How did you build your car?

[BLKBULLITT]

Ok this has been driving me off the fucking wall...

Either some people have an insane paying job that can afford to have a wicked savings account WITH a crap load of disposable income after normal monthly expenses such as phone, insurance, house bills/mortgage (or car payment)

OR half the people on this forum along with other people I know are in debt to their foreheads.

For instance dropping money on a built shortblock... Can you justify just dropping 5-6k on one? Do you pull it out of savings or does it go on your credit card?

Suspension mods, built transmission, dropping coin on a blower set up etc...

Right now I'm just thinking to myself if I blow my motor I'm shit out of luck. I don't have money to buy a built block. Sure I could build it on credit but that's not my money...

Just something that's on my mind tonight. Can you personally admit if your cars mods are fully paid for or are you a credit card modder? (Maybe that's why it's so easy for some people to sell their cars as nothing's really been paid for)

 

[BLKBULLITT]

Reason I ask this is a guy I know is doing an absolutely nutty build on his cobra. I mean top of the line parts, new motor, tranny, suspension, interior... Everything.

He took out a giant loan on the car to get things done on it.


I personally could never do that you never truly own the car and appreciate the stuff you've put in to it as it was never really your money to begin with

 

[W3bb3r04]

Still living at home, almost no bills, and a decent paying job. I decided to go ahead and build the motor before I have a house payment next year. I still dont blow my whole paycheck on things though. Hope that helps.

 

[07TGGT]

With my own money. I won't put myself into to build my car.

 

[EGNARO]

i havent built the motor yet, because i dont have the cash, the way im going about my build is everything else first, then motor work so that when the time comes, its all set to go.

still live at home, in college. put away about 150 a month to spend on the car.

 

[W3bb3r04]

Last year my car was down from October to February just for the turbo build. It takes me awhile to save up for things, but like Ryan Im not going to put myself into debt to build it.

 

[skwerl]

I'm a credit card modder but I also have quite a bit of disposable income. I'm single with no kids and I don't drink or do drugs. I also have relatively low interest rates (8%-10.9%) on my cards and quite a bit of credit. Right now with my engine swap going on I'm up to about $4K on my 'Mustang card' but that will be knocked out in 6 months or so. The balance drops a lot quicker when I stop spending.

 

[weather man]

When I was a young buck, money leaked out of my wallet faster than you could see.

Now that I am older, it leaks out just as fast, but I watch it like a hawk!

 

[RED09GT]

I've still got another year of payments on mine but I only do work with cash on hand-which is why my car is still rocking a stock shortblock.

Here are the main points that can explain why some can go hard and others who still make good money can't find the budget:

-Housing in many parts of the US isn't near as expensive as it is in Western Canada

-Many people still live with their parents

-Some have big incomes or senior level positions with a paid off mortgage, etc..

But the majority are up to their eyeballs in debt-no matter what they claim on an internet forum.

 

[BLKBULLITT]

Still living at home, almost no bills, and a decent paying job. I decided to go ahead and build the motor before I have a house payment next year. I still dont blow my whole paycheck on things though. Hope that helps.

That's pretty much where I'm at. I never spent money unless I could.

I do live at home but I pay for bills here sometimes when pops can't and work slows down. European thing I wouldn't move unless me and the gf were getting a house.


Even then the money I'm putting away is house fund. I've got my loan on my car to pay, insurance on both my cars, and on top of that other bills. I just don't get how some people can find a way to drop 5k on a blower set up haha that's a big part of a down payment for a place.

Don't get me wrong I'm very good with my money and budget properly. But with bills, saved money, and doing things with the girl (who mind you isn't clingy and doesn't need to go out) there's not much left after all the bills.

And mind you not we get pretty good pay here... Alberta has a lot of oil which creates a lot of jobs (don't invade us)

 

[BLKBULLITT]

I'm a credit card modder but I also have quite a bit of disposable income. I'm single with no kids and I don't drink or do drugs. I also have relatively low interest rates (8%-10.9%) on my cards and quite a bit of credit. Right now with my engine swap going on I'm up to about $4K on my 'Mustang card' but that will be knocked out in 6 months or so. The balance drops a lot quicker when I stop spending.

That I can respect.

