Should this Marine buy one?

[JimmyDShea]

Good Afternoon all,

Quick question, I'm a 21 year old Corporal in the United States Marine Corps, with 2 years left on my first 4 year enlistment. I make around $1,800/month, with no bills to pay. I could definitely afford this car if I were to stay in for another enlistment, knowing I'll have this steady paycheck and no other bills to pay, but if I decide to get out of the Corps in two years, payments of $450/month and up, plus insurance could be very difficult, and with a debt like this looming over me, I'm worried about deciding to re-enlist solely on the fact that I might not be able to make the payments otherwise.

SO, the question is, should I buy this Camaro (car of my dreams) NOW or LATER?

Option 1: Buy the Camaro now, with my good credit, I should get pretty good financing, pay as much off as possible and try not to let the debt influence me re-enlisting or not. Enjoy everyday, knowing that at the end of it, I'll be cruising in my asphalt monster.

Option 2: Buy a cheap used car, save for the future when insurance will be cheaper, payments might be easier to come by, I won't be so "young and reckless".

Live for the moment or live cautiously? Who knows if there will even be a tomorrow right? Do I wanna be in Heaven, never having bought the Camaro saying, "God, is there anyway to have the dealer deliver to the pearly gates?? PLEASE?!". And what if I get married and have a family in the next 6 years? I might have to get a freakin' soccer mom van! Then my dreams of the Camaro will be long gone.

What would YOU do in my shoes?

I'm leaning towards WAITING for the Camaro, saving up for it, playing it safe. ANY insight will be MOST appreciated. Thank you.

Semper Fidelis,

Cpl Jimmy Shea
USMC

ps. Here's a video I made of my friend's Skyline GTR and my Skyline GTS25T, my car is the one at the end

[SScattergunSS]

Truthfully, you might want to wait. With two years left in you enlistment, and with what looks like a large deployment into Afghanistan coming soon...wait 'till you can really enjoy it. I do believe this however, when the time is right, you'll know it.

As far as the getting married part and having to get a soccer mom van...if you don't currently have a steady girl, you will not long after you get this Camaro. The good thing is, she's not going to want you to get rid of it! The bad thing is, SHE'S GONNA TO WANT TO BE THE ONE DRIVING IT!!! Good luck....

Whatever you decide, it'll be the right choice. And hey, thank you very much for your service to our country!!!

[XAnimal]

To be honest, you can afford it now, and if you have no bills you can pay it off over the next 2 years. If your payment is $450 and you make $1800 then you can pay $900 a month and then when it comes time to reup if you don't you'll have a small amount left on the car if its not paid off and might be able to refinance for a lower monthly payment

Also if you have a deployment coming up you'll be able to pay it off no problem, but if you know you have a depolyment coming up WAIT you'll be able to buy one cash

[ZombieEatsYou]

^^^


Another thought: If you're a supervisor, what would you tell someone who came to you with that question?

[TomServo]

Think about your ops tempo. My son (who is in the USAF and currently in Iraq) has had to park his 05 STS for months on end. Right now it's sitting in his aunts drive way in Colorado Springs. It's been sitting since Sept and he doesn't get back until April.

I'd hate to have to park a brand new car for months on end unless you can arrange to get it home or stored in a climate controlled facility.

Having spent 24 years active duty USAF I can't tell you how many times I've had to leave my cars parked un-protected for weeks/months on end. I came back from on TDY right after a blizzard only to find my car had been plowed in. There I stood at 2 in the morning with my mo-bags looking at 3 feet of frozen snow piled in front of my 1978 Trans Am. That was a long cold walk to the BOQ.

Good luck though.

[JimmyDShea]

Thank you very much so far. There's a lot of points being brought up that I hadn't even though of yet. Great forum here, again, much appreciated.

[XAnimal]

Originally Posted by TomServo

Think about your ops tempo. My son (who is in the USAF and currently in Iraq) has had to park his 05 STS for months on end. Right now it's sitting in his aunts drive way in Colorado Springs. It's been sitting since Sept and he doesn't get back until April.

I'd hate to have to park a brand new car for months on end unless you can arrange to get it home or stored in a climate controlled facility.

Having spent 24 years active duty USAF I can't tell you how many times I've had to leave my cars parked un-protected for weeks/months on end. I came back from on TDY right after a blizzard only to find my car had been plowed in. There I stood at 2 in the morning with my mo-bags looking at 3 feet of frozen snow piled in front of my 1978 Trans Am. That was a long cold walk to the BOQ.

Good luck though.

Is your son stationed out there at Peterson or the Academy? If so small small world....

[TomServo]

Originally Posted by XAnimal

Is your son stationed out there at Peterson or the Academy? If so small small world....

He's startioned at Cheyenne Mountain

Tom

[Scott@Bjorn3D]

Jimmy,

I would get it and get a SS. Pay it off as fast as you can if you have no other bills. My wife and I talked about it what would happen if GM went under or the car canned after a couple of years. The ones who have one will have collector items.

Plus the days of the big V8 maybe nearing and end with Obama coming into office. Get it while you can.

[JimmyDShea]

If I do re-enlist, I should be receiving a $70,000 bonus...that would help me make my decision, yeah? Haha...man...an SS??! I can't frikkin' imagine.

[JimmyDShea]

If I do go ahead and decide to buy one...I think it'd have to be the V8...paying all that...might regret choosing a V-6 after a year or two...hmm...

[Mosher]

Originally Posted by XAnimal

To be honest, you can afford it now, and if you have no bills you can pay it off over the next 2 years. If your payment is $450 and you make $1800 then you can pay $900 a month and then when it comes time to reup if you don't you'll have a small amount left on the car if its not paid off and might be able to refinance for a lower monthly payment

Also if you have a deployment coming up you'll be able to pay it off no problem, but if you know you have a depolyment coming up WAIT you'll be able to buy one cash

This is a valid point, also note that as long as you pay on it for 24 months, it should look good on your credit.

[JimmyDShea]

With all the focus on Afghan, a deployment is highly possible..so that throws another factor into the mix..well, thanks again for all your input..have fun with your Camaros! Hopefully, I'll have one sometime soon.

Jimmy Shea
Cpl, USMC

[Camaro_Corvette]

I'm just gonna have to say wait till you get closer to time, then you will have a better idea of your financial situation. Although I think you should be doing well.