I was thinking about this for my two (11 and 10), and I've got five years to get an idea together. It doesn't help I saw a dump truck for sale the other day and thought "Man, I would have loved that for HS back in the day. Would have made parking lot wars so much easier..."
Jensenman wrote:SVreX wrote:Hah. My first job (not counting paper routes and mowing grass) was at the prevailing minimum wage which at the time was the princely sum of $1.65 an hour. Flipping burgers at Dairy Queen. I rode my ten speed to and from work rain or shine uphill both waystuna55 wrote: Good one here - The most I ever paid was $2500, and I earned enough on my 5.10 (or 4.10, can't remember) Burger King salary in 1998 to buy my Camaro, and support my other camaro race car addition.You guys kill me. $5.10 per hour? My first job was $2 per hour, and I was THRILLED to get it. STILL paid for my own car within the first 6 months.. The next job was flipping burgers at Burger King for the New and Improved minimum wage of $1.90 an hour. By then I had the 1965 Falcon I'd bought with the money I saved from the DQ job. It was paid for, too, all $225.00 of it. I think the annual insurance premium for liability only cost more than the car. I get those Social Insecurity statements every so often; in 1974 I made $855 in taxable income.
Don't blame me, blame inflation. I was paid $5.15 (I checked) which was minimum wage in 98. A new Camaro Z28 in 98 MSRPed at $27,500. Let's compare using a Mustang (no Camaro in '65):
1998 Mustang GT MSRP: $24,150 - Tuna55's wage $5.15 - cost of an ounce of gold: $290
1965 Mustang coupe MSRP : $2,372 - Jensenman's wage $1.65 - cost of an ounce of gold: $36
Do the math, I earned 3.1X what you earned, the price of our good went up 10.2x and the constant went up 8.1x. Basically, what that means is that inflation, and the minimum wage (and rampant government currency meddling) caused me to be much poorer than you relative to what things actually cost. By goods, you were thrice as rich as I. If the proportion was correct, my wage should have been $16.83 per hour - not likely unless you actually own the Burger King. To think people say the government isn't trying to make us all poorer.
oh, and I actually did ride my bike to work until I bought the car.
I scrimped and scratched to buy a POS 1970 Monte Carlo in 1984... for the princely sum of $900 plus a whole junkyard full of parts to make it work. My father lent no money but he gave me a lot of man hours helping me help myself. After that I spent years in garage making my own junk run... and I learned a lot of valuable lessons... the first of which is to have your parents buy you a car if at all possible. You will then be free to figure out how to make money like all those other kids you knew who now own businesses and have spare change to buy their kids cars and pay someone else to fix their own.
I'm going to head out the garage and see if I can get the damn headlights working before dark.
I just realized you said the car was a 1965, not the year. It appears that the minimum wage was 1.60 from 1971 through 1973 or so depending on where I look. So let's stay with the Mustang comparo for now, since I started there.
1998 Mustang GT MSRP: $24,150 - Tuna55's wage $5.15 - cost of an ounce of gold: $290
1971 Mustang GT MSRP: $3000ish - Jensenman's wage $1.65 - cost of an ounce of gold: $40
So I still earned 3.1X what you earned, the Mustang cost 8.1X and gold went up 7.25. According to the goods, I should have earned $13.36/hour
That's really weird math.
Must be that new math they teach you youngun's.
Gold is a constant?? You're kidding, right?
Considering gold is currently trading at about $1165, and traded at about $250 in 1999, you also should have received a nearly 500% increase in your salary in the last 10 years. 
And why a new GT? J-man was talking about a 9 year old car, and a beater at that.
SVreX wrote: That's really weird math. Must be that new math they teach you youngun's. Gold is a constant??
You're not listening - I am comparing a new V8 Mustang to an old V8 Mustang, both new for comparisons sake. My 81 Camaro was used as well - well used (17 years old when I bought it, but that's totally irrelevant)
And yes, compared to the dollar, gold is a constant. The dollar falling is what is making gold shoot up so high, not visa versa.
