Author Topic: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?  (Read 28668 times)

DanBrewMan

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Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« on: March 05, 2013, 09:03:34 AM »
First off, hello mustachians!  Please refrain from too many face punches :)

So I'll go ahead and dive right in.  I'm 26 years old and I've been living a fairly non-mustachian lifestyle for roughly two years as an engineer.  Over those two years, I have been able to eliminate about $9k worth of debt from a variety of sources (credit cards, a small auto loan, and some student dept).  So, up until last December the only source of dept I had was student loans which was about $18k.  And this is where my predicament begins.  I purchased a 2013 Subaru WRX hatchback for $26,361.68 in total from the dealer.  I put $7,500 down, so I financed $18,861.68 at my credit union at 2.9% for 48 months.  What pushed me to make this purchase?  My previous car, a 2000 VW Cabrio, had just hit me for a third round of extensive repair/maintenance  (over $2,000 each) during the previous 12 months.  I was fed up and wanted a different vehicle.  I figured "why bother sinking money into the piece of junk anymore?  This is practically like having a car payment!".  The vehicle drained my savings a couple of times during the year.  The previous owner did nothing but oil changes, so many of the parts began to fail or were dangerously worn down.  They've all been replaced/repaired.  I got the car for free from my parents in exchange for my 1999 V8 explorer.

So today I have my new vehicle and I still have my Cabrio but it has been put up for sale.  I haven't gotten any bites yet, but that's probably because I've got it priced above KBB.

Anyway, today, two months down the road I'm thinking to myself "WTF MAN?!".  I took a loan out to buy a new car that was equal in magnitude to the loans I took out to get my engineering degree.

So my question is:  Should I sell my 2013 WRX hatchback and take a loss of about $2k - $3k to rid myself of this debt-burden?  My cabrio is completely drivable and gets better mileage, but I'd eventually like a hatchback for its practicality (I at least got that part right).  If I sold the WRX, the next plan of action would be to save up enough cash to either purchase a used car (maybe a Toyota Yaris) completely with cash or at least with a very healthy down payment (>50%) depending on the urgency of the matter.

So to help you answer my question, here are my finances at this point:

$6k - 401(k)
$2k - Savings

Monthly income (take-home after taxes, 401(k), etc):  $4,000

Here's my budget:

Rent  $835.00
Electric  $50.00
Water  $18.00
Phone  $88.09
Car Insurance  $255.21 ($150 for WRX, $100 for Cabby)
Renter's Insurance  $29.50
Internet  $22.00
Car Payment  $412.82
Student Loan Payment  $240.76
Health Insurance  $67.95
Food  $425.00
Gas  $250.00 (I commute 50 miles total each day)
Pets  $60.00
Dept Payments  $772.81 (Lately this has been much lower because I've been stashing cash for an emergency fund instead)
Everything Else  $300.00 (This is just a cushion for expenditures I can't predict and also some room for blow money)
Savings  $200.00 (Been much higher recently because I'm stashing cash for an emergency fund instead of paying extra debt).

Thanks in advance!  Be nice :)

Another Reader

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #1 on: March 05, 2013, 09:49:43 AM »
If you can actually take that small of a loss, then I would do it.  Wouldn't you rather up your 401k contributions by $400 a month?  Or max out that IRA?  Or pay off those student loans a lot faster?

Not sure I would keep the VW, though.  Your parents probably got the better side of the trade....

Left

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #2 on: March 05, 2013, 09:51:53 AM »
A 2000 VW Cabrio shouldn't have that much problems, I mean aside from the known maintenance around 100k, oil changes, tires, brakes... I mean doing regular oil changes pretty much covers it for most things or should. how high is the mileage on it, or how was it driven? It might be all bad timing for you, I'm having same problem on my camry (needing new brakes, tires and soon the timing belt) but after that I'm not anticipating anything else for a long time. So if the VW is good now after the fixes, it might be worth keeping, instead of taking out another loan for a cheaper car.

