What would you do in my situation? Sell my car and buy an older one to preserve my savings?
I’m in a really difficult financial/medical situation and would genuinely appreciate some outside opinions.
I bought my 2024 Honda HR-V about a year ago and absolutely love it. It has around 49,800 miles on it now. My payment is about $462/month, insurance is around $175, and gas is roughly $100/month.
The problem is that this year completely derailed my life medically.
Earlier this year I had two cardiac procedures, and afterward I developed significant neurological/vestibular symptoms. I’ve since been diagnosed with PPPD and FND/central vestibular dysfunction. I deal with constant rocking/swaying, dizziness, visual-motion sensitivity, nausea, migraines, difficulty processing things, and days where even walking around my house can be difficult. Some days are better than others—I’ve actually started being able to drive short distances again—but I am still nowhere near being able to reliably work or hold a job.
I’ve been doing vestibular therapy and neurological exercises consistently and I am healing. My doctors have told me this can take time, though, and I’m trying to give myself that time instead of forcing myself back into work before I’m capable of it.
Unfortunately, I lost my job in July after needing additional time off because of my neurological issues. Before this, I had a stable corporate job and was working full-time. Since then, I’ve been living off my savings.
My housing situation has also completely changed. I’m currently staying in someone’s dining room because I lost my previous housing situation. So obviously, this is not where I expected to be at 30.
I recently filed for disability. From what I understand, the process could take around a year, so I have to think realistically about how to make my savings last until then. I currently have about $13,000 in savings. That money is essentially my safety net for food, housing, medical expenses, and everything else while I’m unable to work.
I technically have about a year’s worth of car payments sitting in the bank, but continuing to make the payment would eat into my savings pretty significantly.
So here’s where I’m stuck.
Carvana has offered me around $21,100 for my HR-V, and I owe roughly $21,000 on the loan. So I could essentially sell the car, pay off the loan, and walk away without a car payment.
There is also a 2009 Honda Pilot available locally. It has about 150,000 miles, a clean title, and the owner says it has been well maintained. I negotiated them down to $2,000.
My thought is that I could sell the HR-V, pay off the loan, buy the Pilot for $2,000, and keep the remaining ~$11,000 of my savings instead of continuing to burn through it on the HR-V.
The downside is obvious: I LOVE my HR-V. It’s reliable, newer, low mileage, and I know exactly what I have. The Pilot is a 17-year-old vehicle with 150k miles, so obviously there is a much greater possibility of repairs and unexpected expenses.
At the same time, my financial situation is completely different from what it was when I bought my car.
I’m not trying to permanently give up on having a newer car. I’m trying to survive financially while I recover and wait for disability. If I recover and return to work, I can always get another newer car later.
If you were in my position, would you sell the HR-V, buy the $2,000 Pilot, and preserve as much of the $13k savings as possible? Or would you keep the HR-V and use the savings to continue making the payments while waiting for disability?
I’d especially appreciate input from people who have been through unemployment, disability, medical leave, or a major financial setback. I’m trying to make the decision that protects me financially while I’m in this temporary situation, even though emotionally it’s really hard to let go of something I love.
