fever.

[Deleted]

Well, even if you do have more than one kid, you don't need a third row seat, especially even before kid number one has been conceived.  You just know you'll be sick of the car long before you need seating for 7.

My vote is you wait until you find out how much all this fertility stuff is going to end up costing you this year. 

[Deleted]

Dec 24, 2014 13:27:16 GMT -5 TheHaitian said:

Price: 30k-35k
Thinking : 5k down and finance the rest.

[Cookies Galore]

What the fuck, man? Seriously.

[Bonny]

The wife has an interesting approach of getting out of debt....

[zibazinski]

Wait a minute, you told us the Mini Cooper was able to fit car seats.

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 14:30:01 GMT -5 zibazinski said:

Wait a minute, you told us the Mini Cooper was able to fit car seats.

It is but the kid(s) won't always be with my wife.

[Deleted]

Dec 24, 2014 15:08:48 GMT -5 TheHaitian said:

Dec 24, 2014 14:30:01 GMT -5 zibazinski said:

Wait a minute, you told us the Mini Cooper was able to fit car seats.

It is but the kid(s) won't always be with my wife.

Both of my kids have four kids, most of whom are still in car or booster seats. They each have one car and one mini-van.

Whoever is supposed to be getting the kids takes the mini-van.

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 14:09:34 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

Well, even if you do have more than one kid, you don't need a third row seat, especially even before kid number one has been conceived.  You just know you'll be sick of the car long before you need seating for 7.

My vote is you wait until you find out how much all this fertility stuff is going to end up costing you this year. 

Personally I always wanted a minivan. Yes this is a guy saying he wants a minivan, my wife hates when I say that.

They are perfect for long ride trips, functional and spacious.

[midjd]

I have a tiny Focus and DD's car seat is fine, even when DH has the seat all the way back. Two seats would be a little more difficult, but that seems like putting the cart before the horse a bit...

Didn't you just put a lot of repairs into your car? What's the long-term prognosis there?

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 15:11:18 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

Dec 24, 2014 15:08:48 GMT -5 TheHaitian said:

It is but the kid(s) won't always be with my wife.

Both of my kids have four kids, most of whom are still in car or booster seats. They each have one car and one mini-van.

Whoever is supposed to be getting the kids takes the mini-van.

How do you know in advance who is supposed to have the kids? Your kids have 1 full time stay at home and 1 PT stay at home... It is not as easy to plan when both parents are working FT. I am guessing your DD and DDIL always end up with the minivan!

1 person might do drop off and the other person does pick up.

My wife might have the car seat and I might be the one able to leave work and take the kid to the hospital.

Seeing my parents it made their life easier to each have car seats in their car vs trying to decide which car to take or removing car seats from 1 car to the other.

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 14:04:18 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

Is the Kia you are driving paid off? Is there a pressing need like a major repair (engine, transmission, etc.) that makes buying more of a necessity than a want?

If you could, I would wait until you aren't driving so much.  The kind of mileage you are putting on a car these days will really hurt the value of a new car just as the instant depreciation will. You could find yourself upside down in a hurry.

But then I don't really get new car fever.

I don't have a new car fever... Definitely not a car guy, did not get the gene.

This purchase is definitely for when after I relocate; at least we hope. It would have to be a smoking deal for us to buy now....

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 14:02:50 GMT -5 phil5185 said:

For reliability, the Subby is the winner (they invented AWD & every Sub has it).
The Kia is my second 2nd choice. And the Jeep is a distant 3rd, not known for reliability.

How is the Sportage holding up - has it had any problems (other than normal wear items)  ?

And why tie up $5K? (I like to buy with zero-dirve-away cost. I finance the car, the license, the tax, everything.) 

The Kia has been a dream so far besides normal wear and tear - which is why I wouldn't not mind sticking with a Kia.... I am happy with this car.

Recently put 4 brand new tires on it (second set of 4 within a year) so driving smooth.

[Deleted]

Don't you already have household debt of nearly 400K?

I'd drive the car till the wheels fell off and the duct tape no longer held them together.

[Deleted]

What shape is your KIA in? How much are you selling that for?

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 15:13:20 GMT -5 midjd said:

I have a tiny Focus and DD's car seat is fine, even when DH has the seat all the way back. Two seats would be a little more difficult, but that seems like putting the cart before the horse a bit...

Didn't you just put a lot of repairs into your car? What's the long-term prognosis there?

6 year old car with 161,000

I am stuck here for another 6 months and drove 42,000 miles in the past 8 so figure 200,000 miles by the time I move back home.

So basically realized sooner than later I will need a new car. Hoping for later but ok with sooner! Either that or apply for a job with my company with car allowance which is what I was considering.

The latest one was $800/month car allowance (car note + insurance)
Car need to be less than 3 years old or 100,000 miles
Plus you get refunded mileage.

If it wasn't for the fact it was a "new" position to uncertain how long they will pilot it... I would have applied for it.

[Deleted]

The chance of having twins are pretty slim so I wouldn't base vehicle purchase decisions on that and Mrs. C already said one and done.  Yeah, she may change her mind, but I'm guessing your current cars would be fine as far as fitting offspring for a long time.

