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More Than 1 in 5 New Car Buyers in the U.S. Are Taking Out Loans of 84 Months or Longer
(www.roadandtrack.com)
this post was submitted on 06 Mar 2026
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HOLY SHIT.
84 months!
We are going to continue to drive our 16 year old car and 8 year old car around for a while longer, I hope. I cannot imagine paying for a car for 7 years, damn.
My previous car I did 60 months at 0%. They were offering, I knew I'd drive it that long, so why not.
And for a solid five months I had no car loan to pay!
HOLY SHIFT.
You don't have to get an 84 month loan. We just did a 48 month loan on my wife's new car. The trick is, buy within your means and don't roll negative equity into your new loan.
Yes, that's so true. I remember coming into a small amount of money and had been saving a little bit, and had just paid off a ridiculously long car loan on a used car - still one of the dumbest financial decisions I had made in my youth - 5.5 years on a used car, WTF was I even thinking, LOL.
Anyway, I was itching to buy some new car possibly, as I had never bought new. Someone handed me a book about finances and the author reiterated what my parents had always tried to drill into my head - about the only worthwhile debt is real estate.
For cars, he had this notion of "paying yourself" the car payment once you pay off a car. Do that for many years, and use that savings for your next car, preferably used, about 2 or 3 years old, after which the depreciation has had the steepest drop.
So I skipped buying something new or used. For so many reasons, I am glad my co-worker lent me that book at that particular time.
What book?
This one - Live Debt Free, by Ted Carroll
https://archive.org/details/livedebtfreemake00carr
Even reading this in the early 00s was kinda wild when it came to some of the talk of house prices. Most of the principles still hold, though, especially when it comes to deferring gratitude and so on.
The notion of moving somewhere low-cost is probably more relevant than ever, though, given the idea of remote work having been broken wide open because of Covid. Prior to that, most companies viewed it as something slightly scandalous to even ask about.
They're bundling and selling these loans off just like they did real estate up until 2008. When it all exploded in their faces.
I'm jacked, jacked to the tits.
Mine's 18 years old. Aside from some clear coat chips, she drives great. No need for a new car. I plan to drive this car til the wheels fall off.