# I bought Honda Insight 2019 for uber



## Newbie3477 (Sep 11, 2018)

Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.

First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.

Would you suggest me to avoid poor cities and not to take drunken people by avoid driving at midnight in the beginning of Uber?
As long as I take passengers from middle or higher class town, I thought it would be safe and keep my car clean.

Was my decision of buying this car for Uber really crazy???
Let me know if my decision was good or bad and I'll be appreciated if I can get some advices from you considering my situations.


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## DocT (Jul 16, 2015)

Newbie3477 , welcome to UP.net forum. You'll find a wealth of information on this site.

Please brace yourself with the negative responses you'll receive. Take it with a grain of salt.

To those who are replying to the OP, keep it civilized and to the point.


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## fusionuber (Nov 27, 2017)

avoid hood names, and really focus on learning the different neighborhoods your picking up from, through time you will become very selective. Im not sure how much experience you have but I have 3300 not as many as most, but it took me a while to learn to be selective


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## corniilius (Jan 27, 2017)

If you have a decent warranty , then you should be okay. Just don't let them know that you drive for rideshare. Might void a few things.


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## Merc7186 (Jul 8, 2017)

It may seem like a good decision today but in 3 years when you still have 2+ years of payments left and the car has 150k miles on it, you will regret your decision.

Best of Luck.


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## corniilius (Jan 27, 2017)

That's the other thing. Do you have a real job or do you rely, solely on Uber?


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## SuzeCB (Oct 30, 2016)

One question, but it's a biggie...

If you are deactivated, permanently or temporarily for accident, random or annual background check, or false accusation, can you afford to pay for the vehicle?


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## Newbie3477 (Sep 11, 2018)

corniilius said:


> That's the other thing. Do you have a real job or do you rely, solely on Uber?


For now, solely on Uber.


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## Seamus (Jun 21, 2018)

Welcome. My own opinion is that the 2019 Honda Insight is head and shoulders above the Toyota Prius C. You will rack up more mileage then you think so the extended warranty is probably a good thing. The standard warranty could be done in 6 months based on the mileage. 

Your first few months will be a big learning curve. You will make every mistake we all made, the quicker you learn from them the better off you will be. Those that last figure out the best times, locations, and methods to maximize the money you can make. Those that don't learn and adapt don't last very long. Good Luck!


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## 404NofFound (Jun 13, 2018)

You cannot put a price on the joy of driving! Happy trails! We look forward to your input!


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## wontgetfooledagain (Jul 3, 2018)

You made a big mistake. A $5000 used Honda, Toyota, etc. with high miles would have been a far better choice. In Ohio, you are likely to make $8 per hour driving for Uber. Start looking for a real job ASAP.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

Newbie3477 said:


> For now, solely on Uber.


Ouch.


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## 404NofFound (Jun 13, 2018)

wontgetfooledagain said:


> You made a big mistake. A $5000 used Honda, Toyota, etc. with high miles would have been a far better choice. In Ohio, you are likely to make $8 per hour driving for Uber. Start looking for a real job ASAP.


Or I could say that.


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## 1.5xorbust (Nov 22, 2017)

As long as you are driving for fun and don’t care about the extremely negative financial aspects it was a good choice.


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

*I bought Honda Insight 2019 for uber*

Your present is a little early for their birthday. Uber will be 10 years old in March. Hey, I'll be 57 in May. I could sure use a new set of Michelins for my Suburban. Thanks.


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## Lee239 (Mar 24, 2017)

You bought it for Uber, yes you sure did, they are the ones who are going to benefit off of your car, labor and gas and pay you a portion back.


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## Fozzie (Aug 11, 2018)

$29k loan with 60 month terms at a standard 3.4 rate = $526 /mo. Over 72 months that would go down to approx $446 /mo 

Regardless of terms, you're probably going to be WAY over on mileage driving for Uber before the vehicle is even paid off. The only thing worse is getting a car from Uber or Lyft. 

I love new cars too, but damn, that's going to be a difficult pill to swallow when you kill the car and still have 2+ years payments remaining. A cheap used Prius would have been a much better investment.


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## jgiun1 (Oct 16, 2017)

What's the warranty situation like on that? The miles.

I bought a car with 30k miles in April 17....up to 80k miles running full time. You might be voiding the warranty quicker than you think. I only paid a third of what you paid, and took the car for two year bank loan.


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## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.


If I paid $29k for an Uber car, I would be needing to feel a whole lot of comfort. I'm talking naked blonde Swedish massage girls installed in the back seat; on-demand drink and snack preparation etc.


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## jgiun1 (Oct 16, 2017)

The Gift of Fish said:


> If I paid $29k for an Uber car, I would be needing to feel a whole lot of comfort. I'm talking naked blonde Swedish massage girls installed in the back seat; on-demand drink and snack preparation etc.


Wait until he loses that new car feel in about one year and odometer reading 40 miles and 62 months to go


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## emdeplam (Jan 13, 2017)

Welcome to the new car club. Americans bought about 17 Million new cars this year....for an average price of even MORE than you paid.

We all know people who buy new cars. Sure you could save a few bucks by having it pre-worn and potentially damaged....

One of the biggest advantages you have over most of the 17 million that bought a car this year is that YOU CAN OFFSET the costs of that car with UBER!

So yes buying a new _________ is always more expensive than used (insert car, iPhone, clothes, jewelry, spouse, etc...) / but sometimes, you just gotta treat yourself


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## jgiun1 (Oct 16, 2017)

You can offset the cost of a car doing uber ....what.... Unless your buying a fleet at reduced prices and constantly moving them at auction and leases ( ohh wait, Uber drivers aren't)

This car will be in the junkyard by the time the initial loan paid off.

Buy some property, not a 30k grand car to Uber in.


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## 1.5xorbust (Nov 22, 2017)

emdeplam said:


> Welcome to the new car club. Americans bought about 17 Million new cars this year....for an average price of even MORE than you paid.
> 
> We all know people who buy new cars. Sure you could save a few bucks by having it pre-worn and potentially damaged....
> 
> ...


You certainly have a difficult job.


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## Asificarewhatyoudontthink (Jul 6, 2017)

DocT said:


> Newbie3477 , welcome to UP.net forum. You'll find a wealth of information on this site.
> 
> Please brace yourself with the negative responses you'll receive. Take it with a grain of salt.
> 
> To those who are replying to the OP, keep it civilized and to the point.


Bwahahahahha...

Best response.

Um, first this smells all kinds of trolly to me...

But, yes that was a bad idea. By the time you earn enough to pay it off your vehicle will be worthless


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## Fozzie (Aug 11, 2018)

jgiun1 said:


> I bought a car with 30k miles in April 17....up to 80k miles running full time. You might be voiding the warranty quicker than you think. I only paid a third of what you paid, and took the car for two year bank loan.


I bought my current Uber car in May. (2016 Nissan Altima w/ 15k miles) I paid $11,900 for it, and with 24 month terms I pay right around $500 /mo for it. I'm not thrilled with the payments, but at least I'm confident that the car should still be sellable (4 year old vehicle with less than 100k miles) once it's paid off.


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## Seahawk3 (Oct 5, 2016)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Honestly a hybrid is not the brightest for this job you should have went full electric in the first year you would have saved the difference of going from 30,000 to 40000.


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## NOXDriver (Aug 12, 2018)

Fozzie said:


> I bought my current Uber car in May. (2016 Nissan Altima w/ 15k miles) I paid $11,900 for it, and with 24 month terms I pay right around $500 /mo for it. I'm not thrilled with the payments, but at least I'm confident that the car should still be sellable (4 year old vehicle with less than 100k miles) once it's paid off.


My car is a 2005 Equinox with 115k. I paid $4500 cash (a little high) and after two years I will not be able to Uber it. I Ubered for 6 days (over 3 weeks).

My car payments are $0.
My insurance is $2/day ($60/mo) $12
My gas is about $97.96

My Uber Gross is $134.35

Gross pay - expenses
$134.35 - ($12+$97.96) = $24.39

I hope your market is MUCH busier than mine.

In two years the car should have about 170k-180k. I'll sell it for about $1500-2000. By then I hope to have found a better part time pocket money en devour.


