When should I apply for a loan?

[jdiggs]

Hi all I'm new to the site my name is Jon and I filed my BK back in August. I already attended my 341 meeting in September. I received an offer to apply for a loan from 722 redemption but I didn't follow it up because I already had a car that I was going to drive. But lately this car (2001 BMW 740i) has been requiring a lot of maintenance and its no longer worth keeping it as the idea was to save money not have unpredictable expenses. I had a repossession earlier this year (February) and I'm afraid I may get turned down due to that even though the deficit that I owed the loan company was included in the BK. I saw the letter again and I was thinking maybe I should apply for a loan or use one of the others that have been recommended on the site. I have been told that I need to be Discharged first by some dealers and other have said no so I'm a little confused about it. Should I or should I not apply before the discharge? Will it make a difference? If not before how long after?

I tried to check out Road loans but they don't offer loans in California.

[debtmonster]

How much maintenance could it possibly need? Can't you just do the oil changes and transmission flush at a shop some place or do it yourself?

Lots of stuff you can do on your own for that car. I did on my own BMW. I don't trust the dealers touching my car for anything. Even with the free oil changes from BMW, I would still do them on my own because I don't like the cheap oil they use.

You should easily get 300,000 to 400,000 miles out of that vehicle before getting rid of it.

[Tbornetun]

Add up a year of monthly payments + maintenance and add up a year of just repairs/maintenance. Which is more? It would most likely be more beneficial to you to make the repairs on the car you currently own than to take on more debt and make payments for the next few years.

My husband and I ALWAYS pay cash for our cars. I don't drive a piece of crap either. In the past 8 months, since I got my Jeep, I have put in $50 in repairs. It is much cheaper than $400 a mo for a payment. Even if I had to make a $200 repair per month, which is highly unlikly, it would be better than getting a loan on a vehicle.

[debtmonster]

How much is the maintenance? Why are you not doing it yourself instead of paying somebody? You can get tools at Walmart if you have to. Buy ramps there and wrenches and do everything yourself. I always do.

That 740 is a nice car! They are not even the price of a new Hyundai Elantra! I'd rather have the Bimmer!!

BMW 740i cheap!

[Cali]

I am glad our dealership is great about maintenance.

Lots of stuff you can do on your own for that car. I did on my own BMW. I don't trust the dealers touching my car for anything. Even with the free oil changes from BMW, I would still do them on my own because I don't like the cheap oil they use.

[debtmonster]

I am glad our dealership is great about maintenance.

You're paying above and beyond what it costs. Dealerships are the biggest rip off.

I can put 100,000 miles on a car and barely spend $300-450 on maintenance in all that time. If you bring it to a dealer, sometimes they want that or more just for stopping in. NO WAY!!

I change my oil 4 to 7 times every 100,000 miles. The transmission I get done once every 100,000 miles. I change the air filter every 100,000 miles. All of the grease and stuff I do myself. The anti-freeze only has to be changed every 250,000 miles. I don't know why people would spend more than I do. It's pointless. You're not getting anything better than what I do on my own when you bring it to a dealer, so why bother? Especially in today's economy when we're all broke. Save the money and do it yourself.

[Cali]

That works for you, but it isn't what I do. I don't mind paying the extra for the maintenance to be done. And right now I am not paying anything because it is still under warranty.

You're paying above and beyond what it costs. Dealerships are the biggest rip off.

I can put 100,000 miles on a car and barely spend $300-450 on maintenance in all that time. If you bring it to a dealer, sometimes they want that or more just for stopping in. NO WAY!!

I change my oil 4 to 7 times every 100,000 miles. The transmission I get done once every 100,000 miles. I change the air filter every 100,000 miles. All of the grease and stuff I do myself. The anti-freeze only has to be changed every 250,000 miles. I don't know why people would spend more than I do. It's pointless. You're not getting anything better than what I do on my own when you bring it to a dealer, so why bother? Especially in today's economy when we're all broke. Save the money and do it yourself.

[debtmonster]

If you're getting free maintenance, then by all means.

What got most of us in trouble on here is we were not all frugal. I wanted to keep my BMW after the BK and so many people on here ragged on me and told me to give it back and buy a cheap car. I wised up and that's what I am doing. I am already 1 payment behind on it. Instead of paying the car, I pay the attorney instead.

The problem is, I probably won't be able to file until June. I will have to wait for my wife to quit her job and then we need 6 months of staying under the median.

[coloradomrg]

[QUOTE=debtmonster;211652]What got most of us in trouble on here is we were not all frugal. QUOTE]

Being frugal could also be doing all of the required maintanence so that your car stays on the road as long as possible. Waiting to do oil changes till around the 14k mark in your example is a bad idea no matter what car it is. AND if you have a newer car still under warranty, then you should be doing everything you can to keep that warranty valid. People getting large unexpected bills is another reason many of us have landed here. It's by no means an excuse, but many people have turned to credit to repair their transportation. Why not do the easy, less expensive stuff, on schedule to avoid many of these problems?