I'd probably sell it, or put it to work as a rental car (if you don't want to sell it), and drive the VW.
Your phone bill seems oddly high, have you looked into some prepaid services? Is the gas price based on the premium fuel that the WRX takes, another reason you shouldn't daily drive it much if you plan to keep both cars.

And I'm probably off a bit, but adding all of that up comes out to a little over $4k... you should look into decreasing other things as well. Your food cost is almost $15/day, do you eat out a lot? Even bringing it down to $10/day can save you a little over $100 that you spend now, $10/day is high too for a single person. The rent looks high but I don't know where you live in terms of market price (or is it because you have a pet?). I doubt you'd move right away but maybe keep it in mind for future planning. And maybe try to take a bit out of the everything else category and put it into the savings?

dizzean

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #3 on: March 05, 2013, 09:52:47 AM »
I would sell the car and pay off the loss ASAP, you essentially get $562 back a month so even if you take a $3k loss you will be "even" in 6 months.

You don't mention being married or having kids, do you need 2 cars?

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #4 on: March 05, 2013, 10:14:03 AM »
First off, thanks for the reples!

The loss would be small (relatively speaking...) due to the fact that these cars are sought after and rare.  A CL/auto trader search didn't find any used 2012/2013 models in my area.

I definitely do not need two cars.  I'm not married, have no kids, but I do live with my significant other.  My rent is high because we live in a nice area - this is something we both want to change ASAP by moving closer to our work places.  The phone bill is high because we're in a plan with Verizon for our iPhones.  As soon as that contract is up (this Aug!) I'm going to switch to a cheaper plan/provider. 

As far as the Cabrio, it now has 130k miles of which I contributed probably 20k.  I hate giving the damn thing another chance, but I feel as though it may last enough time for me to save and get into a more practical car.  The last round of repairs were more of a disaster prevention set;  the car was still drivable it just had a ton of worn down parts.  It was just a matter of time before they failed.  I'm hoping I could squeeze 70k miles out of it.

My income is a little over 4k (like 4060), so thats what is throwing your calls off :)

Phoebe

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #5 on: March 05, 2013, 11:01:29 AM »
I would sell it.  It's hard to stomach losses like this, but the poster above is correct that you'd be "even" in a few months. 

When we were planning our wedding we put a deposit down of $1400 for a large wedding space, and an overall cost of $25,000.  In the end we walked on the deposit and had a small wedding that cost about $10,000.  It was hard to lose $1400 but in the end we gained $13,600.

I've found that part of my money transformation is being able to make rational, rather than emotional, decisions.  There were times in my life where I would stick with my bad choices just because I didn't want to admit that I made a mistake, but now I can own up to my choices and make changes as needed.

Good for you for already being at a place where you can sell a 2 month old car - that takes a ton of mental fortitude!!

icefr

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #6 on: March 05, 2013, 11:09:23 AM »
Your renter's insurance seems expensive. Is that split between you and your significant other? I never paid more than $204/year for renter's insurance back when I was renting. Once I had renter's and auto insurance with the same company, it dropped down to closer to $100-115/year and now even my condo insurance is cheaper than your renter's insurance. Are you paying a fee to pay for it monthly?

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #7 on: March 05, 2013, 11:36:22 AM »
I do not know if I'm paying fees by purchasing renter's insurance month-to-month; that's something I need to look into.  However, insurance in general is expensive in my area (Houston) because of the crime, INSANE drivers, traffic, etc.

So, here's my analysis of the situation when I compare my two cars:

The WRX:

MPG: 22
Miles traveled per month: 1,500
Gas price (premium): About $3.75/gal
Car payment: $412.82/mo
Insurance: $150/mo

Gas costs: $225
Total costs per month (gas, insurance, car payment): $787.82

The Cabrio:
MPG: 30
Miles traveled per month: 1,500
Gas price (regular): About $3.50/gal
Car payment: $0/mo
Insurance: $100/mo
Repair savings: $150 (This is how much I would need to put aside per month in case of another costly repair)

Gas costs: $175
Total costs per month (gas, insurance, repair savings): $425
Total costs per month (gas, insurance, w/o repair savings): $275

Assuming I take a $3k loss on selling the WRX...