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## corniilius (Jan 27, 2017)

The Gift of Fish said:


> If I paid $29k for an Uber car, I would be needing to feel a whole lot of comfort. I'm talking naked blonde Swedish massage girls installed in the back seat; on-demand drink and snack preparation etc.


If the seats fold into the floor, you can get all kinds of mileage out of it.


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## rideshare2870 (Nov 23, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Whipping around in a 2019 anything is crazy and a bad choice. A used car would be much better.


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## Fozzie (Aug 11, 2018)

NOXDriver said:


> My car is a 2005 Equinox with 115k. I paid $4500 cash (a little high) and after two years I will not be able to Uber it. I Ubered for 6 days (over 3 weeks).
> 
> My car payments are $0.
> My insurance is $2/day ($60/mo) $12
> ...


That can vary greatly.

My gross for this week:
Monday 6 hrs worked, $174
Tuesday 6 hrs worked, $203
Wednesday 2 hrs worked, $82
Today 2 hrs worked, $66
Tomorrow (Friday) I'll probably work 6 hrs, and gross around $200
I don't work weekends or holidays. "Hours worked" is calculated from when I get in the car until I park in the driveway.

Car: $510 /mo
Gas: $320 /mo
Insurance $151 /mo (for coverage of my other car too)
Misc maint: $100 /mo

In the past 12 months I put 45k miles on my work car (including 5k non-work miles)

Am I turning a huge profit? NO. I am making money, though, and I can live with that since rideshare is but a small fraction of my income. YMMV


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## Asificarewhatyoudontthink (Jul 6, 2017)

DocT said:


> Newbie3477 , welcome to UP.net forum. You'll find a wealth of information on this site.
> 
> Please brace yourself with the negative responses you'll receive. Take it with a grain of salt.
> 
> To those who are replying to the OP, keep it civilized and to the point.


Bwahahahahha...

Best response.

Um, first this smells all kinds of trolly to me...

But, yes that was a bad idea. By the time you earn enough to pay it off your vehicle will be worthless.
Aside from that it really depends more on if you are in a market that still gets lots of surge.


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## stanigu (Dec 8, 2016)

I bought a new Honda Clarity Touring (Plug in hybrid), not specifically for Uber, but do enough Uber to pay for it and then some. I generally start around 6pm and stop around 9pm weekdays just to weed out the drunks and those that might want to puke or otherwise do bad things to the car. 

I do have a full time job and this is strictly a side gig. But nice to be able to use the new car to earn enough to cover all its expenses without going overboard in time spent. 

Insight is a great car. I might have gone for it, had it not been for the $9500 in rebates/tax credits associated with Clarity.


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## pismire (May 2, 2017)

Poor people are not poor because they don't make money, they are poor because they make bad choices with what little money they have.

Me and my wife have a combined income north of $200k, and I still would never even consider buying a $30k car for any reason. In full disclosure there was a point where I had to have the AMG Mercedes, my wife had to have her Porche SUV. But I look back on those days and think what a idiot I was. 

Good luck man, but you did not make a good choice here. You will be fine, but its going to really hurt when that car is worthless in a few years or less and you don't the money to make up the diffence in the depreciation.


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## 404NofFound (Jun 13, 2018)

Being "upside down" in your loan is a term used when your car is worth less than you owe.


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

My 2006 BMW was cheaper. Spent $10k to buy it and I have MAYBE another $5k in repairs/other. Driven it for 4 years so far...probably less than 10k miles for Uber.


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## corniilius (Jan 27, 2017)

emdeplam said:


> Welcome to the new car club. Americans bought about 17 Million new cars this year....for an average price of even MORE than you paid.
> 
> We all know people who buy new cars. Sure you could save a few bucks by having it pre-worn and potentially damaged....
> 
> ...


Tell Karen we said hi.


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## steveK2016 (Jul 31, 2016)

If youre gonna buy new to go full time, I would have gotten an SUV. All that money just for X?


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## mbd (Aug 27, 2018)

You are getting 50 + mpg, so you save 1500 per year on gas savings, if you put 50,000 miles per year
Let's say you get 250,000 out of the battery before trouble arrives, you saved 7500.... but depreciation will be great once warranty on the battery is finished.
Try to get extra battery protection , maybe they can give you 150,000 miles warranty on the battery
You got to make sure you have this vehicle for 7-10 years...
It all comes down to your competition... how many people are doing lyft and uber ...if more and more people going to be drivers, then your earnings will suffer
Lyft basically doubled the number of drivers on the road in the last 18 months.
Housing / rent high all over , so you will have all kinda people driving for uber and lyft, trying to make extra 30 dollars a day, so that they can pay rent or mtg.

I will lean towards not buying a new vehicle for 28/30k.
This rental program is taking away runs from non rental cars 
Example 
Imagine lyft signs up 75 people on rental program per week... they have to do 20 runs mandatory... that is 1500 runs in one city that went to rental program. Who loses those 1500 runs??going to assume , majority of the 1500 runs will be lost from the non renters.
So every city in the rental program is taking away at least 1000 runs away from the non renters.


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

If you like having a new car, then great!

On the other side of things, the financial people say that buying a late model used car with low mileage is always better from a monetary standpoint.

Christine


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## flyntflossy10 (Jun 2, 2017)

overall, this is a bad idea.

however if youre a brand new driver, this is an awful idea.

not everybody can do this job, you'll see what I mean as time goes one. not everybody wants to do this job, again you'll see what I mean. and of course not everybody is willing to do this job.

have you considered what happens if you get deactivated? if you get hurt? if you get in an accident? that's whats wrong with soley doing uber, you can support yourself if one of those things happens. take it back. get something that makes sense. and because of the purchase you made, id take every ride opportunity I could get. what the inside of your car looks like means nothing compared what your engine will look like in a year.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

jgiun1 said:


> Wait until he loses that new car feel in about one year and odometer reading 40 miles and 62 months to go


One year? Doing rideshare full time? More like a month.


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## NOXDriver (Aug 12, 2018)

Fozzie said:


> That can vary greatly.
> 
> My gross for this week:
> Monday 6 hrs worked, $174
> ...


$320 for gas at an average of 4k miles a month? That's a little over 100gal a month or about 40mpg. In a city. Are you driving a Prius?


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## Fozzie (Aug 11, 2018)

NOXDriver said:


> $320 for gas at an average of 4k miles a month? That's a little over 100gal a month or about 40mpg. In a city. Are you driving a Prius?


I drive an average of 800 miles/wk. @30 mpg average = ~26.5 gallons a week = ~$80 /wk gas 
2016 Altima gets approx 27/39 and much of my mileage is early morning freeway miles with no traffic.


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## kurt (Sep 6, 2014)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Yeah you should have bougt


Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Should have bought a Toyota sienna ..you could have done xl now you can't and you will be sorry....I bought a used one 120,000 8000$..should last me a easy 250,000 as my other sienna has 397000....plus after getting the loan on it and full coverage...I had trouble making my first payment because I had a slow week....so I said oh shit I need to not have payments so I borrowed a couple Grand from Dad took a few thousand from tax refund ....worked my ass off for a month and paid that sucker off . Now free and clear ..also what's the big deal hybrid... I had a 2006 Civic the hybrid Civic that year was over 21000 and only got 6 miles to gallon difference...if your going hybrid you have to go Toyota ..and the only options you need are crisp air and cool tunes and a aux cord. I really suggest an older Toyota sienna ...anything over 2008 has the newer motor. Actually the older ones have more drivers side room ....I noticed it right away after sitting in a new one.....


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## RoWode12 (May 12, 2018)

If this is for real, I honestly feel bad for you, OP.


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## uberinatltrafficsux (Apr 21, 2018)

You will very soon realize that a 1989 Ford taurus wagon would be the best choice for Uber.
Passengers will treat your brand new car like it was one. 
You will be paid wages similar to taxi drivers in the 80s.
Best of luck OP!


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## Ubericator (Aug 23, 2018)

Total waste of money... You could have saved 20-40% on any car expensive or not by buying a used, 1 owner car (traded in) with less than 10-20k miles on it. 

