u/CommitteeNo9270

Assuming 15k vs 10k

100k miles

4 year financing vs 2 years

3k down

Im going to be buying a car in the next few months, very midrange im trying to keep it around 10-15k. My question is, im also saving to purchase a house in the next 3-5 years. Probably towards the end of that 4 years mark. My question is, is it smarter to have a shorter loan term to save money on interest? Or should i try and go for a longer loan term so that my auto loan doesnt fall off of my credit by the time i go to purchase a house. That way it can be at a very low balance, but not reduce my credit age history.

Some other things to note

-im junior enlisted military so VA home loan

-i have 3k student loans, but they arent collecting interest because of SCRA, should i delay paying those off entirely too? Just get the balance really low?

-longer term would let me get closer to the 15k range while still having enough to put 50% of what i make into savings/tsp

If im missing anything blatantly obvious lmk

20m in the military. Basically im looking for a used car that i dont have to worry too much about aside from regular maintenance. Under 12k and no more than 120k miles. Im near San Jose, CA, if that helps. Ive narrowed it down to a few options and i have pros and cons to each, but i wanna know if theres anything i missed.

Corolla (2015-2020)

-hardest to find in my budget

-most reliable

-2nd most fuel efficient

-i like the interior

-safest bet but also a little boring

Mazda3 (2016-2020)

-very reliable

-up to 2018, theyre the easiest to find, but after the facelift, theyre almost impossible to find in my budget

-pretty good gas mileage

-i hate the interior of the pre facelift years, love the ones after it.

-feels a little cheap

-easy to find in a manual (which i would probably go for)

-potentially the cheapest option if i sacrifice the interior i like

VW TDI (2012-2016)

-jetta, jetta sportswagen, passant, or golf depending on which i can find

-the most fun option

-best looking exterior and decent interior

-around 8k average, so generally cheaper than the other ones for one that meets what i want

-best gas mileage

-engine is reliable, other parts arent. Lots of preventivative maintenance necessary. I dont mind until i do lol

-not impossible to find in manual but unlikely

-diesel

-expensive parts/labor

- i like this one the most, but i dont know if its worth sacrificing everything else the others offer over it.

I think that i know that the best choice is to just wait on a good deal on a corolla, but i wanted to hear from others to see if theres anything that i missed. I honestly really do want the VW but that might be irresponsible. Then again im 20yr old and if theres ever a good time to have a car like that its now. Instead of with a family or something later on.

Thanks for responses or consideration!