BEST CASE scenario I'm saving over $500 per month by driving the Cabrio IF (perhaps a very large IF) there are no more costly repairs and all those repair savings can go towards a different car or something else beneficial.

Break even = 5.9 months

The WORST CASE scenario is I end up spending those repair savings to keep the Cabrio alive and kicking.

Break even = 8.3 months

And then the ABSOLUTE worst case scenario would be another costly repair, let's assume $2k, is required sometime during the next 9-12 months I plan to drive the Cabrio.  Spreading that $2k hit over 9 months (for a more conservative look) would be $222/mo or $72 more per month than my originally planned $150/mo "just-in-case" savings.

This makes my break even = 10.3 months

Okay 10.3 months to break even is not good, but also not awful.  I'd be even by Christmas.  On the other hand, if there are no problems then I would be even by August.  Breaking even by August or December is hard to stomach, but I feel as though this could put me in the right state of mind to become a true mustachian.

The other thing to consider is the 46 months of $412 car payments that I would not have.

There's also another option:  sell both cars and pick up something cheaper and more economical.  I don't like this option because I'd have to take out a loan AND I'd be getting into a car that I have no history with.  I at least know what state the Cabrio is in.

Is it worth it?
« Last Edit: March 05, 2013, 11:37:57 AM by dbratton »

tkaraszewski

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #8 on: March 05, 2013, 11:40:12 AM »
Good luck taking such a small loss on the car. For such a small premium, people will be inclined to buy a brand new one, because anyone looking at a used WRX owned by a 26-year-old is thinking, "he's abusing it, might as well get a brand new one for only 10% more, that hasn't been raced around for a couple months."

And the car's not rare. There's tons of them sitting on dealer lots. Unless you had to search yours out and it took a long time to find (which it doesn't) then there's no premium for rarity. There's 18 of them sitting on the lot at a dealer near me.

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #9 on: March 05, 2013, 11:47:01 AM »
Here are the numbers for a larger loss on selling the WRX:

$5k loss = 9.75 - 17.2 months break even

$6k loss = 11.7 - 20.6 months

$7k loss = 13.6 - 24 months

$10k loss (for shits n' giggles) = 19.5 - 34.4 months

tkaraszewski

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #10 on: March 05, 2013, 12:26:10 PM »
I know why you like the WRX and I personally understand the desire to own fun and/or nice cars. What I would do, and this is not the *most* mustachian thing, but it is more mustachian than what you're doing now, is sell the WRX, and keep the Cabrio, but just for a little while.  I'd save up $15,000 and buy a used WRX, five-ish years old, pay cash for it, and have no payments and much cheaper insurance because you don't need to keep nearly as high levels of coverage as you do when you have a car loan.

*BUT* I have no other outstanding debt except a mortgage. I wouldn't start saving for a car until after I'd paid off whatever it is that's costing you $772.81/month, and also the student loan.

This gives you a lot of advantages:
You can sell a used car for nearly what you paid for it if it turns out to have been a bad call. You lose a lot less than re-selling a new car.
You can sell the car *today* if you have no loan on it. Otherwise you have to get the title before you can get rid of the car, and you have to go through the lender for that, and this process will turn off some potential buyers.
With a paid-off car you have no obligation to do anything for anyone else each month just to keep it.
You can have super-cheap barely-the-minimum-legally-required insurance on the car if you want.

Spork

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #11 on: March 05, 2013, 12:42:08 PM »
I do not know if I'm paying fees by purchasing renter's insurance month-to-month; that's something I need to look into.  However, insurance in general is expensive in my area (Houston) because of the crime, INSANE drivers, traffic, etc.