Yes the feel of a new car is something else, but clearly looking at if the money desicion was right, it's a definite no...


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## #professoruber (Feb 19, 2018)

The title should read, I paid $29K for a brand new car to run Uber X.

And it should be noted the OP already justified his buying decision with gas savings and comfort.


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## sbstar07 (Aug 31, 2017)

Well I dont think you make any sense. What does poor cities have to do with your rides and keeping your car clean? Higher class people can be just as dirty and probably wont even tip you as opposed to a person that has less money may tip you every time... It happens. So since you bought your car to drive for uber just drive without judging.


Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


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## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

uberinatltrafficsux said:


> You will very soon realize that a 1989 Ford taurus wagon would be the best choice for Uber.
> Passengers will treat your brand new car like it was one.
> You will be paid wages similar to taxi drivers in the 80s.
> Best of luck OP!


Too bad they don't let you drive a 1989 in my market! 2002 or newer, and it used to be 2006 or newer for Uber and 2008 or newer for Lyft!


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## Solid 5 (Aug 24, 2018)

IMO, this whole thing falls on Uber, and their promises of great riches for the drivers. It gives drivers a false sense of earnings that, unless you drive in a city with high demand and the older surge formula, along with spending 10-12 a day every day behind the wheel, you cannot reach.

Great on the OP to get a new car, but buying it blind without doing any numbers crunching is just a poor life choice.

I bought my 2013 Civic Hybrid more for the job then for "me". I am fortunate that my expenses on the car are low, not to mention my other bills are manageable. My car had 42500 when I bought it. I have put just short of 80000 on it in less then 18 months. So right now it has 120ish on it and is basically worthless from a trade-in POV but I didn't buy it thinking of that; when it dies it dies and I buy another one, within my budget. It will be older, and it will be an SUV so I am able to do to XL rides as well. I did a lot of research on the car and what I would need to make to be able to turn a profit with it. Even at that I under-estimated a bit, but not enough to make the purchase a losing proposition.


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## uberinatltrafficsux (Apr 21, 2018)

Solid 5 said:


> IMO, this whole thing falls on Uber, and their promises of great riches for the drivers. It gives drivers a false sense of earnings that, unless you drive in a city with high demand and the older surge formula, along with spending 10-12 a day every day behind the wheel, you cannot reach.
> 
> Great on the OP to get a new car, but buying it blind without doing any numbers crunching is just a poor life choice.
> 
> I bought my 2013 Civic Hybrid more for the job then for "me". I am fortunate that my expenses on the car are low, not to mention my other bills are manageable. My car had 42500 when I bought it. I have put just short of 80000 on it in less then 18 months. So right now it has 120ish on it and is basically worthless from a trade-in POV but I didn't buy it thinking of that; when it dies it dies and I buy another one, within my budget. It will be older, and it will be an SUV so I am able to do to XL rides as well. I did a lot of research on the car and what I would need to make to be able to turn a profit with it. Even at that I under-estimated a bit, but not enough to make the purchase a losing proposition.


I have an xl vehicle and barely get xl trips. Don't waste your money on a bigger vehicle for uber.


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## Solid 5 (Aug 24, 2018)

uberinatltrafficsux said:


> I have an xl vehicle and barely get xl trips. Don't waste your money on a bigger vehicle for uber.


Funny because I've never owned an SUV, and have never really wanted to. But if it is not a money-losing option, then it is something I will consider. I have a lot of time (hopefully) before I have to make that decision. By then who even knows if U/L are going to be around in their current state.


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## CaptainToo (Dec 5, 2017)

If the OP had bought a 2016 certified Honda Accord for $15,000 he would get the same or greater powertrain warranty (100k miles/7 years). In three years when the warranty runs out and he sells to get a newer warranteed vehicle, he'd save some $10,000 or more in the avoidable depreciation that came with that hew Honda.

It is simply financial foolishness to purchase a new car to drive for Uber, even ignoring the risk that your Uber career may end tomorrow. Ants hustle Uber for the money, and you arn't close to thinking straight about what you are about, to simply suck up the depreciation coming from a new car.


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## Woohaa (Jan 15, 2017)

Avoid affluent areas. Rich people barely tip & expect the royal treatment.


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## rideshare2870 (Nov 23, 2017)

Solid 5 said:


> IMO, this whole thing falls on Uber, and their promises of great riches for the drivers. It gives drivers a false sense of earnings that, unless you drive in a city with high demand and the older surge formula, along with spending 10-12 a day every day behind the wheel, you cannot reach.
> 
> Great on the OP to get a new car, but buying it blind without doing any numbers crunching is just a poor life choice.
> 
> I bought my 2013 Civic Hybrid more for the job then for "me". I am fortunate that my expenses on the car are low, not to mention my other bills are manageable. My car had 42500 when I bought it. I have put just short of 80000 on it in less then 18 months. So right now it has 120ish on it and is basically worthless from a trade-in POV but I didn't buy it thinking of that; when it dies it dies and I buy another one, within my budget. It will be older, and it will be an SUV so I am able to do to XL rides as well. I did a lot of research on the car and what I would need to make to be able to turn a profit with it. Even at that I under-estimated a bit, but not enough to make the purchase a losing proposition.


Going out of your way to get an XL car is a waste of time. The demand of XL isn't there to make it worthwhile. You'll be taking X pings and spending XL gas money. It's not worth it, trust me.


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## 142605 (Mar 4, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


The new 2018 tax laws allow massive depreciation write offs... so make sure you don't take the standard deduction.


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## Bbonez (Aug 10, 2018)

sbstar07 said:


> Higher class people can be just as dirty and probably wont even tip you as opposed to a person that has less money may tip you every time... It happens. So since you bought your car to drive for uber just drive without judging.


People with running water shower more frequently than people without running water. Also, knowing what areas to work and what ones to avoid can keep you safe. You say judgmental I say intelligent.


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## SuzeCB (Oct 30, 2016)

404NofFound said:


> Being "upside down" in your loan is a term used when your car is worth less than you owe.


And any gap insurance you purchased will be worthless if they suspect you used the car for commercial/rideshare purposes. Mileage matters.


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## freddieman (Oct 24, 2016)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


At Uber headquarter inventory dept:

"Hey, we just got a brand new 2019 Honda Insight into our car inventory!"


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## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

DocT said:


> Newbie3477 , welcome to UP.net forum. You'll find a wealth of information on this site.
> 
> Please brace yourself with the negative responses you'll receive. Take it with a grain of salt.
> 
> To those who are replying to the OP, keep it civilized and to the point.


Pleese misters DoT, I wills replis to you and yous alone, because yous are like Rohit, man with powrs and posistions. At Ubers we grates apprecates yours postivs and suppports of ours overalls goles and focuss. Drivings of absoluetes best cars is most importants for Ubers and passenger. In this places wheres drivers have soo muchs and muchs of monies, of courses they can spends many on cars for best Ubers images and passenger. Even this mans say it makes more comforts and smoothes.

Warmly and with best of regurds,

Rohit


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## dmoney155 (Jun 12, 2017)

Bad, very very bad thing. Strictly for business you converting A to B.. so difference between A to B must be largest as possible... and you just made it pretty small. To make it worse, you didn't even get electric, but even with that you would have to break about 140,000 miles to recoup the monies otherwise spent on fuel. Uber full time = get cheap $8K car and grind to make profit of 40K or so. in that $29K you have spend you could have got 3 cars like that. Meaning you could have made 120K, now you will only make 40K.


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## Koolbreze (Feb 13, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Now you want to discriminate?


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## LUIS Martin (Oct 25, 2016)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Don't forget to fill the depreciation on tax 1040 you can get credit for that.

Tax form 1040 is the way you can credit all your expenses and loses by depreciation of your car. When you are buying you can deduct the interest of your payments. 
Also make sure to keep records of Car's Value and odometer readings. And business mileage. 
It's depends on you to make your decision profitable or not. Just avoid dead miles between trips. Drive safe!


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## Elisabeth (Sep 17, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


HONDA'S are good running cars


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## RoWode12 (May 12, 2018)

Btw, OP. The people you are excluding/discriminating against, are the ones that use U/L the most. 

