Set me straight on my car purchase

[exclusives88]

Instant gratification still gets to me even after reading the book and being a forum member for over a year. I'm sure some of you guys can relate.

After seeing friends with nice cars - viper, 991 gt3, maserati ...etc it doesn't help but think of getting a nice car.

Here is my situation.

My plan was to quit my job full time in 2016 so I am saving enough money that I can support myself for at a minimum 2 - 3 years. My full time job currently pays well and I can afford the car.

I am so close of purchasing a 2008 Aston Martin Vantage for a very very great deal. I can pay for it in cash but I need the cash for business and to support myself for the 2-3 years so I ended up getting a loan. I got the loan approved and everything and I am one e-mail away from making closing the deal.

My gut is telling me NO. I know the answer is NO. But a part of me is telling me that I should go for it. It is telling me that I am only 29 years old right now and I will never get a chance to drive such an amazing car at my age.

I already know the answer but I need some reinforcement that I am making the right decision of not getting this car.

 

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[Guest34764]

You don't need someone on the forums to tell you that's a shitty thing to buy.

You also don't need someone online, miles away from you to tell you not to buy the car.

Reinforcement Is not needed here.What's needed here Is common sense.

Of course, If you decide to buy the car that's totally up to you, but I'd consider something a bit more than a 2008 Aston Martin Vantage.

Buy It or not It's up to you.

Just don't make any choices you'll regret In a few months.

 

[Donovon]

If you're at this point, are you really even going to feel that good about buying it? Or are you going to start the engine every day feeling guilty and thinking 'shit, this put me an additional year (or more) away from freedom'? That's how I feel about my car.

If you need some gratification, find something cheaper to get your dopamine rush. I stop my younger brother from buying stupid stuff all the time by redirecting him towards something equally pointless, but a lot less expensive. The new car buzz is going to wear off quickly and it's going to cost you a lot more than it's worth in the long run.

 

[Jon L]

this is the kind of thing you should buy when buying it won't alter your financial picture more than a few percent.

 

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[Ninjakid]

I already know the answer but I need some reinforcement that I am making the right decision of not getting this car.

We aren't your parents, you don't need our permission.

And yes, you don't need a sports car right now. Buy one when you've got the moola in your bank.

Build business first, make money, buy car after.

 

[jon.a]

Buyers remorse, it a real thing.

 

[Silverhawk851]

close of purchasing a 2008 Aston Martin Vantage for a very very great deal

If it's a great deal, you buy it!

Not as a liability, but as an asset!

You buy lower than market value,
You don't pay cash either,
you finance it at that lower rate,
drive it around for a 6-12 months,
and sell it for the same or a profit!

And you still have your cash to play around with business,
you just need enough to cover that 6-12 months payments on there and a float in case it's not selling, etc

Check out what these guys are doing: http://www.exoticcarsecrets.com/?gclid=CIrrv9aAxskCFcpCXgod9nsOtw

Personally know a few guys who do this regularly,
always driving top notch cars and making profit on them

 

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[Deleted35442]

Instant gratification still gets to me even after reading the book and being a forum member for over a year. I'm sure some of you guys can relate.

After seeing friends with nice cars - viper, 991 gt3, maserati ...etc it doesn't help but think of getting a nice car.

Here is my situation.

My plan was to quit my job full time in 2016 so I am saving enough money that I can support myself for at a minimum 2 - 3 years. My full time job currently pays well and I can afford the car.

I am so close of purchasing a 2008 Aston Martin Vantage for a very very great deal. I can pay for it in cash but I need the cash for business and to support myself for the 2-3 years so I ended up getting a loan. I got the loan approved and everything and I am one e-mail away from making closing the deal.

My gut is telling me NO. I know the answer is NO. But a part of me is telling me that I should go for it. It is telling me that I am only 29 years old right now and I will never get a chance to drive such an amazing car at my age.

I already know the answer but I need some reinforcement that I am making the right decision of not getting this car.