There's a guy I know who him and his fiancé took out a second mortgage for their cars and vacations. Boggles my mind personally. Nothing he has he's owned or worked for.

I don't know to me having stuff put on a car and knowing you paid for it makes it feel that much better than knowing in your head (god damnit I borrowed all this money)

 

[RED09GT]

There's a guy I know who him and his fiancé took out a second mortgage for their cars and vacations. Boggles my mind personally. Nothing he has he's owned or worked for.

He'll end up in his 30's, have kids and will be spending 60% of his income paying for his past.

 

[W3bb3r04]

He'll end up in his 30's, have kids and will be spending 60% of his income paying for his past.

Or file for bankruptcy and get out of all of it....

 

[danzcool]

I spent every spare penny on the car payment until it was paid off, then I used what would have gone towards the car payment on mods. That works for the smaller mods, then you have to save up for the bigger mods. Then the really big things go on a zero interest credit card offer and I eat ramen noodles for 12 months while the credit card gets paid off. Things like suspending directtv for 6 months helps as well as calling them up for offers (tv, phone, internet, etc.).
It's all about priorities and what makes you happy.

 

[W3bb3r04]

That's pretty much where I'm at. I never spent money unless I could.

I do live at home but I pay for bills here sometimes when pops can't and work slows down. European thing I wouldn't move unless me and the gf were getting a house.


Even then the money I'm putting away is house fund. I've got my loan on my car to pay, insurance on both my cars, and on top of that other bills. I just don't get how some people can find a way to drop 5k on a blower set up haha that's a big part of a down payment for a place.

Don't get me wrong I'm very good with my money and budget properly. But with bills, saved money, and doing things with the girl (who mind you isn't clingy and doesn't need to go out) there's not much left after all the bills.

And mind you not we get pretty good pay here... Alberta has a lot of oil which creates a lot of jobs (don't invade us)

It sounds like you are on the right track! The only way I would borrow against my car is if something went terribly wrong with it like blowing the motor before I planned or something else catastrophic. However, I wouldnt willingly build the car and go up to my eye balls in debt. If I wanted a fast car, I could sell mine and build a fox body but thats not why I do it.

 

[BLKBULLITT]

I could easily build the hell out of my car and drop stupid money into it making it my dream like fast car but then again I'd be swimming in an ocean of debt and living at home for damn near 30 years old which I don't want lol

I've got a girl I want to start a life with eventually and she gives me my freedom and says to have fun and do what I want on my car but expects me to be smart while saving money as well.

Shit man saving for a strut bar and panhard bar and brace itself isn't cheap lol I could pull out my credit card but Christmas is coming up so I've gotta pull money out for that as well

 

[BLKBULLITT]

It's all about priorities and what makes you happy.

I think some people take the YOLO thing too seriously. You do only live once but I'd rather not live in an ocean of debt not being able to go on a damn vacation with my woman because of a damn car and the debt i put myself in for it lol

 

[skwerl]

I think some people take the YOLO thing too seriously. You do only live once but I'd rather not live in an ocean of debt not being able to go on a damn vacation with my woman because of a damn car and the debt i put myself in for it lol

I'm not swimming in an ocean of debt but I'm definitely splashing around in the wading pool.

 

[Five Oh Brian]

I borrowed money to buy my Mustang (with a super low interest rate), but I pay cash for mods (my wife makes sure of that). We've lowered our expenses a lot, while our income has grown a lot, over the last couple of years, so we have more disposable income now. Our kids are grown up and done with schooling, too, so that really helped. As for modding, I only buy key mods that really work. I've been modding hotrods for over 30 years and know that lots of crap is just expensive eye candy and doesn't really add power/performance to our cars (i.e. CAI's, LCA's, TB's, etc.). I spend very wisely and look for maximum bang-for-the-buck.

 

[BruceH]

I think some people take the YOLO thing too seriously. You do only live once but I'd rather not live in an ocean of debt not being able to go on a damn vacation with my woman because of a damn car and the debt i put myself in for it lol

You live with your parents and have a nice car that you mod plus another vehicle. Your priorities are all out of whack imo.

The guy who is up to his eyeballs in debt is doing it on his own, not counting on his parents to support him.