I wished we'd paid off the mortgage a looong time ago, and that $32K + 9 years of maintenance for the '92 Vette (male mid-life crisis) would have gone a long way to paying that debt down.

But a couple years ago I needed a another car and the 2009 Charger came with a lifetime power train warranty. (With the new Dodges a bumper to bumper lifetime maintenance package can be had for ~$2,000.)

So I got out Excel and made a mortgage calculator and figured I could refinance and get extra cash for the new car, double the payment and pay the loan off in 8 years. I did not want a separate mortgage and a car loan. Used cars that I liked were $25,000 and I keep cars for ~12 years, so the lifetime warranty was a big selling point. And used car loans were about 8.6%.

Obviously cash for cars is *best*.

So there's six years left on the mortgage and I can back off of the extra payment (5 times) or occasionally pay more. It's a low interest loan, but at the rate I'm paying it off the interest rate doesn't matter much. We will save $190K on the 30 year loan and I got a new car.


That's a big answer to "what car to buy" but my plan is working out and figured I'd share the idea.

WC

As for a suggestion on a new car - get a blue one.

Why Blue ?

I tend to prefer bright red with something like silver alloy wheels. Fits with the WD persona

Going to take a test drive of the Cadillac and BMW this weekend. Also considering just holding my money for more investment and buying a used Honda to replace what I have. Undecided

No, UTR, not a 30 year car loan. Most people perpetually have some sort of car loan or payment is my point. The average car payment is about that. It's not a 30 year loan, it's what that number over decades turns out to be. Heck, now there are scumbag car companies selling not only leases (which are by definition perpetual car payments) but even things as absurd as 72 month financing. That's six years!!! Seriously. I mean, come on!

Anyway, I'll admit I'm the exception, but I think people spend their future millions without realizing the exponential impact of saving and compounding gains over decades.

Yeah, the new Chargers are nice.

My wife wouldn't go for it, but for some reason she found the Magnum appealing. So that's where my r/t came from, I love that car.

It's a bit wallet lightening at the pumps, but it makes up for that in doing absolutely everything I want to do and then some.

We have a few LX drivers at work ranging from a Magnum non SXT, an SXT Magnum, my R/T, an SRT8, and an SRT8 Charger. Lots of fun on meeting days, it's like a cruise night.

Sad, but true. Most people buy and trade so often they never see the light at the end of the financing tunnel and just give into keeping a car note indefinitely. Last new car I bought was in '99, I'd rather not do it again.

There's nothing like paying pure cash for a car! But then I'd rather have a car budget than a car note. Cars can be a lot more fun than just basic transportation.