As for the OP. 722 redemption is a US Bank company. They are one of the few willing to finance before discharge. They will charge you atleast 24%, because they are based out of Ohio, it does not matter what your states laws are. CO for example has a cap @ 21%, but they do not have a brick and mortar office here for their 722 program so they get around that. If you can wait, there is probably a better option after discharge, but 722 will still help if you can't find another option at that point. I don't really recommend going this way, but if it is what you have to do for your situation, you could definetly find a worse option.

[debtmonster]

Going 14k miles on oil that is not meant to last will certainly mess the engine up. I said that I use Amsoil. It's meant to last up to 12 months or 25,000 miles before it needs to be changed. It's all in writing and guaranteed. That means you can safely go up to 8x longer on the same oil. They also sell a 100,000 mile transmission fluid and a 250,000 mile anti-freeze. I've been using all of this stuff in our cars and it's saving us a fortune. My car has ZERO problems when it comes to maintenance. The only problems my car does have are ones that Amsoil cannot fix, such as the power windows no longer working out of warranty. And now the dash lights and sometimes not coming on.

Amsoil is not only 100% synthetic, it is THE first oil to ever come out as a synthetic oil, years before any of the popular stuff you hear on the radio or see on the TV. Amsoil does not advertise. I only found out about it via word of mouth at a car show. I've been using it ever since and it saves me and all of my family members a fortune on car maintenance that you are throwing away.

It's illegal for any dealer to deny your warranty over it as that is a violation of federal law for the Magnuson Moss act.

The stuff your dealer is putting in your car is NOT better than Amsoil and that is a 100% rock solid guarantee. All frugal people should be using Amsoil and nothing else at all, no matter what your dealer tells you. Your dealer is NOT looking our for your best interest. They want to sell you whatever will bring you in there as many times as possible so they can milk you out of every dime they can. This is what is causing people to keep charging more and more on their credit cards for car maintenance.

I can buy 2 cases of Amsoil and my car is good for up to 2 years or 50,000 miles of driving! That's INCREDIBLE!

50,000 miles divided by 3,000 mile oil changes = 16 oil changes. 16 x $30 = $480 in oil changes, plus all of the other crap the dealer tries to sell you on.

I pay about $120-140 to go the same distance and my engine is in much better condition than anyone using any oil from a dealer.

Do some Google searches on Amsoil and you'll see. To find a local dealer, go to Google and type in: Amsoil <your city, your state> and you should find one to order from.

For example, if you live in LA, type in: amsoil los angeles, ca
There's a lot of dealers in many cities.

[relief13035]

I don't know anything about cars, nor do I even want to learn. I will need to cut my budget elsewhere. I don't see wrenches and ramps from WalMart in my future, since I wouldn't have a clue what to do with them.

[debtmonster]

I don't know anything about cars, nor do I even want to learn. I will need to cut my budget elsewhere. I don't see wrenches and ramps from WalMart in my future, since I wouldn't have a clue what to do with them.

You order the oil and then bring it to the local oil change place and have them put it in for $20-25. Then you're done with it for the year. Super easy. After doing this a few times, you'll wonder how you ever wasted so many trips going to the dealer. Believe me. Everyone who I have converted to this stuff can't even imagine the idea of going back to the old way of doing it.

[coloradomrg]

It's illegal for any dealer to deny your warranty over it as that is a violation of federal law for the Magnuson Moss act.

This is true for the product. This is not true for the timing at which you do the maintenance. The LIMITED warranty available on new/newer cars and ESP's on used cars CAN require you to do maintanence at specific intervals, but they CAN NOT require you to go to the dealer or use specific parts unless the dealer gives you the parts (or fluids in this case) for free.

ALSO, in the event that it is determined that the parts or fluids that you use caused damage that would have been covered, your warranty can not be invalidated, but the claim can be denied. It is up to the dealer/company to work out a settlement with the consumer. They will pick up part, and the consumer will pick up the rest.

I'm all for doing the work yourself, but I also do my best to cover my hind end when it comes to warranties on big ticket items. We just discharged, financed an $11k 07 saturn with 9k miles, and paid cash for a $1000 95 honda civic. The saturn is still under factory warranty, and you can be sure I'll be taking care of everything at the recommended times. The honda, I'll be putting all synthetic fluids in and changing every 10k miles or so, its the only way a car with 140k miles will keep me on the road for as long as I'd like it to.

[ansky0007]

Neither of these posts has anything to do with the OP question regarding a loan. I can understand his feeling on a older vehicle. Yes, Oil changes etc. are cheap but what does he do if the tranny goes? I have one going in one of my vehicles and its over $2k, I am surrendering this vehicle thank goodness.

[debtmonster]

Neither of these posts has anything to do with the OP question regarding a loan. I can understand his feeling on a older vehicle. Yes, Oil changes etc. are cheap but what does he do if the tranny goes? I have one going in one of my vehicles and its over $2k, I am surrendering this vehicle thank goodness.

Because it's about SAVING MONEY. Don't you get it?! You're so trained to do those expensive BS 3,000 mile oil changes when you can be doing it every 25,000 instead! Using an oil that is DESIGNED to go 25,000 miles. I thought people here were hurting for cash? Here I am trying to educate you and you're bashing the idea of saving money. What is your deal, dude?