Purchasing a vehicle is one of most people\’s most significant purchases. You can easily make a purchase that can follow you for years due to having a lack of knowledge in this area. I wanted to jump into this theme on car hacking to ensure that your car purchase serves you well rather than becoming a slave to it.
Other than the topic of giving, this is one that I absolutely love to talk to people about because it\’s something that I approach in a non-traditional way. I\’ve figured out a system that works well for me and which I believe will benefit you as well.
Where It All Started
Growing up, I loved everything that had to do with cars. I remember being a little boy and playing with my matchbox cars, building lego cars, buying car magazines, studying the stats incessantly about those cars, and telling everyone about them. I also remember pretending to develop businesses based on detailing cars, selling car parts, and things like that. My love for cars led me right into my teen years when I bought my first car, which I did even before I could drive. I also began figuring out how I could purchase cars and improve them. These things were a source of enjoyment for me.
Going through that process, I always remember people telling me about how cars are a black hole–something that you buy, drive into the ground, and have a salvage value for it. People repeatedly talk about how they\’ve lost the shirt on their backs by purchasing a new car–buying it high, and then selling it low and using negative equity to buy another car.
So as I thought about it, I was like, Okay, why are people doing this continuously, considering that it\’s such an expensive way to operate what would be an asset, per se. Is there a different way than just driving it into the ground or trading it in every couple of years and losing tremendous value on it?
I really started trying to think if there was a different way to treat that investment and move in a direction where it would work for you.
So, I began my journey with the purpose not only to get me from point a to point b but also from an enjoyment standpoint while factoring in Warren Buffett\’s rule number 1 and number 2, which come down to not losing money.
Trial and Error
When I was going through that process, I was trying to figure out how I could beat the system and win when purchasing vehicles. I had a long period of trial and error throughout high school, college, and beyond that to follow this track of figuring out what to buy, how much to buy it at, and how to add value and sell it at the market price when it comes time to sell it. This trial and error period allowed me the opportunity to ensure that I would be able to drive that vehicle for free and be able to sell it without losing money.
I\’ve used this approach to buy and sell every vehicle I\’ve owned with the end in sight. Begin with the end in sight with each purchase.
I\’ve done this with over 60 cars now, and it continues to be an ongoing process. These are cars I would personally buy, drive, and utilize until I decided to buy something else. For the most part, this process has been a successful systematic approach to buying and has enabled a process that has benefited me from never having to pay for transportation costs.
As we go through this theme on transportation, we will go through a number of these tips and tricks to ensure that you purchase a vehicle with purpose and which lasts as long as possible. We will also talk about how the industry works and if your purchase fits your plan to spend and plan for margin.
But to start, take a look at your last car purchase. Think about whether that was a positive or negative experience. Determine whether you walked away from it feeling empowered, based on the research you had done, or whether you got roped into purchasing something you didn\’t necessarily hope to buy, such as additional warranties or accessories. Think through all these things and decide whether you would make those decisions again.
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