Are car troubles contagious?

[EllenFrasier]

My daughter has a really old car, 15 years old, that she bought for $900 three years ago and it has finally had it. She found a newer used car on a lot near us that we have dealt with before, but she cannot get financing on her own. Even though she is working full time and has barely any bills, they are counting her student loan against her even though she is still a student and won't be paying on it for years. So Dh and I decided to co-sign for her so she could have a reliable car. I have no doubts about her making the payments.

So our van, what Dh drives, has been having problems for months. Our mechanic finally figured out that it needs a thermostat and some other things and he fixed it over the weekend. So last night I drove the van to my husband at work so he could drive home at midnight (dd drove my car so I'd have a ride home) and our van was literally chugging! I thought for sure it was going to stall when I stopped at each light - never heard it make these noises before! So I told Dh when I got there that something is terribly wrong. I told him that the needle on the thermostat did not go up, but it sounded awful. When he drove home later, he said the needle went all the way to Hot and it was still chugging. So it's back over at the garage right now.

Neither one of us could sleep last night because we were upset over the van. We are having doubts now whether we should co-sign for her loan (nothing has been done about that yet) because if we need a newer car we might not be able to get a loan if we've co-signed for hers. Ugh, why is life so complex sometimes?

Now dd is upset, crying the whole deal, Dh is amazingly calm (no yelling yet) and I am praying!!

 

[The Moonk's Mom]

I always say that it seems like it all comes at one time. I hate that too! It seems like just when you get ahead in one area...something else happens. I know you will figure it all out! Good Luck!

And yes...I do think cars catch stuff from one another...it always happens that way in our house too!

 

[usnuzuloose]

Oh boy! I am sick of car issues. I just put 500 for an altenator, 150 for a battery. I paid 370 at the dealer to fix a problem that kept draiing the battery. I am suppose to take it and have a new thermostat and a cam sensor in today. About another 450. Plus it still has 3 more issues which are costly as well. Its still cheaper than a car payment. Jo

 

[disneyfreakk]

It is possible to have 2 car loans. But the second car loan is going to have a higher interest rate. Sorry your cars are giving out at the same time.

 

[usnuzuloose]

It is possible to have 2 car loans. But the second car loan is going to have a higher interest rate. Sorry your cars are giving out at the same time.

Yes you can have two car loans, We had two but that took a toll on us. But if you can afford it and they approve you, sure

 

[hambirg]

First, I'm sorry. When it rains, it pours.

I think DD should work a similar deal like she did with the last one. How much does she have to spend? I'm sure she would like the newer car from the lot, but she is still a college student. I think a car loan is a bad idea. Just remind her that it was only $300 a year for her to drive the last one (just the price of the actual car). Some people's car payments are that a month, and depending on the car she wants, I'm pretty sure that's probably what she would pay about every 2-3 months at least. If she buys a private sale car on Craigslist, etc. for say $1000, and let's say the newer car payment is going to be $200/month. As long as she drives that car for 5 months, she's even. Anything after that is gravy. Also if she buys an older car without a car loan, she won't have to carry collision insurance. I've seen many friends have to fully insure what later became their clunker, long after it really needed to be, just because they were required to cover for the bank because of the loan. On top of that, cars are always going to depreciate. It's just too easy to get upside down in a car. JMHO

 

[seashoreCM]

Psst! If the problem is really the thermostat, promptly putting in a replacement and also flushing out the radiator system is a straightforward repair that should not have to be done again for at least 50,000 more miles.

And many overheating problems are due to just the failure of the thermostat, which is typically a disk about 2 inches in diameter with some protruding metal parts in the middle.

The "water pump" is another component whose failure can lead to overheating but here the symptom of failure is usually leaking of antifreeze. Loosening but not removing the radiator cap (sometimes on the plastic coolant reservoir instead of on the radiator itself) will often slow down a leak in the water pump letting you keep driving for awhile until you can schedule a repair. Once the water pump is replaced, that problem should also not happen again for 50,000 to 70,000 more miles.

If you do have antifreeze leaking, you'll have to keep adding more and not let it get very low at any time.

 

[DisneyShannon]

Dont let credit problems stop you from buying a new car I have horrible credit but a good paying job. They only asked how much I make a hour and my credit with my hourly pay I was able to drive a brand new toyota right off the lot. And when I say bad crredit I mean real bad credit. Tell the car dealer what you want and do not take no for an answer.

 

[sameyeyam]

There is a reason the bank won't loan her money. She has too much debt and not enough income. If the bank has reason to doubt that she can repay the loan (and they have lots of statistics to prove it) why would you co-sign?

I know you love your daughter, but co-signing for something she probably can't afford is probably not the best thing you can do for a child. What if something happens and she drops out of school, then her student loans are due and suddenly she can't afford to pay her car payment. Has nothing to do with her being a responsible person, life just happens.

If you want to give her the money to get a new used car, then give her the money. But please don't co-sign. It's a really bad idea and if things don't go perfectly (and since when does life ever go perfectly?) then it can cause problems with your relationship.

My advice is she needs to save up her money and buy a new "old" car. The last one made it 3 years and was relatively cheap.

It already sounds like shes in debt with student loans, why add a car loan to the top of that. Being in debt is not a good way to start her adult life.

Some of my best life lessons were learned when my parents didn't just solve all of my problems, instead they said...hmmm, so what are you going to do? My guess is she will either repair her car, rely on public transportation or get a new clunker that runs better. Just imagine how proud you will be when she figures it out for herself.