At 29 years old you still haven't grown out of peer pressure? "My friends have it....I need one." Do your friends have a successful Fastlane business that justifies a Maserati? I think @MJ DeMarco in TMF talks about in his book people chasing the appearance of rich than actually being rich (even referencing passing BMW's in the ghetto, am sure we all have seen it as well, I have).

Scrap it, or I have no sympathy for you when you're here later saying how right we all are. Also, if you feel the need to measure yourself according to what your friends do, then maybe you should keep some distance from them for awhile. Now my son, ditch the car, and get back to work.

@Silverhawk851 The car will further depreciate, he won't break even when he sells it, and the insurance and gas alone will kick his a$$ assuring that. 1/10 advice.

 

[JohnZ123]

Do you already have a car? If you do just keep your old car. Who cares if your friends are all driving nice cars. For one thing they could be leasing it or financing cars far above their budget.

 

[Silverhawk851]

The car will further depreciate, he won't break even when he sells it, and the insurance and gas alone will kick his a$$ assuring that.

Hmm well I'd say the 08 Vantage has already depreciated,
and rounding out now, won't really see a ton of depreciation in 6-12 months

For sure I agree it depends on the numbers and how good the deal is

Average 08 Vantage in good condition and decent clicks going for $50k-65k
If he can find one below 43K everything, he can definitely make a profit or breakeven at the worse,
and get to enjoy the car at the cost of gas+insurance
PLUS have the capital to use to create an ROI on that capital

relative to having the entire amount tied up in the depreciating asset,
as well as paying the gas and insurance

Not to mention if he uses that same capital to grow his business,
and can make an ROI on it,

That same initial 50k-65k over the course of the year would have had paid those expenses for him,
as well turn a profit through his business and possibly the car

on the other hand if he buys it,
he just parked up capital in a depreciating asset
that has a super high opportunity cost in the business he could've make ROI on

At end of the year
One hand, same 60K makes you profit over the time spend and get you to drive the car you want
Other hand, you lose 10K+ in expenses

I struggle to see the logic on how that's a bad deal

 

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[Vigilante]

I drive a 2006 Ford Truck that has been paid off for years.

When I first came to the forum, I had a goal of buying a Panoz Esparante.

A funny thing happens when you can buy the car. You no longer need it.

 

[Vigilante]

Sam Walton used to drive across the country visiting Wal-Mart stores, usually with his dog Roy at his side.

Here's what he drove. Because he could.

 

[AndrewNC]

I already know the answer but I need some reinforcement that I am making the right decision of not getting this car.

Make us here on the forum proud, knowing that you made the right choice.

 

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[Deleted35442]

Hmm well I'd say the 08 Vantage has already depreciated,
and rounding out now, won't really see a ton of depreciation in 6-12 months

For sure I agree it depends on the numbers and how good the deal is

Average 08 Vantage in good condition and decent clicks going for $50k-65k
If he can find one below 43K everything, he can definitely make a profit or breakeven at the worse,
and get to enjoy the car at the cost of gas+insurance
PLUS have the capital to use to create an ROI on that capital

relative to having the entire amount tied up in the depreciating asset,
as well as paying the gas and insurance

Not to mention if he uses that same capital to grow his business,
and can make an ROI on it,

That same initial 50k-65k over the course of the year would have had paid those expenses for him,
as well turn a profit through his business and possibly the car

on the other hand if he buys it,
he just parked up capital in a depreciating asset
that has a super high opportunity cost in the business he could've make ROI on

At end of the year
One hand, same 60K makes you profit over the time spend and get you to drive the car you want
Other hand, you lose 10K+ in expenses

I struggle to see the logic on how that's a bad deal

OP isn't even suggesting selling in 6-12 months. I highly doubt he's cruising off in an 08 Aston Martin at less than $50k. No car that year has "already depreciated" and continue to do so. I've seen an 02 Jaguar for less than $2k with a guy begging me to buy it once. More exotic cars move slower. Your "logic" is riddled with your assumptions here. Gas, insurance, and the maintenance (English cars $$$). $10k+ loss on anything is a bad deal in any world. Chances of ROI: Slim to none. Your views vs. mine on him losing/making money on the car aside. It goes against what TMF preaches: appearance of wealth vs. actual wealth with an identical example of this. Not to mention he'll probably have the expectation going that he'll be more loose with his cash and end up spending more during dates/out with friends because, hey, he's driving an Aston Martin, isn't he ALREADY RICH? Bad idea and he seems to know it, the consumer in him is being drawn in, and his logical faculties are here begging for us to pull him back out.