I might also mention: insurance in general seems to be high in Texas (when I compare it to others in other states).  I'm not sure if that's market based or some oddball regulatory differences or -- maybe I've just been really bad at finding good deals -- just something I've noticed. 

Dynasty

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #12 on: March 05, 2013, 12:55:33 PM »
1) Get rid of the VW as soon as possible. They are ticking time bombs with expensive repairs...

2) take the proceeds from sale of the VW and put towards your current auto loan.

3) Take your time test driving as many vehicles as possible. I really don't think you would like a Yaris of all vehicles coming from a WRX...

A lot of people are going to disagree with me on this... However, there is a huge benefit to having a car from the time it is new. You know exactly how it has been driven and maintained. Buying a used car most of the time you are taking a gamble with how the previous owner maintained it and drove it. Or didn't maintain it.

That being said, a WRX far from an economical car to drive even if there is no payment.

You made one mistake buying a WRX, don't make a second mistake. Take your time

4) Get rid of the VW as soon as possible. They are ticking time bombs with expensive repairs...
« Last Edit: March 05, 2013, 01:06:04 PM by Dynasty »

KimAB

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #13 on: March 05, 2013, 01:26:37 PM »
Car Payment  $412.82
Student Loan Payment  $240.76
Dept Payments  $772.81 (Lately this has been much lower because I've been stashing cash for an emergency fund instead)

Is that 772 total or in addition to car loan and student loan?

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #14 on: March 05, 2013, 01:58:01 PM »
That $722 is funds I have allocated to pay for debt - either student loans or car payment.  That's not paying a particular debt I have, it's just left over from my budget and I'd like to pay down debt with it.

I hear you on owning the new car.  It is nice to know that I didn't take it off the lot directly on the the track, etc.  At this point I'm leaning more towards "okay, I stumbled a bit, but don't do anything too rash in an effort to fix it.  Just hunker down, pay off the car, enjoy it, pay off the student loans, and move on."

But yes, my own anecdotal experience is another shred of evidence that VWs are crap.

tkaraszewski

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #15 on: March 05, 2013, 02:43:35 PM »
But yes, my own anecdotal experience is another shred of evidence that VWs are crap.

I loved my 2007 GTI. I sort of regret selling it.

thurston howell iv

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #16 on: March 06, 2013, 06:18:31 AM »
Sell the wrx- eat the loss. (That's the price you pay to learn this lesson) (of course try to get the best price you can- list it on enthusiast sites like NASIOC)

Drive the VW- it's been fixed hasn't it?  Keep it listed for sale and as soon as you get a bite, sell it and buy a cheap used (older) Honda....
They're more reliable, cheaper to insure, cheaper to maintain and get pretty good mpg.

Also, make sure that the insurance rate is set to the state minimums required... $100 seems kind of high considering the wrx is $150 per month.

unpolloloco

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #17 on: March 06, 2013, 07:35:42 AM »
Also, make sure that the insurance rate is set to the state minimums required... $100 seems kind of high considering the wrx is $150 per month.

State minimum is NOT sufficient insurance.  One accident involving injuries and you'll be looking at wage garnishments or bankruptcy.  Don't skimp on liability coverage.  Skimping on collision/comprehensive is a possibility though...

Also, shop around - unless you have a bad driving record, you should be able to do better than $100/mo

mc6

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #18 on: March 06, 2013, 08:55:07 AM »
If you have a Carmax in your area, try taking both the VW and the Subaru there for quotes.  Sell one and then drive the other one 'til the wheels fall off.  My dealings with Carmax were pretty painless. 

Forcus

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #19 on: March 06, 2013, 11:12:16 AM »
1) Get rid of the VW as soon as possible. They are ticking time bombs with expensive repairs...

2) take the proceeds from sale of the VW and put towards your current auto loan.

3) Take your time test driving as many vehicles as possible. I really don't think you would like a Yaris of all vehicles coming from a WRX...

