Street Spirit

:think:

How much do you all think you've spent modifying your TL? From having read all of these threads, it seems like many of the young people here could've afforded their own homes by now based on how much money it sounds like they've put into their cars!

Pray you never get in an accident or have your car stolen - you'll never get anywhere close to the amount of money back from insurance that you've put into upgrading the car... that is - if insurance will even honour your claim due to all the mods without notifying them of the changes...

wonderboy

Hey man, you can live in a car, but you can't drive a house!

dla208

:lol1: That's right baby! :smokin:

dla208

Assman

TL260power

njtls

45k give or take is not anywhere close to enough to buy a home....plus...i'm not legally old enough to own a home

BlackShadow

It's a guy thing.

Street Spirit

hehe.. nope, not enough to *own* a home, but certainly more than enough for a downpayment or that's a hell of a lot of rent money! :P where the hell did you get $45k??? why not just buy a $60,000 car?! :toothless

don't flame me... i absolutely LOVE cars and love learning about them - but unless you have an awesome job at such a young age (some do!) or very crazy parents, that's a whole lot of money for a car that you likely won't drive til it dies.... i use 'em til they die, and even so, i can't imagine spending so much money on one.. that amount of money could buy me another one or two cars while still owning this TL!

arrgg - and don't tell me "it's a guy thing" --- i'm a gal and i'm into cars a whole lot more than all of my guy friends! i love 'em!

Got_3.2?

iTrader: (2)

u can lose money on a car but u can always gain more on a house. :thefinger

njtls

[QUOTE=Street Spirit]hehe.. nope, not enough to *own* a home, but certainly more than enough for a downpayment or that's a hell of a lot of rent money! :P where the hell did you get $45k??? why not just buy a $60,000 car?! :toothless

don't flame me... i absolutely LOVE cars and love learning about them - but unless you have an awesome job at such a young age (some do!) or very crazy parents, that's a whole lot of money for a car that you likely won't drive til it dies.... i use 'em til they die, and even so, i can't imagine spending so much money on one.. that amount of money could buy me another one or two cars while still owning this TL!
QUOTE]

why not buy a 60k car?..well thats just to much ...i guess that 45k would have made a nice investment..but then what would i drive?...and yes i probalby wont drive my TL until it dies...it's probably gonna be parked for most of my 4 yrs im in college since i plan on purchaseing a cheaper car to take to school when the time comes...but still..im young...its fun to have a nice car and i have no need for investments ...intresting topic your brougth up...makes me think twice aobut what car i should buy after college...i wan planning on that 60k car then...

seattle dale

got the house, got the car, now its time to mod. you only live once so i say go for it. it is a guy thing when it comes to having the xtra ponies.

Vicman17

Each have their own priorities in life. Some , their cars, some their women (or men)and some, their homes. I don't think you are ever "old" enough" to own a home. IMO, the younger you are owning your own home the sooner you get it paid off and the younger you can be to enjoy the other niceties in life. Maturity and money sense comes with age (for some). Many (like myself) will have their desires for speed and gadgetry come to pass (or get toned down). It takes certain experiences in life to make you realize such things. But reality in what Street Spirit is saying is that owning real property that appreciates over time is much better than a big ticket purchase like a $40,000 car that constantly depreciates. Not unless you own an exotic (eg. Ferrari) , that could appreciate over time, an automobile is the worst investment you can put your money into. And all the mods, however you conceive them to be benificial to the performance of the car, does not add value.

IMO the TL-S's performance is enough for me. But for those extra ponies, I'd rather save up for that 911 Carrera 4S, one that can really perform and without the need for so much mods.

yoda

HAHAHA! YOu can own a SL55 and that probably might be enough for a DOWNPAYMENT where I live. I say MIGHT be enough. I live in the SF Bay Area. $600k gets you a 900 square foot fixer upper!

