Need "new" vehicle. Car or truck? Midlife crisis, Camaro?

[miket]

I currently am driving a 2002 Z71. I am about to hit 220k miles and know that time is limited until I will be doing major repairs. The repairs themselves don't really bother me, I can do pretty much anything that needs to be done. But having my only vehicle out of service is a big problem. So I need to start looking at getting another vehicle. Initially I was thinking of a used truck , typically I will buy a vehicle and drive it 10 plus years . And that is still an option but then started looking at new ones . But any decent truck is 45k Plus as far as I can tell.

So that got me to looking at cars. I don't really have any interest in a little zoom zoom car so started looking at 6.2L Camaros. It looks like the decent Camaros are about the same price as the lower-end trucks ( 4wd with decent motor ).

I would keep my 2002 Z71 for work ( have to have a truck to deliver parts )

The issue is I am wondering if I can really deal with a car long-term. I also am very frugal and don't really want to spend the money, but at this point I have to do something

A few details

I am 43 years old and due for a midlife crisis

My two oldest kids are 16 and 17 so will be out of the house fairly soon

I am self-employed so a bit hesitant to commit to $40k plus ( loan )

I hate borrowing money, but cannot pay cash, and probably wouldn't even if I could

I hate debt so the Cheapskate in me says to get another 2002 Z71!

Thoughts?

[jlp04c]

stay out of debt... buy a cheap truck, or cheap car.. call it a day. Ignore the midlife crisis.

[justin81]

buy a newer used truck or suv. like a 2007 and up to at least have a different body style (unless you like the 2002, I do a lot!) new trucks drop 10K as soon as you drive them off the lot so that is a bad idea.

I've tried the car thing 3 times and keep coming back to a fullsize truck. they are hard to beat if you can afford the gas.

[Dale Moser]

A camaro less than 55 years old is a pretty lame mid life crisis. I'd recommend strippers and blow.

[thegrouse]

What about an older car you could pay cash for? Mid 80s Mustang or Camaro. Old K5 Blazer or Jeep? This way you can have a cool toy and not spend the big bucks on a new one.

[CastAndBlast]

Need "new" vehicle. Car or truck? Midlife crisis, Camaro?

A camaro less than 55 years old is a pretty lame mid life crisis. I'd recommend strippers and blow.

I’m with Dale on this one...

With that being said...you could do the stripper and blow thing IN the camaro if you wanted to. At that point, it doesn’t matter what year it is.

- I don’t chase dreams, I HUNT goals

[CLR]

A camaro less than 55 years old is a pretty lame mid life crisis. I'd recommend strippers and blow.

I read daily on here and don't really post all that much but I do enjoy Dale's opinions and expressions. I feel more times than not he is spot on. This one made me laugh more than normal.

[AgHntr10]

You say you want another vehicle so that if your truck goes down you aren't stranded. Then you say you have to have a truck to deliver parts for work. To me it sounds like you need another truck, a Camaro isn't going to haul parts around very well for you if the truck breaks down.

[mfarmer]

A camaro less than 55 years old is a pretty lame mid life crisis. I'd recommend strippers and blow.

For the win!

[Outlaw_6]

Get a Harley - better on gas. [emoji106]

[BrianL]

a 6.2 Camaro and a 16 and 17 year old on same insurance is no Bueno

[Shane]

If you want to spend $40K or so in order to have a dependable ride, and you don't want to give up your pickup that you know you're going to be spending more money on to fix and maintain, just trade it in on a new pickup. Same money, better truck, no big repair expense, no need to drive around in some little car, no need to pay insurance on 2 vehicles, etc...

[CaptainDave]

If you want to spend $40K or so in order to have a dependable ride, and you don't want to give up your pickup that you know you're going to be spending more money on to fix and maintain, just trade it in on a new pickup. Same money, better truck, no big repair expense, no need to drive around in some little car, no need to pay insurance on 2 vehicles, etc...

X2

I'd go the new or slightly used truck route. If you plan to keep the truck for 10 plus years, that's the route I would go.

[doug]

A camaro less than 55 years old is a pretty lame mid life crisis. I'd recommend strippers and blow.

As usual Dale is spot on!!!!

I say buy something used that youll enjoy!

[Pedernal]

Used Tacoma if you can find one for a decent price... Keep your current truck, I have its GMC diesel sister. Good trucks IMHO