A lot of people are going to disagree with me on this... However, there is a huge benefit to having a car from the time it is new. You know exactly how it has been driven and maintained. Buying a used car most of the time you are taking a gamble with how the previous owner maintained it and drove it. Or didn't maintain it.

That being said, a WRX far from an economical car to drive even if there is no payment.

You made one mistake buying a WRX, don't make a second mistake. Take your time

4) Get rid of the VW as soon as possible. They are ticking time bombs with expensive repairs...

This x100. VW's are money pits. NOT because they are inherently unreliable (the powertrains are usually pretty stout and low maintenance), it's everything else attached to it. I know that Germans are supposed to be engineering leaders but at least with late model VW's, I find that to be largely untrue. Again this is all debatable and my evidence anecdotal.

As far as replacements, I am a big fan of "driving a slow car, fast". I had to decide a couple months ago whether to keep my 02 Focus ZX5 (132 HP, FWD, stick) or 05 Volvo S40 T5 (222 HP, FWD, stick). The Focus won. On paper, the Volvo is much better - way bigger brakes, stiffer suspension, better mileage (!), better handling. But I love onramps, perfect heel-toe downshifting, and driving 9/10's in an s-box, compared to something that has more capability but I can't wring out. Anyways, my point is the WRX is probably a thrill to drive sometimes but maybe something sporty would be fun to drive all the time. Cars that come to mind: Mazda 3, MINI Cooper, Focus SVT / ST / standard, Cobalt SS, Neon SRT4 (all available way under 10k).

Also looking at your financials, in case you need a boot to the rear, you have a fairly good income but not much savings or retirement funds to show for it. If you think ahead 20-30 years, will you really think about your WRX as anything but a nice memory? Probably not. Probably looked great sitting on the showroom floor. So did a Nissan Pulsar in 1988. Not so much now. So look at it that way. If you had spent all your money on a new expensive sporty car in 1988 and permanently pushed back your retirement, you'd probably be a little upset.

One last thing - I had to do something similar in 2005 - bought a new car then decided I needed a house. 2 month old car and lucked in to getting what I had paid out of it, even with 5k miles on it. My feeling is that it was someone who hated the dealership experience. So don't discount that. Clean her up, take lots of pics, write a really nice description, and market it well. It might be entirely possible to sell without totally losing your shirt.
« Last Edit: March 06, 2013, 11:15:05 AM by Forcus »

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #20 on: March 06, 2013, 01:41:59 PM »
Thank you everyone so much for the helpful replies!  They have helped me think through this and see the big picture a little better.

I've looked around at people that are in similar situations on NASIOC that have been able to sell their 2013 WRX hatchbacks for around 24k, so that has given me more confidence in being able to minimize the losses to less than $4k.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2458403&highlight=+2013+wrx+
http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2461089&highlight=2013+wrx

So I have two more follow up questions:

1.  Where do I draw the line?  Is there an amount of loss that just isn't worth it?

2.  Looking forward, what are some efficient (gas and cost) hatchbacks that I should be considering that might not be on my radar? 

I totally agree with Forcus in regards to the sporty cars that are fun to drive all the time.  The Cabrio is one of them; the driving "sweet spot" is achieved almost all the time during normal driving conditions.  Having fun in the WRX can scare the hell outta me :)... Definitely not a complaint.  It IS a thrill to drive!

And another good point by Forcus.  The VW 2.0L engine is bulletproof;  the engine might last 500k miles, but everything else will need to be rebuilt/replaced long before you get anywhere near 200k.  I don't mean to offend VW enthusiasts or VW drivers.  This has just been the case in my experiences.

