<prompt> Human: Long time lurker, first time poster...-Spent 8,200 of the settlement to pay off student loans-Have 7,000 in a separate savings account-Have 8,900 left to pay on my car KBB value10,500, this is my only debt-I rent but would like to purchase a house within 3 yearsThe unreliability of my vehicle has me looking at a 20,000 2014 Mazda CX-5 extremely high reliability rating on consumer reports-What are the advantagesdisadvantages of trading in my car to purchase the newer one? Do I use the settlement money to buy the vehicle or do I get a new loan?-For my future home down payment, what are some 3 year options to invest my money to maximize my return?  <response>: The unreliability of my vehicle has me lookingThis is always the excuse people use to justify wasting money on a new car. If you want to buy a newer car, thats fine, but please dont justify it as a good financial decision... because it almost never is. 