I very recently purchased a used car from a dealership (the car was a
2005 in excellent condition with only 12,450 miles on the odometer) but
due to a change in circumstances I'm not going to be able to afford the
monthly payment. However, I do still need a car, albeit a cheap banger
that's going to last me three or four years at most (something for
three or four thousand bucks at the most).

I have hardly paid off anything on the 2005 yet. I no longer have cash
to put down (I didn't put much down to begin with because I financed
with a Capitol One Blank Check) and yes, my loan is "upside-down",
although not by very much (the taxes and fees are what pushed the price
past blue book dealer value).

What I would like to do is trade in the 2005 and get a cheapo banger
instead from the dealer. The problem is going to be the difference
between what the dealer is going to give me on the trade in and what I
still owe on the car (and for the record, I have no choice but to
finance the cheapo car, that's the kind of situation I'm in). The
difference is going to be like 3000 bucks.

I don't know how this sort of thing works as I've never been in this
predicament before; is there any way the dealer would roll over the
amount I'd still owe in cash into my new (much lower) loan, for the
banger?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

-J.D.

ElizabethDane (AT) gmail (DOT) com wrote:
Divorce is hell, ain't it!

Don't mean to make light of your predicament, but I've been there
before--due to a divorce.

Only thing you can do is try going back to the selling dealer to see if
he'll work with you. Is he (or someone he pushes) carrying your loan?
If so, he might be more willing to do something for you. If you
financed elsewhere, he could probably care less.

Don't know your time line, but you might try AUTO TRADER, if you have
that where you live. They take a picture of the car, and run the ad for
3-4 weeks for a fairly reasonable price (used to be around $30).

HTH!

Wanderer