The Car Welcome! So you’re looking to pick out the right car for you? The number one thing you must ask yourself when searching for your next ride is “is it in my price range?” Once you know your budget, we can start looking for your car. Click to continue

There are plenty of cars out there – new and used, with all different kinds of features – but which of them is actually in your reach and has all the options you need? Once you know your budget –how much you can afford to spend on a vehicle, including loan payment, gas, and insurance –you can determine which cars and what trim level and options are in your reach and which ones aren’t. If you need help setting up your budget, contact your base’s Personal Finance Management Specialists.

What I spent a month Cell: $50 Food/drink at home: $300 Restaurants/Bars: $200 Clothing: $100 Necessities/miscellaneous:$100 $750 $ $750 = $ Let’s use an example budget for now. Let’s imagine that your Net Pay –how much money you take home after taxes—is this much. And these are your monthly spending habits. Car payment: Gas: Maintenance/Repairs: Insurance: Total must be less than $1, This gives you a total of $ to spend on the following items for your car. But these will vary depending on what car you get. Your biggest concern is that your total spending must be under your Net Pay.

Now that you know how much you can spend, you can determine your basic needs for a car. Like, how many passengers do you need it to carry? How much will it cost to insure? How much does maintenance and repairs cost? And how much can you afford to pay at the pump?

Over budget Limit $ Within budget Let’s see if these used cars fit your needs and your monthly budget to pay it off in 5 years. Click on a car to put it on the scale.

Over budget Limit $ Within budget Honda Insight This car is within your budget! Though it’s a little expensive to insure, it’s fairly fuel efficient!

Over budget Within budget Limit $ Chevrolet Camaro This car is just within budget! You got it for a great deal, but it’s expensive to fill up with gas and repair.

Over budget Within budget Limit $ Toyota Tacoma This car is not within your budget! It costs a great deal to maintain and repair.

After reviewing the monthly costs – which car is the best bang for your buck? Click on the car you would purchase. Pros: seats 5 Good fuel economy Cons: somewhat high insurance Monthly total: $ Pros: cool looking car Great deal - $7000 Cons: high insurance Fuel can be expensive Monthly total: $ Pros: Great for hauling things Cons: high insurance And gas guzzler Monthly total: $712.43

Great choice! The Honda Insight gives you great fuel economy and still remain under your limit, so you can spend that money on other things! Pros: seats 5 Good fuel economy Cons: somewhat high insurance Monthly total: $440.41

Good choice – this car is a great deal and you come out just under budget! Pros: cool looking car Great deal - $7000 Cons: high insurance Fuel can be expensive Monthly total: $555.19

This car is way over you’re budget but might be giving you the features you need. In order to be able to buy this car, you’ll have to rearrange your budget, put money you would use on other things to your car payments. Pros: Great for hauling things Cons: high insurance And gas guzzler Monthly total: $712.43

To find out more about any of the topics discussed in this module - contact your base’s Personal Financial Management Specialists. Thank you for learning with us! You may now exit.

There are plenty of cars out there – new and used, with all different kinds of features – but which of them is actually in your reach and has all the options you need? Once you know your budget –how much you can afford to spend on a vehicle, including loan payment, gas, and insurance –you can determine which cars and what trim level and options are in your reach and which ones aren’t. If you need help setting up your budget, contact your base’s Personal Finance Management Specialists. Trim level is a package of different features for a make and model of a car. For example, a Honda Civic EX-L is a higher trim level than the Honda Civic LX, and therefore comes with more features.