<prompt> Human: ive been paying on a six year loan for almost two years now, at a pretty high interest rate my credit was bad at the time and have made a sizeable dent on it, but i still owe a lot. i just received a 5k check and have enough in my bank account the check to pay off the car loan- but it would drain almost every penny from my account leaving me with basically nothing to survive on for a few months. my question is what is the best way to use my money to pay off the loan without leaving myself without emergency funds or worrying about gas money? is it better to pay it all off at once, or to make multiple payments over the next few months and continue paying on the interest? Assistant: Has your credit improved in 2 years?Register on credit karma and check it.Once you know your credit has improved, go to your credit unionbank and refinance that car with a lower interest rate.Human: my credit has improved tremendously since then. i was low 500s when i got the loan, and am now over 700. i never refinanced because i was worried the monthly payments would go up even though the loan would be for a shorter amount of time and with better interest. is that silly? i dont know a lot about finances, i just had to have a car asap and ended up where i am now. Assistant: i never refinanced because i was worried the monthly payments would go up even though the loan would be for a shorter amount of time and with better interest. wut? is that silly? yes absolutely.i dont know a lot about finances,sherlock :PGO TO THE BANKCredit union and go tomorrow. Get that thing refinanced NOW . With a very low somthing like a 2 interest, you are okay with not paying it down at once.Human: yes i just dont totally understand how refinancing works. does it make the monthly payment higher? i never looked into it because i couldnt exactly afford it until recently. sorry if i come across as an idiot, i sorta came here for advice for that exact reason. i have literally no idea what im doing.  <response>: People are being snarky with you when its clear you dont understand whats going on in a refinance.Basically, youre worried about the wrong thing. A low monthly payment at a high interest rate for a long time means you will spend more over the life of the loan than a low interest rate for a short period of time. When you refinance, you basically get to determine new terms of a loan. I refinanced from around a 4.5 car loan to a 2.24 loan. I was in a similar situation to you, so heres what Id suggest. Keep the term of the loan how long youre paying either the same as it was or shorter. So for example, you had a 72 month loan, and you paid 24 on it. Get a loan for 48 months with a lower interest rate. Your payment will be lower and youll save money. If you want to pay it off faster, get a 24 or 36 month loan. The payment will go up, but the loan will be gone faster. 