Much Point in owning a car?

[Bulman]

As I think ill be at STC this sep and most likely staying in halls, I was wondering if there was much point in keeping my car, I could still get a lot back for it and my insurance is due this month which last year cost me a lot (being a new driver and only 18.....)

I just wanted some advice from current cadets and people who have been in the same position, is it worth keeping a car for the transmute home from college etc or because you're at sea for 4/6 months of the year and living so close to college there's no point , what do you do?

[The H]

• Do you get paid enough each month to afford it?
• Will you need it to drive to the shops to buy food?
• Do you enjoy driving?
• Can you use it as a taxi for friends to get in and out of Newcastle? (Make a bit of money maybe)
• Will you be in halls next year? (Probably not) therefore will you need transport next year?

[Bulman]

I honestly don't have a clue to most those questions, I'm employed by Carnival UK but haven't been told any thing since the interview except that I got the job and I'm going down for a induction in July, which is where I expect to learn more information on how much we get paid etc.

[Maso210]

which is where I expect to learn more information on how much we get paid etc.

We get paid roughly ?780 a month out of which you must pay your rent as well as all of your living costs.

[Randomist]

I managed to run a car while I was in college. I enjoy driving and even though I work at sea I can't ever think about not having a car.

It depends what your financial priorities are. I don't see why you couldn't keep a car if you really wanted to. I was able to run a car, pay for accommodation and food and still have enough cash to go to the cinema a few times a month and go out to the pub.

[Faust]

It really all depends on who your sponsor is, or more importantly how much spare cash you will have at the end of the month.

I have a car and like Randomist can't imagine not having one... not in Warsash anyway; South Shields is a bit more connected to the world than Warsash.

[ETwhat?]

halls at STC are about 450 for 4weeks, so your not going to have a lot of spare cash if you have any payments running on your car monthly, however given that you will get paid whilst at sea and can save a decent amount of that, then you can use that to cover insurance, tax, mot etc it just might have to sit on a credit card for a few months till you go to sea depending on the timing.
You really dont need one in newcastle apart from a cheap ride home if you go into the city on a saturday night, but then you wont be drinking so might not seem such a good trade off, there are some cool things in and around the area so its good if you fancy a weekend break away but again depends on what your plans are for the weekends.
its definately going to be more use to you in further phases when your living in a flat and shopping weekly, but still the cost of a taxi or home delivery is not really the same as a car.
over all my advice would be keep it, you can always sell it at a later point.

[tomkent45]

I would't take the risk, if you dont know what your financial situation is going to be like then renewing your insurance could be a big dent in your finances!

[alistairuk]

To consider;

Do you have somewhere to store your car while at sea!

Do you have parking for it while you're at college? (most colleges do have limited parking facilities but given that during your later phases you might end up in flats in a city - parking can be expensive)

Yes, it's nice to have a car and the freedom to just get in it and go a drive / to supermarket in middle of the night, but all the colleges are served by public transport - even Warsash - ok, night time it's expensive to get in or out of Southampton, but there's plenty of Pubs in Farham and Warsash :-)

Also Warsash have those suspension destroying speed bumps on the road towards the college!!!!! Not looking forward to trying to get my MX5 over them in a few weeks when I'm doing my chief mates!

[The H]

Also Warsash have those suspension destroying speed bumps on the road towards the college!!!!! Not looking forward to trying to get my MX5 over them in a few weeks when I'm doing my chief mates!

Alistair, drive down Osborne and Pitchponds roads to miss the majority of the speed bumps.

[Ducki52]

Alistair, drive down Osborne and Pitchponds roads to miss the majority of the speed bumps.

Thats handy to know, my car doesn't particularly like speed bumps either. Luckily for me, I can get my wife to bankroll me (to an extent) through college, so my Jag isn't going just yet!

[marcus1608]

I have A mini cooper s and an E30 beemer so pretty sure i might have to make some sacrifices before college. Dont think i could live with no car though.

[Bulman]

Cheers for the advice guys, very much appreciated. I couldnt imagine life without driving but think I'm gonna ditch the car so i have some spending money, as when I settle down and get into more of a routine I can always buy a cheaper/lower running cost one!