Master-G

:bowdown: :worship: :bowdown: :worship:

Impressive occupation. Need anyone with an IT/management/psychology background?

`ill*tl

Hmmm...I go to school and work two jobs (Parents pay me $100.00 for working for them every Sat. & have a second job at Panera Bread .. yummy food :p ). I dunno what I wanna do with my life...living at home with parents...moving out next year to Arizona...My parents bought me my '03 TL-S and I paid for my '99 TL-P.

P.S. I'm 19...am i a BUM?

Pack Fan

LOL, no just spoiled.

Sherlock

I can say I'm jealous to those young'uns who had parents buy them cars. My parents believed in the Earn-It philosophy so we didn't get anything handed to us. My mom gave me a loan for my first CRX, and setup payments with interest. My next cars I bought with loans all due to my ever increasing excellent credit. USAA sent me the check for the full amount for this TL a month before I even considered it. "hey, in case you're car shopping, here's 35k to help you". So even tho I have a nice credit debt, my ratings are still excellent due to making the payments and making big ole payments.

I forget who it was 2 pages ago, but how did you get a payment of $400 something at 42 months with only 1500 down. I put 3,000 down and my payments are $641. ??

Congrats to all the owners.

Lycos

Damn! I'm 39, about to turn 40. I purchased a brand new '03 TL Type S just over a year ago, and still love it. This was my first nice car. Previous car was a '91 Accord coupe, which I drove into the ground, but still got a 1,700 trade in value for it.

I own my own graphic design business, not IT! I make enough, but wouldn't want to disclose how much. I think I believe 10 percent of these posts! I do have a view home on the Puget Sound which I value much more than my car, so do the wife and kids

I'm tempted by the new 2004 TL, but like my 2003 fine. I just don't like to lose money.

JAKE02

Im not that person but at 400 a month........with little down sounds like a lease.....I hope yours isnt at 641 a month...?

Lore

Man... I would love to buy a home but at California prices, I'll have to wait a few more years.

meeh

Wow, this thread sorta makes me sad... but happy for you guys of course. I've been looking for an IT job for a while now. I was a Network Administrator. I've been in IT field since '94 and I'm turning 30 y/o. The new TL looks awesome, hopefully I'll have one sometime in the future.

I guess since there are plenty here that still have IT jobs, I guess there's still hope

SilverBulletCLS

Alot of you folks make way to much for the type of work you do. lol no wonder why we have alot of people that make much less than they should, I see who is taking it all.

NsX Pilot

You can tell alot about people from these threads.From the ones who start them to the ones that answer them.

ndabunka

I averaged 1.2 million over the past three years as a convergence specialist. I'm one of the guys who helps the companies like vonage come to market (www.vonage.com). While they are not a customer of mine, they are similar. Out of work right now. No debt other than my $500K home. Trade stocks and bonds until the next consulting gig comes along....

MN CLS

Haven't 100% decided on the TL just yet, but I am certainly leaning towards it...

39, Airline Pilot

TLOBLLC

38, former wireless and internet guru. Currently own a real estate development company, a corporate security company and developing a new patent for dirt. I'm doing ok.

I don't want daily driver I'd be afraid to park at the local mall or get into a hissyfit over a door ding. Plus I get more fun out of my boat than driving a car.

theslik1

This is one hell of a confessional! :p

Anyway, I'll throw my numbers into the mix:

40 year old reactor operator at a commercial nuke plant. 85-100K/yr depending on how much overtime I'm willing to work (not too much so I stay near the lower end).

Got the wife, two teenagers *ugh*, and no debt other than the house (SC isn't too bad real estate-wise).

I bought my last car ('98 Eclipse Spyder GS-T) with cash in 1998. Nothing fancy but it's my baby.

The TL is for the wife; it replaces a well-worn "mommy car" ('96 Mercury Villager) whose utility is no longer required. I put 50% cash down, financed the balance with a prime +0% home equity line, and will hopefully have it paid off in a year or two at the most.

I have a co-worker buddy on here who also bought a TL!

casooner90

I hope everyone here is honest as I get to spill my beans.

