<prompt> Human: Hi guys,So Im thinking of buying my first car but i have some questions as to how to go about it. My budget is around 5,000. Just wondering what makes the most sense:A Wait untill i save up 5,000 and then buy the carB Take out a loan of 5,000 and pay it over 2 years at 9 interestC Wait till i have 5,000 saved up and then take out the same loan as option B.Im just confused of the pros and cons. I generally like to buy my things straight upfront. But my mother recently told me to always spend someone elses money. Any opinions are welcome. Cheers.  <response>: I bought my first car two years ago. Heres how it wentI didnt get trapped by the How much payment can you afford question and kept fighting with the sales guy No I only care about total price. One sales guy suggested that this brilliant trick he and his wife used was to finance their cars for 10 years so that the payments were super affordable. I believe I said, What that is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard, the math does not work at all, you guys should not do that I did not buy a car from himUltimately, I pick a car that was 8200, low miles, year 2011 . Perfect. I was preapproved by the bank for 3.5 loan, but the dealership offered me 2.8 so I went with their financing.I also declined all warranties rust proofing which is a scam, roadside assistance comes with my insurance already etc. So, successfully avoided the upsell. Even told the manager thanks for the presentation, youre doing a good job, but I do not want anything.MFing taxes and fees is the thing I didnt know to expect. At the end of the sale, I signed for 10500, and yes, Im sure a lot of it was BS made up dealership fees. And then I had to go pay for property taxes.The car is in perfect condition and Ive driven it 20k miles in two years which is low. Its now worth 4400 according to online estimates, so probably would sell for a bit less. So, paid 10500, now worth 4400. Ouch.I had a 5 year loan but Ive paid it off this year because I hate having to borrow money. By paying it off early I saved a few hundred in interest, and I can switch my insurance to collision, which will save an additional 50 a month.tldr - save up and pay cash if you possibly can. Spending other peoples money costs you extra. 