The Acclude

For what I pay in rent & insurance, I could move out by now :-/

Black-n-Tan

car= biggest depreciating asset
home= biggest appreciating asset
multi-family home= profit potential

i already bought the car and its mostly paid off and i'll have enough for my three-family before i graduate college. so, the best of both worlds, but you def have a valid point

Street Spirit

Well, my main point wasn't so much about 'priorities' - because it's obvious - a lot of people's priority seems to fall to the car...that is why they love spending time fixing it up, modifying it, and making it look beau-ti-ful! (I love a nice clean car too, believe me!) What I was really getting at, which is none of my business and why I didn't come right out and ask, was how a lot of the people here who are students, who are 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 years old, etc.,or who do not have established careers --> how can really they afford to make all these expensive mods to their cars!! ? Thousands of dollars!.... Yet at the same time, many would say that they couldn't afford to buy an expensive car or another big purchase ---- but add up all the money you've spent on the TL and there's your 'expensive' car or downpayment on a home, etc!!

I definitely understand the pleasure that comes with driving a nice car that you are proud of and happy with, but I'm just shocked at how much people are spending on their cars *when it is likely that they either don't have jobs yet or have jobs that probably do not make them enough money to do all these things*... (For those of you who can obviously more than afford it - I can see where the money came from....)

I am looking forward to making some slight upgrades to my TL, but I have to keep in mind that I can only afford to spend so much at a time or overall.... Car maintenance and upgrades cost a lot of money...to me, at least!!

indoMFP

I somewhat agree with our neighbor to the north, some people here are a little young and therefore the perception is that they should not be able to afford such a nice car. This is not the case since we do not understand the individual circumstances that eachother has. There are guys on here that still live at home with their folks and that has afforded them the money that would otherwise be spent on cheap booze and women, on a car. Then there are some of us that have worked really hard to get what we got.

Yes, I to find it somewhat hard to believe that some of the kids on this site paid for their cars by themselves, but let us not jump to the conclusion that these are all brand new cars. Most of the younger guys here have purchased their vehicles used, since they can't afford to buy the new models (that right there shows some responsibility and not outright misuse of money and priorities). When they make a little cash they mod and the such. I am not hatin' I'm congratulatin'...... I am glad these guys are here driving what they do and representing....

As to the topic of a house, it is not the question of age, it is a question of responsibility. Routine maintenance of a car is much easier than the upkeep of a house, and many of us home owners should know that. Not to discredit those mechanics (cause I used to be one), but really for a car all you really need to do is change the oil and do the routine maintencance (usually done in a couple of hours tops).... but for a house there is yard work, insurance cost, costs associated with throwing the once a month house party (had to throw that in their, I'm not that old), and this stuff has to be done almost weekly if not daily.... In the long run you could have saved the money for a house, but at the particular time could you have afforded it? NO.... it is difficult for kids that are in school to maintain a home....

I say let them be, guys... keep doing what ya'll are doing, be young and have fun... cause I not that much older than ya'll, but I even wish that I was afforded the same luxury some of ya'll have.... ultimately, you bought the car and your responsible for it.... (yeah, I wrote like a freakin' novel.)

I think that the canadian is just a little upset that the U.S. just doesn't make them the 51st state.... screw Iraq, i say the U.S should just invade Canada.......

goldendragon576

good point but for the young ones, think of it this way...they still live at home. If they are 17 and drop the $$ now, they have 4+ years to save up for a house.
I did the car, now I'm saving for the house. I think it all depends on how old you are. If your 40 and still don't own a home but a modded TL, then that's a different story, but for the younger crowd...mod away!

MikeTL-S

True- but chances are the reason the 40 year old doesn't have a house was because he was modding at ean earlier age. I say get a house, then you have the rest of your life to mod! (hindsight is 20/20)

CBS

Ditto! There's nothing like owning a brand new house!! The biggest asset that will pay off in long run! Had my house built 4 years ago when i was 28. Take that anyday over any car!!!

