The One In Which I Try to Replace My Car
I feel like my Chapter 13 is like a loooooooooooooong book, with lots of chapters.
So, last week my car broke. A broken rear strut. Mechanic says, $285 to replace both. And it damaged a tire when it broke, so another say $150 for a pair of tires. And $70 to tow it there -- what's that? $505.
Yikes.
And, a ball joint is "going" in the front. About $400 for that -- I replaced the other front one last year. And every now and then, the oil light comes on at idle after it's been running for awhile. Last year I put in a new "oil sending unit" -- whatever that is -- but now it's doing the same thing again. Another oil sending unit or something more sinister? Who knows? So I think that's maybe $200.
And it's got some 165,000 miles on it -- I drive a lot -- round trip is almost 100 miles a day for work.
So I call the lawyer -- what happens if you need to replace your car? He says, you go out, you secure financing, you tell the bank or the car dealer your situation, and then make whatever deal you want -- then you call us back and tell us the year, make, purchase price, payment amount, term, and interest rate you are getting. Then, we submit it to the trustee as a motion to incur non-emergency debt, and if it's all reasonable, he approves it in about 10 days.
I call car places. I have two possible car dealership loans. One, the interest rate is in the high 20's! and they want me to trade the old car. Well, I don't see how that is going to work, because it's still financed, but in the bankruptcy, in a cram down. So I have to call the lawyer and see what he thinks about that -- he did say something about just surrendering it.
And the other is through 722 Redemption. I don't know what the interest rate is, and the lady I am working with there gave me a list of cars to look at on the website -- none of them seemed too appealing, I have to say. Things like Ford Focus's. Grand Am's. Tauraus's. I left that paper at work -- so I can't even consider them further over the weekend.
I have to call the other lady back from the other dealership -- she works at a dealership but is part of a loan company -- so she says that I wouldn't have to get a car from that dealership. I don't know what that interest rate is or what her thoughts are on the current (broke down) car.
And, the 1st guy I spoke with -- who so far has been the most detailed -- said that I'd need the tax and the licensing stuff to be paid up front -- so that's about $1,000. Do-able in a month, probably. Meanwhile, I am driving / sharing my daughter's old beater Volvo, vintage 1986. It's a tank.
Which is about what it would be to fix my current car. This time.
My concern is -- what if I fix it and some other major thing goes wrong, like a transmission? A whole engine?? Like, if that oil light IS something more sinister, like -- I don't know what, but something bad.
The good thing would be, a tiny step toward re-establishing good credit by having a positive tradeline.
The bad thing would be, another payment. For a used car.
Any thoughts?
I am surprised, actually, I was approved -- but the interest rate! Wow. Shocking. Understandable, but shocking.
Please let me know what you think.
Thanks!
So, last week my car broke. A broken rear strut. Mechanic says, $285 to replace both. And it damaged a tire when it broke, so another say $150 for a pair of tires. And $70 to tow it there -- what's that? $505.
Yikes.
And, a ball joint is "going" in the front. About $400 for that -- I replaced the other front one last year. And every now and then, the oil light comes on at idle after it's been running for awhile. Last year I put in a new "oil sending unit" -- whatever that is -- but now it's doing the same thing again. Another oil sending unit or something more sinister? Who knows? So I think that's maybe $200.
And it's got some 165,000 miles on it -- I drive a lot -- round trip is almost 100 miles a day for work.
So I call the lawyer -- what happens if you need to replace your car? He says, you go out, you secure financing, you tell the bank or the car dealer your situation, and then make whatever deal you want -- then you call us back and tell us the year, make, purchase price, payment amount, term, and interest rate you are getting. Then, we submit it to the trustee as a motion to incur non-emergency debt, and if it's all reasonable, he approves it in about 10 days.
I call car places. I have two possible car dealership loans. One, the interest rate is in the high 20's! and they want me to trade the old car. Well, I don't see how that is going to work, because it's still financed, but in the bankruptcy, in a cram down. So I have to call the lawyer and see what he thinks about that -- he did say something about just surrendering it.
And the other is through 722 Redemption. I don't know what the interest rate is, and the lady I am working with there gave me a list of cars to look at on the website -- none of them seemed too appealing, I have to say. Things like Ford Focus's. Grand Am's. Tauraus's. I left that paper at work -- so I can't even consider them further over the weekend.
I have to call the other lady back from the other dealership -- she works at a dealership but is part of a loan company -- so she says that I wouldn't have to get a car from that dealership. I don't know what that interest rate is or what her thoughts are on the current (broke down) car.
And, the 1st guy I spoke with -- who so far has been the most detailed -- said that I'd need the tax and the licensing stuff to be paid up front -- so that's about $1,000. Do-able in a month, probably. Meanwhile, I am driving / sharing my daughter's old beater Volvo, vintage 1986. It's a tank.
Which is about what it would be to fix my current car. This time.
My concern is -- what if I fix it and some other major thing goes wrong, like a transmission? A whole engine?? Like, if that oil light IS something more sinister, like -- I don't know what, but something bad.
The good thing would be, a tiny step toward re-establishing good credit by having a positive tradeline.
The bad thing would be, another payment. For a used car.
Any thoughts?
I am surprised, actually, I was approved -- but the interest rate! Wow. Shocking. Understandable, but shocking.
Please let me know what you think.
Thanks!
Comment