40 yo, 2 kids under 10, Petroleum Engineer. $108K. Paid for TL with cash - oil prices has been good lately. Don't flame me for the high gas prices.

npucf

My dad got me my 04TL, as well as my 03 Mazda6, He sold his business and got some good money, so he decided to send some on his kids. But the way it works in my family is that i will take care of them later on, once i get my career goin. Im 22 and goin for my MBA.

digital_b

lowly postal worker here working around 6 days a week on avg with low mortgage and little credit card debt, avg 70k a year. traded my ml 320 on the tl and they gave me 26k on it.

JetJock

I'm a corporate pilot, and saved my money for 3 years and paid cash for my car. Also, mortgage is paid, so it's a little easier to save money now without a mortgage.

Hoffer

I'm 30 years old and a programmer at one of the top 10 largest banks in the country. I just got a promotion, raise and bonus Monday. I'll be making over 70k in 2004. I'm single, with no kids and a low mortgage payment because I live in a little house.

I do have more debt than I'd like. I've thought about going cheap on this car and paying down debt faster. I did order a TL last week, but have 2 months to decide if that's what I really want. I wasted money on A LOT of stupid stuff in the past. I've gotten a lot better in the last year.

I think I'll buy the TL, continue my cutting back of buying dumb gadgets and sell a bunch of my dumb junk on eBay.

adiosfat

48, ex-Architect. Now marketing a cleansing/weightloss product. Had a Legend in 1987 (Kept it for 250,000 miles, great car!). Went looking for an RL, but when I saw the TL I drove out in one. Since most of my work is on the phone (Superior sound quality on a Nokia 3650), or meeting distributors (Never lost, rarely late to a meeting, thanks to NAVI), this is the IDEAL car to enjoy business in. Income? Enough to live well and help others and be looking forward to the next RL (Although, at this time, I cannot imagine any other car ever being a better value than the current TL).

Flanagan

^ Cleansing/weightloss product? Is this to imply that cleaning around the house is good exercise?

<---22, graduating in May with promise of employment. ~15k stocks, ~25k bonds, large college loan payment coming. 750/mo rent. I drive a 98 2.3CL which was purchased by my father in 1997 and bestowed unto me 2 years ago when he received an MDX as an anniversary surprise. Salary will determine my course of action regarding buying a new TL. I'm optimistic that my investments and income will allow me to afford it.

Sean

adiosfat

That's one way to look at it. I'd rather be cleansing/detailing my new TL. That should help one shed a pound or two...

kilrb

Man, this post has reached epic proportions. I guess I might as well whip mine out and put it on the measuring block.
I work for a family owned manufacturing plant, and have for the last 5 years. I am lucky enough to not have to afford the TL, since it will be my next company car. I have been driving a '99 Chrysler Concorde since I started, and it has well over 100k on it. We tend to drive cars for 5 years. The TL's actual cost of ownership after 5 years shouldn't be too much more than the Chrysler, because of the difference in depreciation. Frebay, I'd have to echo what some of the others have said... At 23, starting off with an Accord would probably be a wise decision to keep your finances balanced. They are awesome cars; I'd drive one in a heartbeat. I'm not for certain, but I'm guessing $60k in LA isn't quite the same as $60k in Kansas.

frozenpenguin

31, Internet Webmaster @ 60K, wife makes 32K and we have 1 year old son. No debt other than $1300 mortgage. Put 15K down on the TL, payments are $424 for 48 mo.

6speed

Musician/Teacher

UminChu

Air Traffic Controller

bgronek

Software Engineer. My wife and I are both studying for our Masters Degrees (while working) and I'm coming to the end of mine. Thought I'd get a little pre-grad gift to myself.

Mindcrime

I am a IT Manager and make $80K. I've been able to build up equity with each car I have purchased. I currently have a 2000 BMW 323I that is paid off and is worth $21,000. I will be selling soon for a TL or TSX and will put that cash down on the new car.
That would leave a 4 year monthly payment of under $300 for a TL. When the cars value gets near the $20,000 range I will sell the TL and buy a different car and maybe put down a $1,000 or so on top of that. The system works pretty well, I only paid $261 a month on my 323I for 4 years and that car ran me $35K.

jwaters943

Haven't purchased a TL yet, but......