Black-n-Tan

as for modding cars, consider this; if you were to put $5k into a $30k car (tl) you could make it perform and/or look like a $40k+ car. as long as you can truly afford your mods (not maxing out credit cards), modding a less expensive car could be seen as economically efficient. it allows you to pick the more expensive features without paying for those that you don't want (i.e quiet luxury sound, "premium" crappy stereos, etc.)

Vicman17

As a Yank living in Canada, I already provided the advanced recon for you. They don't have much of an armed force, and most of their military are deployed somewhere overseas. Their forces use ammo that has yet to arrive by FedEx. And their camo uniforms are supplied by the local Army/Navy surplus store. Their cops are outgunned by the mafia and yet to come up with air support. The USMC can send in just one assault ship and that should be enough. The Coast guard can cover the great lakes.

But wait. 95% of their TV channels are already US networks and the magazine shelves are filled with US magazines and books. US stores in malls and US companies coming up left and right.

Forget it, they've already been invaded, they just don't know it.

Vicman17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black-n-Tan

as for modding cars, consider this; if you were to put $5k into a $30k car (tl) you could make it perform and/or look like a $40k+ car. as long as you can truly afford your mods (not maxing out credit cards), modding a less expensive car could be seen as economically efficient. it allows you to pick the more expensive features without paying for those that you don't want (i.e quiet luxury sound, "premium" crappy stereos, etc.)

Like a whole lot of people I know. They bought their Neons, Sunfires or Z24s for zero percent for 10 years or whatever the deal is on the local dealership. Then they start replacing this and replacing that that they should actually move in to the auto parts store 'coz that's where they spend most of the day. They have extra copies of fast and the furious DVDs in case the first ones get worn out. Extra big rims and large fart box mufflers and super dee dooper wings that generate tremendous amounts of lift. Not to mention the stereo systems that require the normal working man to get a second mortgage. With 4 or 5 cards maxed out to the hilt, they spend more on the answering service so they don't have to hear from the credit card collectors. Yep, it does end up to be a $30,000 pontiac or chevy. And it still is.

I guess as ridiculous as it may be, it's a culture.

For me, if I wanted a $40k car, I'd save up for it and then I'd drive me an unmodified, unadulterated $40,000 car that is for real. Until then, I'm happy with my Type-S. And for now that is .... my personality.

What's next, E55, maybe a 545i, now that brings me past $40k... Gotta work some more!

njtls

im 17 and i think its the best time to do mods...im not sure how much time i'll have to enjoy my car when im older....

indoMFP

Duly noted, we will start the assualt at dawn.....

Vicman17

Now is that Houston time or Eastern time?

And I also noted, the locals really do get intimidated with Texans wearing large ten gallon hats...

That and bolo ties.

So make sure the posse is well equipped.........

Street Spirit

It's not that I don't think anyone older than 25 shouldn't be enjoying and/or modifying their cars ---- I love cars and I hope I can always appreciate them! My curiousity (although in reality, actually non of my business) is more along the lines of wondering how a lot of people here are around this age...probably a student without/working 1 or 2 part-time jobs ---- how have you been able to afford all of the super-expensive mods to your car??! I got my '99 used and I know a lot of other members have gone the same route... However, even used, it's still a large amount of money to be spending... So maybe people were fortunate enough to get some help from others with regards to the big purchase --- but is it that the young people go up to their parents and ask: "Mom/Dad, I really appreciate the TL I have...it's a blast to drive and fun to work on.....Would you mind forking over $xxxx amount of money for a new set of rims and tires??!.... And in three or four months, could I have a couple thousand more because I would really love a TV in the headrest and some new springs!! ?" Do some parents really go for that?? ...Just curious.....

Keep in mind that is an obvious exageration and I know that each person's situation is unique and no one's business... but that is the only way I can imagine people are able to do so many expensive mods to their cars when they are young and in school or working to pay for school...

