How did you acquire your first car?

[Mr Buckshot]

No, I don't mean that plastic kiddie motor car you got for your 6th birthday. I mean a real gas-powered automobile.

Some of you may look at me and say "wow your parents are buying the car for you ewww spoilt much?"

You probably do have a point, but it's not like I can tell my dad to buy any car I want without conditions. See why:

Me: So what do I have to do to get a car?
Dad: You want me to buy you a car, you get straight 7's in I.B. and qualify for a top-level university. You get anything less, forget it.
Me: What kind of car can I get? Can I drive your car? (Lexus LS 460)
Dad: A used car, of course! I'm not spending more than $20 000 on you. If you want to drive a car like mine, you get your own job, save up a hundred grand, and buy the damned car yourself.

I turned 16 on December 3 2007, and I plan to take the test over the spring vacation, and actually sit behind the wheel with an instructor during summer.

I haven't fully decided on a car yet, and there's no point since I haven't graduated yet. But if I can succeed in my studies, I'll definitely get my car from my parents. Of course, after university I will get my own job and my own brand new car...

[Emmzee]

Option 3.

[DrunkenSamus]

Option 5....OTHER ways of getting paid to buy a car.:-3

[Aerowyn]

Technically my GRANDMA got me the car. After she passed away the November before last, my mom got inheritance and money from the selling of gram's stocks.

With about $8,000 of that money, she bought my sister and I a Dodge Neon to share (but it's basically mine right now--Kelly doesn't have a license).

So yeah.

[Pope]

Lol enjoy your 'L' License Mr. Buckshot...Speaking of which mine expires in 3 days...

Be lucky you're getting a first car. If universities didn't cost so much in our area, maybe I would have gotten one. Oh well.

PS. If you're as smart as you say you are enjoy your massive outrageous scholarships I won't get.:p

[Limited]

A fist and the knowledge of how to hot wire a car...

joking of course.

Well my parents wanted to get a new car for my sister to drive because the one she learnt in was rubbish, she was going to share it with them. As I was turning 17 soon I'd be able to drive it also. So they got it and when I turned 17 I got usage of it. Then my sister bought her own car and I share it with parents.

[paladin]

Bought it, with money i saved up over the summer. It was a good day when i have $3000 cash in my hands, too bad it only lasted for about 12 hours. :(

[Bad Waffle]

option 5, my dad bought this shitty 95 camry for my sister who's in college, but she walks everywhere and doesnt have anywhere to park it so he gave it to me!

[Atty]

When my mom lost the ability to drive due to her RSD she signed the title over to me.

[Leiukemia]

Well, my grandma passed away last spring. My grandpa gave it to my dad in november, and then I received my dads car that had been parked for a few months. Pretty shitty way to get a car, but I'm glad I have it.

[p0lar_bear]

My great aunt gave me her old Saturn SL2; still driving it. She also paid for my first year of insurance and my driving instruction course.

I'm not exactly spoiled; I worked for everything I own, this was just an exception. It was given to me so I could further my education and job (read: gb2skool), and was an awesome end to a string of shit happenings.

[SuperSunny]

I turn 17 in March. I get my car very soon. Also my license as long as I don't bomb the test. Such a long wait well deserved.

Probably going to be a modern Civic. I'm comfortable with it, 2006 model, as that's what I've been using for practice driving most of the months (Permit). The one I'd probably get would be 07 or 08.

[Bodzilla]

i Bought my car after saving over a year to get it.
15K and 10k of which my Grand parents loaned to me (without interest ^_^_^_^) so i could get.
Basically he had too much money in the bank and the Gov. was going to cut their pension because of it. So it benefitted them as much as it did me. i'm paying the money back :

Long story short, i got a 05 lancer.
Oh yeah.

[Timo]

I use the family car, it's owned by my parents but since i'm now the only one home now (youngest; twin left for an apprenticeship halfway through this month), I guess you could call it mine. However it's a 1990 ford laser, it's a stindgy old beast but it runs, so i'm happy.

[Llama Juice]

My dad gave me the oldest functioning NAPA delivery truck they had. (My dad ownes two NAPA auto parts stores)...

My truck is number 7 of the fleet. He's already numbering trucks in the thirties.

