Buying A

Car Project
Name:
Part 1: What type of car will meet your needs? Take into account all the things you
may need to use your car for?
Will you need to haul anything with your car?

Yes

Will you need to have more than 2 people in your car?

yes

Will you need four-wheel drive?

Will you need to drive lots of distance?

yes
yes

How much gas can you afford to buy each week?

How much could you spend on repairs each month?

$25
$25

Part 2: Create a list of at least 6 cars that meet your needs based on the above
requirements
1. Ford F-150
2. Dodge Durango
3. Chevy Malibu
4. Volvo XC-90
5. Jeep Rubicon
6. Chevy Silverado
Part 3: Research the reliability of the cars on your list. You may want to consider
using Consumer Reports for this.
Car

Engine

Ford F-150
XLT
Dodge
Durango

V8

Chevy
Malibu

V8

V8

Automa
tic/
Manual
Automati
c
Automati
c

Fuel

Safety

19-20
MPG
19-20
MPG

Automati
c

27
MPG

Advance
dtrac
Emerge
ncy
brake
assist
Antitheft

Extras
(Heated
Seats Etc.)
All season tires

8.9

Heated seats

8.3

Hands free
entry

8.9

Overall

Volvo XC90

V8

Automati
c

22
MPG

Chevy
Silverado

V8

Automati
c

16
MPG

alarm
system
Child
safety
locks
Airbags
for all
seats

Heated seats

8.7

Cruise control

8.7

Part 4: Find at least 3 cars listed locally that meet your needs.
Make

Model
F-150
XLT

Year
2015

Price
$28,98
4

Chevy

Silvera
do

2016

$27,09
5

Volvo

XC-90

2016

$43,95
0

Ford

Features
Pro trailer
backup
assist
Rear
vision
camera
All wheel
drive
models

Contact Info.
1-800-392-3673

1-866-694-6546

1-800-458-1552

Part 5: Look up the value of each of the three cars you found. Use kbb.com for this.
You must factor in Year, Make, Model, Features, Mileage, and Location to find the
price.
Car 1
Ford F-150
3
Volvo XC90

Car 2

Chevy Silverado

Car

Part 6: Find at least three places where you could secure a loan for one car on your
list. You may want to consider banks and credit unions to find the best deal.
Institution 1: Chase Bank
Institution 2: Wells Fargo
Institution 3: Nationwide
Part 7: Find, Print, and Complete a Car Loan Application
*** Do NOT include your Social Security # ***MAKE ONE UP!!!!
http://www.hondafinancialservices.com/static/pdf/LEASE_LOAN_APPLICATION_10201
4.PDF
Example additional fill-able example under assignment document

Part 8: Determine what your loan will actually cost. You should come up with the
monthly payment and determine the amount of principle and interest over the life
of the loan.
http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/auto/auto-loan-calculator.aspx
http://www.cars.com/go/advice/financing/calc/loanCalc.jsp?mode=full
Monthly payment $_641.54__________
Interest $_1,809.98__
Principle$_28,984________

___

Part 9: What will it cost to put your car on the road? Identify taxes, registration, and
insurance costs.
http://www.edmunds.com/calculators/car-loan.html

Title Fee: __$15________________

Registration: ___$81_______________

Plates:

$181

Insurance:

$213

Total: ___$490__________

____

Part 10: General Up-keep and Maintenance

You also need to be concerned with the general upkeep of your car along with how
much it is going to cost to keep gas in your car. This include regular oil changes
after 3000 miles, two new tires every year for Michigan winter weather adventures
and other car problems that could possibly occur. Below is a list for you to fill out
that will help you calculate the other yearly costs of operating your car.
1. The average number of miles driven per year by Americans is 12000.
A. How many times will you have to change your oil then?
4
B. If you will change it yourself, go to letter (d); if you plan on having
your oil changed by professionals go to letter (c)
C. What is the average cost of an oil change? $25.99
a.

Now multiply that number by how many time a year you will
need your oil changed.
Total yearly charge:
$103.96

D. For the do-it-yourselfers, you need to determine the number of

quarts of oil you will need every year, the number of oil filters you will
need, we will assume you have the wrenches to complete the job, but
you will need to buy some ramps so you can get to our oil plug.
Number or quarts of oil:
Total cost of oil:
Total cost of all filters:
Cost of two car ramps:
Total yearly cost for your oil changes:

2) Since the average number of miles driven is 12000, we are going to determine
how much money you will spend in fuel for one year.
a) Does your car run on gasoline or diesel? gas
b) What is the average fuel mileage of your car (from page 1)? 19-20 MPG
c) What is the average cost of 1 gallon of fuel?
$1.86
d) Find the total cost of your fuel for one year:
(Number of miles driven / avg. fuel mileage)(Avg. cost of 1 gal. of fuel)
$1110
3) What would the cost of 2 new tires for your car be?
Site where you found this:
Goodyear
Part 11: Complete the following chart
One Time Cost
Monthly
Registration: $81
Loan: $600

Taxes: $100
Plates: $181
Down Payment: $0
Other:

Insurance:
$213

Weekly
Gas: $45

$411.90

Repairs
Find at least 3 cost
of repairs for our
vehicle
Brakes- $215
Headlights- $22
Engine- $50

Part 12: Research and present the cost of buying a car directly from the dealership
BRAND NEW!! What is the benefit of buying a car brand new vs. used. Look in to
the price of that car for a lease option and present the cost of leasing vs. buying
brand new. What is the benefit of leasing? What are the drawbacks? Out of the 3
options, buying used, buying brand new, and leasing, when would each purchase be
required in someones life? What is the best option for you now? What is the best
option for you later on in life? Why?
The benefit of buying a new car is you wont have problems that you have to start
off with and are able to start completely over with a whole new car. Buying a used
car benefits by being less money to buy and can sometimes have good deals as
people are trying to sell their old cars for a small amount of money. Leasing a car
has its benefits because it doesnt cost as much too initially lease. You arent
spending that much money as you are only having the car in your possession for
around 3-4 years. Buying a new car would come when someone is older and has
more money. Leasing a car would come when you arent planning on spending a lot
of money on a car to save. Buying a used car would come when someone is looking
for a decent car to start them off and dont have a lot of money. Buying a used car is
my best option right now because I dont have enough money to buy a new car and
I want something that can start me off for a small amount of money. Later in life I
will buy a new car as I will have a better paying job and more money.