<prompt> Human: Recently graduated and need to buy a car for my new job. Should I buy a new car that could take the heavy driving or buy a used one? The company does the IRS rate for gas reimbursement Ill be a field engineer. I have 4,000 in savings and will be making around 50k a year with 500 going to parents and car insurance. Trying to save 1,000 a month for graduate school down the road, and putting 400 towards loans. I think I should buy something new, I dont want to have to pay out of pocket for gas, wear, and tear due to the matching not being enough money. Edit: Thanks for the advice everyone. For the record its the Long Island area so traffic and rush hour is expected.  <response>: Engineer here, and one who spent 8 years as a field engineer too.Buy used. 1 you already have debt, commitments, and minimal savings. Dont make it worse than necessary.2 the job might suck. I lived it and have seen how hard it is for people. It would be awful to buy new, get hit with depreciation, and then be stuck in your job due to higher-debt load.3 the main thing to watch out for on modern cars is failing electronic systems. Theyre balls to fix. Mechanical stuff is pretty easy to DIY if and when required. 