So I just turned 18 a month ago. I’ve been saving for a car since january, I’m in welding school and work the weekends at a restaurant. I get paid biweekly about 1.1k. I’ve applied for a credit card myself to be able to pay off my school loan and be able to get a car. I just don’t know how. Do I keep all my savings seperate? I keep it in cash so my mom doesn’t know how much I have since my account is attached to hers. I just really need a car, I’m stuck with my sisters driving me to and from school every day and on weekends driving my mom’s to get to school. I have no freedom to go anywhere without asking since it’s not my car.
I’ve got a little over 2k saved. My sister sent me a truck for 4k and I’m heavily debating going for but I have no idea how to go about it.
Please give me any and all insight you have. I’m doing good at my current job but I know if I get a work study welding job I could get more but I would have no way to get there. I feel stuck and I just need help on knowing how to get a car, how to go about credit, and what to look for in a car.
Sorry if this is a bit scrambled, I just don’t know what exactly I’m asking.
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It’s expensive to have a car. Registration, insurance, DMV fees, gas, and the deductible if you ever want something fixed under comprehensive insurance—it all adds up fast.
If having a car isn’t an absolute necessity, I’d thank your sisters for helping you out. A car loan doesn’t just mean monthly payments—it also means you have to carry comprehensive insurance, which costs way more than the state minimum. Lenders want their money back, one way or another—either from you, or from insurance if you wreck it.
And don’t forget maintenance: oil changes, new tires, fluid top-offs, and random part failures that always seem to happen at the worst time.
If I could get around on public transit or had help from someone like a sister, I’d hang onto that. Dignity’s nice, but being flat broke is worse.
PS: Cars are about to get even more expensive with the new Trump tariffs—25% extra on all imports, including vehicle parts. Even domestic vehicles rely on imported parts, and your brake shop or warranty center definitely isn’t exempt.