heres the situation:

i go to uc berkeley but live in so cal. my dad offered to get me a g35 coupe in a year or two if i need it. however, an accord would suit me just fine even on the long drive up and down the 5 freeway. should i take this as a blessing and take the g35 coupe or get a car more suitable for my age (im only 19)?

can you guys refrain from posting things like "you should working for your own car, people your age shouldnt be driving nice cars, youll never understand the concept of money..." because although they are all true, they have nothing to do with the situation.

 

If you Dad offered you a Rolex, would you tell him that a Seiko would do just fine instead?

OF COURSE YOU SHOULD GET THE G35!!

 

Well, it depends on your income.. be it from a part-time job or from Dad. The G35 guzzles premium gas while the Accord sips the cheaper gas. Insurance costs are quite a bit different. Etc. It's great that he's buying you the car, but will he be paying to keep it maintained, keep the tank full, and cover the insurance? If so, great.. go for the G35, you'll have a blast. If not, you'll have to examine your income and do some research on how much a given car is going to cost you to maintain and operate. Performance vehicles incur extra costs.. not just in initial price and insurance. They're more to maintain. Tires, brakes, etc... these things are all more expensive than their counterparts in standard cars as well.

IMO, in college, you've got enough other stuff to worry about than to worry about getting dings on your car and keeping it shiny clean. A slightly used, 4-cyl manual tranny Accord is a pretty fun, peppy, and practical vehicle. I've had two of them over the last ten years (okay, 2nd was an auto). Not to mention, a white/light/gray 4-door is much harder for a cop to notice than a shiny 2-door red coupe, even if they're both going 85 in a 70. [img]/w3timages/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Just my $0.02.

2003.5 G35 Sedan Desert Platinum/Graphite Premium/Sport/Aero/Nav/Winter

 

what a dad.i say get the G <font color=red>ONLY IF</font color=red> dad can do it without any kind of financial defficulty,otherwise i rather ride a pinto...good luck

 

thanks for the quick replies. although it might sound even more spoiled, my dad can and will be taking care of the maintaining and gas and other stuff and no, it wont be a financial burden.

 

But if you're going to be really far from home, you should probably make sure you can afford the regular maintenance you'll be paying for when at school. Now if everything down to gas is paid for, well, then it's only up to whether you're worried about a nice car getting stolen, scratched up, in an accident, etc. While a G35 kicks a$$, is this something you actually want to deal with right now?

Of course, maybe your dad just wants an excuse to buy one[img]/w3timages/icons/wink.gif[/img]
Or he likes the idea that you'll never get lost with the nav system.

Don't worry about what kind of car is "appropriate" for your age, situation, etc.
The car that's appropriate is the one you feel comfortable driving. If I'd had that option when my dad bought my first car, I probably still wouldn't have picked an expensive one, since I wasn't comfortable with my driving skills back then. Now that I pay for my car and the insurance, I feel more secure, so I can truly enjoy this car.

Of course, a really good deal would be to have your dad put the money he'll save on the car towards an account for you, so when you go out and buy your fun car, you have some serious cash stashed away for a down payment, or whatever else you want to spend it on.
Or even invest it so it becomes a nice big nest egg when you graduate.



Infiniti G35 Coupe - Twilight Blue/Graphite/5AT/18"/Nav/Bose
Zchickz

 

If it's afforadble, convenient, and feasible, do it. There is no logical reason not to-- just don't worry about what other people might say when they proselytize the "get a car more your age" and "you're spoiled!" arguments. I got mine as a graduation gift from college, so I've heard the "spoiled" argument, but you know what? If they could get one for their kid without it being a major consideration, I bet they would.

G

2003.5 Black w/ Willow G35
Premium / Sport / Aero / Winter / Navi / Tint

 

my dad didn't know about it until I bought mine, and now he wants one for himself [img]/w3timages/icons/wink.gif[/img].. We're relatively spoiled, but my dad likes practical cars for the most part, especially if he's buying them for us. When I got my G, my little sister got my Civic, and she's actually saving money up for the car she wants when she buys her own.

Instead of spending that money on cars, he paid for our educations in full so we don't have student loans to pay off.


Infiniti G35 Coupe - Twilight Blue/Graphite/5AT/18"/Nav/Bose
Zchickz

 

If you aren't gonna be financially burdened and its not gonna put a strain on your pops then I say get the car. However, I'd advise you to learn to appreciate it. Appreciate having the opportunity to drive a car that nice at a young age and appreciate having good parents. Once you appreciate and your thankful then why not. Alotta kids get spoiled by their parents and thats not bad, the bad thing is they dont appreciate what their given.

 

Let me tell you about the berkeley area since I spent 5 years there. Even though I lived in north side (on ridge rd. across from the la loma foothill dorms), all my friends that had cars there got broken into including myself. Ask yourself this question, do you see any nice cars in the berkeley/oakland area? There's a reason for this, people could care less about your car. I see people bump into cars (especially on the steep ridge rd. hill) when they park. I've been involved with 3 accidents that were not my fault, luckly I drove a lifted jeep and most of the damage was on their car. Trust me on this! Ask your father if you can invest the money instead of purchasing a car for you, I know I may sound like a old man, but with the prices of houses these days, you better start saving up.



2003 G35 Coupe 6mt Diamond Graphite
1992 Jeep Cherokee Blk 5.5 RE lift /w 33s
AIM= bkchang79

 

thanks bkchang, thats another thing i definitely have to consider after all of this but i will only be getting the car if i have a relatively secure parking spot in a garage so i wont have to worry TOO much about this.

thanks for the all the replies everyone.

 

Parking garages are even worse then parking on the street if you're worried about theft. So basically you either want to get your car beat up or stolen in a parking garage.



2003 G35 Coupe 6mt Diamond Graphite
1992 Jeep Cherokee Blk 5.5 RE lift /w 33s
AIM= bkchang79

 

Calgoob: Hey. I go to Cal too. I am in the same boat you are in. I am deciding if i should get the g35 coupe. We don't really need it to get around in Berkeley, but if you have a job in Oakland you will def. need a car. For parking, try Berryman Ave. (head north on Shattuck and then West on Berryman) It is a gated parking garage (some covered spots). You can rent a space for 50/month-cheapest I can find. The rental office is Raj properties on University. If we both get it, we can park next to each other so we are sure not to ding each others' cars-they are very tight spots. I am thinking black, what do you think.

 

Take the G coupe if your dad is offering. I know i took the offer in a heartbeat. Your just like me..my parents pay for my gas too=)

2004 G35c Twilight Blue/black 6MT
Aero Package -- Splash Guards -- Premium -- Trunk Mat

 

ColdFusion geez u said that like you're proud of something :O