 

[SenGracic]

@Silverhawk851 SE wise I just read those books, amazing !

To OP :
Is the Aston Martin more important than your business ?
How much (amount of money you want to put in this car) can improve my business ?

 

[Ubermensch]

Because he could.

That phrase sounds familiar.

 

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[Silverhawk851]

the consumer in him is being drawn in, and his logical faculties are here begging for us to pull him back out.

fair enough not everyones strengths/weaknesses are the same
what works for one might not work for OP

@Silverhawk851 SE wise I just read those books, amazing !

Yeah epic book by @secretentourage

 

[sector7]

But in all seriousness, it's not worth buying it now. There's a time and place for everything. Don't let your childish wants and impulses get the best of you.

 

[exclusives88]

Hmm well I'd say the 08 Vantage has already depreciated,
and rounding out now, won't really see a ton of depreciation in 6-12 months

For sure I agree it depends on the numbers and how good the deal is

Average 08 Vantage in good condition and decent clicks going for $50k-65k
If he can find one below 43K everything, he can definitely make a profit or breakeven at the worse,
and get to enjoy the car at the cost of gas+insurance
PLUS have the capital to use to create an ROI on that capital

relative to having the entire amount tied up in the depreciating asset,
as well as paying the gas and insurance

Not to mention if he uses that same capital to grow his business,
and can make an ROI on it,

That same initial 50k-65k over the course of the year would have had paid those expenses for him,
as well turn a profit through his business and possibly the car

on the other hand if he buys it,
he just parked up capital in a depreciating asset
that has a super high opportunity cost in the business he could've make ROI on

At end of the year
One hand, same 60K makes you profit over the time spend and get you to drive the car you want
Other hand, you lose 10K+ in expenses

I struggle to see the logic on how that's a bad deal

I understand your logic.

I bought a porsche 911 turbo last year. I bought it for $27,000. It had 52k miles on it. I got an amazing deal and one day, someone offered mid $30s for it so I just sold it. After paying taxes and some maintenance items, I made a couple grand on it. After selling it, I bought a 2005 mini cooper s in cash for $4,500. I am still driving it now but sometimes I do miss driving a "nicer" car.

OP isn't even suggesting selling in 6-12 months. I highly doubt he's cruising off in an 08 Aston Martin at less than $50k. No car that year has "already depreciated" and continue to do so. I've seen an 02 Jaguar for less than $2k with a guy begging me to buy it once. More exotic cars move slower. Your "logic" is riddled with your assumptions here. Gas, insurance, and the maintenance (English cars $$$). $10k+ loss on anything is a bad deal in any world. Chances of ROI: Slim to none. Your views vs. mine on him losing/making money on the car aside. It goes against what TMF preaches: appearance of wealth vs. actual wealth with an identical example of this. Not to mention he'll probably have the expectation going that he'll be more loose with his cash and end up spending more during dates/out with friends because, hey, he's driving an Aston Martin, isn't he ALREADY RICH? Bad idea and he seems to know it, the consumer in him is being drawn in, and his logical faculties are here begging for us to pull him back out.

The 2008 vantage was selling for $40k. I actually negotiated down to $34k. It has higher mileage however, I took the car to an AM dealership to get a detailed PPI done. It has all the maintenance work done including clutch work (which is probably the bigger ticket item). If you do some research, the transmission and motor are very bullet proof and I expect to have just routine maintenance done.

After paying state sales tax, and maintenance items (that showed up on the PPI), I'm looking at around 8k of expenses (includes $2.5k of sales tax). This will be spreaded out among 10k miles.