Black-n-Tan

i can only speak for myself in that i am fortunate enough to have grandparents who worked hard enough and left enough money to send my sister and i to school and parents who happily allow us to live in their home duriong the summers. while it is a big chunk of change (the car), i was able to pretty much use all of my financial resources for it. as i stated in the other thread about young tl'ers, i worked very hard to afford this car, i paid for every penny myself as well as insurance, but i am totally appreciative that i was in a situation that allowed me to use my money to buy a vehicle. while i have friends that work three jobs just to pay for school. my plan is to not go too crazy with mods and save up for a three-decker.

03TLs on 19's

Im 18 with a brand new TlS and my parents did everything for me to get this car for me, i got it 2 months ago brand new!! so imagine finding an ABP type S new still, well they did and they tried surpriseing me!! and i feel bad about this but my response was spending 30,000 for this car u should have gotten me a Lightning! and after a while i had to realize how much more practical a Tls is for an 18 year old senior and about to go to college! i have to admit though it was a tough change cause i had a brand new Dodge Ram on 20's with a hemi and body kit! i still would argue the ram handled better, but it stopped at 105 and i would just sit there and cruise at that speed, and the tl i've gotten to 140 and had to let off!! (if u haven't noticed im addicted to speed) but now after seeing a few lightning's blow im glade i have my tl even though the tranny is going with only 2300 miles and it started at under 1000

njtls

i hate to say it..but my parents bought me my 03 TLS new when i was 16....they als payed for my mods...i plan on paying them back for all the mods...not the car tho...what i ussually do is show them my report card from school...my car and its mods are my incentive to learn....so if they see i have good grades...i cant ask for pretty much anything (reasonable)....funny you mentioned headrest tvs...cause i just got my report card and im getting 2 headrests tv's to supplement my in-dash as well as some sway bars, intake, and speakers....those last 3 things i have been putting off for awhile...mostly because their not showy mods like all my other mods....

Vicman17

I always thought headrest TVs were for folks with families to keep the kids from tearing each other up in the back seat. But, Oh well... Do you charge for admission?

I remember when I was 19, I was at NOQC getting hazed....

For those younger ones who find the car nice and appealing because it's fast, make sure you get a life insurance policy (or ask them to get you one) and name your folks as beneficiaries, I'm sure they'll appreciate the return in investment.

Hopefully, if you live thru it, you'll become a better driver someday and realize that you can actually kill somebody going real fast and lose control of the car your parents bought for you.

And to answer Street Spirit's curiosity, yes there are parents out there who get their kids expensive cars and pay for the mods too. IMO I guess it's just principle. If I had the extra disposable income, I'll also do my best to keep my kids away from negative influences of peers and away from drugs and alcohol and away from malls. But do they?

As a parent myself, I have a responsibilty to raise children that will not be a burden to society and become great contributors. I also understand that people go thru stages in life and could learn from experiences (provided they live thru it).

My problem is the speed. I also had this lust for the keeping the speedo way past the 12 o'clock when I was that young. But lucky for me, I lived past it and see how actually stupid it was to get a slight moment of exhilaration but not realizing the consequences. How does a parent feel if the toy he bought his kid gets him to 140+ mph? With such power comes great responsibility. My regret is that at an early age, some could get addicted to the speed and the responsibility part diminishes. It is called the recklessness of youth, no matter where it may be associated. And my other problem is the other people getting hit on the other end when the kid at 140+ mph loses control.

This my dear readers is an opinion and not made to single out any one particular person or age group, so don't read past the post.......

REV-01

i spent too much on my tl that i could get a second tl just from cost of mods alone. i want to get a house if i can but is too costly right now especially in hawaii, may be 2 years later i should save up enough for a down payment, i promise myself this is the last car that i will mod for shows.

indoMFP

:bowdown: to a nia that is greater than you..... Finally someone has a little sense of responsibility.... You drive it, your responsible for it.... I was afraid that this thread was getting a little to political.... lets leave the politics in Washington..... If any of you underage kids hit my ass, you will be getting the ass whoopin' of your life.... I live by the motto, "You hit me, I hit you".....