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Login to post Forums » Off-topic discussion » When did you buy your first car?

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Dec. 11, 2008 1:34 a.m. mtn Dork

My friends and I were talking today about our first cars. Most of them have bought them themselves, some with saved money, one with the bonus from the Army, some with loans

They asked me why I never bought a car. I told them because my dad has spoiled me: I have never been without a car (until now; I'm in college), but none of the cars I drive are "mine". But they are about 10 times cooler than any of theirs.

I make about triple in the summer what they make in a year; its enough to support a family living paycheck to paycheck if it were year round, have a ton of money saved for someone my age (almost 19, and I only allow myself to spend 10% of what I earn), and am the biggest car nut of all of us. And I never bought a car because Dad wouldn't let me. They ask why I don't fight it, its because he's paying for college. I'm not gonna argue. Sure, I would love to be allowed to buy a car---there is an $800 Subie Wagon on Craigslist---but I'm not gonna do it without Dads permission... which won't come. Yes, this is a little bit of a rant, and I know I don't have anything to be mad about. I'm over it. I just get annoyed when my friends think I'm a nut for listening to my dad (sign of the times?) when I think I should be kissing his feet, at least in the long run. I get annoyed at explaining why he does it.

But this got me wondering, when did you buy your first car? What was the situation?
Dec. 11, 2008 2:53 a.m. SkinnyG New Reader

I was 12. I could afford it. I shouldn't have. One of my earliest vehicular bonehead moves.
Dec. 11, 2008 3:03 a.m. byron12 New Reader

I have bought three cars with my own money my granddad gave me my first an 88 mercury cougar. I havebought a honda civic, an e30, and a toyota pick up. Your dad sounds like a control freak. My dad never cared if I bought a car or not and he did let me drive his some; of course he never payed for my college. I saved money for the first one that I bought when I was nineteen my subsequent cars have been payed for by partially from earnings from selling the previous cr and saving some money. I have never borrowed money to buy a car but I recently borrowed money to buy a house. I am soon to buy a miata to go with my garage yeah.
Dec. 11, 2008 3:58 a.m. Luke Dork

My very first car was a high school graduation present from my parents. Before you think 'spoiled brat', it was a rusty Fiat 124 coupe bought fairly cheap and pre-used (read: thrashed) by my Dad. Still, it was a totally awesome first car which I was very thankful for.

In answer to your question, a couple of years later I bought an e28 BMW with my own money, saved from working in an Aquarium store. I think it was something like $2500. Then I sold that to fund the Alfa and Fiat I have currently. I've easily racked up about $20,000 in University fees so far, with more to come. Arguably, money spent on old cars would be better put towards my education debt, but, I'm confident I'll have no problem paying that off once I start working full time in a few years.
Dec. 11, 2008 5:45 a.m. ddavidv SuperDork

My first car was what Dad wanted but couldn't justify for himself, so he bought it 'for me'. A 1971 Jeep Commando. I thought it was cool because it was a Jeep (in hindsight, metallic lima bean green with a roof rack and full wheelcovers isn't that cool). But, anything I did to that thing while off-roading with it (torn off exhaust, broken door handle) he took personally.

So, I bought a $300 Fiat 124 Spider with what I had in my passbook savings account. A totally rusty POS, but that was MY car and Dad didn't much care what I did with it. He was happy because he got to keep the Jeep. I subsequently bought and went through literally dozens of sub-$1000 craptastic cars, Jeeps and pickups tinkering and learning as I went and driving down our family's property value. Today I avoid 'project' cars and just buy decent drivers.
Dec. 11, 2008 6:08 a.m. bravenrace HalfDork

In reply to mtn:

Summer of 1977. It was a '68 Camaro. It was owned by some people up the street from us. It wasn't for sale, but I found out through talking with them that they wanted to sell it. We made a deal (for $300!), and it was mine.
Dec. 11, 2008 6:36 a.m. GameboyRMH SuperDork

If you keep saving money like that, you'll be able to jump straight into supercar territory! Don't complain!
Dec. 11, 2008 6:51 a.m. Bozo New Reader

I bought my first car when I was 16. Actually, my parents had just sold a business the year prior and we made a deal; we'll buy the car (with a down payment from me) and you pay us back with interest that we would have earned in a CD. I was thrilled! Some of my friends thought it was terrible that Mom and Dad charged my interest but it taught me my first money management skills. It was also a MUCH better interest rate than I would have gotten at any lending institution. I also had to pay for the gas, insurance and maintenance. Now the UN-thrilling part; it was a '79 Mercury Monarch with a straight six and auto mtn: IMO I believe you are a very wise young man. You are taking advantage of a VERY wonderful gift your Father is giving you. You are thankful enough to respect his wishes and NOT buy a car which it sounds he is providing also. Don't think of the college and cars as money, think of them and treat them as wonderful gifts. You are getting an education and won't have any debt when you are finished! The money you are saving will allow you to have a great head start on this thing called life
Dec. 11, 2008 6:53 a.m. BBsGarage HalfDork

In 1976 it was a 1968 beetle for $800.