Anyways, I think everyone is right. My priority is getting out of the slowlane and getting this car will just slow me down. Although this car might be a great deal, I'm sure other deals will come up when I'm in the fastlane.

 

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[biophase]

I can tell you this. Staying at home everyday and having a mini cooper in the garage beats going to work everyday and having an Aston Martin in the garage. Even though your friends have nicer cars than you, they will actually envy the fact that you don't need to wake up in the morning every day and drive to work in rush hour.

 

[SBS.95]

OP isn't even suggesting selling in 6-12 months. I highly doubt he's cruising off in an 08 Aston Martin at less than $50k. No car that year has "already depreciated" and continue to do so. I've seen an 02 Jaguar for less than $2k with a guy begging me to buy it once. More exotic cars move slower. Your "logic" is riddled with your assumptions here. Gas, insurance, and the maintenance (English cars $$$). $10k+ loss on anything is a bad deal in any world. Chances of ROI: Slim to none. Your views vs. mine on him losing/making money on the car aside. It goes against what TMF preaches: appearance of wealth vs. actual wealth with an identical example of this. Not to mention he'll probably have the expectation going that he'll be more loose with his cash and end up spending more during dates/out with friends because, hey, he's driving an Aston Martin, isn't he ALREADY RICH? Bad idea and he seems to know it, the consumer in him is being drawn in, and his logical faculties are here begging for us to pull him back out.

I agree with the overall message of your post, except for this example. An '02 Jaguar (aka, a rebadged Ford with no desirable collectors market) shares little in common with with an '08 Vantage other than both having British heritage.

A 2008 Aston Martin selling for $40k (this is according to OP, not pulling numbers out of my a$$) is just about done depreciating. In another 7 years it's certainly not going to be worth $20k. Go look at selling prices on Aston Martins from the early 2000s. They're selling for...... (drumroll)..... about $40k. All cars have a bottom line of their depreciation curve, and this is about it it for this car.

All that being said, I don't like the idea of buying a 6 year old Aston Martin just because there are some friends on Instagram with exotics. If these are real friends, they're not going to judge you for driving an old car.

 

[exclusives88]

I can tell you this. Staying at home everyday and having a mini cooper in the garage beats going to work everyday and having an Aston Martin in the garage. Even though your friends have nicer cars than you, they will actually envy the fact that you don't need to wake up in the morning every day and drive to work in rush hour.

Thanks for the reminder Kenric. The feeling of waking up every day in the morning to go to work is what I dread the most! Looking forward in meeting you at the summit.

 

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[exclusives88]

I agree with the overall message of your post, except for this example. An '02 Jaguar (aka, a rebadged Ford with no desirable collectors market) shares little in common with with an '08 Vantage other than both having British heritage.

A 2008 Aston Martin selling for $40k (this is according to OP, not pulling numbers out of my a$$) is just about done depreciating. In another 7 years it's certainly not going to be worth $20k. Go look at selling prices on Aston Martins from the early 2000s. They're selling for...... (drumroll)..... about $40k. All cars have a bottom line of their depreciation curve, and this is about it it for this car.

All that being said, I don't like the idea of buying a 6 year old Aston Martin just because there are some friends on Instagram with exotics. If these are real friends, they're not going to judge you for driving an old car.

My friends don't care if I drive a crappy car. I'm a car nut so whenever I see nice cars around me, I do get the itch of buying another nice car. In fact, they really like my 9 years old mini with 146k miles.

 

[biophase]

A 2008 Aston Martin selling for $40k (this is according to OP, not pulling numbers out of my a$$) is just about done depreciating. In another 7 years it's certainly not going to be worth $20k. Go look at selling prices on Aston Martins from the early 2000s. They're selling for...... (drumroll)..... about $40k. All cars have a bottom line of their depreciation curve, and this is about it it for this car.

All this talk about breaking even or making a profit driving a nice car is nice. But what this all comes down to is that there is risk in going this route. This is not a business for him. It's a nice to have.

In my opinion, doing this deal, while it may end up profitable, will sidetrack him (money and energy wise) from his goal of quitting his job and becoming financially free earlier.