Yes, my point is that inflation has caused me to loose money compared to what the dollar was worth years ago. So yes, if I earned 50K in dollars in 1999 the same buying power globally would be a salary of 250k. Notice the globally. There is no such thing as a constant, obviously, even gold is driven up and down by speculators and the like - but there isn't a really good, trustworthy way of indexing your purchasing power from year to year, and gold is the closest thing that I'd trust not to be adjusted.
It is supposed to be ridiculous, it is supposed to show that we're losing money every year.
My folks wouldn't let me have a car in high school, despite being offered my Aunt and Uncles old honda accord for a very reasonable $600, despite the fact I had a job, and had more than that saved in the bank. My folks ultimately gave me my mothers old car when she decided to get a new one, that was when I was a senior in college. Technically I "bought" it from them, but I'm sure if you looked at expenses over my life time, it did very little to pay back my debts. It lasted less than a year before the transmission started to have issues with third gear. Traded it in for my first new car.
I think parents look at giving kids new cars as some sort of safety insurance. They believe the new car will be safer in a wreck. I personally hope when my son gets to be about 13 or 14 we can start looking at cars together and get something to become a project, that he can have when he gets his license. That way he has to work on it, and hopefully learn to appreciate it. While I want him to help pay for it, the reality is even if he does, there is a lot of sunk costs in the process. I can guarantee he will know how to change his own oil, whether he likes cars or not.
I'm always amazed at people wanting the safest car for their kids. I understand it, but are you expecting your kid to get in a crash? Maybe he/she shouldn't be driving if thats the case. OTOH, it does make sense from an insurance standpoint.
mtn wrote: I'm always amazed at people wanting the safest car for their kids. I understand it, but are you expecting your kid to get in a crash? Maybe he/she shouldn't be driving if thats the case.
My kid could drive like Lewis Hamilton and still get nailed by some idiot Little League parent late for practice pickup in the family SUV.
Besides, virtually everybody has had a crash at some point or another and it is statistically far more likely to be a teenager, particularly a teenage boy. That's why y'all pay so much more for insurance.
My daughter bought a bug at 12 to restore (with dads help and guidence) traded up to a used camry at 16 (which she put new brakes on herself) and got a full ride scholarship due to a 4.0gpa and high act's. So we bought her a new Mazda3 to drive the 4hrs back and forth to school.
mtn wrote: I'm always amazed at people wanting the safest car for their kids. I understand it, but are you expecting your kid to get in a crash? Maybe he/she shouldn't be driving if thats the case. OTOH, it does make sense from an insurance standpoint.
Really none of you friends had fender benders during the first few years of driving. I would say that 70 % of mine did. It could of been as minor as backing into a sign post, but myself and 2 brothers all had something happen. Now we were in Michigan and snow always can throw a twist into the equation. I ended up sliding through a stop sign and up on some ones front yard into the rock garden they had stratigicaly place to keep people from ending up on the front porch. I bent a rim and the valace under the bumper. VS both my brothers rolled thier VW Jettas. And walked away with only bruises.
tuna55 wrote: And yes, compared to the dollar, gold is a constant. The dollar falling is what is making gold shoot up so high, not visa versa.
I'm not being argumentative, but gold is NOT a constant. The dollar did not loose 60% of it's buying power in the last 9 years, nor did it's buying power double in the previous 6 years when gold dropped by 50%.
There was a time when gold was a constant, because buying gold had a direct relation to mining gold.
Gold is now used as a hedge commodity. People buy shares of it when they are worried.
It is every bit as volatile ( if not more so) as any other investment.
Back to topic.
bam2002 wrote:mtn wrote: I'm always amazed at people wanting the safest car for their kids. I understand it, but are you expecting your kid to get in a crash? Maybe he/she shouldn't be driving if thats the case. OTOH, it does make sense from an insurance standpoint.Really none of you friends had fender benders during the first few years of driving.
A lot of my friends have. And I honestly think they weren't ready to get behind the wheel [alone.] I did say in the post that I DO understand it, but I often times think its taken a little too far, and the biggest safety component--the nut behind the wheel--is ignored by parents.
mtn wrote:bam2002 wrote:A lot of my friends have. And I honestly think they weren't ready to get behind the wheel [alone.] I did say in the post that I DO understand it, but I often times think its taken a little too far, and the biggest safety component--the nut behind the wheel--is ignored by parents.mtn wrote: I'm always amazed at people wanting the safest car for their kids. I understand it, but are you expecting your kid to get in a crash? Maybe he/she shouldn't be driving if thats the case. OTOH, it does make sense from an insurance standpoint.Really none of you friends had fender benders during the first few years of driving.