« Last Edit: March 06, 2013, 01:43:34 PM by dbratton »

Forcus

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #21 on: March 06, 2013, 02:38:35 PM »

1.  Where do I draw the line?  Is there an amount of loss that just isn't worth it?


Well, look at it this way, If you bought for 25k, and it's worth 20k, (I know it's not, just using round numbers), you "lose 5k". But you also gain $20k in money you haven't spent. Of course, you have to factor in costs for an alternative suitable vehicle, operating costs, etc., but the point is if you looked at it as "losing" $5k, you'd probably just keep it, which isn't the most fiscally sound solution compared to not spending $20k. The ONLY scenario I can think of where it might make sense to keep it is if the initial depreciation is extremely rapid and you've already "lost" the money, and the remaining depreciation is fairly stable, and no equivalent vehicle is available with the same utility for a lower price. The ONLY time in recent history I can think of with this situation might be if you just bought a Saab the day before they announced they were through. I recall seeing new ones at 30-40% off MSRP which of course means that used ones would plummet in value. If you had just bought one, you could sell it in fear, or realize that the money lost is gone, assign a value to the utility of the vehicle, and do the math to see if it was worth it.


2.  Looking forward, what are some efficient (gas and cost) hatchbacks that I should be considering that might not be on my radar? 


The ones I named, to start with. I definitely DO NOT advocate this but if you MUST drive new, I've seen brand new Fiat 500's, Ford Fiesta's and Mazda 2's for around 13k (and the Fiat was closer to 12k). I figured if you can hold on to your man card driving a Cabrio, a Fiat 500 would actually be less girly :)

And another good point by Forcus.  The VW 2.0L engine is bulletproof;  the engine might last 500k miles, but everything else will need to be rebuilt/replaced long before you get anywhere near 200k.  I don't mean to offend VW enthusiasts or VW drivers.  This has just been the case in my experiences.

My take is that VW people are fans because of their quirks as much as despite them. I think most know that everyone else can seem to design a proper door handle (that doesn't break), or a headlight that doesn't burn out if you look at it wrong, or plastic that doesn't peel its coating, or seats that don't get water spots if a rain drop falls a hundred miles away, but they like the handling, the sound of the engine, and the feel of the switchgear. Can't blame them. I'm just too old now to tolerate that kind of stuff in a daily driver.

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #22 on: March 07, 2013, 06:29:02 PM »
Just as a follow up for anyone else who finds themselves in this type of situation:  I took my car to Carmax out of curiosity and got an extremely reasonable offer of $24k.  That cuts my losses to $2281.76.  Still hard to stomach, but I honestly expected much worse.  I think it could have been a much more expensive "lesson".  I didn't leave the car there because I want at least a day or two to think on it (and get my cabrio's flat tire patched), but I'd say I am very likely to go through with it and count my losses.

Using the same calcs I did above, I will break even in 4.5 - 8.0 months.  During that time I will be able to put aside cash (quite a bit without a car payment) to get into a used hatchback and then admire my mustachian stubble in the mirror.

CanuckExpat

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #23 on: March 07, 2013, 08:51:39 PM »
Just as a follow up for anyone else who finds themselves in this type of situation:  I took my car to Carmax out of curiosity and got an extremely reasonable offer of $24k.  That cuts my losses to $2281.76.  Still hard to stomach, but I honestly expected much worse.  I think it could have been a much more expensive "lesson".  I didn't leave the car there because I want at least a day or two to think on it (and get my cabrio's flat tire patched), but I'd say I am very likely to go through with it and count my losses.

Using the same calcs I did above, I will break even in 4.5 - 8.0 months.  During that time I will be able to put aside cash (quite a bit without a car payment) to get into a used hatchback and then admire my mustachian stubble in the mirror.

In situations like this, you shouldn't really be considering the original price you paid, or how long it will take to "break-even". What you paid is a sunk cost at this point. Since you have an offer of $24k on the table, you should be asking yourself if you didn't have the car, would you pay $24k for it now, if the answer is no, you should sell it.

JamesL

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #24 on: March 07, 2013, 08:59:10 PM »
Just as a follow up for anyone else who finds themselves in this type of situation:  I took my car to Carmax out of curiosity and got an extremely reasonable offer of $24k.  That cuts my losses to $2281.76.  Still hard to stomach, but I honestly expected much worse.  I think it could have been a much more expensive "lesson".  I didn't leave the car there because I want at least a day or two to think on it (and get my cabrio's flat tire patched), but I'd say I am very likely to go through with it and count my losses.

