Buying a car for nursing school

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Anyone in the predicament that I am in, needing to buying a car for nursing school. Now I live Baltimore county now we do have public transportation but very un - reliable. I have used it or the past 3 years, I must walk 20 minutes to the buss stop and must leave the hours 2 hours early, to arrive my destination on time. Although I'm still attending the same school I took pre - requisites, the clinical sites are far away and will require me to be there at 6.30 am, buses don't start running until 5 am and only god knows how long it would take there. So anyways , I need to buy a car. The only debt I have is credit card , I pay that every month in full. I have been very good with that. My program is ADN, so its not expensive , my father pays for that but even decides not to pay anymore or somethings, I can still afford to pay it myself, by working full over the summer, Plus I have no rent to pay, my mother is allowing me to stay rent free, in anticipation that I will give of huge percentage of my nursing paycheck to her, ( LoL, that's not gonna happen). Anyways did you guys buy new or used? I have been looking at used car, and I have been totally disappointed in my research, all I'm looking for is something that looks decent and more importantly a car that is mechanically okay .Beaters wont work because I need something reliable. Anyways please comment your thoughts below.

I bought a brand new diesel Jetta in March 2012. It is expensive but getting ~45mpg in a car that actually has power is great. It's also not a car that I will want to junk as soon as I start getting a bigger paycheck... I say buy a car that you want that you can afford. I don't really care how long I finance something for as long as the terms are good. Over the life of the loan (6 years) I am paying like 3000 in interest which in the grand scheme of things just doesn't matter to me. But some people would rather die than pay interest lol. To each their own :)

Yea it would be great to find a car that lasts after nursing nursing school

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Used cars aren't actually as affordable, as they use to be. Most people are selling junk for $3000 - $5000.

My bil just bought a 2006 Toyota Camry for under $9,000. Find a car with good ratings and have it checked with your mechanic before buying.

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I bought my current truck 8 years ago, before I even started nursing school. It was new, but I knew I was going to keep it around for at least 100k miles. It should hit 100k sometime this spring, and I expect to keep it around for at least another 50k...especially since I just treated it to four new tires.

Whether you buy new or used, the big secret is to take care of it! Don't slack on required service, oil changes and the like, as slacking will help your car wear faster than it would if you cared for it properly. Rotate tires regularly. If the car develops a problem, fix it ASAP. Make sure you use the right grade fuel for it. Learn the basics of car DIY maintenance: know how to check your oil level (you don't need to know how to change the oil), how to top off washer/other fluids, how to check tire pressure and fill them, etc.

Yes, it costs to regularly maintain your vehicle. But in the long run, it'll cost a lot less than having major repair work done or even to replace your vehicle because it conked out in a few years.

True. I probably got my first car serviced once the whole time I had it, which probably had something to do with it tearing up so fast. As soon as I got my recent car I took it to get serviced right away.

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I'm not in nursing school yet, but I feel like I can contribute to this thread. I bought a car in in November of 2012. Found the listing on carsforsale.com if I'm not mistaken. The car was located up in the Atlanta area since there are no used cars that are fair priced that I actually liked in my area. Went up there, checked the car out, test drove it etc, paid 5k cash for it and brought it home. A month later it tore up. It required a $300 part. I bought it, got it put on, and the car was fixed. It ran with no problem up until October of this year. Spent a couple more hundred dollars on it and ... It ran hot, needed a new motor. Money lost.

I just bought another car last month for around the same price. This time it had a warranty on it. So far so good. I would honestly say there's nothing wrong with getting a used car as long as it's decent. Get a mechanic in the area to check it out and make sure there's a warranty on it. Most of the times when there's no warranty you know there's something wrong with the car. That's the mistake I made with my first car.

Just because you get a new car doesn't mean there won't be problems with it. I personally didn't get a car with payments because I didn't want the burden of having a car note during nursing school. Another plus is that my father is an army mechanic, so if something does go wrong I can get it fixed for free. Like you, I plan on this car lasting me before, during, and after nursing school. If you know you can afford a new car, get it. But there are a lot of reliable, decent looking "used" cars for way cheaper.

