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That stat from Experian should scare the heck out of a lot of us, because it certainly tells lots of us that Americans remain clueless about buying car, as well as how to act and what to say when they walk into a dealership.
That is an immediate dead giveaway that those 17% cannot afford to buy whatever car they're buying; heck even six years is too long to finance a car, and that even applies to imports such as Hyundais, Hondas & Toyotas with their excellent resale value.
I'd like to see a study of carbon footprint between keeping a car for 15 years versus buying a new car every 5 years.
That would depend on what you buy. I see plenty 1998 Honda Civics on the road and mine was totally problem free at that age. I doubt the Detroit 3 made products in 1998 that are as reliable as Honda did. So, buying a new Chrysler every 5 years may be cheaper.
the average length of a new car contract is 71 months, which makes no fiscal sense whatsoever, and even though the average transaction price on a new car is just over 32K, which means that a lot of folks can't intelligently afford such a car.
Translation; in spite of the bottomless amount of wealth on the Internet regarding buying a car, many Americans are still getting taken to the cleaners at their local dealership.
Yes, and in two years when they're tired of the car and wanting to trade, they can't figure out why they owe more than its worth. I've seen several threads on this issue lately.
When interest rates are so low they're practically loaning you money for free, why not stretch it out for as long as they'll let you?
If you are content to keep the car or nothing unforseen happens, it's fine. For most people a car is basically a utility, and if you don't mind a transportation utility payment every month it makes sense to keep the payment low. But if your needs change or something happens to the car before the payments end you find that you are upside down in the loan and either have to cough up the cash for the difference or add that sum into your new transportation utility payment. I am a bit surprised that banks are so willing to roll these sums into the new finance plan.
It still doesn't make any sense to buy a new car, make payments for 4,5 or more years, and then turn around and buy another new car and repeat the process.
What you want vs. what you need are two entirely different things, but too many people are fixated with buying a new car when their current one is paid off.
It's insane! I was hesitant on my 3 year loan, but 8 years is just not right!
I disagree, I think these longer repayment schedules allow buyers that would previously only had the $ to buy a used car upgrade to a new car. Many people need a reliable car and are afraid of buying a used cars. Combine that with a Korean 10y warranty or the longevity of Japaneses cars I think its understandable for a segment of the car buyers.
Not something I would personally do.
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