I need some car purchase advice

I dont know if this is the best place for advice about this but I decided to ask anyway. So long story short:

There's this beautiful car I've wanted for a couple of years, Alfa Romeo Giulietta, wich is being sold for roughly 14,000€ and there's this other one, less beautiful but ergonomic car for 7,500€.

So, there's the following, I can buy any of them and still have some good money to spare, no problem there, but I was also saving to buy a house someday down the line. So, my question is this: Should I bite the bullet and buy the car I really want for more money yet take longer to save for a house or buy the cheapest car now, wich will do the same job, take less time to save for the house but taking the risk to sell it later at a huge loss in order to buy the car I really want when my finances are more stable for that?

I would apreciate some advice on the matter, thank u in advance

for some context, here are the cars I'm talking about

Save towards the house; a much better investment. A house is usually an appreciative asset while the car will most likely depreciate in time.

Save it for a house. It's easy to spend, hard to save.

Save for the house, cars cost more than people realize. Parts should be cheaper and labor time is smaller (if you can't fix cars yourself).

I do think the house should come before the car. At least with a house it doesn't lose all its value the second you buy it. Also, to me, buying cars is way more tricky, every dealer I've been to are savages, and a lot are shady.

Cars can become real money pits, I spent so much time helping my Mom, and although she easily afforded the sweet Jeep she got, and we did everything perfect by the manly man's book, we kind of overlooked 5-10 years maintenance, and it was definitely a lot more than what I would have wanted to pay, and she can't use my Dad's mechanic cause its all computerized.

So if you bought a really nice car, and then get a house, and your car has issues, its gonna suck paying for maintenance, especially if the dealers have shitty mechanics, the two Jeep dealers in town, 1 is much nicer and feels less greedy. In hindsight, I bet my Mom wished she opted for a Nissan again, and real happy she didn't opt for something more nicer.

Get the car later. I repeat, do not prioritize the car. Cars are a liability from the moment you own them.

Get the car, no-one is obviously a gearhead here, and its an Alfa.

Which is cheaper to own?

Buy audi TTrs.

Be an adult and save for the house.

@Vatusus: Unless you have money to burn, cars should be a 100% pragmatic decision. Some things to consider:

• Don't go on wants and desires, but needs.
• How far is your commute to work? Do you enjoy long road trips on the weekend?
• Base your judgement not only on initial cost, estimated maintenance cost per year, mileage (gas is expensive and only going to get worse), and so on (cost of ownership).
• Is the car comfortable? Do you have family and friends to drive around? Is there storage space?
• Is the car safe? Would the insurance be more expensive on the Alfa than the other?

Speaking from personal experience, I tend to buy Hondas; they last for >200k miles if you check your fluids and take it in for a 100-dollar check up every 10-15k miles. I've owned mine since 2008 and just last month I had my first problem with it, which isn't even really a problem tbh I just needed to replace a ball joint on it.

Alfa Romeos of late have been seen as unreliable, needing a lot of maintenance. Cars are often built using shared parts, so you should look at Alfa Romeo as a brand, not just the specific car (though you should do that too).

What is the "other one"? It would be nice to know. At about half the cost, it should be considered.

Don't get the car, it's an Alfa.

I know the appeal to get a "sexy" car is hard to resist but the Alfa costs 2x as much as his other option, and he will get less than 100k miles out of the Alfa. WTF does being a "gearhead" have to do with it, btw? I doubt he is buying this car so he can work on it himself.

Anyway, reviews of the Giulietta have been so-so thus far. Basically, you're paying for the badge and styling of the vehicle; there are better options out there that won't cost you as much.

True but cars help you commute to your job which also helps you buy a home.

But I agree with your sentiment; best to save for a home [by not buying a sub-par car with above-average looks]

Thanks guys, I apreciate the help. After some consideration I decided to go for the cheapest option. It'll be a while but I'll save towards the house first and get the cheapest car. Maybe later on I can afford a good car easily after getting the house paid fully

@Vatusus: Buy a Toyota, drive it for 15 years (around the first time it will require anything but an oil change), and then sell it to buy a flying Toyota in the year 2035.

My old Prius was a tank. I abused the crap out of that car and I only ever had to replace a water pump after more than a decade. Here's to hoping that my new go-kart will prove equally reliable.

As for the op's question: House > car in terms of priority and investment.

-Byshop

I'm sure you already know the more responsible answer. What you are asking for here is permission to live life to it's fullest. If you want to have some fun right now and do the "adulting" later, pick the fun car. If you want the house the most, buy a reasonable car.