There will be one day when you don't even need to think about getting a $40k car. But when that day comes, you won't want a $40k car anymore. LOL

 

[mws87]

Instant gratification still gets to me even after reading the book and being a forum member for over a year. I'm sure some of you guys can relate.

Are you familiar with the cognitive biases? This would fall under the reward bias. I'm sure we all get those urges here and there, but they are often easily subdued.

After seeing friends with nice cars - viper, 991 gt3, maserati ...etc it doesn't help but think of getting a nice car.

I know a dude who has a pretty nice CLS 63. He is now married to his job.

My plan was to quit my job full time in 2016 so I am saving enough money that I can support myself for at a minimum 2 - 3 years.

I can pay for it in cash but I need the cash for business and to support myself for the 2-3 years

I already know the answer but I need some reinforcement that I am making the right decision of not getting this car.

And your answer was right there in your post

I know everyone has already posted in here, just wanted to give you some more reinforcement

 

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[EN_VY]

I suggest you work on your business until you can buy it, without having to ask a forum, because you can truly afford it. Buying something because pf what your friends drive doesn't make sense. Some of my friends have new cars, but they're stuck with payments. One of my friends really regrets getting the car, and wishes he hadn't gotten it.

 

[Kak]

Instant gratification still gets to me even after reading the book and being a forum member for over a year. I'm sure some of you guys can relate.

After seeing friends with nice cars - viper, 991 gt3, maserati ...etc it doesn't help but think of getting a nice car.

Here is my situation.

My plan was to quit my job full time in 2016 so I am saving enough money that I can support myself for at a minimum 2 - 3 years. My full time job currently pays well and I can afford the car.

I am so close of purchasing a 2008 Aston Martin Vantage for a very very great deal. I can pay for it in cash but I need the cash for business and to support myself for the 2-3 years so I ended up getting a loan. I got the loan approved and everything and I am one e-mail away from making closing the deal.

My gut is telling me NO. I know the answer is NO. But a part of me is telling me that I should go for it. It is telling me that I am only 29 years old right now and I will never get a chance to drive such an amazing car at my age.

I already know the answer but I need some reinforcement that I am making the right decision of not getting this car.

Let's put it this way... I think the exotic car thing should be left until you really really don't have to think about it. Once you're legitimately at that point, your priorities will probably change, and your philosophies on spending money will probably change with that.

I have a 2014 leased car that will go back soon and a paid for 2006 Chevy Suburban. I prefer the suburban, why? Because screw people who think they need a flashy car because they make X money per year. I'll leak oil on the road and burn a gallon of gas for every 10 miles I drive and laugh that I could afford to set it on fire if I wanted to.

 

[carswest]

The 2008 vantage was selling for $40k. I actually negotiated down to $34k. It has higher mileage however, I took the car to an AM dealership to get a detailed PPI done. It has all the maintenance work done including clutch work (which is probably the bigger ticket item). If you do some research, the transmission and motor are very bullet proof and I expect to have just routine maintenance done.

Being a dealer myself I cannot get sense of it. If I have a solid car that I can take to auction today to make 40-50K, why would I sell it to private party with paperwork and loan hassle for 34K? Even if I do house financing for 5 years I will just break even at the lowest price at the auction today.

What is the real higher mileage? Share the link? I will be happy to do research for you as well.

And I agree with most folks here...owning myself cars from Hummers to SL600, this is not wealth yet, you feel good, yes, but it is just to show off...I am 100% happy driving right now Dodge Caliber that cost $4000 and working on my financial abundance. lol.

If I'd be you I'd bought, get the feeling of owning it (great for visualizations), then sell with minimum loses and work on your wealth.

 

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[Aaron W]

Extra 'lifestyle goodies' should only be bought when you don't have to think about the price.

Use the money to make money.

 

[MatthewPL]

Our mind is very strange.
We want buy something because we think we need that thing.

When we buy it, in our mind born thought: "Why i bought it? I
don't need that" and we start feel guilty by spending our money not smart as we can.

It's very tough to don't buy shitty things.

I tested it on myself.