Poor people take longer, more frequent rides, as they don’t have vehicles. Drunk people make up the biggest surges. 

If you have to worry about not damaging your brand-new car, you’re in the wrong business.


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## leroy jenkins (May 27, 2015)

This is so dumb it can't be a real person. especially with the surge multiplier disappearing. Has to be a troll.

Oh wait, it's so dumb it must be a real person.

OP, being serious. Do yourself a favor and either find a non-Uber full-time job or get rid of the Insight, take a loss, and get a 5 year old car. hybrid or whatever.

Uber's going to make you upside-down on that Insight. Good Luck.

report back in 100,000 miles.

forgot. honda's have a 3 yr/ 36k bumper-bumper warranty. you're going to use that up in 1 year.


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## dirtylee (Sep 2, 2015)

Ohhhh eeeeeM Geeeeeeeeee,

Maybe you have a chance in Seattle, Maybe you have a chance in San Francisco, definitely ok in NYC BUT YOU ARE IN ****ING OHIO!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lord have mercy cause your creditors & collection agencies won't.


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## Rittz19007 (Nov 2, 2016)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


I bought a new 2016 Prius 2 years ago got for just under 20k on black Friday 2 years later I put 100k miles on it had 8 different people puke in it and wish I never used it for this The rate im going I will be paying for a car that no longer runs Im now shopping for a minivan for under 2k before the new set surges start in my market


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## doyousensehumor (Apr 13, 2015)

You know you made a bad decision when a moderator is the first to comment with a disclaimer...


> Please brace yourself with the negative responses you'll receive. Take it with a grain of salt.
> 
> To those who are replying to the OP, keep it civilized and to the point.


Speaking of which, I have nothing more to say.

Just kidding. Is the OP for real? It's not the advice he is looking for, its the reaction.


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## FuberNYC (Jan 2, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Hybrids are the kings for street driving and not so much for highway. My Sonata averages over 30 mpg doing mostly highway rides. 
Touring package? Why not just get a Tesla!


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## BurgerTiime (Jun 22, 2015)




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## Gone_in_60_seconds (Jan 21, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Why would anyone in their right mind buy a brand new car for Uber/Lyft? Your earning peanuts. If you're going to be using a new car you might as well drive full time Taxi or Limousine and the rates will be 2-3X what Uber/Lyft pays. And you'll probably even get tips.


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## touberornottouber (Aug 12, 2016)

In two years I've watched the number of drivers in my area increase 300-500%! It is so bad that every major intersection has not just one but often 3-5 drivers. I can't even work out of my home because some guy with a vehicle showing body damage always parks in front of my home waiting for pings. 

You are crazy if you buy a new vehicle to do this!


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## LuisEnrikee (Mar 31, 2016)

Buyers remorse . 
Take it back to the dealer and get a Camry for 5k.
This was a serious mistake.
You will not make more than 50k driving full time . 
You have more than half your income riding in something that goes down in value every day .
That’s not good at all.


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## SurginGeneral (Aug 9, 2017)

Never go in for warranty work with any TLC/TNP/trade dress stickers on. Or they’ll void your warranty


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## Retired Senior (Sep 12, 2016)

_


Fozzie said:



$29k loan with 60 month terms at a standard 3.4 rate = $526 /mo. Over 72 months that would go down to approx $446 /mo

Click to expand...

_


Fozzie said:


> _Regardless of terms, you're probably going to be WAY over on mileage driving for Uber before the vehicle is even paid off. The only thing worse is getting a car from Uber or Lyft. _
> 
> _I love new cars too, but damn, that's going to be a difficult pill to swallow when you kill the car and still have 2+ years payments remaining. A cheap used Prius would have been a much better investment._




I believe that you royally screwed up. It all depends on the financing fine print . Did you have the cash to pay in full and walk out the door with the title of ownership?. If so, then not so bad. But, if like me, you had to finance the entire purchase thru the deal ship then you have joined the company of damned souls that I entered into a month ago. Does not mean that we are truly damned, but it does mean that we will have to become about the savviest Uber drivers in our local areas. In my case, Uber income aside, I could make the payments with my social security check, and just about pay my other bills with my pension check from the State of Ct - as long as the pension fund does not go totally balls up.


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## JimS (Aug 18, 2015)

Another case of the newbie OP not returning...

Buuuut, my 2c/worth = buy the cheapest XL you can afford to lose. Better yet, XL/Select like an 09 Tahoe.


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## Fozzie (Aug 11, 2018)

Retired Senior said:


> I believe that you royally screwed up. It all depends on the financing fine print . Did you have the cash to pay in full and walk out the door with the title of ownership?. If so, then not so bad. But, if like me, you had to finance the entire purchase thru the deal ship then you have joined the company of damned souls that I entered into a month ago. Does not mean that we are truly damned, but it does mean that we will have to become about the savviest Uber drivers in our local areas. In my case, Uber income aside, I could make the payments with my social security check, and just about pay my other bills with my pension check from the State of Ct - as long as the pension fund does not go totally balls up.


It's financed, but I can pay it off if needed. $8k /mo on my pension, $4k /mo on my late husbands pension, (both federal) $14k /mo rental property income + investments, etc. AND MY UBER DRIVING FORTUNES! Luckily my homes are all paid off, leaving only minimal expenses.


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

Rittz19007 said:


> The rate im going I will be paying for a car that no longer runs


Just my $0.02 worth, but...
You need to be putting money away for every mile you drive. For when it comes time to replace it.

C


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## Jack Straw (Jan 4, 2018)

Welcome to the forum.
bad decision but what's done is done, don't cry over spilled gas.
you need to have some fun working in order to offset your buyer's remorse; GO WILD.


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## Jay Dean (Apr 3, 2015)

I didnt read all the posts but man, the second some pax puts a scrape or farts in your car you will be heartbroken, get a old car and treat this gig the quality of 1970s cab rates, which is what it is. I also feel for the car, no new car should be put through that with entitled pax LOL

Oh wait, sorry already bought it...well there is hope if you want to be a medical courier, at least your asset won't be at a a loss.


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## MyJessicaLS430 (May 29, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy.
> 
> Was my decision of buying this car for Uber really crazy???


If your car is solely for Uber, yes. Literally you let Uber to own you car. If I were you, I would have bought anything reliable that runs while still eligible for driving for a few years (May be a 2008+ Camry).

I bought my 2011 Lexus LS460 for $33k in Feb 2016. Since I was almost new to the States at that time, the bank gave me a @/#$% interest rate even I made a $18k down payment.

This is the break down of expenses:
36-month payment term: $570/mo
Statefarm comprehensive insurance: $240/mo
Premium grade gasoline: $2.8/gal* 19 gals
Oil changes: $0 within the 2-year warranty or 24k miles

Honestly, how it is possible for Uber to cover this ridiculous monthly expenses ? Not to mention I paid $1000-1200/mo in order to pay off the car in a year....

Well. Since you have brought the car home anyway, please spend more time with your car yourself. I only drive a few hours each week to supplement my frequent travel bills.

P.S. My first 2004 LS is still running serene. I believe your Honda can do the same too.


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## Uberpoordriver (Jan 16, 2016)

You should have bought a $5000 used Prius after working hard for 5 to 7 weaks you would have been seing profits now your driving to pay the car off smh your not gona see a profits a real long time smh


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## njn (Jan 23, 2016)

Nice choice. Money is made at tax time. You may want to consider using actual deductions as depreciation will be more than the standard mileage rate.


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## Rittz19007 (Nov 2, 2016)

Christinebitg said:


> Just my $0.02 worth, but...
> You need to be putting money away for every mile you drive. For when it comes time to replace it.
> 
> C


If we where getting close to the old cab rates We would be able to Issue is we dont make enough to cover dead miles In my market there are dead area out side of the city So when you get a ride there its all dead miles back with the new set surge them rides are going to force us to turning down people and create conflict But there is a reason Irs says where losing money because most dont know it yet


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## stevenh1975 (Aug 4, 2015)

Would buying a new leaf be justifiable ? 7.5k tax credit + CA 2.5k rebate brings the car down to about 28k includes tax fee etc. And pro pilot assist gonna save me in traffic



njn said:


> Nice choice. Money is made at tax time. You may want to consider using actual deductions as depreciation will be more than the standard mileage rate.


