Hi All,

I have a question for you folks. My name is Tim and I live in NYC but will be relocating to Charlotte NC in June. I have recently fell in LOVE with C6 vettes probably due to the fact they have the same body styling as my 1990 VW Corrado, which is my first love. I still have the car, but it's a project car that stays in the garage.

I'd love to buy a c6 vette base model as a daily driver (6MT), but I have never financed a car before. I am 24 years old, will be 25 in july, and have never had to deal with financing before. My question is, would I be able to finance a vette given their age? I'd obviously like my budget be around 25-30k as I can put approx 8-10k as a down payment on a car, but I'm not sure where I can get a loan for an "older" vehicle. Please correct me if I am wrong but you can't take a loan out for a car that is older than 5 years old? Where are the best places to take out a car loan? I currently use Bank of America and per credit karma, which isn't 100% accurate, but have a 720 credit score.

I'd like to know the steps I need to take in order to obtain financing for my (hopefully) soon to be c6 vette. I have time before I move, so puchasing the right one is imperative.

Thanks,
Tim

 

With 8-10K down and a 720 credit score I don't see you having a problem with financing

 

You sure can!

I would personally go to a local credit union to do the financing. I sold my saleen to a gentlemen who financed it (2005) through a local credit union at under 4% for 5 years with $0 down!

 

The only thing I can see running into an issue is I have 100k in student debt and absolutely no assets. I am not sure of where I need to begin to find financing for the car.

 

I don't think you will have any issues with financing, but I would suggest you contact your auto insurance provider before buying the car just so there's no surprises.

 

I've actually narrowed down my car selection to a 03-04 Terminator or a c6 corvette, but obviously leaning a bit more towards the c6

Do you need to be a long time member of a credit union in order to get a loan through one? Would not using BoA or Wells Fargo be a viable option? I understand CU's have the lowest rates, but IIRC you have to be a member.

 

I currently don't have an auto insurance provider. My Corrado has been stored in a garage for 5 years unregistered/insured as I have been working on it, and I sold my Audi A4 in order to pay for the deposits and such for my apartment in the city.

What can I expect to pay in insurance monthly? I've also never shopped around for auto insurance as I was on my parent's plan and just paid them monthly for coverage. I understand that when you apply for auto insurance they pull your credit, so it would be important to me to only apply one time to the lowest costing place in order to not wreck my credit for too many inquiries.

 

well, yeah, you have to be a member, but that takes all of 5 minutes and is free, typically.

I'd shop for the best rates. I don't care who I give money to, just how much of it I have to give them.

as a rough point of reference, count on spending about 200$/mo for every 10k financed on a 5 year loan, if you get a halfway decent APR. as the above mentioned, make sure you grab a VIN # from a vette and call your insurance company and ask for an estimate. it may be expensive to insure at your age, but it's something you should know before you buy the car.

 

Is it best to get pre-approved for a loan? I don't know how much I'll get approved for, so knowing what I can afford with the loan will be necessary for my decision. Are you able to get pre-approved for a used car loan or you HAVE to know the exact car and VIN you want to buy?

 

it can be any random example that would be close to what you'd buy, it wouldn't fluctuate much from that.

is it best to get pre-approved? yes. this way there is no surprises, nor heart break, if you go in and find out you cannot get the loan you want after you've already fallen for a car. this way you also know what is fair in advance. often times, dealerships can find you better rates, though.

you can get pre-approved for a certain dollar amount, and typically they have other stipulations like mileage, how old the car can be, etc.

 

So I think my best course of action would be to find a Chevy dealer with a c6 I am interested in buying, and getting preapproved for a loan through Chevy? If I get approved, they can find a c6 within their system to have brought to the dealership or best to find a C6 VIN and go to a CU and get pre-approved for a loan, then find a car I want.

 

personally.. in your shoes, I would:

-find a ~30k value used c6 on autotrader or craigslist. write down VIN #, call/email insurance company, ask for insurance quote.
-visit a local credit union and apply for a used car loan.

based on the results of the above, if you're still moving forward..

-go test drive the cars you are interested in
-when you find the right car, allow the dealership to rate-shop your loan for a better APR. if they succeed, take it, if they don't, use your pre-approved loan.
-you can get a better deal by buying private party, and in that scenario, you would just use the loan you were already pre-approved for.

 

Ah perfect! Much more sense.

Thank you for your help! Hopefully soon I'll have myself my own c6 with a huge lopey cam and corsa exhaust Until then, I'll just keep watching youtube and Instagram videos haha

 

if you go the corsa route I highly suggest the extremes, the sports are too tame!

borla atak's sound great too. hard to find a good video of them. I've been meaning to go out with the go pro and make a good video of it.

 

Credit union has best rates and terms.

 

I just went through this with my 19 year old nephew who has never purchased/financed a car.

A reputable car dealer will have many banks at their fingertips giving them the ability to find a finance package that works for you. As others have stated, a credit union is also an excellent place to finance your car but it isn't as convenient as wrapping it up at the dealer. You could buy/finance the car at a dealer, make a payment, and then refinance it at a credit union when you have some time.

Insurance was also mentioned and is important. If you are financing the car you will be required to have full coverage - Collision and Comprehensive - in additional to general liability.

Finally, tax and registration should be another question you find out about in the state you will be registering in. In Missouri, for example, you don't pay your sales tax on a vehicle when you purchase. You pay it when you register. So on a $25K car you would need to bring a check for $1500+ with you to the DMV when registering. Some states also charge more when you bring a vehicle into their state. Check with NC prior to buying as it may be better for you to wait until you get there.

Finally, a C6 will probably be ok for a daily driver in Charlotte unless it's snowing. If there is a hint of snow or ice, forget it. At that point you will want a beater to drive.

Good luck!

 

An older car they will normally finance for no more than 2 years. But given your age, make sure to get a good insurance quote so you're now shocked later.

 

As long as credit checks out, you should have no problems. When I bought my 05 a year ago they offered financing up to 84 months with 0 down for around 3.5%. Of course I didn't do the 84/0 but they will do it. I agree with others: get a quote for auto insurance before you buy. Mine was cheap but I am 50 with no tickets or accidents. Some pay as much a month for insurance as they do the car.

 

All of these guys are correct. What is your location?

If you are in FL, PM me there is one I can recommend. You just have to put $1 to open a new account and there ya go, your'e a member

Like someone said earlier, find a vin number of a vette and talk to the credit union to see if they will finance you on it. Then you can always shop around for the right one.

Terminator vs Vette

I had mustangs for a while, 1996,2000,2000,2005. The SN95 body style is nice and a terminator is a great car but once you drive a vette it is completely different. Every time I get into the vette it feels like I'm entering a Ferrari. It is low, sleek, 30MPG, and cheaper insurance. Now that I own a Vette someone would have to give me a pretty crazy deal for me to go back to a mustang. All you have to do is go for a ride in one, you will see what I'm talking about. Try to snag a 2008+ so it has the LS3 motor.

 

I agree a good credit union is the way to go. I bought my 08 2 years ago and got 72 months at 1.9% with 0 down. My 2011 BMW is also 0 down for 72 months at 1.9% though the same credit union. Thats almost free money. The rates are out there, you just have to shop around and yes joining is very cheap and only takes a few minutes.