Using the same calcs I did above, I will break even in 4.5 - 8.0 months.  During that time I will be able to put aside cash (quite a bit without a car payment) to get into a used hatchback and then admire my mustachian stubble in the mirror.



In situations like this, you shouldn't really be considering the original price you paid, or how long it will take to "break-even". What you paid is a sunk cost at this point. Since you have an offer of $24k on the table, you should be asking yourself if you didn't have the car, would you pay $24k for it now, if the answer is no, you should sell it.

Brilliant answer Canuck. I totally agree. I just got done learning about sunk costs in class so I'm glad you mentioned that lol.

smedleyb

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #25 on: March 07, 2013, 09:08:46 PM »
Given your age and the sizable daily commute, I vote you keep the car (sounds a little like buyer's remorse), and keep it for a long, long time.

Just don't let it happen again. ;)

Dynasty

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #26 on: March 07, 2013, 09:57:21 PM »

The ones I named, to start with. I definitely DO NOT advocate this but if you MUST drive new, I've seen brand new Fiat 500's, Ford Fiesta's and Mazda 2's for around 13k (and the Fiat was closer to 12k). I figured if you can hold on to your man card driving a Cabrio, a Fiat 500 would actually be less girly :)


Italian cars, such as Fiats are going to be just as un-realiable as German cars. A good rule of thumb is to avoid all German, Italian, and English automobiles. Especially English cars with German owners such as Mini...

Honda and Toyota are tops for reliability.

Dynasty

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #27 on: March 07, 2013, 10:02:04 PM »
Given your age and the sizable daily commute, I vote you keep the car (sounds a little like buyer's remorse), and keep it for a long, long time.

Just don't let it happen again. ;)

I advocate the WRX is eliminated. They get about 22 mpg, require premium fuel, and have expensive insurance. That and they scream pull me over to Law Enforcement. And a WRX is a car that needs to be driven hard and fast. I don't know how you could drive one economically at all unless you had a lobotomy done. Much more fun to have a slow car you drive fast than a fast car you have to drive slow..

Also, I recently down sized from a Lexus to a sensible Camry. None of the hatchbacks I drove were at all comfortable for me.

« Last Edit: March 07, 2013, 10:05:42 PM by Dynasty »

Spork

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #28 on: March 08, 2013, 07:24:44 AM »
A good rule of thumb is to avoid all German, Italian, and English automobiles. Especially English cars with German owners such as Mini...

Honda and Toyota are tops for reliability.

I have been a British car owner now for slightly longer than 30 years and I cannot agree more.  Selling it is on my todo list... but there is a serious emotional attachment that I am dealing with.

(And... in replacing my truck, I seriously wanted to go with a Mini.  But I avoided it for just the reasons you're implying.  I think I'd replace the extra money I spent on gas with downtime, parts and trips to a mechanic.)

babysteps

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #29 on: March 08, 2013, 09:22:03 AM »
Italian cars, such as Fiats are going to be just as un-realiable as German cars. A good rule of thumb is to avoid all German, Italian, and English automobiles. Especially English cars with German owners such as Mini...

Honda and Toyota are tops for reliability.

Don't forget French for avoiding ;) 
My mom had a Renault Dauphine (makes '10 worst ever' lists) when my parents met, as a kid we had a Renault 10 and, in sequence, a Citroen sedan, Pugeot sedan, and another Citroen (yes, in the US) - you had to know a mechanic personally! 

Dad now drives a Toyota. 

Although the Renault 10 he was able to sell after 20 yrs and well over 100k miles (140k? 180k? don't remember) to his mechanic for more-than-zero-$

sid

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #30 on: March 08, 2013, 09:42:27 AM »
Given your age and the sizable daily commute, I vote you keep the car (sounds a little like buyer's remorse), and keep it for a long, long time.

