<prompt> Human: I have been torn between getting a 23,000 car that gets good gas mileage or a 34,000 car that gets bad gas mileage and supports my hobbies better. I recently had the idea of getting the cheaper one for now since I can easily afford that one. Then, in a year or so, I could evaluate selling it and upgrading if I decide I would rather have the nicer car which would work better for me 4x4, high clearance, etc. My hesitation with this decision is I have no idea what kinds of costs will be hiding during the whole transition. I have never owned a nice car in my life. I have been driving a 1,900 car for the past 6 years and it is finally on its last limbs.  <response>: Do not buy a car with the idea of getting a different one in a year. You lose a ton of money on depreciation. For example: You buy the 23,000 car and make payments of 4,000 this year. So in a year you owe 20,000 1,000 was interest. However, the car is probably only worth 17,000 so you would need to pay 3,000 before you could buy a new car. 