Thanks Mom & Dad it is you who I have to blame for this illness.
Dec. 11, 2008 7:25 a.m. 914Driver Dork

When I was 14 I bought a bug eye Sprite for $20, a Chevy Bel-Air wagon for $50 and tried to put a 283 in the Sprite.

When I was 16 I put a 1959 Anglia Prefect on the road, drove it until the lower ball joint broke and the front wheel tucked up under the car. At 17, a senior in high school, I bought a 1964 Ford Galaxy convertable with a 352 and four speed.

You've just seen a partial list of my regrets....

Dan
Dec. 11, 2008 7:52 a.m. blaze86vic New Reader

I'm glad to see there is still respect for thy father in the college scene. It really 'Grinds My Gears' when I see someone at college with all these nice things on they parent's money, and all they can do is bad mouth their parents for not letting them have even more, or wanting them to do better in school.

Anyways, I'm kind of the same as you though not with any number of cars. Though I was never restricted from buying a car, I was also spoiled with vehicles. My first car I got for free for helping my father clean the shop he worked at (very thorough cleaning, took 5 weekends). Was a 88 Lebaren, steering column falling off. I was 14 and fixed and sold the car for $300. Then I got an 82 F150 when I turned 15 from an uncle, catch is it was delivered with no oil or water......so yeah it needed a new engine. Luckily we happen to have a recently rebuilt 302 with a blow head gasket (broken head bolt). Swapped motors, removed broken bolt, and drove it around for a few year, then sold that for $900. I really hate driving trucks.

And then when 17th rolled around I was given the dream (yeah I know, I'm a twisted kid for wanting this) my Dad's 86 Crown Vic. It meant a lot as a gift because I knew how much he truly loved the car. It was he that started the project that I spent more of the past 7 years tinkering on. My father was the one who installed the 95 Mustang GT 5.0L HO into the old VIc. He had already upgraded to all the police suspension parts. His thought was that with a car as reliable as that, it would be good for school. The motor had 30,000 miles on it, and 10,000 of that was the first month of it being in there as we drove around the USA for a family road trip. I don't think even he expected me to put so much into this car and still have it at 24 years old. I've put over 120,000 miles on the car since I got it (that's 150K on the motor and 315K on the car), and pretty much nothing in the driveline is stock, and the suspension is all modified now. I've added the ability to tow and now it also plays duty as my tow vehicle for the taking the Celica to the track.

As you can see I get really excited when I talk about the Vic, the car just means a lot to me. It's like an ongoing Father son project.

But my first car I bought was last December about this time. I bought my 73 Celica track car for $5500 delivered, and after a year, and an amazing amount of work, and having to replace the pistons because I blew a head gasket I can still honestly say I got a steal of a price.
Dec. 11, 2008 8:06 a.m. integraguy Reader

The first car I owned that I paid for....(wasn't "given" to me) I bought after about a year in the Navy. I was 19 and it was a 3 year old '68 Mercury Cyclone GT. It had a 302/auto, PS, but no power brakes...in fact, the brakes were 4 wheel drums. It wasn't great at stopping, or turning (no feel steering and LOTS of body roll), but it accellerated decently.
Dec. 11, 2008 8:28 a.m. bludroptop Dork

Age 15 (a year before I was old enough to drive)

Rebuilt a motor, fixed the brakes, painted it blue with a saddle interior. Wish I had a photo of it finished!
Dec. 11, 2008 9:11 a.m. confuZion3 Dork

My first car was my dad's '92 Mustang GT convertible. I loved that car from the day he brought it home in June of 1992 and it was on our driveway as I ran home from the bus stop. It became mine when I turned 16. I washed it constantly and babied it. As much as it hurt, I had to sell it when it became too expensive for me to maintain.

I got the Z3 used (they helped pay for the first few payments until I graduated college). So, in a way, this was kind-of the first car I bought.

The first one I have bought out-right was Lacy, my Miata and periodic track slave.
Dec. 11, 2008 9:22 a.m. P71 HalfDork

A 1973 AMC Javelin SST 360/Auto at age 15, sold the same day.
Dec. 11, 2008 9:37 a.m. rebelgtp HalfDork

Well I got my first car sometime when I was 13, a 73 ElCamino it had been my Grandfathers. The day I turned 16 I bought on my own a 78 Camaro with the engine from a 71 Z28
Dec. 11, 2008 9:44 a.m. 16vCorey SuperDork

I had a paper route when I was 12, and started saving. When I was 14, my mom's van broke down and a friend of her's let her borrow his extra car, a '68 VW Type 3 Fastback. I came home from school the first day she had it and fell in love. It was rusty and leaked oil like a sieve, but it was all mine at the low low price of $400. I think I gave him $200 down and $50 a month until it was paid off. Give me a break, I was 14 and the paper route didn't pay too well. I'm turning 31 in a few weeks, and I still have that car.
Dec. 11, 2008 9:53 a.m. minimac Dork

The first car I bought was a '57 Chev convertible, 283, 3 speed that a friend traded in. It cost $40(my paper route money) and my Dad made the dealer give me back my money because I was 15. The first driver I bought was a '63 Studebaker Daytona. I got it from an old guy that couldn't drive anymore. It was "used up" because it had 4x,xxx miles, and cost me $150. Not bad for a three year old car. It had a Packard 289 w/4bbl carb, automatic, and 'Twin-Traction'. I drove the snot out of it and surprised a lot of hi-po Mustangs and early Camaro owners at the redlight drags. Kept it until I graduated.
Dec. 11, 2008 10:03 a.m. foxtrapper SuperDork

Hard to define, for me.

