My Debt Reduction Blog » Vehicles http://www.mydrblog.com/blog Our road down debt reduction to elimination, and living without a budget Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:27:03 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 I have to get a new (used) car http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2009/07/03/i-have-to-get-a-new-used-car/ http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2009/07/03/i-have-to-get-a-new-used-car/#comments Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:06:54 +0000 Chad http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/?p=114 Due to some changes with my employer, the need to for me to get a decent, reliable vehicle has risen. For the last 6-7 years, my employer has provided a work vehicle. Which has allowed me to drive a P.O.S. for my 5 minute commute I had to work. Well, the work vehicle is going away and my job consists of a lot of driving. My personal car is basically dead and couldn’t be trusted as reliable what-so-ever. I’ve known of this need for a few months now and it’s down to crunch time. Because my job also requires carrying tools, ladders, and sometimes large items, and because winter in Wisconsin is nasty, I’ve decided I want a full size 4 wheel drive SUV. My employer now provides a $160/month gas allowance, so gas mileage isn’t terribly important to me.

I’ve been saving for a new vehicle for awhile, but that got used up when the wife totaled her van back in March. So I’m only back up to about $1,000 saved for it. Sadly, I can’t find a decent vehicle with the specs I’m looking for in that price range. I would love to get something around a 2004-2006 Chevy Tahoe or GMC Yukon, but those are going for around $15,000 used, and that is out of my price range. I’ve determined, even though I do not want car payments, that I could afford about $150/month. Which puts me in the price range about $7,500. If I get lucky, I may be able to find something around a 2000 – 2001.

Now the tricky part, I’m going to need to finance the purchase. I have plenty of time to research and do it right. I’m not going to be pressured in to 15% financing on a dealer lot. Have I mentioned just how much I hate dealers yet, and car shopping in general? So I’d like to get pre-approved for the $7,500 amount without actually committing to a vehicle. Then I could get a little negotiable. I don’t have the best credit past, and I’m certainly stretched now, so I don’t know how easy that will be.

Now I need to just figure out where the best place would be to do that. My bank? A credit union? Is there a trusty online loan source anywhere?

Update: I applied for a loan with my bank that I’ve been with for 12+ years and was quickly shot down. Damn!

---
Related Articles at My Debt Reduction Blog:

  • No related posts


]]> http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2009/07/03/i-have-to-get-a-new-used-car/feed/ 0 Had to pay car insurance today http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/had-to-pay-car-insurance-today/ http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/had-to-pay-car-insurance-today/#comments Thu, 04 Oct 2007 01:28:22 +0000 Chad http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/had-to-pay-car-insurance-today/ We use Progressive to insure both our vehicles and I pay it every six months. My car has only liability but our mini-van has full coverage. What was nice was that our 6 month total was $12 cheaper than our last bill.

---
Related Articles at My Debt Reduction Blog:


]]> http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/had-to-pay-car-insurance-today/feed/ 0 Got a free oil change today http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/got-a-free-oil-change-today/ http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/got-a-free-oil-change-today/#comments Thu, 04 Oct 2007 01:21:10 +0000 Chad http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/got-a-free-oil-change-today/ It’s nice a have a great mechanic. He handles every issue and maintenance for both our vehicles. Today I brought the mini-van in for an oil change, when I went to pick it up, he said no charge. How cool was that!?!

---
Related Articles at My Debt Reduction Blog:


]]> http://www.mydrblog.com/blog/2007/10/03/got-a-free-oil-change-today/feed/ 0