Long commute - car or train?

[Zanza]

But not on a 1 hour commute. Why would you want to sleep on a short distance suburban "bullet train". It's idiotic.

Eh? Have you ever been on a commuter train? Half the people there nap.

[crazy canuck]

A nap of the length we're talking about here is going to be just long enough to make you groggy without getting rested.

The thing I miss most about taking public transit is the restorative naps I could take - even though I had a relatively short commute of about 30 minutes.   Power naps are great.

[Tamas]

Thank you guys.

With the timing of other stuff, I will probably postpone the car buying to January (if I buy one).

So, different topic: what kind of a car? What I have had in mind was kind of re-buying the car I had back in Hungary: a glorious 2005 Toyota Corolla. Automatic so the abomination of having to shift gears with my left hand won't obscure me from the horror of driving on the left.

This plan would place me in the bracket of paying anything between 2000-3500 pounds for a 10 years old car.

I have two dilemmas:
-Shouldn't I use that as downpayment for buying a newer car (say, 5-3 years old) on loan?
-Shouldn't I assume that this is a temporary car in the grander scheme of things, and buy a really cheap one (after, say, the 11-12 years old mark prices start to plummet), expecting to get rid of it in a few years?

Thanks for confirming that you wanted to buy a car all along and just wanted validation for the choice you already made.

Actually I am not yet SURE about it. But there are no follow-up dilemmas with train travel

[Barrister]

A nap of the length we're talking about here is going to be just long enough to make you groggy without getting rested.

The thing I miss most about taking public transit is the restorative naps I could take - even though I had a relatively short commute of about 30 minutes.   Power naps are great.

Yeah napping on the train is great - until you miss your stop. 

[crazy canuck]

Tamas, for the few times you are actually going to need a car you can rent a better one than you could afford to buy and insure.  Its what we did when our oldest could start driving on his own.  It made no sense to buy an additional vehicle just for convenience.  On the very rare occasion that we each needed our own vehicle we just rented.   Saved tens of thousands of dollars doing it that way.

[crazy canuck]

A nap of the length we're talking about here is going to be just long enough to make you groggy without getting rested.

The thing I miss most about taking public transit is the restorative naps I could take - even though I had a relatively short commute of about 30 minutes.   Power naps are great.

Yeah napping on the train is great - until you miss your stop. 

[dps]

Thank you guys.

With the timing of other stuff, I will probably postpone the car buying to January (if I buy one).

So, different topic: what kind of a car? What I have had in mind was kind of re-buying the car I had back in Hungary: a glorious 2005 Toyota Corolla. Automatic so the abomination of having to shift gears with my left hand won't obscure me from the horror of driving on the left.

This plan would place me in the bracket of paying anything between 2000-3500 pounds for a 10 years old car.

I have two dilemmas:
-Shouldn't I use that as downpayment for buying a newer car (say, 5-3 years old) on loan?
-Shouldn't I assume that this is a temporary car in the grander scheme of things, and buy a really cheap one (after, say, the 11-12 years old mark prices start to plummet), expecting to get rid of it in a few years?

As a general rule, I don't believe in going into debt for a used car.  If you can't afford the down payment and payments for a new car, get something old enough that you can just pay cash for it.

If you do get a used car, do get an independent mechanic to check it out for you before you sign anything.

And unless car rentals are significantly less expensive in the RotW than they are in the US, don't listen to the people who are telling you to rent a car when you need one.  Renting a car is terribly inefficient financially.  You might look into leasing, though.  I'm not sure about how it works in Europe, but in the US leasing can often get you a bigger/newer/better equipped car than you could get from buying one outright at the same cost, especially if you aren't going to put a lot of mileage on it. 

Not sure exactly what all is available in England, but Corollas are good and reliable, if boring, cars.  In theory, I'd recommend something smaller if you're planning on mainly using it on your commute, but I'd feel like a hypocrite if I did so--in practice, I like big cars, cost (within reason) be damned.  Of course, fuel costs are less over here, which makes it easier to take that attitude.

[Admiral Yi]

I haven't rented in a coon dog's age, but back when I was in DC I used to rent regularly and it was dirt cheap.  Around $20 a day.

I.e., roughly the price of a cheeseburger in England.

[mongers]

My weapon car of choice when I lived in London, was a Avenger estate 'customised with a different coloured hood, tailgate and red drivers door, that along with it having the fenders/bumpers removed, seemed to give other drivers the impression they should get outta the way asap.

[Eddie Teach]

How were the hydraulics?

[mongers]

How were the hydraulics?

What are those?

If you mean suspension, I'd say the ride could be characterized as barrelling.

[Eddie Teach]

How were the hydraulics?

What are those?

If you mean suspension, I'd say the ride could be characterized as barrelling.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=if-iCCJmX44

[MadImmortalMan]

My weapon car of choice when I lived in London, was a Avenger estate 'customised with a different coloured hood, tailgate and red drivers door, that along with it having the fenders/bumpers removed, seemed to give other drivers the impression they should get outta the way asap.

You aren't doing anything to alter my perception of you as Richard Briers.

[Tamas]

Leasing is very intriguing actually

Could backfire badly due to strict contract terms though,  I guess.


Plus I better talk to an agent as they might not be too hot about leasing to a recent immigrant like me.

[Admiral Yi]

Leasing doesn't help you at all Tamas.  It's just like owning except that the dealership retains the resale rights.