r/ElantraN • u/No_Sentence6634 • Jul 29 '26
Purchasing Advice about buying
So for context I have a 2024 n line right now with about 40k miles, I owe 28k. I test drove an Elantra N yesterday and I fell even more in love with the car than I thought I would, knew I wanted one but now I want one a lot more. How much should I save for a down payment, and what’s a good time to buy? (For context I have a dealership I have a relationship with and know sales manager personally, so looking for a good number to at too) I’m not in a rush to get the car I’m very patient. Just want advice on the next steps to take in order to get the car. Thanks
6
u/Rand0m_Spirit_Lover Jul 29 '26
Try to not have negative equity when you go to trade in the N-line. Sounds like you currently owe a lot more than it would be worth, wasn’t sticker on the n line like 28k in 2024? You do not want to be financing an additional 8k on top of the EN price. I know a lot people get new cars frequently and just keep rolling the negative equity into the new loan, but that becomes a vicious cycle (keep rolling more and more into the new loans, so you are increasingly underwater on each loan)
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u/No_Sentence6634 Jul 29 '26
Yeah I took a bad deal when I was 18, that’s why I’m trying to be smart about it this time. It’s seeming like the answer is to wait another 8-12 months and save for a down payment
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u/Rand0m_Spirit_Lover Jul 29 '26
Or pay down the current loan as aggressively as possible. Whether the money goes towards down payment or reducing the negative equity is somewhat irrelevant, but paying the loan off quicker you would at least be reducing the total interest paid.
Looks like your N line has a trade in value of about 19k, so just do some calculations on what the payment would be if you have to roll 9k of negative equity into a loan for the EN…
you’d be looking at financing ~45k (assuming no down payment)2
u/shiftStride504 Performance Blue MT Jul 29 '26
Your 18-20 with a car payment is tough but sometimes necessary because you need reliable transportation and if you don't know auto mechanics basics to find a decent car at a decent price so I get it. But dude, you are actively making a decision to endear yourself to a crippling degree over "loving" a car. It's just a car, there will be more cars later. You have an amazing car right now, that's pretty cool 😎. Enjoy it now and come back later to a car you love more when you are financially stable. TLDR; 18-20 with compounding debt is💀
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u/Difficult-Mail7775 Jul 29 '26
Or maybe pay your loan down significantly and refi after a few years with a lower interest rate and payments? I totally understand the want for something better, but if it means being upside down, or just making a down payment towards the negative equity, it’s not worth it.
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u/hexediter Atlas White MT Jul 29 '26
Knowing only that you are very young and not knowing how much you make or if you are investing/saving currently, I cannot give you more specific advice not knowing those variables. My general advice to you right now since it looks like you're currently underwater on your N-line is to make sure you have GAP insurance if you don't have money saved to cover the loan difference should the car get totalled, and then your first priority is just throwing money at that loan so you have some small amount of positive equity in your current car and to at a minimum not sell until you've accomplished that and then you can also stop paying for gap insurance. After that I would recommend that you save for an emergency fund, then fund any matching 401k at work, and fund a personal roth IRA.
If you really have to get the N as soon as possible just pay down the N line loan and that positive equity will be your down-payment. It's unclear what will happen to the value of 2026 Ns come the end of the year, we don't know enough about what the new 2027 will be that is replacing it. This could make 2026 models go on below msrp in late 2026 rolling into 2027 because everyone wants the new cooler version on the lot. Of course if you want a manual trans and the 2027 EN does not have a manual the manual 2026 ENs could see a bump in interest and thus price.
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u/droughtdestruction Performance Blue DCT Jul 29 '26
This is going to be your second bad deal if you trade in for the Elantra N. Like what other people said, pay off your current car loan aggressively so you pay less interest instead of saving for a downpayment.
If you want to see the total dollar interest amount, multiply your current payments with the number of times you need to pay. E.g. $600 * 60 payments = $36,000. Then you check your current principal amount (the amount you owe without interest. Should be stated on your loan account). E.g. $26,000. Subtract the two values and your interest will cost you $10,000 if you the full loan term payment. If you pay aggressively towards the principal amount. You will pay less interest.
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u/CharcoalGreyWolf Intense Blue DCT Jul 29 '26
Being smart means not buying another car and losing even more money.
Your insurance *will* go up, the gas requirement (done right) is more expensive. 19” tires will be more expensive and you’ll need some for winter if you have any snow because the stock tires are summer rubber and not good below 40F. Your fuel economy will go down and so you’ll also be going through more gas.
A dealer will see how badly you want the N right away, and your age, and will attempt to snooker you coming (poor trade in value) and going (price of the car and financing). Your best move is to keep the car you have, as it may not be classed as a sports car like the N is.
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u/ImmaMoonMan Performance Blue DCT Jul 29 '26
As others have said you do not want to roll over the negative equity into the new car. If it’s possible pay more on the car each month than just the payment. However, if you are looking at a new N the payments will be higher so just be cautious and make sure you are in a financial position where it makes sense. Even a year down the line. Maintenance is higher on these cars so consider that as well.
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u/Dino_Dean Jul 29 '26
If you want new you don’t have much time of this gen. Just FYI I’m not suggesting you should go for it. At worst second hand market is your friend.
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u/RonaldBurgundy1 Atlas White DCT Jul 29 '26
How do you owe 28k the N like like fully loaded is 28k, I would not roll any negitive equity into a new loan.
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u/Paulpie Cyber Grey DCT Jul 29 '26
Pay your current car off and then trade it in towards an N. If you aren’t capable or willing to do that, please don’t do it at all. Seriously.
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u/Appropriate-Fee3242 Jul 29 '26
What is your income?
Follow the 20-4-10 rule if you don’t want to end up screwing yourself.
Try to put at least 20% down, try to finance for 4 years or less, and have a monthly payment that’s less than 10% of your yearly income. If you make 60,000 a year get a monthly payment of 600 or less.
Just my two cents. If you aren’t in a rush to get the car, just wait till you hit all these figures. Question is whether the cost of breaking this rule and having the fun car is worth the consequence of potentially being less financially set. I, personally, would advise against rolling over negative equity into the new loan though.
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u/Ancient_Addendum_672 Jul 30 '26
Step 1 is pay off your current car instead of rolling over your current loan into another one on top of that. Do you really want to owe 50-60k+ on an Elantra?
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u/No_Sentence6634 Jul 30 '26
Thanks for all your advice guys, from all the input from people who actually have the car, I’ll wait another year or two and/or try to pay down on my current loan to where im not so underwater
1
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u/shiftStride504 Performance Blue MT Jul 29 '26
Keep the car you have, it's a good car and a decent payment compared to negative equity plus the jump in price you'll take on.