nomoreavril

hello all! about a year ago i bought my first new car(technically...it was in my grandmothers name so i havent bought a car yet.) a base cobalt!! i riced it out, and as soon as i started getting serious with my mods, my friend totalled it. so, in my head, thinking it was a good idea to get a used car, because it would be cheaper, i went out and got myself an 04 ford focus zx3 with the 2.3 engine, ATX. well, no one told me used cars usually get higher APR%, and b/c it was also in my grandmothers name, and she retired just before buying the car, she got about 13 percent. i payed about 200(if i remember right) a month for my cobalt, and now i pay 300 a month for this POS focus.

dont get me wrong, its a quick light little car. but i have hydrolocked the engine once, and my insurance, being cheapasses, put a used instead of new engine in it. well it has been in the shop 3 times since the replacement, and they have had to pay for every visit. i have decided, that since i pay up my ass for a used car(33k miles atm) i might as well pay the same/little more, for a brand new car!

i was thinking about buying me a new focus, until the guy at ford started being a jack--- to me, and doesnt really believe i want to get a new car. since the cobalt was my first car, and i was in love with that little thing, i think i want to get a new one. i miss it soo bad. i still have my black ss spoiler from the wreckage.

my only dilemma- i have no established credit, so its not good or bad, but i also dont have much of a down payment. i'm in the process of selling an old honda civic, for 500 bucks. by then i will have about 800 dollars for a down payment. i do delivery for pizza hut, so i make min. wage, about 650 every month, BUT, with tips , i make about double that total, so about 1300 a month. i can handle any payments, no problem, i just need them to let me have a chance! what can i do? i will be trading in my focus, but it will be upside down or w/e, i owe 10k, i will probably get 5k-8k trade in(havent checked yet, but some bad cosmetic damage, body kit has cracks all over. body kit was on car when i bought it...stupid fiberglass) so i dont think they really pay attention to me having a trade in.

also, should i go back to my roots and get another base cobalt? or go all out and try to get an n/a SS? i love the cobalts to death. and whatever car i will be getting will be my life partner. no trading/selling anything. unless my friend wrecks it, hahaha.




rip!

SSinPhilly

damn

SSinPhilly

do you have any parts from the car?

nomoreavril

no, i wanted the rims, and they told me i would have to pay them to mount the tires on the old steelies, and i didnt have the money for that, so that 400 dollars down the drain. all i have left are the old steelies, lol, and the SS wing, the old snorkel(lol) and a seat cover. god i miss that car

nomoreavril

here is my current car, the front bumper is cracked almost all the way down the middle on the lower lip of the 'mouth'. the rear bumper is cracked on the drivers side, where it mounts to the frame, so it tore a little chunk off and the bumper just dangled, but i fixed it with zip ties:P other than that, automatic transmission , power windows/locks, cruise, cd/mp3, premium wheels, 33k miles

SSinPhilly

i had a focus pushing low 14s with the spi sohc! is that the duretec engine?

nomoreavril

yes sir, it is the 2.3 pzev, a toned down version of what is in the newer focus ST's. 144/149. i wouldnt be selling it if it was a 5 speed, because i love taking it to the track. but i know focus atxs arent put together real well, and i love driving 5 speeds, which is what i want to get on my new cobalt, if i get one. never owned a 5 speed though.

samesun

hi Nomoreavril. were your original tires on the cobalt the 195/15's and did you upsize the tires with the better rims? (they were nice rims btw)

I have the 195/15 w/wheel covers on my G5 which are butt-ugly and too small for the wheel openings and would like to upsize to the SE's 205/16 but i don't know if i need to change anything on the car to keep the speedo correct. did you have to modify anything if you went up a tire size?

nomoreavril

samesun: no, sorry, didnt upgrade tires(barely had enough for the rims lol). they were the big stockers. when i get my new cobalt, i will probably get new rims on it(if its base level) but i wont go over 16. i dont think you have to upgrade anything, but i'm sure chevy would do it for you. ask your dealer if you can have them flash your computer


on the other hand, went to chevy today, they appraised my focus at 7,250. more than i expected actually. they told me i need to have a cosigner b/c i have no credit, and probably a 20 percent down payment(jesus...that would take me forever to save up.) can anyone help me out here? i need to know how to deal with them. i talked to VW about a new rabbit, and i need no cosigner, and just 10 percent down payment. thats what i'm talkin about. i want a cobalt if they tell me i need to pay 3k, i'm going to say nevermind. i'm impatient and cant use this car for that long just to get 3k. the rabbits have the 2.5 engines in them.

