Car Recommendations

[Nysoz]

Financially speaking, getting a Rav4 or CRV would be cheaper up front but with the gas/maintenance/depreciation savings a Tesla would catch up after 5ish years if you believe that depreciation is much less on the Tesla than an ICE (around 10 years for use/maintenance costs). Depending on your state, registering an EV may cost much more than an ICE.

I do agree that look at what kind of car you actually need. 2 kids in a CUV should be fine. I don't think that's mini van or full size SUV territory just yet (disclaimer is that I don't have kids). Definitely don't need the 7 seater model Y and some families get by with 2 kids in a sedan just fine as well. Also what're your driving habits like? Commute? How many road trips do you do?

The Tesla with AWD in snow is a beast, but I'm a strong believer that driving smart > snow tires on AWD > snow tires on RWD > all season AWD > all season RWD. So AWD isn't quite necessary but nice to have.

As burritos pointed out, new model Y estimated delivery for my location is December. All used ones are terribly marked up. End of September there are occasional end of quarter delivery pushes where you may be able to get a showroom vehicle.

To point out some things zlandar said, insurance costs may cost more for the Tesla with some insurance companies. I had to switch to Progressive which was cheaper than insuring my old highlander with Geico. Lots of factors of course, but I pay $100/mo to insure my 2019 Tesla model 3 and a 2021 Mercedes CLA250. Some insurance carriers give discounts with newer safety features. Some Tesla drivers do chew through tires quickly but that's more because of the high torque than the weight. EVs do weigh more than ICE but not that much. Driving more efficiently/reasonably, my OEM tires lasted 42k miles of the rated 45k miles with regular tire rotations.

Anyways, the model Y is a great car and what I would get for 1-2 kids if you wanted to pay for a semi-luxury EV/computer. If you're just looking for something to get from point A to B as cheaply/financially responsible as possible then any other options would be better. Take a good look at your financial situation, make sure you're saving appropriately for retirement, on track for your goals and see if you want/can afford the splurge.

[Lordosis]

Are you planning on having a 3rd kid next year? If not than you do not need 3 rows.

I doubt you really need AWD.

You can easily get by with a 4 door sedan but if you want to be "up high" a crossover would be the most you need.

[dayman]

Sorry, didn't mean to phrase it like that. I meant that more in the sense of spending $50k on a car. I hate spending money on cars and usually keep them 10+ years. Just need something bigger that handles the bad winter weather, and with starting to look around $35-50k is about that range for most decent size SUVs that are within a few years old.

Don't agree with the mindset of "well I need a family car, 35-50K is just what they cost". Sounds like you do need a family car, but there are lots of ways to do it cheaper.

We spent 17K-ish on a two year old Mazda CX-5 a couple of years ago. Nice car. More than big enough for our family of 4. Can get it AWD if you want.

You do what you want, but spending 50K on a car when you are fresh out of training with 325K in student loans is starting down a slippery slope...

[RheumMD]

I know this is not the point of the post but I'm trying to do the math on your overall situation.

Where do you live with a family of three/four and have a house that will fit you that costs 150k? You also said you were just starting private practice and usually that takes some time and money to get off the ground, no? You seem quite confident you're not going to have employment problems which is great, but it's not always the attitude that I expect.
I am suddenly fascinated by your situation.

Sorry, poorly worded. Have a mortgage (homeowner that the bank obviously owns). Has increased that much in equity since purchase. Just throwing the overall financial picture out there as most recent grads don't have a house, equity, decent retirement accounts, etc. I joined a private practice group, not starting my own.

[RheumMD]

Are you planning on having a 3rd kid next year? If not than you do not need 3 rows.

I doubt you really need AWD.

You can easily get by with a 4 door sedan but if you want to be "up high" a crossover would be the most you need.

Thanks. My two sister in laws live down the street and they each have two kids so we are kind of a carpool gang these days. That's really the only reason for a bigger car. AWD certainly not 100% necessary, but there are definitely days it is a necessity as they don't plow streets here and I cannot get anywhere in my FWD Civic. Appreciate everyone's responses, I'm gonna start looking more into the $20-25k SUV range, used cars are just really tough to find these days.

[RheumMD]

Don't agree with the mindset of "well I need a family car, 35-50K is just what they cost". Sounds like you do need a family car, but there are lots of ways to do it cheaper.

We spent 17K-ish on a two year old Mazda CX-5 a couple of years ago. Nice car. More than big enough for our family of 4. Can get it AWD if you want.

You do what you want, but spending 50K on a car when you are fresh out of training with 325K in student loans is starting down a slippery slope...

Thanks. Was going to look at Mazdas as well, CX-5 and CX-9. I hate buying expensive cars, and my original plan was the $20-30k range so will look around more.

[RheumMD]

So what are your priorities? Utility? People mover? Cost efficiency? Value over years? Green? Badge?

AWD = weather/driving vs really need AWD - rural - high clearance.

3rd row mid-SUV = worthless beyond kindergarten sized kids.

You have a X3. Use that as your litmus test of size of car.

The mere mention of 3rd row speaks that you're best suited for Minivan land if Pilot is deemed 'too big'.

If minivan: Honda/Toyota would be my suggestion (still own our Odyssey 2004). or hybrid chrylser pacifica if you really want an electric option.

If purely midSized and really not needing that 3rd row beyond the rare occasional; you may get away with Y or highlander or Mitsubishi. -- just be cautious on this.


