Right now I'm driving a 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse V6. The only place I drive is to work which is 36 miles each way, 5 days a week. This costs me $110-$120 a month depending on gas prices. I get 29-30 mpg.
Considerations:
- I can't move until my lease ends July 2017. Terminating the lease would cost $2000. Also, I work in the middle of nowhere and really really don't want to live there. There are no major grocery stores that I rely on like Aldi, Trader Joe's, Earthfare, etc. There's not even a Walmart. Pool is a major hobby of mine and I would not be able to play in this town. I also volunteer at a place that only exists in my current city in the state I live in. If I moved there I would be making a lot of sacrifices and changes. But there are cities in between that could cut my commute in half, which may allow me to keep pool but not the volunteering.
- Getting another job is possibly an option. I have a BSME but only started working 3 months ago.
- I have $24k left in student loans to pay off, hopefully will be paid off by August 2017. I have $0 in savings. Meaning I would have to pay my loans off later and buy a cheap $2k-3k car which may need maintenance. Or get a car loan of $5k+ to improve my credit? I wanted my next car to be an EV, but currently they are not affordable or practical to charge in an apartment complex.
- I just spent $1250 on maintenance and an engine tune up on the car. Timing belt, water pump, spark plugs, and other much needed repair. Basically, no major maintenance should be necessary for at least 50k miles. The car runs great for its age and has new paint only a few years old. NADA values it at $2400 for a "clean trade-in" and KBB at $1900 for "very good".
- My monthly expenses are roughly $1000-$1200 including rent, food, gas, etc. Monthly income is roughly $3700 after taxes.
Question: Is it worth getting another car that's 40+ mpg?
I know everyone is going to say "Get another job!" but I don't really have a reason to leave my current position. I'm the only engineer at a manufacturing plant and people actually rely on my knowledge. I would not get this opportunity at a big corporation in my current city. There are also opportunities to move up to a manager position. I guess it can be considered a startup, and there are huge plans for expansion next year.