However, may I suggest an alternative? You've got easy access to one of the best sleepers on the road:

Fiat Coupe Turbo 20v

155 mph governed top speed, basically a "mini Ferrari". They are available for anywhere from 6,000-10,000 Euros these days, and from what I understand, stupid fun cars. One of my favourites, and a true Pininfarina design.

Always buy American. European cars are unreliable and Japanese cars are boring and rust quickly.

If American cars were actually reliable, they would be dominating the car market in patriotic USA.

If you look at the Consumer Reports list of the most reliable automakers, the first US automaker pops up at #18. Toyota/Lexus top that list.

-Byshop

Don't forget that most are the ugliest vehicles ever designed, and that they suck petrol/gas.

Definitely would go German for reliability after the Toyotas. VW Group also owns Seat and Skoda for cheaper, more affordable versions of their cars.

Except for maybe Porsche, I rarely hear about German cars having good reliability. Their replacement parts are also notoriously expensive so repair must be a pain unless if you have money to spend.

Do you have an S?

Yeah.

-Byshop

House first, always. Everything else are just toys that can wait.

They are super expensive here in Aus, what sort of price are they in the US?

For the S they start about 70k USD. Average config with options will run you somewhere between 90-110k.

-Byshop

You didn't mind spending that sort of coin on a car?

Yeah, it's a bit much but we do alright. There were some other factors, too. I got it back in 2016 and there was a 13.5k tax credit where I lived (today it would still be $8,750). These days I'd recommend a Model 3 if someone's interested.

-Byshop

Duuuuude model 3 is "only" 50-60k according to their website (which you have to order through anyway, right?). That's still a bit steep for me, but a lot more reasonable than I thought it'd be.

I'm tempted. Maybe in five years.

*Not a big fan of that big floating screen in the middle though, really wish it was incorporated into the dash somehow.

You can go as low as 42k before incentives (mid range, rear wheel). Federal rebate is another 3,750 off of that, plus any state incentives you might have. Still, not the cheapest car in the world. You'll save a lot in gas though. 260 miles of range costs me about seven fiddy in juice. Plus I'm getting solar on top of that.

The Model 3's screen is a bit odd, but I appreciate its uniqueness. Still, I like having my instrument display in addition to the big screen in the middle on mine. I have a lot of friends who have picked them up though and they love them.

If you have any questions about getting a Tesla or EV in general feel free to make a thread.

-Byshop

Car is so dated mean of transportation. It the Highest cause of death out there. Yes it something I do too but I always impress by people who live light and avoid car use.

I know someone who it use train system and a One Wheel. It hardly produce pollution. Car like I say is so dated. Congestion on traffic. You sit and wait day in day out. Pollute pollute pollute. Car only really necessary for road trip or off road travel.

Oh my goodness one day I stop to think about this and let say you work time is 9am to 5pm it bring to my attention just how much time you sit in a car standing still in traffic. It go deeper than that why car is dated I understand this.

Unfortunately that no option for me. My workplace is outside of town and the public transports that pass there are very sparce in between. I've been dependant on shotgun rides for far too long. Trust me, if I could ride a bycicle to my workplace and avoid buying a car I would do so

@Vatusus:

It a conundrum. It hard not to be a hypocrite these day. Many people talk in a office about politic but so many time a point trying to be made it mute because they don’t live in such ways.

Nothing wrong with car if you really do need. I just say I live in city area and one look at a road it just too much pollution every which way.

Also I think people mostly do not know how to drive even when they have license. Penalty need to be much higher for breaking traffic law.

I would agree if it was in the city, but in the suburbs and countryside, especially in North America, the infrastructure is still very much centered around cars; a train map system does not always solve the problem.

Yes, I am still on the waiting list for the 3.

You can't go wrong with a 3. If I were looking today, I'd probably buy a fully loaded 3 instead of a modestly loaded S, but as is I really like my car. It's bigger than the 3 which is always a plus with two kids, but I have some of the additional options like the rear facing child seats, the retracting sunroof, the high amp charger, the premium upgrades, all heated seats, etc.

-Byshop

i recommend mercedes S320L. sleek looks.

Do you really need to have a car? If yes, I would say buy the Fiat! The novelty of a new car fades away within a couple of weeks!

For the amount you save, you can buy loads of stuff for your house in the future!

When you buy your own property, there is a zillion things you need to buy! You will appreciate the extra you saved up!

U should buy a property in Singapore.

Cause car is life.

Exactly

buy better cars then :)

last car i bought was in july of last year and it still puts a smile on my face every morning when i get in it. as did the one before that. and the one before that etc