The search begins......a new F-body

[skorpion317]

well, i have some interesting info.

A.) As of right now, my Saturn is worth $3,395. next year, when i'm supposedly going to be able to get rid of it, it will be worth $3,320.

B.) My parents more or less garnish my wages, keeping a certain amount for themselves (i owed them $3500), and putting the rest into a savings account for me (i have a bad habit of burning a hole in my pocket). My dad told me that i have $500 saved up so far, and by next year will probably have a couple thousand.

C.) My parents supposedly will be giving me money towards a new car when i graduate. how much, i don't know, but it should be a substantial amount (in the neighborhood of $20K, i think).

Now, most people are saying "$3K, plus $2k, plus $20K, only adds up to $25K. what ****** new car is he gonna get for that much money?"

who said it had to be "new" new?

a 00-02 SS will be sitting in my driveway next year. Guaranteed. It will be my masterpiece once i'm done with it.

in the meantime, i'm looking for a 3rd gen to tool around in.

[foff667]

id look for a 99-02...the disadvantage of the 99-00 is they use an OS with a primary & secondary VE, ls1 intake maifold, smaller injectors...but injectors are cheap, you can reprogram the stock computer with an 01-02 OS but the vin will be screwed up I think, ls6 intakes are semi cheap...so there you have it...expand it one year must be nice to have rents give you even close to $20k at graduation...i got a 79 buick regal with grey primer & a hug. Your other option would be to do the smart thing & save at least 10-15 grand of that money for a house...unless you plan to live with your parents for the next 10 years

[ar0ck]

I wouldnt go the 3rd gen route if your planning on getting a 4th gen SS anyway. For the amount of money I dumped into my old Trans Am (including insurance, regular maitnance, and crap performance) I could have bought a LS1 F-body with plenty left over for bolt ons (insurance would have killed me but oh well).

[enRo]

[GP99GT]

yeah...if youre trying to save money, why buy a 3rd gen thats bound to need fixing up and not too great on gas when you have a saturn that probably gets around 30mpg?

[Squirrel]

yeah, dont buy anything that you will put money into...you may throw away money on possibly the car taking a complete dump on your two months down the road ...i'd suggest buy a beater for 500 bucks that only needs oil every once in a while 8), a beater that'll last ya until you get your real car...and set it on fire when you dont need it anymore...i bought a POS jetta for 200 bucks, put a new battery in it, tore off the headliner, shift boot, and put a flashy head unit in it...sold it for 400 bucks a couple months down the road....and with just a tune the latest i read on the tex boards is its still going with 190-200k miles

[Ian]

Originally Posted by foff667

Your other option would be to do the smart thing & save at least 10-15 grand of that money for a house...unless you plan to live with your parents for the next 10 years

I wish I did that

[foff667]

Originally Posted by Ian

I wish I did that Â* Â*

thankfully my wife & I split the bills so our house should be paid off in 4 more years woo hoo

[Ian]

Originally Posted by foff667

thankfully my wife & I split the bills so our house should be paid off in 4 more years woo hoo

[12secondv6]

Drive the saturn
Get a fart pipe
Save $$$$
Buy house

[skorpion317]

a house isn't first on the list for a 21 year old. That'll come later, after working for a couple years.

[ShitOnWheels]

Originally Posted by skorpion317

a house isn't first on the list for a 21 year old. That'll come later, after working for a couple years.

It may not be first on the list, but it becomes difficult to save that kind of money to buy your first house when you first start working after college. You really are better off putting as much money aside as you can, let it earn interest (stick it in an ING account or you could try to invest, but that's risky), and then you have it for when you're 24/25 and ready to buy.

[GP99GT]

i know where you can get a sweet grand prix for $4500 as is...

[skorpion317]

Originally Posted by GP99GT

i know where you can get a sweet grand prix for $4500 as is...

sorry, pal, but i need RWD

[skorpion317]

Originally Posted by ****OnWheels

It may not be first on the list, but it becomes difficult to save that kind of money to buy your first house when you first start working after college. You really are better off putting as much money aside as you can, let it earn interest (stick it in an ING account or you could try to invest, but that's risky), and then you have it for when you're 24/25 and ready to buy.

true, but i don't plan on having a house at 25. maybe an apartment of some kind, or living off the fat of the land (read: mooching off my parents for a roof over my head.) i'd rather have the apartment. However, i plan on making a lot of money soon after graduating from school (Porsche, here i come!).

[GP99GT]

Originally Posted by skorpion317

sorry, pal, but i need RWD

yes...because RWD is so necessary for a beater/daily driver...its also awesome in winter

[ShitOnWheels]

Originally Posted by skorpion317

true, but i don't plan on having a house at 25. maybe an apartment of some kind, or living off the fat of the land (read: mooching off my parents for a roof over my head.) i'd rather have the apartment. However, i plan on making a lot of money soon after graduating from school (Porsche, here i come!).

Not much in life happens that you actually planned to happen. Seriously, you would be wise to save the decent amount of whatever your parents may give you. It also helps for an emergency, a rainy day, whatever. Even if you put 10k away, you still have another 10kish, plus whatever you've already saved, to buy a decent car with.

