Welp, I think MY CAR IS TOTALED (details and future plan, reply #25)

[Chino]

I was parked at a red light and BAM! A guy getting off the highway had his brakes fell and went right into me doing 40mph+. Hit me hard enough to knock the stereo out of my dashboard. I got pushed a good 6 or 7 feet, kept my foot on the break the whole time and managed to not let the clutch out and stall lol. I hope it's totaled. I had close to 137,000 miles on it and it's value was starting to tank. The damage doesn't look that bad, but the frame is bent out of shape pretty bad, and the rear tires are unable to rotate due to the body being pinned against them.

The guy who hit me is the sales consultant for a dealership in the city I got into the accident in. He was driving a truck with a temporary dealer plate. I guess he had just accepted the truck on a trade in 2 days ago. Before leaving, he handed me his card and said "I know this seems corny, but if you need a new vehicle, I'll make sure my management takes good care of you". I have full collision and expect to get at least $3900, plus the $750 I put on in new parts just 3 weeks ago. T

[GuineaPig]

Plus, this'll help you keep your weight down!

[Nekov]

Plus, this'll help you keep your weight down!

oh snap

[Ħ]

 

[Tick]

Plus, this'll help you keep your weight down!

He got hit right before he was about to pull into McDonald's.

[Phoenix87x]

That's the kinds of stuff that scares me to death when I eventual get a motorcycle. People just randomly plowing into the back of you.

In a car, its gonna be a bad day, on a bike, it'll be your last day.

[Jaffa]

Plus, this'll help you keep your weight down!

He got hit right before he was about to pull into McDonald's.

I was about to call you an ass, but then I saw the golden arches in the picture and laughed.

Now I have to call myself an ass.  Thanks very much for that.

[Implode]

You guys are golden. Good to see you weren't hurt!

[Chino]

That's the kinds of stuff that scares me to death when I eventual get a motorcycle. People just randomly plowing into the back of you.

That is the only thing preventing me from getting one. In 6 years this is my first accident of any kind. I am a very alert driver, and am aware of my surrounds 100% of the time. You can be the worlds greatest driver but still get killed due to circumstances out of your hands. I couldnt magine anyone surving this if it were a bike instead of a car.

Plus, this'll help you keep your weight down!

This was the first thing that came to mind believe it or not. I put in a solid 2 hours at the gym this morning and the first thing that came to mind was "fuck, a back/neck injury, this is just what I need".

[bosk1]

I couldn't tell from your description.  Did he ever see the red light?

[Jaffa]

By the way, Chino, are you okay?

Seems a bit sad that no one's asked yet...

[bosk1]

I think he made it clear that, by the grace of God above, everyone survived.

[Jaffa]

Hahaha, but I just want to make sure.  He mentioned thinking of a back/neck injury, not whether or not he was actually injured. 

[DebraKadabra]

I think he made it clear that, by the grace of God above, everyone survived.

ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRR!

[Orbert]

That's the kinds of stuff that scares me to death when I eventual get a motorcycle. People just randomly plowing into the back of you.

In a car, its gonna be a bad day, on a bike, it'll be your last day.

A friend of mine was thinking of getting a motorcycle.  Then one day on the way home from work, dead tired, he zoned out a bit and his foot came off the brake while he was stopped at a red light.  He bumped into the car in front of him, pushing the other car out into the intersection.  No one was hurt, but he freaked out a bit.  What if it had been a motorcycle in front of him?  What if he (my friend) had been on a motorcycle and someone rear-ended him, just as Chino got rear-ended here?

He didn't get the motorcycle.  The idea that you're basically at the mercy of every other vehicle on the road was too much for him.

Glad you're okay, Chino.

[kirksnosehair]

I couldn't tell from your description.  Did he ever see the red light?

Well played, sir.  Well played.   

[El Barto]

Unless Connecticut is as goofy as it sounds, your insurance shouldn't have anything to do with it.  It's all on him.  And how'd you come up with the $3900 number?

And from the Helpful Hints from Barto desk, when you're fixing to get creamed from behind, letting off of the break will lessen quite a bit of the impact.  Obviously it only helps if you're sure the are in front of you is safe from crossing traffic, but if you're seeing things in bullet time, which is often the case in these situations, Newton is your friend. 

[Chino]

Unless Connecticut is as goofy as it sounds, your insurance shouldn't have anything to do with it.  It's all on him.  And how'd you come up with the $3900 number?

And from the Helpful Hints from Barto desk, when you're fixing to get creamed from behind, letting off of the break will lessen quite a bit of the impact.  Obviously it only helps if you're sure the are in front of you is safe from crossing traffic, but if you're seeing things in bullet time, which is often the case in these situations, Newton is your friend.