Once you choose actual you can't switch it back. More pain in the ass to track all of it.


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## mbd (Aug 27, 2018)

After thinking about it, this might not be bad move
1. if you are working someplace else, you probably buy the same car
After 7 years , your car will be worth about 12k
2 .if you do uber for 7 years, your car is probably worth about 3000
So you are down 9000
3. You depreciate over 7 years, netting you 1300*7=9100 saved on taxes, over 7 years ( just a guess)
So you are ahead at this point
Then you add your fuel saving
Scenario only good if you are buying the same car for a new job

This also means, no mileage deductions
Just expense plus depreciation


If you put 50,000 miles a year =
$25,000 plus deductions on mileage
You are saving close to $6000 per year on the mileage=42,000 saved on taxes over 7 years 

So you save way more on the mileage vs actual expense + depreciation 
Not a CPA, so I am just pulling something out of the air


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## Karen Stein (Nov 5, 2016)

I also have bought a new car for Uber. In addition to the car cost, I'll spend about $800 just getting it ready for rideshare. Seat covers, floor mats, etc. add up fast.

You're a business. You need a car that's (first) reliable and (next) economical). Be gentle with it. Care for it before you care for yourself. Keep up the maintenance and it will give you a long life. 

Biggest risk is being "upside down" in your payments. You'll put a lot of miles on it fast. At a minimum, assume a 200K car life. Divide what you owe by 200K. What remains - 15 cents/mile or whatever - be sure to pay for those miles as you drive, or you'll wind up making payments on a dead car.


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## UberLady10001 (Nov 4, 2017)

With the peanuts this job pays you're crazy to drive anything nice.
Buy a cheap car to deliver cheap, human cargo that pay peanuts and never tip and leave trash in your car then rate you poorly after you smiled and made pleasant conversation with them.
I wouldn't pay over $3000 grand for an Uber. EVER! $2000 is more car than is justified for this gig.

So you just want to drive nice people in nice neighborhoods? LOL.
What happens when they need a ride over to a crappy neighborhood 30 miles away? Are you going to deadhead it back incurring miles and time expenses?

You need to think this thru nephew.


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## 300Miles (Jun 6, 2016)

The most inexpensive and best way to get Ubering is as follows:

1) Buy the cheapest new car available. At the moment it appears to be a manual Nissa Versa sedan, which you can get for $11K with a trade-in. It will get approximately 35mpg new. Get roll-up windows instead of electric windows. It's cheaper, the windows will last longer, and rolling them up and down as you drive may be the only exercise you get. If you are not comfortable driving a stick or combining it with messing with your rideshare app, go for the automatic, which should be $500 or so more. A Nissan is generally better than a Prius because it has more leg room in the back. Payments will come in at under $200 per month.

2) If you are going to buy a used car the place to buy it is from the government. Look up GSA auctions and you will discover that in your area government auto auctions are held every month and the cars can be viewed online. These vehicles are generally dumped at 26K miles, which leaves another 9K on the warranty. This is one of the places where used car dealers buy cars, which are then mark-uped up to sell to you. The used car dealers and venues hate you for being there but you as a member of the public you are allowed in by law. Generally, they offer food, raffles, etc. and other perks to which you are NOT entitled, because you're not a car dealer who is going to buy 40 cars at a pop. But it's fun to jerk them around by trying. If you have done your homework and have your price set, you will always beat the used car dealer, because he has to make future money off the transaction.


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## mkxr (Jul 1, 2016)

Definitely a nice car, I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Personally, with that budget, I'd definitely go with an XL/Select vehicle, or even a Black car, if you're doing this full time. 
The scary thing for me would be that you have no guarantee how long you can remain a driver. False accusations are on the rise, and there are tons of stories of drivers permanently deactivated for no reason. Definitely work on a backup, don't feel you need to be loyal toUber, because Uber will not be loyal to you. 
This, plus constant changes that uber makes (that clearly show they don't have drivers' well being in mind), are exactly the reasons why I decided not to go the full time route with uber.


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## Retired Senior (Sep 12, 2016)

_


Woohaa said:



Avoid affluent areas. Rich people barely tip & expect the royal treatment.

Click to expand...

_Absolutely! I may be engaged by a corporate dude from Shelton Ct to drive to Manhattan (usually Wall Street), and then actively Uber once I cross back into Connecticut, but I will never start my day by driving 20 - 30 minutes to Stamford, Greenwich, and - most hellish of all, Wilton Ct. Certain streets in Wilton are zoned for home lot sizes no smaller than 2 acres. The houses (looking very much like medieval European castles) generally have no identifying numbers and when you try to call the customer you find that you have no cell phone satellite access. How the would be rider gets his calls out can vary.... but by the time you find a signal area and start to call the rider you find out that he has cancelled your trip.
Also, the streets are designed to have speed bumps every 100 feet. I asked a local cop last year why? I never see any kids playing in the yards or streets. He laughed and said that it had nothing to do with any forms of life.... it was all about slowing you, the driver, down enough so that their home based security cams could get a clean shot or 2 of your car and license plate

The people who live in these huge stone homes with 6 foot high granite security walls don't really see us as being members of the same species. I'd really prefer driving a busload of monkeys around than these "Trumpian" Americans. At least with the monkeys you might be given a tip - even if it is a simple banana!








Uber X 1 low price and about 20 passengers!

[QUOTE="Fozzie, post: 4328328, member: 157076"]It's financed, but I can pay it off if needed. $8k /mo on my pension, $4k /mo on my late husbands pension, (both federal) $14k /mo rental property income + investments, etc. AND MY UBER DRIVING FORTUNES! Luckily my homes are all paid off, leaving only minimal expenses.[/QUOTE]

Hah, with both social security and pension I bring in $1100 a month. My girlfriends disability social security is $750 a month. Our condo was built in 1941 - so common charges and property taxes are low....
But, my God, if I was retired with your type of money, and already was licensed to drive by various states where you may own property, I would at least start Ubering across the United States! Then everything else begins to make sense (if not cents)!


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## jfinks (Nov 24, 2016)

NOXDriver said:


> My car is a 2005 Equinox with 115k. I paid $4500 cash (a little high) and after two years I will not be able to Uber it. I Ubered for 6 days (over 3 weeks).
> 
> My car payments are $0.
> My insurance is $2/day ($60/mo) $12
> ...


If you are Grossing $135 a week then you aren't putting much time into it. You are putting way more personal miles on the car than uber miles, which is fine. You are saying you are going to drive 55-60000 miles in 2 years? Even at 50 cents a mile that is around $12000 per year or about 1000 per month.


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## jrten (Aug 21, 2018)

First of all, congratulations on your new car.
I won’t say that it’s completely a bad idea because it’s a new car and you won’t have any problems with it. From my personal experience I would look for another source of income and not rely solely on uber. I really don’t know how the taxi industry works over there but if there are other local private car service companies you should look into that. Here in NYC there are many local car services, which have better pay than uber. I also bought a new car and regret buying it. It’s not worth it buying a brand new car for uber or any other ridesharing service. I learned it the hard way. I think it’s better to just buy a car that’s in good mechanical conditional.


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## Dice Man (May 21, 2018)

If for only rideshare ------> wrong decision.
If for personal and rideshare ------> OK


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## Jumpin Jim (Mar 4, 2018)

First, pay it off completely in three years. Second, set aside $830 every month to pay for your next car when this one is in the crapper. Do this and you will be fine.


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## zigo230 (Aug 7, 2017)

Get a real job or something part time at least. Drive Uber, to/from that job and any other free time you have. Don't rely 100% on Uber money. My car is paid for but my Uber earnings pay for all the maintenance, so the car is essentially paying for it's own maintenance at this point.


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## Prius Mike (Jul 6, 2017)

Any chance you bought this car less than 3 days ago? If so you might want to check this: https://www.bbb.org/us/storage/75/documents/cooloffrule.html


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## jfinks (Nov 24, 2016)

Prius Mike said:


> Any chance you bought this car less than 3 days ago? If so you might want to check this: https://www.bbb.org/us/storage/75/documents/cooloffrule.html


You might want to actually read that document before posting it.