The first time I ever actually went and bought a car, completely, with money, all on my own, was an Audi Fox. I was 20.

Before that was the Ford Galaxie, which was also all mine, but I got the car and some cash for a motorcycle I had. I was 18.

Before that was the Studebaker Hawk that I paid some money for, did some work on, drove, but never actually got a title.

Before that was the Falcon, which was owned and titled by a friend. But I had posession, drove it, and did the maintenance and repairs on it.

Mixed in that lot were the old New Yorker and several Larks.
Dec. 11, 2008 10:35 a.m. MiatarPowar HalfDork

I was 15- bought it ~6 months before I could even get my permit.

A friend of my dad's had a '77ish Spitfire 1500 in my favorite Spitfire color, Java Green. Ratty interior, but it ran well and looked decent. I gave him a $300 down payment and told my mom about it. She told me to get my money back, and that a Spitfire was not going to be a choice for a first car. Probably right. My dad and I went back to talk to him and he had a '92 Saab 900S sedan that had been wrecked. He said he'd fix it if I bought the parts. The rest is history.

I paid $900 total for it, then another $250 or so in parts. He did all of the body work, very professionally, and I had an 87k mile first car that was very safe and actually a lot of fun to drive. No one in my family even knew what a Saab was before that, including me.

The rest is history.
Dec. 11, 2008 10:45 a.m. Salanis SuperDork

mtn wrote:

I just get annoyed when my friends think I'm a nut for listening to my dad (sign of the times?) when I think I should be kissing his feet, at least in the long run. I get annoyed at explaining why he does it.

But this got me wondering, when did you buy your first car? What was the situation?

Don't get mad at them. But, you're doing the right thing. Remember the Golden Rule: "He who has the Gold, makes the rules." I'd say that the proper approach is somewhere between kissing his feet and ignoring him. You're doing well.

My first two cars were hand-me-downs from my grandparents. First car I went and picked out for myself was my current BMW, which I was given college graduation money for.

The Miata is the first car I actually paid for myself. I got a decent deal at a used car lot and put 1/4 down, and got a small loan for the rest (payments were about 1/3 of what I was saving monthly to eventually buy a Miata).

I went with the loan because it ultimately didn't cost me that much more, I got the car sooner, stopped putting track wear on the BMW, and get a nice big boost to my credit, which will probably save me bigger money, later.
Dec. 11, 2008 12:53 p.m. aussiesmg HalfDork

66 HR Holden with a I6 built as a pretty hot engine and 3 on the floor, it was pretty cool and cost me $300 in 1979, purple painted gauge panel and undercoat, Mom made me get rid of it...pout.

It started something in me though, I've had about 150 cars since and currently own 9 RWD V8 vehicles.
Dec. 11, 2008 12:56 p.m. mtn Dork

byron12 wrote: Your dad sounds like a control freak.

Maybe a little. But he gave me an option: you can spend all of your money if you want. But if I spend more than 20% of what I've earned, then he pulls my college funds so he can have a midlife crisis.
Dec. 11, 2008 1:11 p.m. HiTempguy Reader

mtn wrote:

byron12 wrote: Your dad sounds like a control freak.

Maybe a little. But he gave me an option: you can spend all of your money if you want. But if I spend more than 20% of what I've earned, then he pulls my college funds so he can have a midlife crisis.

Dude, he is a control freak. BUT, I will say his control is in the hopes of bettering your life. He doesn't sound like one of the people who is making you do things you don't want to.

Having said that, you said you were/had been spoiled and that is what it sounds like. You admit it, so obviously you aren't really spoiled so much as taking advantage of a beneficial situation. Hopefully (and I would not doubt it) you can actually manage yourself without somebody looming over your shoulder. 99% of the people in your situation are irresponsible persons who couldn't run their own life if it depended on them doing so.

After I turned 18, the most reponse my parents ever got from me was "duly noted" when they "demanded" something. They are well aware that I will do what I want, when I want. But then again, I'm not your normal average 20 year old either
Dec. 11, 2008 1:50 p.m. Salanis SuperDork

HiTempguy wrote:

Having said that, you said you were/had been spoiled and that is what it sounds like. You admit it, so obviously you aren't really spoiled so much as taking advantage of a beneficial situation.

If you can say you were spoiled, without gloating, then you probably aren't.

You've had a lot of advantages, but it doesn't sound like you feel entitled to anything, That says to me that you're not really spoiled. Having been given material things isn't what makes a person spoiled. Feeling entitled to always get your way is what makes someone spoiled.

You think it's totally reasonable to follow your dad's direction. Therefore, you're not that spoiled. Advantaged, yes. Spoiled, no.

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