nomoreavril

i've got my heart set on another cobalt, but if they make me pay any thing over 15 percent down payment, then i will go to volkswagen. they already offered me an 07 rabbit, which comes with tons of more options standard, for only 10 percent down payment. it comes with the 2.5l 5 cylinder, 150/170.

i've already talked the guy into giving me 7500 for my car instead of the 7250..not much but hey lol

silentgarth

Are you looking to buy or lease? Cause if you lease your first car it will help your credit out alot. And go for the base model. You wont be able to mod as much as you want, but after three years or so you can get something so much better. SS/SC, camaro whatever.

Also I started to improve my credit ( back when I was 18) buy getting a few dept store credit cards. Buying a few things and paying off the balances as soon as the bills came. That helps build credit quick.


Hope this helps..

nomoreavril

yeah, i plan on getting some small gas cards or something like that. as soon as i have good enough credit i will refinance into my own name, instead of it being me and a cosinger(which i have to have) but no, i dont want to lease, i'm just getting the base model(as little options as possible) and am going to keep it til it breaks down. i love the cobalts since it was my first car, and i want another one, and will keep it for good.

JohnnySasakiMGS

(shivers) ugh GOD i hate the focus. So ugly. Anyways in my opinion. Just pay off the focus completely. Having ANY rollover into your new car loan is a bad idea. Trust me i know. im paying 21k for a 2.4 SS. Apply for a credit card. Buy GAS ONLY with it. pay off the entire balance every month. By the time you are done paying off the Focus and ready to buy a new car, your credit will kick ass! And you will probably have a higher paying job in a few years.

pOrk

Agreed, I have had mad rollover in my thousands of cars that I have traded in and out. Dont do it, I did it because cars are such a large part of my recreation time, but is a car really worth it to you. If it is then do what you have to do, if it is not then dont waste the money or put yourself in a bad situation.

nomoreavril

well, its not TOO bad of rollover, only 2500 so far. for my 'dream' car that is approx low 13k before trade in, thats pretty good to me. and yeah, i NEVER liked focuses. i only got it because it already had a body kit on it(i like body kits, and since they are like 1k i figured i got that out of the way..) and it was pretty much fully loaded, and had the stronger 2.3 engine, 16k miles for a pricetag of 11k. thats the only reason i got it. i wouldnt trade it in if my payments werent 300 a month.

nomoreavril

oh, the brakes start going bad about every 12k miles apparently. they are sounding pretty bad now, and i've already had them replaced once. not to mention focus transmissions are crappy(the ATX's) it already slips everyonce in a while.

samesun

Hey thanks for the info Nomoreavril. I def. have to do something about the tires/rims lol.

About your cobalt/rabbit thing...I wanted the Rabbit myself but a few friends that I know swear that they will never buy VW's again b/c of poor reliability and expensive repairs. The rabbit was nicer than my G5 tho. I went with GM b/c most of my cars have been GM and I trust them. I also got a good lease deal on my G5 compared to the Rabbit.

I completely agree with JohnnySasakiMGS...wait and pay off your current ride (double up payments if you can) and establish great credit...then when it's time to buy...you have better negotiating power and won't have to let the dealer dictate terms. I walked out on several salesguys who were making me uncomfortable...I knew I had good credit and what I was willing to pay for whatever car that I was considering. I had test drove my G5 3 weeks b4 buying and was willing to walk away and wait for an 07 when I got the deal that I wanted.

I rolled one car loan into another b4 and will never do that again...my payments were insane and after 6 months...the car I wanted so badly was just that...a car. It wasn't worth it. This is just my advice...good luck on what you decide to do.

JohnnySasakiMGS

SWEET!

3fo893013L

How did you hydrolock the motor on the focus? Looks like you got an SRI, was it a full CAI before and you hit a puddle?

nomoreavril

yeah, it was a CAI. i was driving and it just started raining out of nowhere REAL bad, for texas. i was driving for work so i couldnt just go home. it was a flash flood, and i turned onto a street and somehow there was a puddle that ou couldnt really see as you turn right on the road and water just flew up way over my hood and i knew that instant it was going to happen. insurance covered it though , under comprehensive. so i payed my 50 bucks and they gave me a new(used) engine