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For the first time? Go back a generation and student loans didn’t exist.
Not to mention auto loans can be discharged in bankruptcy. Try doing that with student loans and you'll quickly find out it isn't possible.
Damn, it’s almost as if making a country almost entirely car dependent is a terrible fucking idea.
At least you can declare bankruptcy on an auto loan...
I grew up believing all loans is money banks lend you from their own money they have on hand. But that is a lie. That money is created by the fed reserve when the paperwork is signed. And all the bank has to do is follow rules their lobbyists write.
Why do we even need private banks? I bet people could handle their own fianaces a lot better if we had direct access to fed money creation and we didn't let bank lobbyists write the rules.
At least auto loan debt isn't enshrined into law as "life debt" like student loans are.
I wish automakers were able to/would actually import some of their cheaper electric vehicles from east asian markets.
The Honda N-Van e would suit the needs of the vast majority of people. 124mi of range and only ~$8,000.
Can I say I love that derpy little thing and I hope they sell it here?
It wouldn't meet the safety standards. A substantial portion of the cost in a modern vehicle is the safety systems and then the emissions systems.
It wouldn’t meet the safety standards.
This may partly be because basically all of them are legal for highway use, so even if all you need is a car that is safe to drive a couple of miles to the grocery store at 35MPH, the safety features and engines (and thus emissions system capabilities) have to be designed with the expectation that the vehicle will be used at 80MPH beside all the other vehicles out there.
It might help to have a wider variety of vehicle licensing options to allow for low-speed, lower-spec 'city cars'. Though enforcement would probably be an issue, and the safety standards would still need to be robust enough that people in small cars wouldn't be too badly killed by the gigantic pickup trucks they have to share the road with.
then the emissions systems
It's an EV.
I wouldn't mind a Tuk Tuk. Could use about half the year without issue. My daily commute doesn't involve highways and for repairs any motorcycle shop could handle it.
Only 124mi? Isn't that like the average American's commute to work one-way?
The average American drives 33 miles per day total.
didnt think id need an /s to joke about how car dependent we are :p
What, thats crazy. I bought my car certified pre-owned, fully paid it off, and have been driving it for 8 years with hopefully another 8 more to go. I know car prices have been going out of control though, whats going on?
Harder and harder to do that. My goal was to buy a used car then finally a new electric car.
My 2012 pre-owned car was paid in cash for $7k about five years ago. And my goal was to save $25k cash, and trade this one in for a newish car.
My 2012 exact car can now be bought for $9k. And newer cars are now in the $40k range. AND they have shitty subscriptions for features.
It's wild when I was looking to do something similar and instead ended up buying a newish electric vehicle because it was about the same price as what I'd otherwise have gotten.
This is exactly what happened to me.
Auto loans are terrible and I always pay them off as soon as I can, but they will never really be that big a threat because you CAN sell your car and buy a substantially cheaper one, in most cases. Sometimes you can sell your car and just use public transit or bike/walk.
Boy do I wish I could sell my college degree
I wish they would repo my degree...
Used cars literally cost more now than the 3/2 townhome I bought in 2012. I don't understand how most people survive in this economy.
When I was a kid auto loans would be for 2 years or 4 years maybe, now. They'll give you a 10-year loan on a car.
Interesting. But if everyone sells their car soon as the economy brings the pain then they won’t be able to sell their cars right?
People still need cars, usually. So people who owe $50k on a car can sell and buy a $20k car while people with $20k cars are selling to that person and buying a $5k car or whatever. People are in different ranges based on their situation with income and needs.
If you owe $50k on a car you deserve to drown in debt anyway lmao
This is probably by design. The “system” keeps cities designed and built in a way that they are impossible to traverse without cars, which forces people to buy cars. Youngsters are earning shit wages but can’t get to work without a vehicle so they get into debt. It’s all fucked. I live in the Netherlands and can do everything I need to do with just my cargo bike. It rocks.
Certainly car loans can be predatory, and it is worth improving oversight, limiting what loan providers are allowed to offer. While I’ve seen plenty of people in trouble with car loans, it was always predictable/likely and my first thought had been how could a loan provider have approved that. I’m sorry if people are desperate for transportation and short of options but it’s not helpful to offer rates like credit cards, nor roll over previous loans, nor offer loans at high percentages of people’s incomes
There's a reason my car is old enough to drink 👍
Mine’s almost old enough to vote!
I just looked up, the median commute distance in the US is 10 miles and time is ~25 minutes. You can get a vehicle that will get you 10 miles away in about that time for ~$600. Ebikes are great. Regular bikes can be found for the cost of a fast food meal, if not free. As much as people say "cars are mandatory", that might be an untrue assumption to start from. However, the car-focused layout of American cities has made it less safe to use bikes, which would be great to push back against.
Just gonna hop on my ebike to make the 10 mile journey in -40° weather... brb
Ah yes, the one theoretical counter-example that completely nullifies my argument. You're right, all hail Cars. What percent of Americans experience -40 degree weather again?
this post was submitted on 01 Oct 2023
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