[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

As we are on the topic of Insurance, wanted to ask you folks that what kind of coverage do you opt for? How do you really decide on the numbers?

This is what I have for my Elantra -

Liability coverage: 250k/500k bodily injury, 100k property damage

Uninsured motorist: 250k/500k

Collision insurance deductible $500 and comprehensive insurance deductible $250.

You should check with a few insurance companies what they advise. It's very much country specific and is really down to legislation. How much can you get hit for
The liability numbers seem very low. Even if Europe these days, the most simple of third party liability will cover between 1-3 Million Euro's.

The deductibles have a direct impact on your premium, so its a straight forward calculation of how much extra premium over how much you might end up shelling out yourself in case of an accident.

Jeroen

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

As we are on the topic of Insurance, wanted to ask you folks that what kind of coverage do you opt for? How do you really decide on the numbers?

This is what I have for my Elantra -

Liability coverage: 250k/500k bodily injury, 100k property damage

Uninsured motorist: 250k/500k

Collision insurance deductible $500 and comprehensive insurance deductible $250.

Your coverage is pretty good. You can increase the deductible to $1000 and $500 resp if you would like to lower the insurance. Does this insurance cover rental car and towing package too? If not you can get it separately from AAA or include in your insurance.

If you want to lower your insurance premium, go for liability and uninsured motorist of 100k/200k. I don't think you need that high coverage for uninsured motorist. $100k/$200k should be just fine and you will see quite a huge difference in premium.

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by chevelle

Your coverage is pretty good. You can increase the deductible to $1000 and $500 resp if you would like to lower the insurance. Does this insurance cover rental car and towing package too? If not you can get it separately from AAA or include in your insurance.

If you want to lower your insurance premium, go for liability and uninsured motorist of 100k/200k. I don't think you need that high coverage for uninsured motorist. $100k/$200k should be just fine and you will see quite a huge difference in premium.

Collision deductible and liability insurance are the major components in my premium. I should really think about increasing the deductible to $1000 and $500, if that makes a lot of difference. I've never had to claim insurance with any of my vehicles till date (touch wood).

Uninsured motorist insurance is just 23 bucks over 6 months, so that doesn't contribute much to the final amount. Right now I'm paying $600 for 6 months.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

Collision deductible and liability insurance are the major components in my premium. I should really think about increasing the deductible to $1000 and $500, if that makes a lot of difference. I've never had to claim insurance with any of my vehicles till date (touch wood).
Right now I'm paying $600 for 6 months.

Sounds about right you are paying for a new car.

Your location, commuting miles, yearly miles also play a role in insurance premium. I saw my premium go down by $14/mo when i relocated.

[aah78]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

Collision deductible and liability insurance are the major components in my premium. I should really think about increasing the deductible to $1000 and $500, if that makes a lot of difference. I've never had to claim insurance with any of my vehicles till date (touch wood).

Uninsured motorist insurance is just 23 bucks over 6 months, so that doesn't contribute much to the final amount. Right now I'm paying $600 for 6 months.

Increasing deductibles will lower your premium as long as you're comfortable having to pay out of pocket in case you have to.

I'd say go with collision & comprehensive deductibles of $1000 each.

Also reducing property damage to $50000 might help lower rate slightly.

[naj]

Great!!


Above inputs and discussions on insurance are very educative .I am getting some encouraging results from progressive and will keep you updated.

As far car hunting, one thing both me and wifey have realized - need to increase the budget. Pay more and be at peace. Gulp!! I did spend the whole day looking at 5000 used cars unless you buy from an acquaintance .

Thanks- naj

[VLOCT]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

I should really think about increasing the deductible to $1000 and $500, if that makes a lot of difference.

You really need to think about a $1000 deductible. What's the difference in your payment to justify that? How many months of payment will it take to make up the $1000 dollars? If you have an accident that causes $2000 dollars to repair, with a $1000 dollar deductible, you're better off paying the whole thing for yourself because, on top of the deductible, your monthly premium is going to increase and you'll soon find out that you're on the losing end in a serious way.

In my opinion, $1000 deductible is a big no no.

[Gandhi]

Thanks everyone for suggestions. I'll work with my agents to get some quotes based on different deductible amounts and see what I'm comfortable with. My aim here is not to lower the premium as much as possible but to achieve a good balance between premium and coverage to get some peace of mind.

[Jomz]

Originally Posted by Gandhi

Liability coverage: 250k/500k bodily injury, 100k property damage

Uninsured motorist: 250k/500k

There are state mandated limits on all of the above. Only need to make sure that you are above your state (residence state) minimum limits.

& make sure you don't crash into something expensive. If you crash into a Ferrari parked, anything above the 100K property damage has to come from your pocket, whether it is your fault or not.

[Gandhi]

Originally Posted by Jomz

& make sure you don't crash into something expensive. If you crash into a Ferrari parked, anything above the 100K property damage has to come from your pocket, whether it is your fault or not.

That's exactly why I have the property damage cover at $100k. Also the additional premium amount from say $50k to $100k is not much.

[kraft.wagen]

A friend of mine is looking to buy a Used car, little back ground and the options.