So you spent around $10,000 now. Well I really hope your cars last. And of course, new car can have problems, but hey a least I will have warranty. Having no warranty on $5000 does not actually mean its bad, its not profitable for the dealer especially for that amount. I'm curious though what kind of car did you get and when did you get it from?

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So you spent around $10,000 now. Well I really hope your cars last. And of course, new car can have problems, but hey a least I will have warranty. Having no warranty on $5000 does not actually mean its bad, its not profitable for the dealer especially for that amount. I'm curious though what kind of car did you get and when did you get it from?

Pretty much. And that's true. But I made sure the next car I purchased had a warranty on it. My first car was a VW Beetle. The one I have now is a '07 Chrysler Pt Cruiser. Bought it from some dealership in Marietta, Ga. Can't remember the name, but found them on cars.com.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Ortho, Subacute, Homecare, LTC.

Before my LPN program I had to buy a car, this was in 2010. I bought a 2002 Honda Civic with 117k miles on it. I still have it and it runs great at almost 160k now. I think I paid $4500 for it.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Well, I DEFINITELY wouldn't suggest you buy new unless it is a very affordable car, you have good credit, and could afford the monthly payments for NO MORE than 3 years. (If you have to finance a car for more than 3 years, you can't afford it.)

While good to ensure that you can pay off the car loan in three years, it may, depending on your circumstances, be wise to finance for a year longer and just pay more than the minimum payment. This would give someone leeway should something happen where income isn't available to make the full payment. I just bought a brand new car and financed it for 5 years- includes bumper to bumper warranty, and I fully intend to drive it 10 years minimum, like the last car I had. However, I fully intend to make double payments and pay it off in half the time. This also came with a much lower interest rate- the 3 year loan was 4.8% while the 5 year loan is only 2.3%. I would say get the dealer to investigate various options and lay them all out.

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While good to ensure that you can pay off the car loan in three years, it may, depending on your circumstances, be wise to finance for a year longer and just pay more than the minimum payment. This would give someone leeway should something happen where income isn't available to make the full payment. I just bought a brand new car and financed it for 5 years- includes bumper to bumper warranty, and I fully intend to drive it 10 years minimum, like the last car I had. However, I fully intend to make double payments and pay it off in half the time. This also came with a much lower interest rate- the 3 year loan was 4.8% while the 5 year loan is only 2.3%. I would say get the dealer to investigate various options and lay them all out.

Exactly, For this car, If i was to finance it would be for 2 years, and I pay a very big down payment. Though i would get a loan from the bank , as I'm establish credit from them

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Pretty much. And that's true. But I made sure the next car I purchased had a warranty on it. My first car was a VW Beetle. The one I have now is a '07 Chrysler Pt Cruiser. Bought it from some dealership in Marietta Ga. Can't remember the name, but found them on cars.com.[/quote']

Well lucky you The used car dealerships don't here even have warranty for $10,000 talk less of $5000. I live in Baltimore county which has high cost of living.Maryland in general is high cost of live which could be another reason for the overprice used cars

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Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.

Good reason to go luxury right off the bat.

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Specializes in Leadership, Psych, HomeCare, Amb. Care.

Try Hertz or one of the other rental places. They only keep their cars a few years, and with only about 30-50000 miles on them. Prices seem to start around $10,000, with decent financing, but you can probably do better at a credit union

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Yes, I am in that situation. I take the Public Transportation and I am now getting ready to purchase a car. I will not purchase a very new vehicle as that would be very costly so I have looked at the local car dealers and have had my eye on a few cars that are 2000 or above models and in great condition. The car I am going to purchase is a 2003 Ford Focus. It is a small car only 4 cylinder. It does have some miles, but overall the car is in great condition. I am hoping to purchase the vehicle before being accepted into nursing school. Having reliable transportation is crucial when going through nursing school and after nursing school.

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