<prompt> Human: Hello Personal Finance!I am a 23 yr old young man and I am a seasonal traveler. Ill be working at a ski resort in Colorado this winter, earning 15 an hour, four 10-hr shifts a week, paying 430month for rent. Very simple lifestyle with no debt, no bills, and I have about 5000 in savings. I have a current Class B CDL with Passenger endorsement, I dont drink or partake any longer, so my budget is pretty straight forward. I am confident at this point in my life that I can maintain 15hr work for about 11 months out of the year, possibly a bit more than that. I have fall-back options if necessary, and I have family that can help in a worst case scenario. However, I NEED a vehicle... a capable, reliable vehicle that can handle this winters ice and snow conditions, and that can navigate off-road competently come summer. Im thinking of buying something that will serve me well for several years. I intend to take excellent care of it as it will be my largest investment yet, and a necessary one at that.I have been with Wells Fargo bank for 15 years thanks mom for opening an account for me when I was 8, but I still do not have a credit card. Thus far Ive taken a bit of pride in knowing that absolutely everything I own I have paid for with money I already have. In any case, I feel it is too late to join a credit union and pursue a loan through them. I know not to accept financing from the dealership. My thought process right now is to inquire for an auto loan through wells fargo and find out what the maximum amount they would be willing to offer me, and to use that as consideration for my budget. At the same time, I plan on searching for a vehicle at a dealership, shopping online, making offers. I am somewhere in Utah and I can fly standby for free family member works with an airline, and I have family in Colorado Springs and Phoenix, so Ill search dealerships in those areas. I might also be able to search Las Vegas.Ideally I will be able to find a vehicle I am interested in and get a good offer for it. Ill be aiming for an email with a straight-forward We dealership will offer you X Vehicle for ___, something I can print out and bring with me when I go in Person. If they all of a sudden dont have it when I show up, Ill walk away immediately.From there, though, Im at a loss. This is my first time having to do this and I want to do it right. I dont know whether I should lease a vehicle or buy one immediately via the funds from whatever loan I manage to get. My goal is to own this vehicle, ideally as quickly as possible.I dont know whether to decline their financing immediately and just pay up front with the funds from my loan from the bank, then just focus on paying off my loan within the time period in my case, as ahead of schedule as I can responsibly manage. Or if I should keep my loanmoney a secret from the dealership, take them up on financinga deal, then pay that off in full come the first bill. Also Im a bit undecided when it comes down to exactly what I am looking formy ultimate budget. I feel that I will need a loan, and that I need to get something tip-top right from the start, but I dont have very much time to pull the trigger on this and I dont have time to test drive a bunch of things etc. Frankly, I will likely have to take about 4 days off of work about two weeks from now, fly to either Phoenix or Colorado Springs, take a day or two hitting dealerships and test driving things, make a purchase on day 3 and drive it back to where Im at. Thoughts on that?As for the vehicles I am considering, they are in no particular order:Subaru ForesterToyota TacomaToyota 4RunnerNissan XTerraPossibly Honda Ridgeline.I am open to other suggestions, and furthermore would greatly appreciate insight into any particularly stand-out model years for these vehicles, if you happen to have experience with them. For what its worth I am a very safe and capable driver, and I would absolutely LOVE a manual transmission though unfortunately I cant seem to find them being offered. My lifestyle is basically spending a summer here, winter there. Five and a half months in each place. Work hard, play hard, travel. So I need a car that is reliable and can get me, my girlfriend, and ALL of our stuff Backpacks, duffel bags, suit cases, mini-fridge, camping gear, clothes, mountain bikes, skis and snowboards, etc across the country if need be, then when offloaded be able to handle everything else. Being a daily drivercommuter, weekend adventuresoffroading, winter storms, desert heat, about anything you can think of. My research is indicating these vehicles as what to look into... each of course with their own pros and cons. Based off of all my considerations, I believe that the most I can afford to spend will be about 35,000... and I know that may be a bit high, but I want to worry about my vehicle working for me first and foremost. Buy once, cry once. Furthermore, I have very little in the way of expenses. Everything I have right now I already own, and I seriously dont Need ANYTHING else other than what I have. I can confidently dedicate the next 2 years to exclusively paying off this vehicle. Many of my jobs also procure good tips, and I canwill take on side jobs driving for UberGuidingfront-of-house restaurant work to supplement my income. In a rather literal sense, buying a damn good vehicle is akin to buying a house for me. I need to get it by the end of October, and I want to pay it off ASAFUCKINGP, so I can get back to being absolutely carefree :. Any and all input would be most appreciated. I dont know what I dont know. Hit me with it!!! I will be checking back here as often as possible and will be more than happy to replyconverse. Thank you! Happy travels near and far!EDIT: Sorry about formatting, this is basically my first lengthy reddit post. Also I realize that I have registration, Insurance, gas, and maintenance to consider, and I dont yet know what those will be. Frankly, Im not worried about them. If I Need help from family I can get it. For now my immediate concern is getting some wheels.  <response>: It sounds like you WANT a new car, but you dont NEED one. Id buy a 3-5k car, completely own it, and make money at your job. Lets say you are able to get a loan for a car that is 35k. You will have to pay interest on that loan and by the time its paid off it will only be work 10k. AND nothing is guaranteed. You may not always be making the money you will be making. Im all about just taking a cheap car, investing a thousand in it between maintenance and fixes, then owning something that makes me money rather than having something that owns me that I have to constantly pay for. Buying from private sellers is where its at, but if you have to a car lot will work. Private seller cars are usually better taken care of and much cheaper than car lot.I basically did the same thing. Bought a 7k car and have kept it up. I dont compare finances with my friends much, but I know I am in zero debt and a portion of my paycheck goes in my bank account rather than into a payment. 