We love our Y. Drove up from San Diego and staying in Monterey this week with the family, dog, and the Y. Plenty of room and comfortable. Even did autopilot yesterday on hwy 1 to test it out -- that was an E-ticket ride

Thanks for the reply. People mover and driving to work are the biggest things. Making use of the solar panels on our house is nice also. 3rd row is really for carpool, I have 4 nieces/nephews that live down the street, purely for kids. I will also look into minivans, though not great for commuting to work.

[udrag14]

I drove a majority of 7 seater a couple years ago [before Model Y].

Most of the 7 seater ICE vehicles are quite small in the 7th seat.

We got a Subaru Ascent. It is quite practical and large for an AWD. I have no complaints with it.

[StarTrekDoc]

Thanks for the reply. People mover and driving to work are the biggest things. Making use of the solar panels on our house is nice also. 3rd row is really for carpool, I have 4 nieces/nephews that live down the street, purely for kids. I will also look into minivans, though not great for commuting to work.

When you have that many little ones and project into the future all the equipment you'll be hauling...minivan is the only way to go. There simply isn't anything it can't do. The harder part is the weather that sounds a bit challenging where the minivan may struggle at times.

Outback maybe an option.

We took a close look at the Niro too while waiting for the Y and that maybe worthwhile as they have three different engines that maybe suitable to you.

[VentAlarm]

You can buy whatever you want and it’s not going to financially ruin you. The issue that buying something nice now is emblematic of failing to delay gratification. The “right” move is to buy something cheap but reliable until your loans are paid off then upgrade cash. Something like a 5y/o pilot or cx9 or something. Then, 3 years from now, save up cash and buy whatever you want. Buying a Tesla now would only set your plan back a few months; which means nothing in the long run, but could be the first of many decisions that you make to set you back “just a couple more months” if you next decide to upgrade the house, then front load 529s, then upgrade house, then get solar panels, then furnish, then a little land scaling, then do the deck, then upgrade the other family car. It’s essentially a slippery slope argument against it.

[RheumMD]

You can buy whatever you want and it’s not going to financially ruin you. The issue that buying something nice now is emblematic of failing to delay gratification. The “right” move is to buy something cheap but reliable until your loans are paid off then upgrade cash. Something like a 5y/o pilot or cx9 or something. Then, 3 years from now, save up cash and buy whatever you want. Buying a Tesla now would only set your plan back a few months; which means nothing in the long run, but could be the first of many decisions that you make to set you back “just a couple more months” if you next decide to upgrade the house, then front load 529s, then upgrade house, then get solar panels, then furnish, then a little land scaling, then do the deck, then upgrade the other family car. It’s essentially a slippery slope argument against it.

Totally agreed. We live very modestly and don't spend much, nor do I anticipate increasing that much. It sort of comes back to the student loan argument with interest rates being so low right now (I'm looking at refinancing and getting around 2.6%), then I am questioning why it is necessary to pay them off so quickly since that doesn't add a lot to total interest on a 7-10 year refinance and makes it easier to cash flow month to month. Big purchases definitely aren't a good idea right now, but a car upgrade is needed at some point. Smart sense says to go for something more in the $20-30k range, so that's likely what I'll end up doing.

[Nysoz]

We spent 17K-ish on a two year old Mazda CX-5 a couple of years ago. Nice car. More than big enough for our family of 4. Can get it AWD if you want.

You do what you want, but spending 50K on a car when you are fresh out of training with 325K in student loans is starting down a slippery slope...

Out of curiosity I checked for used ones. 2019 Mazda CX-5 are around $25-30k around me. Going older gets you closer to $20-25k.

Unfortunately this is a problem with the used car market now. Spending $17k instead of $50k makes sense cause that’s a huge stretch. Spending $30k instead of $50k for that used car much less of a stretch or sense. Let alone a new one that runs around $40k.

[RheumMD]

Out of curiosity I checked for used ones. 2019 Mazda CX-5 are around $25-30k around me. Going older gets you closer to $20-25k.

Unfortunately this is a problem with the used car market now. Spending $17k instead of $50k makes sense cause that’s a huge stretch. Spending $30k instead of $50k for that used car much less of a stretch or sense. Let alone a new one that runs around $40k.

Agreed, it's a weird time. Used Tesla Y's are going for $5-10k over the price of a new one. Part of that is the manufacturing being backed up and December being the earliest ship date, but it's been the same with pretty much all used cars. One of the few times that buying new with a nice warranty might make more sense than used.

[childay]

When you have that many little ones and project into the future all the equipment you'll be hauling...minivan is the only way to go. There simply isn't anything it can't do. The harder part is the weather that sounds a bit challenging where the minivan may struggle at times.

+1. As slightly painful as it is to admit, the sienna is quite nice. Both sienna and pacifica come with AWD option.

[VentAlarm]

Totally agreed. We live very modestly and don't spend much, nor do I anticipate increasing that much. It sort of comes back to the student loan argument with interest rates being so low right now (I'm looking at refinancing and getting around 2.6%), then I am questioning why it is necessary to pay them off so quickly since that doesn't add a lot to total interest on a 7-10 year refinance and makes it easier to cash flow month to month. Big purchases definitely aren't a good idea right now, but a car upgrade is needed at some point. Smart sense says to go for something more in the $20-30k range, so that's likely what I'll end up doing.

And, as above, I get that the Tesla is cool, but as the dad of three kids, I can tell you that the cool days are behind you. Get something practical. Heck, buy a pilot or odyssey with 100k miles on it, then get a model S as a toy in a couple years if you want. With y’all’s income, it’s not inappropriate to buy a 50k toy when the loans are paid off.

My neighbors had their third kid a couple months ago. The husband texted me that his wife told him “leave and come back with a minivan. I don’t care what it looks like, just go get it today.”