8 Important things to consider before buying a car!

“I am not just buying the car; I am buying a lifestyle”- Lynn Johnston
So true.
Buying a car is a significant investment of life. It brings a sense of comfort and luxury in your life and make your commute a lot easier than before. However, on practical side, it is an important financial decision that requires proper pre-planning and researching all important aspects before making a final decision.
If you are planning to buy a new (or may be used) vehicle, then this post can offer a good help. I am sharing 8 important things to consider before buying a new car. Read the post to know more!
8 important things to consider before buying a car!

Define your car needs and be clear about your choices
Nowadays, with advancement in technologies various type of car options (like sport car, sedan etc.) are available in the market. These multiple options may make you feel confused, if you are not sure about your car needs. It is important to determine car need (for daily commute or for occasional use) and be clear about your choices (style, color,Model etc.). this first step will give you a clear visibility and will make your car buying journey smoother and easier.
Furthermore, it is a good idea to get your driving license before buying a car. If you are struggling to get a suitable date for your driving test, then you can take help from driving test cancellations. They help you find a perfectly suitable date and save your time, money and hassle for booking a driving test.
Review your budget & explore different financing options
This one is second most important step before moving on next step. Car purchase is an expensive investment and may put a pressure on your budget, if you did not plan ahead. It is essential to review your budget and figure out the amount that you can afford for buying a car. When you set an affordable budget for your purchase, you should start exploring financing option. You can take a look at local credit union or bank and can compare different financing options as per your budget.
Cfpb (Consumer financial protection bureau) advices, “It is important to plan ahead to shop for your auto-loan. This thing gives you time to think about your affordable options. And help you make right decisions.”
Read this post to learn basics of get ready to shop for auto loan and check out this post to learn about different ways to finance your auto loan.
Start researching and perform a thorough research as per your car needs
Researching is an important step before making your final purchase. You should conduct in-depth research to explore the possible options as per your car needs and set budget. You can use online resources (read reviews online) and ask friends or other family members for recommendations regarding your purchase. When purchasing a car, one of the most crucial decisions is choosing where to buy it. Opting to purchase from a trusted dealer ensures that you’re getting a vehicle that meets quality standards and avoids any potential new york new car auto fraud. Trusted dealers often have a reputation to uphold, which means they are more likely to provide honest information about the car’s condition, history, and any potential issues. This can save you from costly surprises down the road.
Calculate your desired car payments
Cellulating your desired car payments is next important thing to consider before making your final decision. It is important to figure out your affordable monthly payment. Calculating car payment may sounds like a complex process and you may feel confused to how to solve this problem. But using car payment calculator can offer a great help.
You can take help of car payment calculator to calculate your car payment.
Look at this screen shot to get an idea how this car payment calculator works.

You have to fill some basic details like vehicle price, down payment, trade-in (if you have), and then this calculator calculates your “Auto loan results “instantly that includes payment amount, loan amount, sales tax, total interest rate and all in cost.
Along with this, perspective car buyers often have many other questions like:
- Should I refinance the car loan or not? Or
- Should a lease or buy a car?
If you feel stuck with these questions during your car-buying process, then these two calculators can help you a lot to answer your question.
You can try vehicle refinancing calculator to determine whether or not you should refinance your current loan at a lower interest rate. This calculator will calculate the monthly payment and net interest savings on your automobile loan.

In the same manner, you can also use “Lease or buy” calculator. This calculator will give you a rough estimate of the costs involved, as well as a comparison between “lost interest” costs related to your initial expenses. It will even calculate your estimated monthly lease payment and/or your monthly loan payment if necessary.
Check out this screen shot to get an idea how it works?

As another interesting feature, this website has a great collection of free car games for kids and playful adults. If you are too young to drive or want to engage in a bit of road rage without any adverse consequences, you can enjoy these amazing car games for fun and enjoyment. We have played of few of these games and my little one has enjoyed apple and onion cat rescue game most.
Decide whether you want to buy a new or used car
As next step, decide whether you want to buy a new or used car. Each option has its pros and cons and you can decide this as per your individual requirement.
Read this post to know more about New vs used car: which should you buy?
Research dealership option
When you have a clear idea about your choices like whether you want to buy a used car, you can start research dealership options. Perform a thorough research and find a trustworthy and reliable dealership option to make your final purchase.
Go for a test drive
Go for a test drive before taking your final decision. Test drive gives you a practical experience and you would be able to make a perfect choice after gathering practical experiences of your dream vehicle.
Make a final purchase
At the end, re-analyze all important pointers (your need, budget, payment options) and make your final purchase.
I hope these pointers will make your car buying process easier and hassle free. What are your thoughts? Please share with me!
13 Comments
Ruchie
Investing money in car is not a day task, and I agree that we need to consider these things before making up any decision.
Varsh
We’ve been looking at cars for a while now but confused about a few things. If we have a clear budget in mind then things tend to get easy to decide. Good post!
Sindhu Vinod Narayan
Investment of money in vehicles needs to be assessed first. These calculator definitely seem to be helping out when we plan to buy
Harjeet Kaur
Very important guidelines while buying a car. I have seen people going overboard and spending above their means. One should not fall prey to societal or peer pressure. I own a small reused car and I am very happy with it.
Imagemakeover
Buying a car require planning and through research. It’s really nice to know that we have this calculator which can help us calculate car payment and refinance and many more which give us fair idea as in how to go ahead. Thanks for sharing this insightful information Surbhi.
Preeti Chauhan
Certainly, these are good pointers and the best part was the car refinance calculator, lease or buy calculators. The calculators make the comparisons so much easier.
Jyoti
You have shared very important guidelines while buying a car. I know we also researched a lot before buying our car.
MeenalSonal
Buying a car is like adding a member to the family and estimating all its pros and cons is very essential. Tha calculator looks easy to use and plan for the future.
Neha Sharma
Great tips here, Surbhi. We bought a new car in Dec last year and the 3 important things we had in mind before going for it was the budget, brand and our requirement. Car payment calculator seems quite helpful, wish I knew about it earlier, it would have made our financing decisions easier.
Gurjeet Chhabra
Car investment is not so simple task and need a thoughtful study/ research because you are not going to buy car daily and need great investment.
Noor Anand Chawla
When I bought my car, I did not put so much thought into it but after reading your post, I can see the importance of each pointer. A very useful list for everyone.
Jhilmil D Saha
Ah, I have always seen my husband doing so much of research before purchasing a vehicle. I am planning to buy a car next year, and I am sure this informative article is going to be of great help.
sonu chouhan
Yes we need to consider before any investment.buying a car means spending a lot amount about savings or salary..which took over a lot of time to do so..very informative post.