It's a 93 GMC pickup.. 495,000 miles on it now

http://www.llamajuice.com/truck

http://www.llamajuice.com/img/truck.jpg

[dg]

I bought my '90 Ford Bronco with a great deal of money I stumbled into for the past two years. I'm out of that business, but it sure was good money.

[adumass]

My dad got my first car for me.. but didn't pay anything.:ssh: I just got it last year but it isn't registered, no license plate yet because of how slow the DMV is. Also, I failed the driving test twice so no license...

[Sel]

I see a lot of us carjacked it off the street :O

I dont have a car yet, and Ill get around to driving lessons this summer maybe.

[LlamaMaster]

http://www.llamajuice.com/img/truck.jpg
Is that your license plate? Do. Want.

[Mr Buckshot]

Hmm, I guess a lot of us got our first car from our parents. Not as uncommon as I thought. Still, I hope to not need that eventually.

Trust me people, the truly spoiled ones are the richass kids who get exotic European cars for their birthdays.

[Timo]

You scored a 20,000 car for doing well in school, something you should do without an incentive. :\ I'm not sure that you can't call that spoilt.

[Mr Buckshot]

Hey, you want to see spoiled in Vancouver? Some rich-ass delinquent dipshit at my school drives a brand-new BMW M5. He skips class to smoke, fails most of his courses, and yet his parents buy him a BMW…I want to vandalize his car. Badly.

Well, my “doing well in school” doesn’t need incentive, but it is pretty hard as I am in the I.B. program. I actively participate in math and science (especially biology) contests and have almost 20 academic certificates/trophies/medals under my belt, all won in Canada in just 3.5 years. I don’t have the time for a job until I graduate from university.

$20,000…it looks like a pretty big number to Americans, especially now that the Canadian dollar is stronger than ever. But over here, the government regulations are so fucked up that even used cars are prohibitively expensive compared to cars in the States, i.e. my dad’s Lexus has a $61000 base price in the States, yet its Canadian base price was around $90000, and with option packages it sailed into six-figure territory. And that’s the short-wheelbase model. My dad has no intention of importing a car from the States as he refuses to go through the troublesome paperwork just to save at least $30 000.

A lot of the cars I’d like my parents to buy for me cost well over $25,000, even pre-owned models. The only cars I can find for less than $10,000 are 20-plus-year-old American automobiles prone to falling apart any moment – I’d rather take the bus than drive one of those.

[Leiukemia]

Hey, you want to see spoiled in Vancouver? Some rich-ass delinquent dipshit at my school drives a brand-new BMW M5. He skips class to smoke, fails most of his courses, and yet his parents buy him a BMW…I want to vandalize his car. Badly.

Well, my “doing well in school” doesn’t need incentive, but it is pretty hard as I am in the I.B. program. I actively participate in math and science (especially biology) contests and have almost 20 academic certificates/trophies/medals under my belt, all won in Canada in just 3.5 years. I don’t have the time for a job until I graduate from university.

$20,000…it looks like a pretty big number to Americans, especially now that the Canadian dollar is stronger than ever. But over here, the government regulations are so fucked up that even used cars are prohibitively expensive compared to cars in the States, i.e. my dad’s Lexus has a $61000 base price in the States, yet its Canadian base price was around $90000, and with option packages it sailed into six-figure territory. And that’s the short-wheelbase model. My dad has no intention of importing a car from the States as he refuses to go through the troublesome paperwork just to save at least $30 000.

A lot of the cars I’d like my parents to buy for me cost well over $25,000, even pre-owned models. The only cars I can find for less than $10,000 are 20-plus-year-old American automobiles prone to falling apart any moment – I’d rather take the bus than drive one of those.

I'm sorry, but if you ever bring your snooty self into my town I'm going to kick the shit out of you. "Troublesome paperwork just to save 30,000$". Fuck off.

[Bad Waffle]

you know what i could do with 30k? buy ANOTHER car.

Or pay for a year of college.
Or rent a studio and sell art.
Or move to somewhere not in the middle of a fucking desert.
Or go to canada to kick you and your fathers ass for throwing out 30k.


