Car shopping.

[pawnraider]

Not sure if this is the right place to put this.

My mechanic said that I should start thinking about getting a new vehicle as the repairs to my '97 Ford Ranger are going to cost more than it's worth. I'm at work so I can't start looking at that moment so I call my dad and ask him if he knows anyone selling and he said he would look. He's retired so he has plenty of time to look and besides, he use to work on cars. To make a long story short he called me and said to meet him at a dealership after work. I did and what I thought would be a used vehicle-since that is all I've had to this point and that's what I thought I would be looking at-I wound up test driving a 2014 Jeep Patriot. With a trade in it's going to cost $16,000 which I have. But my dad said that he would pay $10,000 of it which shocked me. So after I finished driving it I told the person that a SUV is a bit big for me and that I would think about it. Problem is I'm single, I live in an apartment which means that it would be parked outside all the time. I've never had a new vehicle before. All I've ever had are used vehicles.
Some personal info may be helpful. I'm 53 and having dad make a deal like this for me looks kind of funny.

What I'm asking is what would you do? And was I just making excuses?

 

[ayaanu86]

Why are you scared from driving a new vehicle, At some point you had to disacrd your old vehicle, SO be it now. Also It is funny to take help from dad

 

[parsley]

That was so nice of him to offer. It sounds like he really wants to do something concrete for you.
But also if you are that age, then he is at an age where he wants to make sure you can drive him to doctor appointments if needed, have space to carry his larger shopping needs, or eventually move him into assisted living when the time comes... with space for furniture. The Ranger might have been hard for him to climb into. Jeeps are high too, but maybe it had a running board or brackets to hold onto.

Your practices of buying used vehicles worked well for many years, so don't totally give up that idea. Ask your dad if there were features about the Jeep that he would like you to have, for his sake. If you know anyone who has access to auctions where town, school, or county vehicles are sold, see if they can stand in to bid for you. Some of those vehicles were on good maintenance schedules and have low wear.

 

[jayem]

If your dad is very wealthy, he might have been doing some estate planning. Gifts to one's heirs while one is alive reduce the value of the estate, meaning less potential estate tax the heirs might owe. (Only very large estates are subject to federal estate tax these days--like over $5M.) Whatever the reason, it's a wonderful gesture, and you shouldn't feel uncomfortable accepting it.

The big advantage of a new car is the full warranty coverage--usually 3 years bumper-to-bumper. The disadvantages are your collision and comprehensive insurance will be higher than on a used car. And if you pay personal property tax based on value, that will also be higher.