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## Prius Mike (Jul 6, 2017)

jfinks said:


> You might want to actually read that document before posting it.


Yep. My state (NY) has a cooling off rule for cars. Turns out that's not as universal as I thought. Also turns out that it's only for used cars.


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## UberLady10001 (Nov 4, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> (Almost $28~29k)


For that kind of money you could have bought a nice used Lincoln and still had a nice fund left over for any repairs that might be needed, then you could make a lot more money doing Uber Black.


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## UberFizzle (Sep 16, 2014)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Not necessarily. Depends on how/when/where you drive. I leased my 2014 VW Jetta hybrid in 2013, and just about paid off the car after the first year of full time driving (granted rates were higher back then). I still use it today to make money by renting it out. Think more in terms of passive income (renting your car out) rather than active income (Uber driving). I even had to replace the transmission (misfortune), and I'm still profiting from that car. Work smarter, not harder. I still Uber a few hours each week and consistently gross anywhere from $20/hour to $30/hour, and average about 34 to 35 mpg. So yes, it is possible to do ok.



MyJessicaLS430 said:


> This is the break down of expenses:
> 
> 36-month payment term: $570/mo
> 
> Statefarm comprehensive insurance: $240/mo


Woah, $570/mo car payments and $240/mo for insurance?! That's probably too much for Uber driving.


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## UberLady10001 (Nov 4, 2017)

UberLady10001 said:


> (Almost $28~29k)
> 
> For that kind of money you could have bought a nice used Lincoln with low miles and perfect condition and still had a nice fund left over for any repairs that might be needed, then you could make a lot more money doing Uber Black. The depreciation would be negligible.


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## Uberlife2 (Sep 20, 2016)

Nice car for pax to vomit.


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## SamuelB (Aug 29, 2018)

300Miles said:


> . Look up GSA auctions and you will discover that in your area government auto auctions are held every month and the cars can be viewed online. .


I read your comment and thought it a good idea. Looked it up. Lots of inventory. Only problem, auction was today. No more scheduled.
Thanks for the suggestion.


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## Pedro Paramo66 (Jan 17, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Congratulations, the cheap entitled pax will appreciate it
Lol


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## Classified (Feb 8, 2018)

Remember that nice new phone you bought, you were afraid to get it scratched to scared to even touch it, it cost you a fortune, no dents, brand spanking new, you think it’s new it’s Gonna be relable and last. 
a year later that phone has lost over half its value, isn’t lookin so nice anymore, 
on the 2nd year it’s showing a lot of wear and tear, by the 3rd year, it ain’t worth nothing, time to upgrade, 

Same goes for cars, newer cars cost more to service, maintain, buy replacement parts for like brake pads, 
They lose value fast with uber, you end up with scratches on rear bumper, stains on all the seats, 
Everything wears out fast, and while your paying it off it’s also advisable to save up to be able to replace it when time comes, 
Then what if you get fired or don’t like the job, your stuck with a car you don’t really want,

It’s best to get a car that’s good for 2-3years with uber, probably even less, 1-2years. Try it out and see if it’s the career path you want to take, if it is. Save up for a newer car,


----------



## 300Miles (Jun 6, 2016)

SamuelB said:


> I read your comment and thought it a good idea. Looked it up. Lots of inventory. Only problem, auction was today. No more scheduled.
> Thanks for the suggestion.


Glad to help.

Auctions are held everywhere in the same spot monthly so you might find another option if you cast a wider net.
fleetsales dot gsa dot gov.

If you go for it, bring some1 who knows cars or undetstands the sounds of engines. You can start them up and sit in them but can't drive them from position.

If you need to finance the purchase prearrange with your credit union for a loan with the caveat that you will call with the exact amount to be put on the check after the auction. You then pick up the check, run it back to the auction house, and off you go.


----------



## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Enjoy your new Honda !



Newbie3477 said:


> For now, solely on Uber.


1 False Deactivation . . .
And
Then What !?!?


----------



## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

Prius Mike said:


> Any chance you bought this car less than 3 days ago? If so you might want to check this: https://www.bbb.org/us/storage/75/documents/cooloffrule.html


Three days is not going to help you. It doesn't apply to this situation.

Here's a quote from the document itself:

"The Cooling-Off Rule only applies to sales at the buyer's home, workplace or dormitory, or at a temporary workplace of the seller (such as hotel or motel rooms, conventions centers, fairgrounds or restaurants)."

C


----------



## MyJessicaLS430 (May 29, 2018)

UberFizzle said:


> . I leased my 2014 VW Jetta hybrid in 2013, and just about paid off the car after the first year of full time driving (granted rates were higher back then).
> 
> Woah, $570/mo car payments and $240/mo for insurance?! That's probably too much for Uber driving.


Are there any advantages of leasing? Doesn't the dealer limit a certain mileage per year? What happens to the car when the leasing period ends?

Lexus LS is the car that I can die for. I take pride to be an owner across its 2 generations (although none of them were bought new) .

There is no way I can do Uber full time. Driving a few hours each week does help to support my frequent travels. Currently there is no family burden for me yet so it is possibly the best time to enjoy life .

As for the insurance, it is required by the bank to obtain full coverage during the loan period. I am tired of the obligatory insurance scams in this country. One time I had found a large dent on the rear passenger door and the insurance declined repair because they did not deem the damage as a result of collision. Now, I only have the state-required minimum protection.

Does the word *deductible* makes sense at all to anyone? Hello? All of us pay and when it comes to the time that we need help, it is necessary to pay $500 out-of-pocket?


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## TBone (Jan 19, 2015)

corniilius said:


> If you have a decent warranty , then you should be okay. Just don't let them know that you drive for rideshare. Might void a few things.


Driving for Uber cannot void a warranty. A dealership will have to prove driving for Uber directly resulted in a parts failure and that is impossible. Other people, like salesmen, put tens of thousands of miles on a car a year and they don't void their warranties. 
I can add an exhaust, intake, camshafts, new pistons, remap the ecu, and if the a/c compressor fails a dealership will have to honor the warranty and fix it. They will never warranty the engine though lol



wontgetfooledagain said:


> You made a big mistake. A $5000 used Honda, Toyota, etc. with high miles would have been a far better choice. In Ohio, you are likely to make $8 per hour driving for Uber. Start looking for a real job ASAP.


Again with this $8 an hour in Ohio crap. You need to move to Columbus or figure out how to make more. Average is $15-18 an hour full time and I can easily make between $20-25 an hour on weekends with no late nights. 
Quit being bitter, move on, and get a "real" job


----------



## DollarFree (Aug 3, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> For now, solely on Uber.


Sign up for Lyft too. Don't think, just do it.



Seamus said:


> Welcome. My own opinion is that the 2019 Honda Insight is head and shoulders above the Toyota Prius C. You will rack up more mileage then you think so the extended warranty is probably a good thing. The standard warranty could be done in 6 months based on the mileage.!


A medieval torture rack is also head & shoulders above a Prius C.



Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


That car will be around a lot longer than Uber. Enjoy it.



Asificarewhatyoudontthink said:


> Bwahahahahha...
> 
> Best response.
> 
> ...


Trolly or shilly, hard to say, but MDPlam was there in support quick enough so probably the latter.


----------



## Bbonez (Aug 10, 2018)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> Does the word *deductible* makes sense at all to anyone? Hello? All of us pay and when it comes to the time that we need help, it is necessary to pay $500 out-of-pocket?


It makes sense to me. By opting for a higher deductible you lessen the insurance companies liability and in return get a lower rate. You dont need a deductible, completely your decision.


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## NOXDriver (Aug 12, 2018)

TBone said:


> Driving for Uber cannot void a warranty. A dealership will have to prove driving for Uber directly resulted in a parts failure and that is impossible. Other people, like salesmen, put tens of thousands of miles on a car a year and they don't void their warranties.
> I can add an exhaust, intake, camshafts, new pistons, remap the ecu, and if the a/c compressor fails a dealership will have to honor the warranty and fix it. They will never warranty the engine though lol
> 
> Again with this $8 an hour in Ohio crap. You need to move to Columbus or figure out how to make more. Average is $15-18 an hour full time and I can easily make between $20-25 an hour on weekends with no late nights.
> Quit being bitter, move on, and get a "real" job


I'm 10000% more likely to agree with $8/hr than your $25.