Bluebook value and similar model sales sell for at least a thousand dollars more than that. You are right about the insurance, I don't know why I said that. Wasn't thinking quite straight.

I had no clue the hit was coming. There was no horn or tires screeching. I was looking at my radio and none of my mirrors were in my sight. By the time I had realized what had happened, I realized my foot was still on the break.

[Nick]

Glad to see you're OK Chino, hope things with the car work out.

[VioletS16]

Sorry to hear Chino. Being in some kind of car related accident is a huge fear of mine. 

[snapple]

I'm not licensed in CT, but I can answer questions for ya of
You need t

[Cedar redaC]

I couldn't tell from your description.  Did he ever see the red light?

Oh my goodness, that was immaculate!

[DebraKadabra]

In my irreverent post, I didn't say that I was glad that Chino made it out okay - dude, glad you were okay, and I hope any lingering pain you have goes away quickly.

[Gadough]

Wow, that sucks man. I hope everything works out for you.

[King Postwhore]

Chino, glad your ok but dammit man, we have to lock you inside a house!

[Chino]

Little update.

Turns out the car is in fact totaled. Overall repairs would have been in excess of $12,000. As of right now, I am getting an $8,200 (about $4000 more than I was expecting  ) check before reimbursements. I have three receipts for work done in the last year that the representative said I can get compensation for:

Head Unit and 6 speakers (11 months ago) : $600
Transmission rebuild, complete overhaul, new everything (9 months ago) : $1,800
New brakes, rotors, and tires (< 2 months ago) : $850

The representative said I could get close to $9,500, maybe a little more, after they factor in depreciation for those three things.

So this is my plan right now. I know I'll probably get a lecture for it, but I have thought it through and weighed it against all other options.

I absolutely love mini coopers, I have been a fan for as long as I can remember. My dad leased one last august and the thing is a blast to drive. My plan was to get my car to last until his lease was up (August 2014). I was then going to ditch my car and buy his mini from him off lease. That plan went to shit thanks to this guy's crappy brakes. So now, my plan is to get a new mini cooper for myself. With the insurance check, I am going to put $2000 down on a 36 month, 12,000 mile per year lease (Before you say LEASE! NO! let me explain). As for the money I didn't spend, I am just going to open a new back account and put it in there. At $230 a month, I have over 2/3 of the payments covered. Adding additional money in periodically, including the $80+ per month I'll be saving in gas, I will have all the funds needed for the duration of the lease before the first year is through.

Now for the kicker. I usually drive in the 18,000+ mile range a year. So clearly, I will exceed the mileage. I will be leasing this vehicle with the intention of buying it out once the lease is through. I'd just finance it now, but I still have three semesters (including this one) of school left, and I could never afford that with all the interest. I only work 20 hours a week during the school semester at $12.21 an hour. Mini coopers have one of the best resale values of any car on the market. On average, a 3 year old mini is still worth 70% of what it cost new. That rate is extremely high in the auto industry. The buy out after a 36 month lease is $13,000. Now I know this isn't the best practice, but it's one of the smartest options (I think) given the situation I am in. The Mazda that was just totaled cost me $12,500 when it was 5 years old and had 48k miles, so $13,000 for a 3 year old mini cooper with even less miles than that seems like a good deal. If worse come to worse, and I don't want to keep the car all that long, I still have something that's worth more than I owe on it. Who knows, I may end up not killing it on the mileage in the long run. 300 miles a week are me commuting to and from school. Once I graduate, I'll still have 18 months or so on the lease. If I were to find a job in which I were to move close to, I might not have to put so many miles on it after that point. I'd would really like to get one of the new Mini Countrymans, but I would only have 18 months or so worth of payments covered. My goal is to go as long as possible without having to pay for anything out of pocket. The only problem with this is that Mini's need to be ordered and custom built. They take around 6 weeks to deliver. I only get 30 days worth of a car rental, and after that I'm going to have to use my dad's truck for the rest of the waiting period... 15mpg

The other good thing about this plan, is that is guaranteed to help with my credit. I have good credit, but virtually no credit history. I try to never charge anything if possible. If I need a new computer, I'll wait a few weeks until I can buy it in cash vs. putting it on my card. My last two cars, which I completely paid for, were purchased with loans taken out by my dad against his home equity (it's how I got the best rates). I have always just given him the payment the day before it was due. The problem here is that it did nothing for my credit. This car will be completely in my name with my father as the co-signer. 

