Why do people get these huge loans? I’ve never had a car loan in my life and as I’ve moved up career-wise I’ve just never felt the need to put myself $20-50k in debt just for a fucking car.
this post was submitted on 20 Oct 2025
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- cheap housing is far from work
- they see local mass transit and cycling as impractical or socially unacceptable
- so they need a car to work
- they don't have the capital to pay cash for it
- the social status value of a new car is seen as desirable
- they have mobility needs that are incompatible with local transit and/or make typical cars more expensive.
- they have family/other needs that mean they need a safer, more reliable car.
- they will lose their job if they are ever late, so need to prioritize reliability.
- they work multiple jobs, and/or have other requirements (child care, elder care, etc) that are incompatible with transit in their area and/or cannot be out off while a car is getting repaired.
- they are unable to DIY repair older used cars, cannot accommodate potentially extreme repair bills, and can't assess if an older car is reliable to buy in the first place.
- the financing company will not give them a loan for something that doesn't have enough value to avoid depreciating past the point of recouping losses over the life of the lease.
- the insurance company will not insure older cars at a rate that is doable for the driver.
- they don't have the lump sum savings to buy a car outright, and loans are the only way to go to be able to continue to live and meet their life demands.
Used cars have been 10k+ since covid.
I don't think I have read anything less true. I own 5 cars, 4 of which I bought post covid. The most expensive one was 5100, and it's a bloody sports car.
Wise of you to not buy a car if you don't need it.
But I'm guessing you live somewhere where public transport is better than in most places in USA.
I agree you don't exactly NEED to spend $50k on a car, but if you need a car to get to work, I think $20k is probably the minimum for something that is also reliable, even if you buy a used car there are limits to how low you can go if you are depending on it.
I think that if you need to take a loan to buy a car, you should drive a modest car until you have money enough saved up.
I guess with some tenacity and know how you can find a cheaper reliable car, but not everybody has the necessary understanding of cars to buy old cars that are still reliable.
When's the last time you bought one, and how much did you spend? Sure you can buy a cheap old used car for not much, but usually that means it's also going to need parts replacements sooner.
The last couple of cars I bought,
A Toyota with 200k miles still runs well and everything works 7 years later with 50k more miles. Repairs include radiator, CV axle, and alternator. -$3300
A Nissan G35, a complete piece of junk, broke down in less than a year with 170k miles, and not worth repairing because it has multiple issues, wiring, bad sensors, early signs of failing transmission, multiple electronic things not working, -$1000
Foxbody mustang, just about to get, 90k miles needs shocks and other stuff, but is a cool car. 5.0 5speed, garage kept, $4000 but definitely not a car for people who don't want to work on it due to it's age. It has decently good bones built Inca time where American cars were much better made.
The Toyota is of course the best, ultra reliable, great power and fuel economy, but terribly difficult to find used for a good price. I had to look at 10 different ones before I found one that hadn't been wrecked and drove straight.
Nissan is a pretty terrible buy since 2000ish, older ones are sort of getting too old to be reliable.
Fords are better then most car brands in terms of reliability but still has many issues, and they haven't been well made since the early 2000s.
Honestly these days the only thing I would buy is a Toyota or a motorcycle because at least with a motorcycle you can fix it and keep it running yourself and it's easy to maintain and repair. Modern cars are just trash outside of Toyota. Some brands are a bit better then they used to be in the mid 2000s and later, but they spend all their money in survellence and tracking and annoyer devices like the seatbelt annoyer and stuff, instead of actually making a decent car. Extreamly strict emissions standards have also made it harder to make a good car, even though Toyota always find a way to pull through. New emissions standards seemed to have been made by people who just hate cars and want to kill cars entirely, but unfortunately they aren't smart enough to realize having reliable cars is a cornerstone of a healthy economy, and you can easily make a car that gets rid of 99%ish of emmisions reliably for many years, without making terrible cars these days, it's just they want 99.99% of emissions dealt with which makes it extremely difficult. This is one reason why modern engines burn oil and are unreliable. They lose power and burn more fuel then they need after a few thousand miles. They actually end up being much worse for the environment even if they technically pass emissions when leaving the factory. Just more bad policy from the totally out of touch and corrupt rich ruling class because it doesn't affect them. They can buy a new car every year under warranty because we do all the work and they get all the money.