If you have the money to buy a house, why would you get an apartment instead? My guess is the housing market will come down about the time you'd be ready to get an apartment, and you're better investment is in a house. Besides, what girl wants to go back to your place when it's your parents' place? Better off with your own home.

Of course, this is my unsolcited advice. Do what you will.

[12secondv6]

****onwheels is 100% correct!

Me, I'm going through buying my first house right now.

[skorpion317]

Originally Posted by GP99GT

yes...because RWD is so necessary for a beater/daily driver...its also awesome in winter

good points, but not enough to sway me.

[skorpion317]

i'm not so sure about the housing market coming down....i have looked at some of the prices these days. I'm not just being a naive 20-yr old...i've actually done some research. I want to live in the area that I live in now (maybe not the same town, but within a half hour drive). looking through some of the prices in this area, they get to be pretty ridiculous. hell, my house now isn't huge, nothing spectacular interior-wise, but it would probably go for around a million dollars or so if it were put up for sale tomorrow. My uncle is looking for a house now ( he lost his job with Paramount Pictures when they downsized, and moved back to Jersey from PA when he got a new job). He, along with my aunt and my cousins, live with my grandmother now. They're having a hard time finding a house in their price range. **** isn't cheap nowadays.

I wouldn't be surprised if the cost of buying a home goes up in the next few years.

[foff667]

Originally Posted by ****OnWheels

Not much in life happens that you actually planned to happen. Â*Seriously, you would be wise to save the decent amount of whatever your parents may give you. Â*It also helps for an emergency, a rainy day, whatever. Â*Even if you put 10k away, you still have another 10kish, plus whatever you've already saved, to buy a decent car with.

If you have the money to buy a house, why would you get an apartment instead? Â*My guess is the housing market will come down about the time you'd be ready to get an apartment, and you're better investment is in a house. Â*Besides, what girl wants to go back to your place when it's your parents' place? Â*Better off with your own home.

Of course, this is my unsolcited advice. Â*Do what you will.

also just to add a little bit...i have a friend that got out of college a few years back with his degree hes making ~$40k now and just recently paid off his student loan(s) and lives at home with his mom and hes my age. And if your looking to rent an apt. good luck...the house that im joined to is being rented for $1000/mo its a 3 bedroom 1 bath house that barely accomodates my wife & I...I could see a person making $40k a year struggling on their own with that payment...and I cant emphasize enough "Besides, what girl wants to go back to your place when it's your parents' place? "

[JL8Jeff]

Listen to the wise old people. Save the money to put towards a house. You're not going to be able to afford one right away, but you should start saving it as soon as you can. And with auto insurance rates at their highest while you're young, just get a car to drive for the time being. And renting an apartment is the biggest waste of money you'll ever do. I had to pay off student loans before I could even consider buying a new car. Then I bought a new Z24 for a whopping $10K back in 1989! But I lived at home while saving $35,000 for a downpayment towards a house. The best move I ever made. And if I can get my 69 Z28 done this year and sell it, the house will be paid off and I'll have plenty of money to buy some cool toys with. Heck, look at the POS I'm driving to work every day! Spend your money wisely!

[foff667]

Originally Posted by JL8Jeff

Â*Heck, look at the POS I'm driving to work every day! Â*Spend your money wisely!

j/k

[Mike]

Originally Posted by JL8Jeff

Â*But I lived at home while saving $35,000 for a downpayment towards a house. Â*The best move I ever made. Â*And if I can get my 69 Z28 done this year and sell it, the house will be paid off and I'll have plenty of money to buy some cool toys with.

seems like an awful lot of money/time just to turn around and sell it....im in the dark about the values of those things though, perhaps it would be profitable.

either way, sorry its none of my business, just surprised me to read.

[The Fixer]

I will also add my $.02 here, and let this be a lesson to all of you college-aged car-crazy kids -

After I graduated from college and finally found a teaching job, I went crazy, and owned two Monte SS's, plus I bought a '96 Impala SS (this was in 1998, and I got it for a steal at 22K). I dropped a ton of $$ on mods and mechanical crap, and then my life changed in 2000. I met the woman who is now my wife. A year later, I wanted to marry her, so I sold off one of the Montes and used the $$ to buy her engagement ring, and in 2001 I traded in the Imp (for a whole 15K) on a Sebring 'vert to lower my payments and start saving some $$. I wasn't saving enough though, and it wound up getting totalled anyway. So, I screwed up (again) and bought a slightly used Maxima, instead of just taking the insurance $$ and buying a beater. I sold the Maxima just 6-months later because I couldn't even afford to pay for our honeymoon. I had NO $$ in the bank. I paid off what was left of my loan, paid for the trip to Italy, and had enough leftover for a POS car. I finally wised up and bought a beater '86 Cutlass in 2002 and drove that around while my wife bought a brand new '03 Liberty that she paid for in cash. She also put down most of the downpayment for our house! She was smart and saved her $$ after she started working!

Cliffnotes: Cars are a waste of $$ and time. Use that $$ for your future. I wish I did.