I feel a little embarrassed admitting that, at the age of 23, and I feel a bit bad about it as well. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I feel like I haven't grown up as fast as I should have, or maybe it's because I know that it's a privilege that many people don't get. It makes me sad in a way that I was fortunate enough to have had that as an option while others don't just because of what parents created them. I have friends whose parents wouldn't even co-sign on a loan, let alone take one out in their name.


This post turned out way longer than I intended it too  Time to get back to school work.

[lonestar]

Shit dude, don't feel bad at all, we all need help in some way or another all the time, just be grateful you have that option.


And Mini's are great cars, I have a few friends who own them, they love them.

[Orbert]

It sounds like a decent plan, and that you've worked it all out.  True, the general rule is to avoid leases unless you're made of money and have no problem with the concept of basically a long-term rental, or you're planning on buying it out at the end of the lease.  Since you're already planning on the second option, all that remains is to not get screwed in how much you put down and what your payments will be.

Beware!  Do not ever let on that you have plenty of cash to make it work, and do not let on that you've basically already decided on a Mini.  It's still obviously to your advantage to work those guys down as much as possible.  Stand your ground and make them sweat.  Make them work for it.  You're thinking of going with a Mini, but you're not sure.  You're thinking about going with a lease, but you're scared about the total money layout and all that.  If there happen to be two dealers in your area that you can play against each other, even better, but that's not required.  But make them earn your business.

Personally, I love car shopping.  It's a game, and arriving at a deal is more an adversarial thing than a cooperative, and I play to win.  Get those payments down, make them throw in free stuff to earn your business, don't pay for the extra overpriced rustproofing package.  You can do this.  Kick their asses!

[Chino]

It sounds like a decent plan, and that you've worked it all out.  True, the general rule is to avoid leases unless you're made of money and have no problem with the concept of basically a long-term rental, or you're planning on buying it out at the end of the lease.  Since you're already planning on the second option, all that remains is to not get screwed in how much you put down and what your payments will be.

Beware!  Do not ever let on that you have plenty of cash to make it work, and do not let on that you've basically already decided on a Mini.  It's still obviously to your advantage to work those guys down as much as possible.  Stand your ground and make them sweat.  Make them work for it.  You're thinking of going with a Mini, but you're not sure.  You're thinking about going with a lease, but you're scared about the total money layout and all that.  If there happen to be two dealers in your area that you can play against each other, even better, but that's not required.  But make them earn your business.

Personally, I love car shopping.  It's a game, and arriving at a deal is more an adversarial thing than a cooperative, and I play to win.  Get those payments down, make them throw in free stuff to earn your business, don't pay for the extra overpriced rustproofing package.  You can do this.  Kick their asses!

There are only 2 dealerships in CT. My dad is a master at getting the best deals on cars. He and my mom have leased my entire life. The only vehicle he has ever kept is his 2001 Toyota Sequioa, mainly because he went a good 35,000 miles over the lease amount  We keep it at the house for winter and home depot runs (and when cars get totaled). With my moms previous car, an Acura RL, he went back and forth over the phone with 3 dealerships. He was able to get the monthly payment to $65 less than the original quote he got at the first dealership. Her current BMW, the same thing. He got that one $55 a month less. The mini however, he was not able to do much with. They problem is, because of the high demand and high resale value for even the most basic models, they have very little wiggle room on price. He was only able to talk them down $15 or so, and that was with $600 worth of add-ons. Many articles online say that a Mini cooper is one of the few vehicles that you are better off buying new than used, and Mini Cooper knows that we know that.

I'm definitely not going to go in and make it obvious that I am set on buying one. However, they are probably going to assume that seeing as I am going to be pulling up in a Mini and they are going to see my dads account  . What I was planning on doing was make it seem like I am really interested in buying a used one. I'll make it seem like I'm having trouble finding the one I really want, and then work my magic to get them to "convince me" that I should get a new/lease one. My goal for this transaction, if I can't get the price down, is to score a free roof rack ($300). I'm getting a roof rack either way, but will add a whopping $8 dollars a month. I kayak a lot, and my Mazda's roof got beat to shiiiit using those foam blocks. Before even saying the words "roof rack", I'm going to ask questions like "How do these handle if I were to strap a boat to the roof?". The salesman will then know that I may be interested in a roof rack. When closing the deal, the salesman will try getting me to add that as an option. I'll tell him that I'm not sure I want to add that at this point in time, if I am still interested down the road, I'll order one through mini when that time comes. We will continue negotiating price. I'll keep trying to get him to go lower and make him talk to his supervisor several times, knowing full well they won't be able to give me the payment per month I seek. At that point, I will bring the topic of the roof rack back up. I'll say something like "okay, I guess I can live with that price if... you throw one of these racks on the roof. You get your money, I get my roof rack, everyone is happy."