20-50k worth?
You might be surprised. I just bought a 2001 Toyota Tundra, super reliable Toyota, right? These list between $7-25k in my area with around my milage (180k). I got a super good deal on it, and it was in good visual inspection. Well, now I can't find a timing belt sticker and the previous owner didn't have a book of receipts. Toyota dealer wants $3500 to do the timing belt, something that has to be done every 80-100k miles or you have a ticking time bomb. There are only two independent shops that I would trust in my town, but have a two month wait almost all the time. I can do the job myself and have the tools, but most people would not be able to. Luckily for me, it is to replace my 03 Dodge truck with 350k miles on it, as that is just getting too expensive to keep running. I have already got new shocks, brakes, ball joints, center bearing, and full tune up. I already have over $3k in parts, with "free" labor. For me, this is worth it, but to the average person, you could easily have shop bills over $20k on a "reliable" vehicle that they paid around $10k for. That is a tall order for the majority of lower income people out there.
Car prices increased terribly. Back a few years you could get a working used car for 400€, I'm now being told there's nothing to be found for less than 2,000€.
I'm not sure how a $2000 car could result in a $20,000 to $50,000 loan.
That's the cheapest available used car in a cheap European country. I'm sure that gets to much higher prices in the US.
The .main point is that prices for used cars more than quadrupled in just a few years.
That's very true, however the person you were replying to was talking about people making the choice to take out a 20,000 dollar loan on a car.
Even in Europe it is quite difficult to find a new car for less than 20,000€. If you need a car because you just found a job which is far and you need to ride to get there, taking a loan is your only option.
I guess you can buy a used car, but likely you can not apply to a loan for that and definitely the loan will not cover the necessary repairs to get it to a working state.
I guess you can buy a used car
...yeah? I'm not sure where the disconnect is here, you mentioned doing this above for 1/10th the price of a cheap new car. I'm also not sure why you assume a used vehicle will need immediate financial contribution to make it get you from point A to B. Used cars are usually sold running and driving.
In my experience, used cars always need immediate repairs to get them running. That is what I'd expect from a car I'd pay 2,000€ now. I'd assume an immediate payment of another 2,000€ in repairs to get it running. Probably you can run it immediately, but with several problems which will quickly deteriorate its life span if you don't do that.
It would be different if you were to buy a refurbished car, but those are more expensive.
The difference in price anyway accounts for the high difference in prices between my country and most parts of the US. I live in a cheap European country, the US is way more expensive. I do not know car prices in the US, but if price difference with other things I do know of stands, I would not be surprised for a 50%-100% increase in prices compared to the ones I know.
I bought a crown vic for 2200USD with 220000 miles on it 4 years ago (peak covid pricing) and have had to put like a hundred bucks into it, aside from normal maintenance. I bought a Subaru Loyale for 1800 bucks with 230000 miles 3 years ago (still peak covid pricing), and it's been flawless aside from the massive oil leak that I had to top off at about a quart ever 150 miles. I also pulled the engine and replaced the rear main seal, but you wouldn't have had to.
When you buy a used car, you should definitely save up over time in case something happens, but most vehicles I've bought haven't need anything for thousands of miles.
Oh, that is great pricing then compared to what I'm seeing now. However, in here 4 years ago car prices were much lower, even during COVID.
I'll explain a few things which may not be obvious. When I say lowest price available I mean you're buying a car which is over 20 years old directly from the owner. The most likely reason the owner is selling it is that it needs some repairs, and he decided he does not want to bother and is getting a new one. Repairs will likely be 1,000€ upfront, you may be lucky and spend a little less; but that is unlikely.
Someone may consider that it may be worth spending a bit more in order to get a more reliable car with a longer life.
Car prices went up very much: my mother bought a car for 500€ 8 years ago and is now considering selling it for 3,000€.
I don't know whether this is the same in the US, it may very well be that people just want new shiny cars. In here, I know many people who have been working for over 20 years who wish to change car but are now screwed because it is not feasible with their finances.