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If they are offering 0 % financing, they are doing it instead of discounting the vehicle. If you are putting down that large a downpayment, you should be able to get a better deal.
Also, you could buy a used car and save money. New cars are never a good deal.
Isn't 0% usually only for specific models or cars? The few times I looked, it was always for a trim line or model higher up the food chain than I wanted.
People tell me the dealer makes very little profit on the entry-level no-frills car, aka "college kid" car. I'm 56, and that's still all I want or need.
I would pay cash for a used car. Borrowing money, even at 0% for a product that drops in value as fast as a car does not make sense to me. If this 14K is all you have, I would save it for your emergency fund and save up for a car, until then continue to drive the beater.
On a 0% financing deal....put your cash in the bank and use the 0% money on the car. Make money on you cash, because a new car is like throwing money away.
Personally, I would never buy a brand new car. The depreciation on a used car is bad enough.
so for quite a long time I've been driving a beater and saved money for a new car. I could put down about 14k (please no discussion about what car to buy). Now there are a lot of 0% financing deals out there, and people are telling me I would be stupid to put down that much money on a 0% financing deal instead of putting it into a CD. My reasoning however is, that i'd rather put down some more $$ and have a small monthly payment, because otherwise I'd run into the risk of spending the "intended" down payment elsewhere. I know myself
Is it really that stupid to put down a large amount on a 0% deal? Am I missing something here?!
I don't think it's stupid at all. I'm one of those who doesn't like to have debt, so when I bought mine I put down as much as I could, and then made double or triple payments so I could pay it off early.
Here's a novel idea for ya... Instead of putting a down payment on a new car, why not take your down payment and PAY CASH for a car?
I cannot understand why everyone in America thinks in terms of Payments. If you pay cash for a car you have NO PAYMENT AT ALL and you own the car.
So many people think in terms of driving a beater, rusted falling apart car OR they want a Brand New car from the dealer. WHY not just buy something Used but in Great Condition? There are many used cars out there that look and drive like new. They may have 50,000 miles or so but for many quality built car brands 50,000 is just getting warmed up. I have driven many of my cars to 300,000+ and all of my cars are shiny, new looking and great driving reliable used cars.
Americans need to smarten up with their money handling skills and stop thinking in terms of payments. I have never in my life paid more than $10,000 for a car and I've owned Porsche, Mercedes, Lexus, Corvettes, Subaru, Honda, Toyota, you name it. I buy USED then drive it for a few years then sell it and when I sell I often get equal or in a few cases MORE than I paid for the car!!
No free lunch with 0% the dealers just raise the price you will pay with 0% interest.Go into a dealer who advertises 0% interest tell them you want the same car but you will pay cash I guarantee you a lower price.
Here's a novel idea for ya... Instead of putting a down payment on a new car, why not take your down payment and PAY CASH for a car?
I cannot understand why everyone in America thinks in terms of Payments. If you pay cash for a car you have NO PAYMENT AT ALL and you own the car.
So many people think in terms of driving a beater, rusted falling apart car OR they want a Brand New car from the dealer. WHY not just buy something Used but in Great Condition? There are many used cars out there that look and drive like new. They may have 50,000 miles or so but for many quality built car brands 50,000 is just getting warmed up. I have driven many of my cars to 300,000+ and all of my cars are shiny, new looking and great driving reliable used cars.
Americans need to smarten up with their money handling skills and stop thinking in terms of payments. I have never in my life paid more than $10,000 for a car and I've owned Porsche, Mercedes, Lexus, Corvettes, Subaru, Honda, Toyota, you name it. I buy USED then drive it for a few years then sell it and when I sell I often get equal or in a few cases MORE than I paid for the car!!
Buy USED and pay CASH.
This poster has it figured out. His information posted above comes from experience. I assure you the OP has his/her heart set on a particular BRAND NEW CAR and will not listen under any circumstance to solid advice about buying a used car.
It is ALWAYS better to buy a used car. If you want something decently new, then buy a car 1-3 years old. Like the poster above said, the car will have a ton of life left.. it will just be broken in by the fool that bought it brand new and paid through the nose for it. It can be more than 14k and you could have some very minimal payments for a short period of time, that is ok as long as they are extremely affordable and won't be for a long time.
The advice I'm giving you comes from experience as well.. I have purchased 2 brand new cars and paid them off within a year to avoid interest at the time. They are both Honda accords and will last forever, but I should have looked at the used Honda accords that were 1-3 years old and saved myself a fortune. This was 5 years ago and these cars still run like the day we bought them.
With all of that said, you will not take my advice or the poster above. So I will address your question in the way you want to hear it. During the times pre this existing great recession we are having, I would have told you to put all 14k down to get the most affordable note and get closer to paying off the car. However, since the recession my thinking has changed and cash is king right now, and very important to have as a backup.
I would put zero down and pay the higher payments since it's 0% APR. If all the sudden you go through very tough times, you will have the cash to bail yourself out. whereas if you put all the money you down, you don't have much to fall back on.
Putting the 14k in a CD right now is actually a dumb move since they are not paying squat. Just put it in a money market savings account. Don't kid yourself, you can't make anything off your money right now, but it can act as an emergency fund.
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Pay cash for a experienced car
