To car or not to car

[danaeris]

If I get a car now, I will have the freedom of a car, as well as the expense. However, commuting in my more fuel-efficient car will save pyat and me a lot of money, cutting our gas costs nearly in half; this wouldn't pay for the expense of owning the car, but it would help. I will also have a G2 license, which means I'll have to take the G2 roadtest in August (a nuisance, and a $75 expense)

If I wait to get a car until after August 8 (4.5 months), I will just trade my license in for a full G license, with no roadtests whatsoever.

Decisions are hard. How much of a nuisance is a G2 license?
How difficult is the G2 road test?
ugh.

Comments

[angel-thane.livejournal.com]

How are you avoiding the roadtest???

[danaeris.livejournal.com]

I have an american license, dude. It just isn't two years old yet; it will be on aug. 8, however.

[angel-thane.livejournal.com]

Are you positive about that? I know when I tried to do that with my British lisence, they told me that it didn't matter how long I had it, the best they could do was a G2 and being allowed to take the G2 exit immediately.

[danaeris.livejournal.com]

Shockingly, not only do I do my research, but bureaucracies also change their rules all the time. Go figure.

[angel-thane.livejournal.com]

Hmm, might have to look into that again then.

[pyat.livejournal.com]

Maybe wait until you've saved enough to either buy a used car outright, or make a hefty downpayment on a newer one? This might put you close to August, anyway.

[danaeris.livejournal.com]

Too late on that one... I already have enough money for downpayment... all told, about $5000 USD.

I think I'm going to start by choosing to not buy a car until I start running into frequent incidences of wanting one. In the meantime, I might test drive a few and see what my options are.

Pyat makes a long comment

[pyat.livejournal.com]

That's about $6K in God-Fearing Canuckistan money, right?

I'm bored and idle, and I like learning about cars... so...

Locally, used Echos (2001 vintage) start around $8-9K. They get 38 MPG (highway), which is considerably better than my Chrysler's 26. Diesel would be higher obviously, but I can't find stats for that offhand. The average mileage on these cars seems to be very high for their age - more than my ten year old Intrepid! Echos are obviously very popular.

Kia Rios of similar vintage start about $3K, with $6K getting you one with very low mileage (http://www.trader.ca/WrightAutoSales/Default.asp?Trader=1&CAT=1&mknm=3307&Region=400&adid=4145568&dContact=1087168&VLot=/WrightAutoSales&ADS=4145568%7C&SRVlot=1&SRslts=1&category=1&makeid=3307&modelcode=50943&len1=0&len2=0&mknm=3307&mdnm=RIO&Region=400&subcategory=&alpha=) and the original manufacturer's drivetrain warranty. However, their mileage is "only" 32 MPG.

2000 and 2001 vintage Hyundai Accents seem to be starting at $4K. They get about 35-38 MPG, depending on the specific model. However, speaking from experience, I can tell you that they are very cramped inside. My dad and I can fit into my sister's, but neither of us were very comfortable.

VW Golfs have excellent mileage, but they really retain their value. Seven and eight year old models with 200,000+ kms are selling for $6-7K.

My friend rainwolf has a Saturn SC1 he's quite happy with. Depending on the engine and transmission, it gets between 36 and 40 MPG. 2001 models with low mileage start around $7K. The SL1 sedan isn't as sharp-looking, but it has similar gas mileage and started around $5K for solid examples.

The Auto Trader.ca search function (http://www.trader.ca/search/default.asp?category=1&categoryid=1&CAT=1) and the Government Fuel Economy (http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.htm) page are very handy.

Re: Pyat makes a long comment

[pyat.livejournal.com]

Oh, yay. I was using mileage and miles per gallon interchangeably. :)

Re: Pyat makes a long comment

[danaeris.livejournal.com]

thanks for all the info-y goodness!

[videomaker.livejournal.com]

As an owner of a vehicle that I do not use very frequently, I can tell you that owning a car adds up. Yet, once you own a vehicle, it is hard to give it up (even though I use public transit weekly). Growing up in a car culture had more of an influence on me than I thought.

One thing to find out, would be if there is a different insurance rate for holders of G2 licenses vs. G licenses?

I also did insurance rates for each of the model cars that I was selecting from. It was shocking how much the rates varied. Of course, once I moved to a different part of the country, those rates (which cars cost more) were completely different, and my insurance skyrocketed.