I agree. that is why My daughter will be doing 2 of the BMW Street survival schools while she has her permit. Before she gets her Lic. OK this wont happen for 3 more years but I am planning ahead. I have been involved with this program for 3 years now. Although it cant prepare a new driver for all aspects of the road. It gets the new drivers a good start. I am not saying the BMW class is the one to take, I do feel that some sort of class above and beyond the standard drivers Ed is needed.
mtn wrote:bam2002 wrote:A lot of my friends have. And I honestly think they weren't ready to get behind the wheel [alone.] I did say in the post that I DO understand it, but I often times think its taken a little too far, and the biggest safety component--the nut behind the wheel--is ignored by parents.mtn wrote: I'm always amazed at people wanting the safest car for their kids. I understand it, but are you expecting your kid to get in a crash? Maybe he/she shouldn't be driving if thats the case. OTOH, it does make sense from an insurance standpoint.Really none of you friends had fender benders during the first few years of driving.
I agree. that is why My daughter will be doing 2 of the BMW Street survival schools while she has her permit. Before she gets her Lic. OK this wont happen for 3 more years but I am planning ahead. I have been involved with this program for 3 years now. Although it cant prepare a new driver for all aspects of the road. It gets the new drivers a good start. I am not saying the BMW class is the one to take, I do feel that some sort of class above and beyond the standard drivers Ed is needed.
bam2002 wrote: I agree. that is why My daughter will be doing 2 of the BMW Street survival schools while she has her permit. Before she gets her Lic. OK this wont happen for 3 more years but I am planning ahead. I have been involved with this program for 3 years now. Although it cant prepare a new driver for all aspects of the road. It gets the new drivers a good start. I am not saying the BMW class is the one to take, I do feel that some sort of class above and beyond the standard drivers Ed is needed.
I did the BMW class, and it was good, but I'd say that the autocross school (and just the autocrosses with experienced drivers in the seat) helped more.
I bought my Civic (my first running car) with my own money and I pay for the gas and regular maintenance for it myself but my parents cover my insurance.
I sent my daughter through the Tire Rack Street Survival school our local SCCA region hosts. I haven't been able to leave her home while autocrossing since.
She drives the RX-7 with her brother and mother. It's playing hell on the tire bill. I'm loving it.
Also I have been driving for only 4 years and I haven't had a wreck and neither have any of my good friends that are the same age.
Tommy Suddard wrote: I think it has to do with safety, but not the hit-a-brick-wall kind of safety. A few of my friend's parents have asked me what was I thinking choosing an older, not shiny car. They are genuinely scared that their kid will be broken down, alone, in a dark alley getting raped. They can't believe that I am okay with relying on something 20 years old, never mind confident that I've already fixed most of it. One of the Mom's even told her son this, while I was in the car: "Eric, if the car you get ever breaks down, just pull over, call dad, and don't get out. Don't talk to anybody if they try to help, either." Another time with somebody else, we were driving to school, and their check engine light came on. She instantly called her dad, who said that she should probably take the next exit, and go straight to his house. It took me 10 min. to convince both of them that it was fine, and that we could go to school.
This is something I hadn't really thought about. I had planned to match my daughter dollar-for-dollar, but her Grandma (mom's side) left her close to $20K, provided it was used to buy a car less than two years old. They found a Hyundai Sonata at Carmax.
My parents let me borrow a $100 truck they got from my uncle at 16, I had it for 3 months (to & from work) before it was handed to my brother, and I had to find my own car. I had been saving for a car since about 12 years old, and my parents gave me the choice, car or college, only one is free, so I picked free college. I always paid for my own insurance, even on the beater truck, my own gas, and my own repairs. My dad's a good carpenter, but he's useless at cars so I had to teach myself. All that trouble and my parents only paid for one semester, the rest was me, but this isn't the time or place...
You'll need to log in to post.
