Have you ever done anything out of character? Something random out of the blue that you spent time planning for, and you jumped the gun and did it earlier than anticipated. Donāt think about it; dive in. Thatās precisely what I did last weekend.
Last week, I got a 2024 Kia Sportage, the SX Prestige trim. Itās the first new car Iāve purchased. I wanted the car at the end of 2024 but decided to purchase it now. The decision was easy, but what led to this decision? To sum up, I got the car because things felt stable in my life now. I will elaborate more later, but I wanted to focus on why I chose this car.
I read many articles, and people Iāve talked to had mixed reviews of Kia cars, both in terms of liking them and reliability. But, my family hasnāt had any issues with the Kia cars we got. Back in 2020, my family got a 2021 Kia Seltos. It was the first new car that anyone purchased. The car runs well, and it is still running well today. In July 2022, we traded another vehicle for a 2023 Kia Sportage. It was my momās car, and when I drove it, I enjoyed what the car had to offer. I wasnāt ready then for the car, but I knew I wanted to get one later. I tried to ride my vehicle until the āwheels fell off.ā Well, I drove my last car to 157,000 miles before I gave in.
Do I regret this decision? Short Term answer: Yes and no.
I once again have car payments. This car costs $41,000 after taxes, title, and trade-in. I havenāt had to make a car payment for the past four years. My last vehicle was a $264 payment each month. It was nice to put that money away for savings or other purchases I wanted. Even putting $15,000 down, I took out a four-year loan at 5.25% APR, and my payments are $619 a month, 2.5x what I paid on my last car loan. I have the money to cover it and plan to repay the loan in at least three and a half years or sooner. I would not go above 48 months, and neither should anyone reading this article that is getting a new or used vehicle. From what Iāve read from Clark Howard, it makes sense to follow the rule of 42 when you get a car loan.
Iām happy with my purchase. The previous car I drove was a 2014 Mazda CX-5. To me, getting the Sportage is a considerable upgrade. Driving my momās car, I envied the safety features and Apple CarPlay she had. Now that I have that in my car and more features. I wanted the hybrid model and went with the SX Prestige Model for the features. I was looking for features in a car, such as a moonroof, safety sensors, blind spot camera mirrors, and a temperature-controlled cabin. There were even features that I didnāt know the car had, like mood lighting and scheduling when to start your car on the app. There are many things that Iād like to mention that I donāt have time to put down right now.
Overall, Iām happy with this car. I may revisit this later on as I continue to use it. Is there anything that I should be aware of? Are people pleased with the vehicle or disappointed? Please let me know in the comments.