I'm single, 26 this May and an Account Manager for my families' company (Industrial and Commercial liquid waste hauler). My net income is about $3700 a month. The only significant debt I have aside from my car payment is my mortgage which is about $1k per month.

I'm planning on putting down about $6-7k on the TL w/Nav and financing that over 5 years.

RunSilent

I'm a 44 yr old Program Manager. I have kept my cars for 8 - 10 years each, and save my pennies in between in order to pay cash for the next car.

teamtl

37 with a wife and two kids. Needed a front wheel drive sedan for the snow in Colorado and couldn't be happier with the TL. Paid cash for the car which is easier once you have done it 2 or 3 times. The first time takes a long while to save the money, but so long as you pick a car with good resale, i.e. Acura, and continue to make payments to your "car fund", you will never have to borrow for a car again.

I own a residential development company and make anywhere from less than nothing to more than enough, depending on the stage of the development we are working on.

RunSilent and several others in this thread have it right; save your cash prior to buying and then you will never have to worry if you can afford the car or not.

acuraddict

Don't worry about flames. We've seen many of your kind on this website. Yeah, you need two $35K cars.

Your dad the venture capitalist isn't doing you any favors.

Michaelvg1

Strategic Management - 2nd largest bank
$1,100 month rent
400 month commute to Manhattan
410 per month for TL
120 per month for insurance
The rest is for fun....

my2sense

I saw a postal worker and a CHP officer netting 70+k/year. how is that humanly possible...

go4heat

haha same deal here- my daddy bought it for me . im 16 and i live in miami. my dad owns a travel agency (largest in the south east) as well as a restaurant and other various ventures. i got into the stock market with 15k as a gift from my parents last year and got lucky...now my total stocks are valued around $32k.

as for the seemingly popular idea that our parents arent doing us any favors (which i see as somewhat jealous and arrogant but dont quote me on that), there are 2 things i want you to know. 1st off my parents are leaving me nothing until im well past 21, because they want me to aspire to something, and i want to aspire to something. we fly in private jets. we have nice cars. this is to get a taste, so that i know what its like to be at the top. when my adult life begins, and im sure its similar for the 17 year old guy here, the point is for me to have seen the grass on the other side and want it even more. just thought id give you guys an idea and maybe clear up some of the negative vibe directed towards teenagers on here.

teamtl

You are reading the board wrong go4heat, it is not jealousy and certainly not arrogance, but rather a concern for what large gifts can do to young people. Your parents know you best and what you are capable of, however the "success rate" of silver spoon children is low while the catistrophic failure rate is very high. Too many rich kids flush their lives down the toilet and are a drain on society. Not to say that will apply to you, but the statistics are not on your side.

Ask your parents what concerns them most about their wealth and they will probably tell you that it is what it will do to you. My son is 4 and I think about how to leave him our estate all the time. Use the gift of your favored birth correctly, hunger for your own success and don't be a spoiled drug out kid who thinks the world owes you, they don't.

Sorry about the sermon.

rets

Some wealthy areas pay good to officers, especially if they're in the high ranks or senioraity.

Postal? Maybe he's working overtimely?




TO teamtl, well said.


TO go4heat, be even better guy in your near future. Good luck.

AudiAR

40, six-figure income, IS/IT professor, no kids, no Acura TL ... I own a $48k Audi Allroad .. $658/mo. + $132/mo insurance. Mortgage, $2100/mo ($420K brick house). My wife wanted an Allroad, so we bought an Audi. But honestly I think the Acura TL is more comfortable for me financially and I like the speed (5.8 sec 0-60). I'm not sure about the ride though (saw the Car and Driver article), so I'm joining to forum to find out more. i like the handling of Audi with quattro and air suspension. However, I'm a gadget guy and I got attracted to the cool toys of the new 2004 TL - 3D solar climate control, XM satellite radio, blue tooth .... hmmm. I have onstar on my Allroad with hands free voice activated phone, but I'm curious how bluetooth works on the Acura TL. I'm sticking around to find out what you guys are talking about.

pgray007

ERP consulting, low six figures. Just finishing off a whooper of consumer debt this month (thank goodnees!) Currently driving a '91 maxima with 191K miles, and torn between the TL (nice) and the Accord 4cyl (economical).

jrock65

27, lawyer, $130k, net worth is negative due to massive student debt