Buying a car

Buying a car is quite an experience and I did own my share of automobiles while at the US.The first car that I purchased was back in 1992 while I worked at Radio Shack.I was not making a lot of money, but I had finish college, so I did not have to worry about college expenses.I used some money that I had saved, combined it with my tax return and I was accompanied to a used car sales auction by a friend of mine from the Caribbean Island called Gary.
The used car lot was a temporary area that car owners used for disposing their old automobile. Gary drove me to the car lot and we looked around for a while.I was not looking for anything that expensive and he noticed a Pontiac sunbird 2000 that I ended up purchasing.Pontiac's are made in the USA by General Motors and they are pretty inexpensive to maintain, as compared to foreign made cars.I paid 800dollars cash at the time for the car and drove it to my apartment at Sligo avenue, Silver Springs.The car had no tags at the time and I had no clue that it will be a problem to park it in a public resident.It was immediately towed and that ended up costing me an additional 100 dollars.
I had to search for a used car dealer to purchase a temporary tag for the vehicle.Later on I will get a one year tag from the DMV in Washington DC because they were less strict as suppose to the state of MD in which I lived.A got a liability insurance, this is the minimum requirement that you needed for the registration of the vehicle, and in case you are pulled over by the police.
The car ran pretty well and it took me to quite a few places .I drove to Richmond, VA for training when I got a new job with Circuit City.I took the car to North Carolina at one time.But mainly the car was for cruising around town.Once you purchase your first automobile, you look and wonder how you managed to have spend all these years without owning one.Gasoline was relatively cheap and driving a car, even an old one beats taken public transportation anytime.It came with a radio, which I listened to and I did used it for about 2 to 3years before it got involved in an accident on Georgia avenue, in Washington DC.The passenger side was totally damage and the DC council towed it to a local garage.
I was not injured in the accident, though the passenger on the other car had some neck injures and had to be hospitalised.By the time I got to see the car, I decided to just abandon it. I was not worth the trouble trying to get it repaired.I was back to catching the bus for about two to three months while I gather my finances for the purchase of another car.
My next automobile was a Nissan sports car, a 1985 300Z which ended up causing me more trouble that it was worth.I got this one with the help of a used car dealer, originally from Nigeria.We went to an auction and I saw the car, immediately fell in love with it and paid 1500 dollars for it.There was a couple of issues with the car which I could have avoided if I had done my homework. The first problem was that the car had some major body work that needed to be done on it, both in front and in the back of the car.
Secondly, the price to insure the car goes up because it is considered a sports automobile.You pay more for the thrill of driving.Thirdly, it was a two seater.The car had just enough space for the drive and one passenger.I would run into problems when I had to drive somebody to the club and they happen to bring friend along.The first thing coming out of their mouth is what where you thinking buying a two seater.This happen with a close female friend of mind from manyu division, and also with three sisters from Kenyan that where friends of mine.They were like"you can,t take us to the club with that".The car also lack space inside.There was no way you could get a quickly inside it.
Parts were also very expensive.For example, with my old sun bird, I could replace a punctured tire for less that 35dollars.Not so for my new baby.You are looking at 100 dollars for tire change.The body work ended up costing a lot of money, I do not remember the exact figures.I remember dishing out 250 bucks in one area, and another 700 bucks in another, just to get the car decent looking.
Once all the work was done though, I did get a lot of praise on how good the car looked.It ran nicely also.At the time, I was working at Circuit City, so I had a new car stereo system installed in it, together with some new speakings.I got a few offers from some ladies to sell the car, but I had sunk in so much money into it, I just could not figure out a selling price for it.Anyway, with all the major work done, I was enjoying the ride.It took me to the soccer fields for exercising, to Beltsville for work, and to the streets of Washington DC for sightseeing.