EDIT: oh, and it takes a LOT of tear to have a car literally fall apart. You can drive a car for 20 plus years and have it still working fine with proper care (note, not sending it off to mechanics so they can tinker with it and charge you money)

[SMASH]

I know what you mean Leiuk. My current car was bought for me for $4000, and that's on the higher end of my parents spending. I consider myself lucky. As for college... my parents thought I would be going to DeVry where my Mom works so they haven't been saving money, but I decided I want to be more on the artistic side of game design and am looking at schools like Savannah College of Art and Design which costs about $40,000 a year....

You sure have it tough buckshot...

[Emmzee]

Jesus Buckshot, twenty grand? My car was $400.

Also, bribery is the stupidest way to motivate your kids to achieve.


A lot of the cars I’d like my parents to buy for me cost well over $25,000, even pre-owned models. The only cars I can find for less than $10,000 are 20-plus-year-old American automobiles prone to falling apart any moment – I’d rather take the bus than drive one of those.
Then you aren't looking.

At all.

My car: 1981 Pontiac Firebird, great condition, $400.

My brother's car: 1999 Ford Escort, good condition, $1100.

My cousin's car: 1997 Pontiac Grand Am, great condition, low miles, $3400.

[Mr Buckshot]

Jesus Buckshot, twenty grand? My car was $400.

Also, bribery is the stupidest way to motivate your kids to achieve.


Then you aren't looking.

At all.

My car: 1981 Pontiac Firebird, great condition, $400.

My brother's car: 1999 Ford Escort, good condition, $1100.

My cousin's car: 1997 Pontiac Grand Am, great condition, low miles, $3400.

That's U.S. pricing. Over here, I'm hard-pressed to find inexpensive vehicles.

[Timo]

Here, you can buy a two year old top of the line car (A Ford/Holden, and yes, they're just a good/reliable/safe as a Toyota) for ~$23,000NZD or $17,000 Canadian. Surely you should be able to pick up a used car for less than $10000 and far less than 20 years old. The ford I posted has great mileage, the engine works perfectly and there's nothing wrong with it, at all. You can pick them up here for around $1000.

[Jay2645]

My first car was my dad's old Hyundai.

I'm too lazy to go take a picture of the license plate, but it reads "Jay2645".
Hell, I wanted a custom plate, and PiePwns was taken. And PiePwnz. And every other combination I could think of.

[alby]

That's U.S. pricing. Over here, I'm hard-pressed to find inexpensive vehicles.
400 U.S. dollars = 398.400025 Canadian dollars.

Google is a helpful tool.

[CrAsHOvErRide]

Parents Car...VW Passat...220 km/h (140mph) on highway.

Chance of dieing in case of an accident? 99.9%?

[Llama Juice]

A car is a car, if you're embarrassed about driving "an American shitmobile"... think about how many chicks yer gunna be able to pick up with the bus.

Just get over yourself and get a reasonably priced first car. Sure my dad gave me my first car, then I worked for him for a year without pay to pay for it, sure the car could fall apart whenever but if you honestly think that your social status depends on what kind of car you have you're horribly mistaken (I say that because why else would someone be embarrassed about driving a less than amazing vehicle?)

My truck has 495,000 miles on it. I fuckin love my truck. When I got it, it was worth almost nothing... and I just worked for my dad to give back to him a little bit of all the crap he's given to me.

No hard feelings buck, I just think that you're being a little unreasonable.

[Mr Buckshot]

400 U.S. dollars = 398.400025 Canadian dollars.

Google is a helpful tool.

yer missing the point here. This is Canada. Cars are priced HIGHER. It's not a matter of exchange rate. It's a matter of horribly messed up government regulations. Like I said, my dad's car costs $61000 in the U.S. - it should be around the same in Canada if you used the exchange rate. But no, it starts off at around $90000 here.

[Timo]

Well if you follow the logic of a new car being 50% more expensive in Canada than in the US, then you should *in theory* be able to pick up a decent second hand car for $600 Canadian. Surely second hand cars aren't over 10 times the price in Canada compared to the US. Have you looked at cars for sale on the side of the street, or does that not happen there? It's a great way to get a car - you just need to get it checked by someone to make sure everything is in working order.

[Bodzilla]

you said good bye to 30 grand, because of paperwork?

oh my god.
...

[Emmzee]

Buckshot, I'm going to stop beating around the bush.