- Only 1 person, but will have his parents join him for a few months
- Average commute will be around 50miles/ week. Will be mostly a weekend drive for road trips.
- Budget around 20-25k(willing to stretch a little more)
- Prefers SUV
Current Choice
- GLK 350/450
- X3
- Sequoia
I suggested him to go for a 3 Series or C Class, if he wasn't too specific on SUV (which he is ready to consider).

Though GLK or X3 are great rides, good handling, I'd stay away from them considering the maintenance cost, and for the 20-25 budget in SoCal we get cars run around 50k and 4-5yrs old. There a umpteen pros for the Germans, but i'm sticking to just the cons I considered in this case.

My choice is the Sequoia, its sturdy than the choices he has picked, comes in V8, Toyota service is surely lesser than the Germans and yea can seat 8. For his budget around 5-6yr old car with avg 60-70k miles. Cant think of a con other than Toyota recalling millions of cars every year

Do you think Sequoia is a bad option? Can I include Jeep Cherokee Laredo?

Any advice will be very helpful. Thanks guys

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

A friend of mine is looking to buy a Used car, little back ground and the options.

- Only 1 person, but will have his parents join him for a few months
- Average commute will be around 50miles/ week. Will be mostly a weekend drive for road trips.
- Budget around 20-25k(willing to stretch a little more)
- Prefers SUV
Current Choice
- GLK 350/450
- X3
- Sequoia
I suggested him to go for a 3 Series or C Class, if he wasn't too specific on SUV (which he is ready to consider).

Though GLK or X3 are great rides, good handling, I'd stay away from them considering the maintenance cost, and for the 20-25 budget in SoCal we get cars run around 50k and 4-5yrs old. There a umpteen pros for the Germans, but i'm sticking to just the cons I considered in this case.

My choice is the Sequoia, its sturdy than the choices he has picked, comes in V8, Toyota service is surely lesser than the Germans and yea can seat 8. For his budget around 5-6yr old car with avg 60-70k miles. Cant think of a con other than Toyota recalling millions of cars every year

Do you think Sequoia is a bad option? Can I include Jeep Cherokee Laredo?

Any advice will be very helpful. Thanks guys

Wow, does he really need a Sequoia? Since he is alone most of the time, a small SUV should do. The Sequoia will be gas hungry and that may hurt him in long run. GLK is a good choice. He can consider FX35, RX350, RDX which are 5-seater and drives like cars especially FX35 which is hoot to drive and the sound track is awesome. Additionally he will get reliability of Japanese and luxurious interior that he will love spending time in.

Stepping a little down, he has option like Murano - $31k brand new, FJ Cruiser - $30k brand new and the usual trio of CR-V, RAV4 and CX-5.

Acura MDX is another option, but again it is a 7-seater which is overkill for his requirements. Ford Edge is a good option. But for Edge, Cherokee or any other American, i suggest 2009 or newer so that he don't have to face quality issues.

If he is leaning against Germans, consider Q5, GLK 350 and VW Toureg. Volvo XC90/XC60 is a also a good option. Finally, ask him to test drive all of above, short list here and we can provide better opinion as the options are varied.

[aah78]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Current Choice
- GLK 350/450
- X3
- Sequoia
I suggested him to go for a 3 Series or C Class, if he wasn't too specific on SUV (which he is ready to consider).
Do you think Sequoia is a bad option? Can I include Jeep Cherokee Laredo?

The Sequoia isn't necessarily a bad option, it just stands out amongst the other two choices.
It's a big SUV more suited for a large-ish family, not really a single person car.
Plus, a V8 in a heavy body just means more fuel consumption but no performance advantage per se.

Alternatively, you can suggest the 4Runner or FJ Cruiser, or Nissan Xterra, which are larger than the GLK & X3 but offer similar performance and a price advantage.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee is a decent choice too.

Then there's the RAV4, CRV, Murano - that are in the same size range as the GLK & X3.

[Jomz]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

A friend of mine is looking to buy a Used car, little back ground and the options.

- Only 1 person, but will have his parents join him for a few months
- Average commute will be around 50miles/ week. Will be mostly a weekend drive for road trips.
- Budget around 20-25k(willing to stretch a little more)
- Prefers SUV
Current Choice
- GLK 350/450
- X3
- Sequoia
I suggested him to go for a 3 Series or C Class, if he wasn't too specific on SUV (which he is ready to consider).

Though GLK or X3 are great rides, good handling, I'd stay away from them considering the maintenance cost, and for the 20-25 budget in SoCal we get cars run around 50k and 4-5yrs old. There a umpteen pros for the Germans, but i'm sticking to just the cons I considered in this case.

My choice is the Sequoia, its sturdy than the choices he has picked, comes in V8, Toyota service is surely lesser than the Germans and yea can seat 8. For his budget around 5-6yr old car with avg 60-70k miles. Cant think of a con other than Toyota recalling millions of cars every year

Do you think Sequoia is a bad option? Can I include Jeep Cherokee Laredo?

Any advice will be very helpful. Thanks guys

Thought of H3 Hummers?? Escalade's??

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by Jomz

Thought of H3 Hummers?? Escalade's??

The Hummer would be a fun choice, very different from the rest of the choices. How about a Cayenne - super fun to drive for an SUV.