I got some serious traffic tickets with the car.One of them, I totally forget to pay and I had moved to a different apartment by the time a notice came for me to appear in court.Minor offenses that mushroomed into bigger problems when you do not take care of them right away.As everybody that has owned a used car will tell you, repair bills appear all the time and it is very difficult for you to save any substantial amount of money for other purposes.Once you get hooked to automobiles though, you would spend the money for repairs since you do not have a choice anymore.You have to have your car.The Nissan 300Z lasted for about two years and I abandoned it after I had skidded into a tree while driving to soccer practice.Luckily, there was nobody on the passenger side of the vehicle.That side was completed smashed in and the vehicle was "uneconomical" to repair.
I had learned my lesson from the owning a Z, as the 300 was called at the time.I struggle for a short period of time looking for a replacement automobile.A got one from one of my regular customers while I worked at circuit city.It was a Pontiac 9000 sun bird.The body of the car still looked good.It had a few mechanical problems that would be taken care off.I paid 900 dollars for the 1986 made car and started driving it back and forth to work.It needed a new battery which I got for 60 dollars and the catalytic converter had to be changed also.
Another major problem with the car was that it did over-heat most of the time, especially when I got caught in traffic. The car did save me for some time, until I left Circuit City and joined Sprint PCS Corporation.The journey from Langley Park, Maryland to Columbia MD would take its toll on the Pontiac and I looked for a replacement as soon as I starting getting my paychecks from Sprint.
The transmission on the Pontiac gave way and I told my store Manager at the time that I was shopping for an automobile.He too was looking to get rid of his old car, in other to purchase a new one.This were the days of the big cellphone and Internet boom and everybody was making a lot of change.I paid 2500 dollars for his Mitsubishi Gallant. I have forgetting what year the car was.I did know that it was a comfortable and reliable automobile, because, Agbor, my elder brother owned one that he had bought brand new.
There were no mechanical or body work that had to be done to the car.I love good music in my cars, so I did go to my former employer, Circuit City, to get a new car stereo and some speakers installed.I was to use the car for the year and a half that I worked for Sprint PCS and latter on for another year and a half after I had joined AT&T Wireless Corporation.There were two major repairs that I did do to the car though.One was to overhaul the transmission, which cost me about 900 dollars and the other repair,one that in hindsight I should not have undertaking, that cost about 1450 dollars.
The last car that I owned was a Nissan Maxima 2002 that I purchased while I was working in downtown Washington DC for AT&T wireless.I bought the car brand new after my Mitsubishi gallant had finally crap out.I had received an unsolicited offer from Capital One Auto finance company with a credit line of up to $38000 to spend for an automobile.
I had never finance a car before.I always taught of it as throwing money away. I have always preferred purchasing cars with cash that I have, that way do not buy what you latter on cannot afford and also you get immediate ownership of the car.I went against my better judgement, maybe because at the time I was making a lot of money.I had paid off most of my debt and my credit rating was also decent.That explain why a got the unsolicited financing in the first place.
I started doing some research on cars and talking to some friends also.I read a lot of consumer reports on various cars and read different car and driver magazines.After doing my homework, I decided on a Nissan Maxima.Nissan had been producing the Max, as the car is called for a while now but had just boosted the horsepower on the MAX from 225HP to 255HP.The rims on the new max had also being increased to 17 inches in size.I went to a car dealership in Capital Heights and talk to one of the sales persons.I already knew what I wanted so it was an easy sale for the salesperson.He had me test drive one and we both agreed that the car was pretty good.He showed me different colours and I settled on a Merlot colour, colour that is close to red looking.
All the paperwork was taken care off and after agreeing on a price, I convinced them to throw in a spoiler for free.The spoiler took a day or two to installed and the car was ready for me to pick up.The new max came fully loaded:Leather seats, digital car stereo system with cd changer.Bose speakers,about six in total.Power windows,full alarm system,remote control that allow you open and closed the car from a remote area.The car had very large tires, so you could go from zero to 60km in no time at all.
The feel of a new car also last for a while.You do not have to worry about repair bills or breakdowns.The heating and cooling systems functioned perfectly.It was about finally possessing that ride that you always dream about.The bad side was the monthly car payments.A whopping 525dollars a month.That could be the monthly payment for a modest condo in some cities.Anyway I got the car and I could go places and back in no time.Journeys that used to be a drag were now done in no time at all.