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 13:28:43 GMT -5 yogiii said:

Is it April Fools already?

Maybe

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 15:31:26 GMT -5 minnesotapaintlady said:

The chance of having twins are pretty slim so I wouldn't base vehicle purchase decisions on that and Mrs. C already said one and done.  Yeah, she may change her mind, but I'm guessing your current cars would be fine as far as fitting offspring for a long time.

I am not buying the car on the possibility of kids (plural). I am buying the car because I will need to replace the one I have and while I like the Kia I currently have; I would prefer one with more room both for carrying stuff or people.

[cronewitch]

Wait until you need a car then buy one with good gas mileage that will hold 4 people. Infants don't need much space and it will be 9 months or more before a first infant. Your not even expecting yet and if you work out of town wife can do all the child toting or MIL will be watching so baby will be home not riding to daycare. Wait until baby is in daycare and you both have jobs to see if you might need a second car seat or different car.

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 15:24:13 GMT -5 laterbloomer said:

What shape is your KIA in? How much are you selling that for?

Decent shape I guess, never had an accident, a few coffee stains, expected wear and tear.

I would probably trade it in vs selling it myself on the open market.

[phil5185]

Yes this is a guy saying he wants a minivan, my wife hates when I say that.
They are perfect for long ride trips, functional and spacious.

You are definitely correct, we've made several trips from Arizona to Alaska in AWD mini-vans. 

[muttleynfelix]

There is nothing wrong with having a game plan so that when you do need a new vehicle, you know what kind you want.  Notice I said need. You don't need a new vehicle right now.  You won't need one until yours becomes unreliable.  You aren't there yet.  You put so many miles on your vehicle that yes, you probably feel like you will get there quickly.  But I think you are jumping the gun.  This is from the person who took 6 months to research the right SUV for our family and researched cars for 3 years before circumstances dictated that I had to get a new to me car sooner rather than later.  But all that research meant, I knew what would work with our budget, what we actually needed as a family, what had good reliability, what to avoid.  DS was 11 months old before we upgraded from the 2 door car and extend cab pick-up (not 4 door) to the SUV.  It was certainly worth the wait because we knew how our car seat fit in each of our options.  Some of the SUVs we looked at had less room in the rear seat than DH's 2 door car.  With the car, we had 2 kids and our second car was the 2-door VW GTI that was our primary family car when DS was a baby.  We didn't even have room to install 2 car seats in it. So if I went somewhere with the kids, DH and I swapped cars.  If he was dropping the kids off at work with me, we switched cars.  Granted I love having 2 vehicles that all 4 of us can ride around in, but when we didn't, it was not a huge inconvenience. 

[Lizard Queen]

Dec 24, 2014 15:11:18 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

Dec 24, 2014 15:08:48 GMT -5 TheHaitian said:

It is but the kid(s) won't always be with my wife.

Both of my kids have four kids, most of whom are still in car or booster seats. They each have one car and one mini-van.

Whoever is supposed to be getting the kids takes the mini-van.

Only 2 kids here, but we do the same.  The person with the minivan gets the kids.  The other car is a 2-door Civic coupe.  That is a pain in the ass with the car seat.  DS1 has been in that car just a handful of times.  DS2 has never driven in the car.  We do have a backup car seat for it, and a backup booster.

With kids, and just for being a DIY homeowner, I think that the minivan is awesome.  If you want something a little smaller and better on gas, check out the Mazda 5. I've heard good things about them, and they look less minivan-ish.  Skip the 4WD.  Seriously.

[Deleted]

Dec 24, 2014 15:17:34 GMT -5 TheHaitian said:

Dec 24, 2014 15:11:18 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

Both of my kids have four kids, most of whom are still in car or booster seats. They each have one car and one mini-van.

Whoever is supposed to be getting the kids takes the mini-van.

How do you know in advance who is supposed to have the kids? Your kids have 1 full time stay at home and 1 PT stay at home... It is not as easy to plan when both parents are working FT. I am guessing your DD and DDIL always end up with the minivan!

1 person might do drop off and the other person does pick up.

My wife might have the car seat and I might be the one able to leave work and take the kid to the hospital.

Seeing my parents it made their life easier to each have car seats in their car vs trying to decide which car to take or removing car seats from 1 car to the other.

Um, they plan ahead?  The full-time stay-at-home mom does keep the minivan 99% of the time.  The part-time stay-at-home works about 70 miles away.  So she does long days when she works.  Her husband does drop-off and pick-up on those days . . . in the minivan.  Or if she works on the weekend, he has the minivan.

Maybe when you have four, you have to have the logistics down better.  The last thing they wanted was matching his-and-her minivans.    It isn't his dream car.

[TheHaitian]

Dec 24, 2014 15:22:46 GMT -5 @workingshasta said:

Don't you already have household debt of nearly 400K?

I'd drive the car till the wheels fell off and the duct tape no longer held them together.

Yes and my mortgage is the biggest chunk of that... And no I will not drive a car that the wheels are held together by duct tape.