AVERAGE is a crappy stat. If you work 3 days and make $10 $10 and $100 you average income is $40? No. Median is a better value $10 is more likely what you make per day.

No one believes any of the 'I make $x posts'


----------



## DollarFree (Aug 3, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Get one of these for your back seat, now! $40, water/vomit proof and easily removable for washing. If you have leather seats they're more easily cleaned than cloth seats but backpacks thrown across the car will take chunks out of them and make little cuts everywhere. Protect yourself from shitty pax behavior.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07925CWGV










Also, there's many front seat covers out there but I got these cheap, waterproof neoprene ones on Amazon, you don't care if you have to replace them and they don't cover the the side of the seat which means the seat-back airbags will still work.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B073WNK55V

PS I don't believe for a second that OP is a genuine new driver, but it's a featured post so might as well try & help new ants if it lures any into making this mistake.


----------



## Bbonez (Aug 10, 2018)

NOXDriver said:


> AVERAGE is a crappy stat. If you work 3 days and make $10 $10 and $100 you average income is $40? No. Median is a better value $10 is more likely what you make per day.


Assume a real estate agent sells 15 homes a year and makes 75k doing so and works 40 hours a week. Are you are saying that agent median daily income of $0 is a more accurate then saying the agent makes $36 an hour? After all 350 days out of 365 the agent made $0.


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## NOXDriver (Aug 12, 2018)

Bbonez said:


> Assume a real estate agent sells 15 homes a year and makes 75k doing so and works 40 hours a week. Are you are saying that agent median daily income of $0 is a more accurate then saying the agent makes $36 an hour? After all 350 days out of 365 the agent made $0.


It all goes by how you want your answer to reveal the truth.

On 350 days of the year you will make $0. That's not a lie. Its a fact. It allows you to forecast your business more accurately. Say you're a realtor and stupidly get a $450/mo car lease. You need $450 every month to pay it. Well, looking at the average your realtor makes $36 an hour right? WRONG. There is only income on 15 days of the year. They could all be in December, or January, you could get 1-ish sale a moth. You don't know.

What more accurately describes the situation? The median answer does.

Of course you're gonna say 'no! its for the year!'. Well, no. You cannot plan when the income is made (aka when you get pings) and you cannot know the exact amount of each commission (aka a driver never knows the fare until its completed).

If a driver drives 5 days and makes $10,$10,$20,$15,$100 the total is $155, a mean of $15 and average of $31.

To say that the driver makes an average $31 on any day is WRONG. In fact 4 of the 5 days he never makes that amount AT ALL.

If you take the median as your daily income, $15 it is a MUCH MORE ACCURATE description of your earnings. On 3 days make less than or equal to $15, on 3 days you make at least $15 or more.

Math!


----------



## stanigu (Dec 8, 2016)

NOXDriver said:


> It all goes by how you want your answer to reveal the truth.
> 
> On 350 days of the year you will make $0. That's not a lie. Its a fact. It allows you to forecast your business more accurately. Say you're a realtor and stupidly get a $450/mo car lease. You need $450 every month to pay it. Well, looking at the average your realtor makes $36 an hour right? WRONG. There is only income on 15 days of the year. They could all be in December, or January, you could get 1-ish sale a moth. You don't know.


Issue of cash flow vs. profit. Both important, but different.


----------



## TBone (Jan 19, 2015)

NOXDriver said:


> I'm 10000% more likely to agree with $8/hr than your $25.
> 
> AVERAGE is a crappy stat. If you work 3 days and make $10 $10 and $100 you average income is $40? No. Median is a better value $10 is more likely what you make per day.
> 
> No one believes any of the 'I make $x posts'


----------



## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> Are there any advantages of leasing? Doesn't the dealer limit a certain mileage per year? What happens to the car when the leasing period ends?


Potentially there could be a benefit to leasing. But not if you're going to use the IRS figure of 54.5c per mile for your deductions. If you want to track the maintenance costs, etc, and use an "actual" cost figure, then leasing gives you a fixed cost per month for the expense if acquiring the car.

I don't think the dealership limits the mileage on a leased car. But the leasing company effectively does. That's because any mileage over a certain figure when you turn the car back in comes out of your pocket.


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## Risab1981 (Jul 21, 2016)

You spent 30k on a car to drive Uber and limited yourself to 1 Tier (X) in a market where that tier pays .80 cents a mile. ???


----------



## El Janitor (Feb 22, 2016)

Well unfortunately, a Prius gets excellent gas mileage and all other hybrids claim to have good numbers on paper but from experience the Prius get better mileage then any other hybrid out there. So let's get down to driving for Uber full time. How many miles did you average on your last car per month? Figure you will do about the same. So you have to see what does the owners manual say about services? How often do you have to change the oil, in miles? You will be doing hard driving so for you it will be sooner. Whatever you do do't tell the dealership you're driving the car for Uber, just say you drive alot. ( They can ask you what you do with your car, they may get suspicious of the miles, but you don't have to tell them anything. Don't get me started on dealerships, and the crooked games they play.)

Tires, brakes will be a common expense etc etc. Seriously if you take care of your car it will last and Honda's go well over 200000 miles. If you never get into an accident, you should be fine. I had to replace a few things on the body myself driving for Uber but I know how to fix many things on my own car, which saves me labor. Pot holes, idiot drivers who can't stay in their lane, or that can't read the direction sign in the parking lot, or who are texting and driving or whatever not looking out the windshield while the car is moving. These have always been the biggest hazards I've come across driving.

Just don't neglect any maintenance on the car, and don't get into an accident. Uber doesn't like it when theres a scratch on your car and a rider reports it BTW, they do things like suspend your account until they get proof that the damage doesn't exist or was fixed. ( Ahhh that was fun) But you know I drove for a few fleets before Uber, and there's always some jackass who hits you eventually , and tells you it's your fault, and then when it's a fleet vehicle you may get crap from whoever your boss is. When it's your car, you had better have that deductible in hand, and then the paint never matches perfectly, and you're down a week when it's getting fixed. Oh and a dash cam, a good dash cam in the proper place has saved my ass from crooked people who've hit me and said it was my fault, dash cams don't lie, people do. Dash cams speed along insurance inquires too. Just my experience.

You will have the car for less time if you had just driven it to an office and back daily, but TBH the resale value of a car is a joke, and most people trade out after a few years. A Honda Insight is a nice car, but isn't going to be a collectors car ever, so it's not like you're driving a Civic Type R, ( for UBER LOL) or anything else that may be a car that is sought after in 20 years by collectors. It's going to end up sold used, and eventually end up scrapped and turned into soda cans or other cars one day. So enjoy your car while it lasts, have fun rolling the dice, just have a back up plan in case your car gets totaled.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Has it been PUKED IN YET ?


----------



## Jack Straw (Jan 4, 2018)

tohunt4me said:


> Has it been PUKED IN YET ?


you mean baptized?


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## Wild Boar (Sep 25, 2018)

Merc7186 said:


> It may seem like a good decision today but in 3 years when you still have 2+ years of payments left and the car has 150k miles on it, you will regret your decision.
> 
> Best of Luck.


Newbie3477 Truth is, you won't get the truth on this site, and you won't have three years. Self driving taxis will be in almost every major U.S. city within 2 years.



emdeplam said:


> Welcome to the new car club. Americans bought about 17 Million new cars this year....for an average price of even MORE than you paid.
> 
> We all know people who buy new cars. Sure you could save a few bucks by having it pre-worn and potentially damaged....
> 
> ...


You do realize these are real people you're talking to, making real life decisions they have to live with for years, right?


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

Wild Boar said:


> Self driving taxis will be in almost every major U.S. city within 2 years


I'd be fine with it if they are. But I'm figuring it'll be more like 5 to 10 years.

With any luck, it'll happen before I can't see well enough to drive for myself.