Just don't let it happen again. ;)

I advocate the WRX is eliminated. They get about 22 mpg, require premium fuel, and have expensive insurance. That and they scream pull me over to Law Enforcement. And a WRX is a car that needs to be driven hard and fast. I don't know how you could drive one economically at all unless you had a lobotomy done. Much more fun to have a slow car you drive fast than a fast car you have to drive slow..

Also, I recently down sized from a Lexus to a sensible Camry. None of the hatchbacks I drove were at all comfortable for me.

You can get 28-30 mpg hypermiling on the highway 65-70 mph cruise control which isn't that bad for a turbocharged car. City wise it's actually really bad at 18 mpg. Now if you actually baby it you can get 20-23 mpg city.

I'm not sure what you mean by how you can't drive it economically. All manual cars are especially capable of hypermiling since you can control the gear/acceleration/braking/rpm's more finetunely. You will probably see more fuel efficient cars burning more gas because they floor it to a 30 ft stop light like a dolt

Source: I own a 2011 WRX.

Regardless OP should probably sell it to pay off his student loans first.

Dynasty

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #31 on: March 08, 2013, 10:20:41 AM »


I'm not sure what you mean by how you can't drive it economically. All manual cars are especially capable of hypermiling since you can control the gear/acceleration/braking/rpm's more finetunely.

I meant psychologically. The difficulty of owning a performance car and driving it like a grandma. Not nearly as satisfying to baby the gas peddle on a WRX between stop lights, as it would be to flog an old Honda Civic.

Forcus

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #32 on: March 08, 2013, 10:37:31 AM »

Italian cars, such as Fiats are going to be just as un-realiable as German cars. A good rule of thumb is to avoid all German, Italian, and English automobiles. Especially English cars with German owners such as Mini...

Honda and Toyota are tops for reliability.

Yes, I guess I am looking at reliability in a different way, I was more talking about 10-15 year old German's. I think the bar has been raised and I would expect that the foreigners above would be more reliable than they used to be. That being said, I would pick my Focus, a Fit, Corrolla, etc., over the foreigners any day of the week, for reliability, parts availability, service, etc.

DanBrewMan

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #33 on: March 08, 2013, 01:27:20 PM »
The other reason I see to sell the WRX is that even if I decide to keep it and just hunker down on everything else, I'd still walk out to my car every morning and drive a pretty extravagant vehicle to work.  It's a hell of a fun car to drive, but if I really want to be in the frugal state of mind I don't want the car payment, insurance costs, premium fuel, and sub-par efficiency constantly in the back of my mind.  Plus the added stress of a pretty large debt burden on a depreciating asset.  When all is said and done, I could look back and say that this purchase was a poor investment choice so I bailed.  But, I won't need to justify it that way because the real reason is to become FI quickly.  I consider myself lucky that I can get 92% of my money back.

It will be tough, but I believe it's the best thing to do.  If I really want a sports car, I need to get it the right way:  CASH.  And I have a feeling after some time of a mustachian lifestyle,  I'll be too badass to own a sporty car.
« Last Edit: March 08, 2013, 02:57:50 PM by DanBrewMan »

Forcus

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Re: Should I sell my 2-month old Subaru WRX?
« Reply #34 on: March 11, 2013, 11:02:29 AM »
It's a hell of a fun car to drive, but if I really want to be in the frugal state of mind I don't want the car payment, insurance costs, premium fuel, and sub-par efficiency constantly in the back of my mind.

That is definitely one way to look at it. That's why I'll be selling my wife's Volvo S40 T5 pretty soon. Everytime I drive it, it's WAY fancier than I need (even though it is really just an expensive Focus). I DON'T think EVERY aspect of your life has to be frugal, to be frugal, but it helps. Especially on the big stuff.

Also I thought of one more car, a Mazda Miata / MX5. They are pretty cheap and solid. I like too that you can put a hardtop on them for winter and with snow tires they are probably almost as good as a FWD car.