Driving exam today. Tempted to buy a car!

[HaZRaTTy]

Originally Posted by Madreefer

Yea my average one way trip to work was 80-100km
Did that for 21 years
Took up a new career so I traded that truck for an F150. Much cheaper now and only 8km from work now.

Ha yeah I currently drive a 150 as well.. so far so good with 6,000 km's on it! soon (Nov) I should be 5km's to station so.. not sure what the gas mileage on my pedal bike is but i'm thinking its pretty good!

[Madreefer]

Originally Posted by HaZRaTTy

Ha yeah I currently drive a 150 as well.. so far so good with 6,000 km's on it! soon (Nov) I should be 5km's to station so.. not sure what the gas mileage on my pedal bike is but i'm thinking its pretty good!

Yea i'm not putting to much wear on this one had 14 months now and 9800km on it so far. 15L/100km average. Station in Nov?

[miuYH]

I just purchased a used car about a month ago. And let me tell you, it feels great to finally have a car to myself.

Before you seal the deal on a car:
1) Make sure you and the seller have brought it to a mechanic for inspection (usually $75-$100) unless you trust the seller?. If your car is older than 12 years (I think before it was 15) you need to have a Alberta inspection sheet filled out by a mechanic. Some insurance companies need this before they can give you insurance.
2) I would get a lien check done on the car just to make sure the car is debt free.
3) I also got a car proof report just cause I was curious to see if the car has been in any accidents

Hope that helps.

[MarkoD]

I never understand why new drivers buy older beater cars that don't have half the safety features of new cars.

Doesn't it make sense to have a newer, safer car for inexperienced drivers?

[Dearth]

Originally Posted by MarkoD

I never understand why new drivers buy older beater cars that don't have half the safety features of new cars.

Doesn't it make sense to have a newer, safer car for inexperienced drivers?

Mostly comes down to cost to buy. Yes newer vehicles are better but with newer inexperienced drivers if they break the vehicle they aren't out a lot of money plus even most baseline models now come with a lot of bells and whistles that for the new and inexperienced driver is distracting I would rather have a new driver looking at the road rather than the console.

[miuYH]

Originally Posted by MarkoD

I never understand why new drivers buy older beater cars that don't have half the safety features of new cars.

Doesn't it make sense to have a newer, safer car for inexperienced drivers?

Yes it makes sense to drive a newer and safer car. But not everyone has the money to afford brand new cars let alone "newer" cars.

[MarkoD]

Originally Posted by miuYH

Yes it makes sense to drive a newer and safer car. But not everyone has the money to afford brand new cars let alone "newer" cars.

There's cars being advertised for 150 dollars a month.

It doesn't need to be fancy. But even cheap base model cars are safer than some 1500 dollar car that's 10 or 15 years old.

And even if the person is driving is safe and does everything right, they can't control the other drivers around them.

I think investing in a newer car (3-4 years old) as opposed to (10-15 years old) is well worth it. It could be the difference between life or death in the case of a collision.

[AdamsB]

Definitely check for debt on the car. I know a guy (insert choice words) he came here on a visa, bought a truck and got a loan out on it. Sold the truck to get his money back but had a 4000 dollar loan on it. Then left canada. Didn't pay his lawyer, stiffed the bank that 4k which then passes into the trucks new owner.

[ScubaSteve]

Hasan, if you're looking for a go-to car to run for a few months, there are a number of great older cars to get you going. I love old cars. There is no need to get a beater. You can find a well maintained old car for a very good price.

Two of the old stand-bys are the Honda Accord and Honda Civic. I just picked up a 1992 Honda Accord for my girlfriend to use as a run about while in university - got it for less than $1000 and it runs like a champ! Even if it only runs for the next year, it's still cheaper than leasing a new vehicle. And the best part is: killer gas mileage! God, I wish my car could do that. It literally gets twice the mileage of my RX7.

[LoJack]

Originally Posted by MarkoD

There's cars being advertised for 150 dollars a month.

It doesn't need to be fancy. But even cheap base model cars are safer than some 1500 dollar car that's 10 or 15 years old.

And even if the person is driving is safe and does everything right, they can't control the other drivers around them.

I think investing in a newer car (3-4 years old) as opposed to (10-15 years old) is well worth it. It could be the difference between life or death in the case of a collision.

I agree with this whole heartedly. I've seen base model Civics and Corolla's advertised for like $65 bi-weekly and at least then you're getting basic warranty and fuel efficiency. I think Ford's Focus is in that price range as well as the Fiesta and a few of the smaller compact Japanese cars.

A 15 year old vehicle will be much harder on gas, and parts are getting harder to find.

But this all may be moot at this point ... did you pass?