[Orbert]

Cool, it sounds like you've got the game down.  Make us proud.

[Dr. DTVT]

As someone who bought the last two cars I owned merely because I wanted to, I can honestly tell you that buying a car you want as apposed to one you can afford is a great feeling and I can't hassle you for going after what you want.  Also developing credit is always a good idea since someday you'll probably want to buy a house. Having never leased, can't offer you much advice on that end.  You might want to double check what happens if you go over the mileage since I don't know how that works.

When it comes down to negotiation, don't mention how much you can afford a month, work with hard numbers and then calculate the payments, otherwise if they figure you can pay $400 a month they'll work it out so you pay $400 a month.

[eric42434224]

Just find the model you want, get the invoice online, and go in.  Always negotiate sale price...never payment.  Say you will pay X under invoice.  You can ask for the actual invoice, they will show it to you.  They still make money under invoice, its called the "hold-back", and it varies by model.  Once I went in to a dealership, and the sales guy started with his schtick....I stopped him  and said. "look, I know how this works, so lets not waste each others time...I will give you $200 under invoice, and thats it".
Signed the papers and was out in 75 minutes.  He made money, the dealership made money (but both didnt make as much as they could have if I paid sticker)....but in the end, they sold a car and moved inventory quickly so he could move on to his next target.

[Chino]

Having never leased, can't offer you much advice on that end.  You might want to double check what happens if you go over the mileage since I don't know how that works.

Basically, with a lease you are renting the car until the lease is up. At that time you have two options.

1: You return the car to the dealer once the lease it up. The dealer then has this car in their used inventory. The trade off to getting a new car at a relatively cheap monthly rate, is agreeing to keep the mileage low so the dealership can make good money on it when it's time for them to sell it as used. The more you go over on mileage, the more this cuts into the price the dealership can charge for the vehicle. Every dealer has different fees, but they almost all charge you a certain amount per mile over. Mini charges $0.20 per mile over, I believe. So if I go over my limit by 5000 miles, I owe mini $1000 dollars.

2: You conclude your lease and then, instead of returning the car, you have the option to buy the car outright.  It's like signing on to purchasing a used car, but you are already the previous owner, if that makes sense. The mini I would like to purchase has a buy out of $13,000 dollars. That's what Mini would charge me regardless of if I put 20k miles or 50k miles on the car. Mini has no problem doing this because I end up paying about $1,400 more for the car in the long run, not to mention that they don't have to pay to have a crew make it look new and keep it on their lot for an unknown period of time. That's not a terrible deal on my end seeing as they were able to help me get a quality vehicle at a low rate while still in school.

[DebraKadabra]

I don't have much more to add - you sound like you've got your game plan all set.    Best of luck to you, and don't worry about being 23 and having next to no credit history - you're going to be building GOOD credit, as opposed to what I did (maxing out credit card by the time I was your age).

[Chino]

Just find the model you want, get the invoice online, and go in.  Always negotiate sale price...never payment.  Say you will pay X under invoice.  You can ask for the actual invoice, they will show it to you.  They still make money under invoice, its called the "hold-back", and it varies by model.  Once I went in to a dealership, and the sales guy started with his schtick....I stopped him  and said. "look, I know how this works, so lets not waste each others time...I will give you $200 under invoice, and thats it".
Signed the papers and was out in 75 minutes.  He made money, the dealership made money (but both didnt make as much as they could have if I paid sticker)....but in the end, they sold a car and moved inventory quickly so he could move on to his next target.

Yeah, that's smart. My buddy (we'll call him Guy-A) was just in the market for a pickup truck. He had another friend of ours (we'll call him Guy-B) go in and pretend to be interested in the vehicle. The dealership wanted $12,000 for the truck. Guy-B negotiated for almost an hour and got the salesman down to $10,500 and he refused to budge another cent. So the next day, Guy-A walked in with $9,500 in Benjis. He sat down at the salesman's desk and casually placed the neat stack of bills down. The salesman asked how he could help him. Guy-A replied, "that's 95 one-hundred dollar bills, I'd like to be off the lot with that truck in an less hour". The salesman asked if he had five more (meaning 500 more). He had the money just in case, but said no. The salesman claimed he couldn't do it. Guy-A got up, grabbed the money, and started to walk. The salesman caved immediately. He was out in about 50 minutes.