Your family clearly has more money than they know what to do with, as evidenced by foregoing paperwork that could save them $30 grand on a car. Also, you're spoiled as evidenced by your parents bribing you to get good grades with a $20,000 car.
:fail:

[Mr Buckshot]

Have you looked at cars for sale on the side of the street

Our streets are unbelievably narrow (I applaud those who can maneuver minivans and full-size SUVs through the streets) so you won't find many "cars for sale" on the side of the street.

The only used cars that are within convenient locations are at the official dealers themselves...and I got laughed at when I asked a Toyota dealer whether they had any used cars in their lot for under $10k. I suppose I could find cheap used cars if I drove into another province...

Canada's price regulations on class seems to be based on the class (size) of car. My dad's car would cost at least $20k less than cars like the BMW 7-series in the States, yet over here they're almost at the same price.

Also people, it's not just paperwork that makes importing cars bought in the States very troublesome. The car has to meet so many regulations it's not even funny. My dad intended to buy an Audi A8L W12 from the states once, and when he told the Audi dealer in Bellingham that he wanted to bring it across the border, the dealer had a lengthy conversation with him about how headache-inducing the process would be. Heck, the car would need to be thoroughly tested in Canada and that costs even more money. I don't know if this is true, but the Audi guy said that the speedometer would have to be changed to show km/h... Importing cars purchased in the States is not as easy as it seems.

[Emmzee]

http://www.craigslist.com

Problem solved.

[Leiukemia]

Buckshot, you're clearly being lazy or stupid if you cannot find a decent car for under 10,000. I live about an hour and a half away from you, not a differant province by a long shot. I've seen TONS of cars I would grab if I had even 5000 for a car. Hell, most of the ones I see that are decent with a good price are actually located in YOUR area. You're just trying to create all this bullshit because nobody really lives near you and you can basically make up whatever you want about car prices in your area. Car's are not rediculously expensive in Canada if you really know how to look. Here, I'll even link you to a site I go to all the time when I'm looking at car prices and such. Search is set to 10,000$ Canadian, all in BC, most of the cars actually located in the Vancouver/Richmond area. There's lots of your precious "premium oriental car companies" on there too by the way. Also, North American cars are not as terrible as you like to make up because of your one little experiance of a brand new one breaking down. Cars only last according to their drivers, and if you know how to take care of it they last for a long time. Hell, you might as well do what most people do when buying a first car. Just get one that will last around 5 years (and that's not hard to find, AT ALL) and in that time save up your money to buy a car you actually desire.

http://www.canadatrader.com/result/result.aspx?searchtype=adv&kw=&dp=&age=&kfr=1&kto=2000000&category=4000&mk=&md=&yfr=1900&yto=2008&pfr=0&pto=10000&postal=&distance=&city=&pro=BC&region=&type=&dm=3&mph=false&rentalOnly=false&pricedOnly=true#

[Varmint260]

I got my vehicle paid for by my grandfather, and I'm paying him back. Cost $4500 in as-new condition from a dealer 30km south of town. I love it and it has never failed me. Even runs well in the snow, for a Rear-Wheel Drive van. It was fun to drive to school the other day, spinning the tires out and watching other people get stuck.

BTW, Mr Buckshot lives only approximately 200km of road away from that very dealership (not including one trip from Vancouver to Nanaimo on a ferry, of course). That's 30 bucks of gas to get to dealership to buy driveable cars and trucks ranging from 400 bucks to 7,000 bucks. Not 20,000 bucks.

Importing a vehicle from the states is not that hard, by the way. Talking with a car salesman, they not only have funny ideas but they have no problem with telling bold-faced lies. You go down to a dealer, buy a car, either put US insurance on it or put it on a small trailer (which you can rent for next to nothing), and take it/drive it up across the border (after filling out some forms). Take it to your friendly neighborhood licensed mechanic who will perform a motor vehicle inspection on it and then put ICBC insurance on it. Done. Plus, if they're THAT concerned about the speedometer, my Mom's motorhome passed because we stamped several equivalent speeds in km/h on the speedometer dial. You can write a couple of speeds on a couple pieces of masking tape and the problem is solved.

[sreeja]

I have a job and I bought it yourself