C


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## Alexxx_Uber (Sep 3, 2018)

I’m new member here. I have Honda Insight 2019 as well and I do uber/lyft in my spare time (I have full time job), for about 3 months almost. 
The rates are quite low here in NJ. If you are planning to do full time uber/lyft then buying new car doesn’t sound like a good idea. It seems the money gain from driving uber/lyft is not great.


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## Kevin7889 (Dec 10, 2015)

DocT said:


> Newbie3477 , welcome to UP.net forum. You'll find a wealth of information on this site.
> 
> Please brace yourself with the negative responses you'll receive. Take it with a grain of salt.
> 
> To those who are replying to the OP, keep it civilized and to the point.


Asking for civil behaviour on this forum is like expecting uber and Lyft to pay its drivers better


----------



## UberFizzle (Sep 16, 2014)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> Are there any advantages of leasing? Doesn't the dealer limit a certain mileage per year? What happens to the car when the leasing period ends?


Pretty much only lower monthly payments. Yes, leases have a mileage cap, which you will probably hit very fast. When the lease ends, you would probably want to buy it out due to the miles.



MyJessicaLS430 said:


> There is no way I can do Uber full time. Driving a few hours each week does help to support my frequent travels. Currently there is no family burden for me yet so it is possibly the best time to enjoy life .


I think it's great for a part time gig. I do it to unwind from my day job and meet different people.



MyJessicaLS430 said:


> Does the word *deductible* makes sense at all to anyone? Hello? All of us pay and when it comes to the time that we need help, it is necessary to pay $500 out-of-pocket?


Insurance is a total scam specifically for this reason.


----------



## Kevin7889 (Dec 10, 2015)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


 Make sure u save 4 repairs. For every 1000 miles you drive, try 2 save at least 100 dollars.

1000 miles equals 100
2000 miles equals 200
3000 miles equals 300
Etc..


----------



## jazzapt (May 16, 2016)

Well IMO, its not the wisest decision to by a brand new car for Uber. But if you are going to, you cannot go wrong with a Honda or Toyota Hybrid. We have a 2014 Accord Hybrid that is coming up on 100,000. To this day we still average about 45 mpg combined on the thing. And if you don't count the scratches and partially broken side view mirror (all due to my wife's driving), the only thing that it has needed up to this point is new tires. Everything passed with flying colors on it's 90,000 service. It needs nothing at this point.

I would recommend trying to find some more stable employment though. There is a chance that during the period of time you are paying off the car, any of these things could realistically happen:

1) deactivated for something beyond your control
2) your replaced by a self-driving car (this is the least likely, but if Uber had any say, it would be any day now)
3) you lose your ability to drive (accident, drunk driving arrest, etc...)
4) Uber goes under

It's wise to try and make Uber a side-gig at best if you can.

Other than that, enjoy your Insight. It's actually a really nice looking Hybrid and on my radar for the future.


----------



## BOUNCE DRIVER (Aug 23, 2018)

Now that you have the obligation of a loan get a real job ASAP. Uber is like a Payday loan scam, your earnings will be equal to your expenses combined with depreciation. You get a **little** money in advance but the real cost bite you in the back end, down the road. It is NOT a profitable business. There used to be a very small margin of profit provided by surge and other bonuses. Uber is doing away with any surge for the drivers, although they will continue to charge the passenger surge rates. PLEASE get away from Uber NOW, get a real job. Things to consider, pukers in the car, violence against drivers , a friend of mine was car jacked nearly beaten to death, continuing pay cuts, car accidents..... all for negative earnings!!


----------



## The Gift of Fish (Mar 17, 2017)

Wild Boar said:


> Newbie3477 *Truth is, you won't get the truth on this site*, and you won't have three years. Self driving taxis will be in almost every major U.S. city within 2 years.


^^^^ this comment is on this site; therefore by your own logic what you say about SDC within two years cannot be true.


----------



## melusine3 (Jun 20, 2016)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


You might find driving for food delivery services a bit easier on your car's wear and tear. Look to Grubhub, Door Dash, etc. Also, stay in school, go for a professional occupation.



fusionuber said:


> avoid hood names, and really focus on learning the different neighborhoods your picking up from, through time you will become very selective. Im not sure how much experience you have but I have 3300 not as many as most, but it took me a while to learn to be selective


I do only start out in the wealthier areas of town, the people are simply more civilized and will be more careful with your car. If I'm ending up in a hood, at the start of the ride I set "last ride" and DO NOT ACCEPT ANOTHER RIDE FROM UBER. Beat it out of that hood as fast as you can. Avoid schools, they're 99% of the time underage riders and that may be illegal in your state/town. Plus, they tend to be short rides and those little f'ers will one star you in a hot minute, just because you can. Avoid colleges too for basically the same reason, but the latter might puke in your car.


----------



## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

Why people are afraid to buy a used car is amazing to me, especially considering their new car is instantly a used car once it's driven off the lot. With that said the suggestion that you need to save 10% of your earning for repairs is kind of crazy. I have a 6 year old Civic with 140,000 and the only thing I have put into it have been regular maintenance (oil changes, radiator flush) brakes and tires.


----------



## melusine3 (Jun 20, 2016)

Newbie3477 said:


> For now, solely on Uber.


Look into a security company called Securitas. It starts out $11 per hour, but for the most part still more than rideshare because you have no expenses other than the gas to get to work.



Seahawk3 said:


> Honestly a hybrid is not the brightest for this job you should have went full electric in the first year you would have saved the difference of going from 30,000 to 40000.


Full electric is not such a great idea when you don't always have access to a charger. Realtor friend of mine couldn't go out of town to a client because he didn't have enough charge to get there and back to town. At least having a gas option would have made him mobile at any time.



NOXDriver said:


> My car is a 2005 Equinox with 115k. I paid $4500 cash (a little high) and after two years I will not be able to Uber it. I Ubered for 6 days (over 3 weeks).
> 
> My car payments are $0.
> My insurance is $2/day ($60/mo) $12
> ...


Is your insurance commercial/rideshare?



CaptainToo said:


> If the OP had bought a 2016 certified Honda Accord for $15,000 he would get the same or greater powertrain warranty (100k miles/7 years). In three years when the warranty runs out and he sells to get a newer warranteed vehicle, he'd save some $10,000 or more in the avoidable depreciation that came with that hew Honda.
> 
> It is simply financial foolishness to purchase a new car to drive for Uber, even ignoring the risk that your Uber career may end tomorrow. Ants hustle Uber for the money, and you arn't close to thinking straight about what you are about, to simply suck up the depreciation coming from a new car.


That warranty might be voidable if they find out you're ubering. Check with the company before you rely on any warranty for your car, it may be a waste of money.



Retired Senior said:


> I believe that you royally screwed up. It all depends on the financing fine print . Did you have the cash to pay in full and walk out the door with the title of ownership?. If so, then not so bad. But, if like me, you had to finance the entire purchase thru the deal ship then you have joined the company of damned souls that I entered into a month ago. Does not mean that we are truly damned, but it does mean that we will have to become about the savviest Uber drivers in our local areas. In my case, Uber income aside, I could make the payments with my social security check, and just about pay my other bills with my pension check from the State of Ct - as long as the pension fund does not go totally balls up.


I've said this elsewhere, but don't know if you'll catch my recommendation. Being a senior and having the door slammed in my face right and left, I was happily surprised to be snapped up by a security guard company (Securitas in my case) and LOVE the gig. The pay is $11 per hour, which is far more than I ever made with Uber/Lyft before expenses. Caveat: no drug use and clean record... but otherwise, they want you!


----------



## The Cincinnati Kid (Oct 12, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


I bought barf bags on Amazon (they are called Emesis Bags). I keep a couple in front of each back seat. Just in case. Because it is nearly impossible to get the stench of vomit out of your car. PS: I think a Kia Soul would be a great Uber car.


----------



## melusine3 (Jun 20, 2016)

BOUNCE DRIVER said:


> Now that you have the obligation of a loan get a real job ASAP. Uber is like a Payday loan scam, your earnings will be equal to your expenses combined with depreciation. You get a **little** money in advance but the real cost bite you in the back end, down the road. It is NOT a profitable business. There used to be a very small margin of profit provided by surge and other bonuses. Uber is doing away with any surge for the drivers, although they will continue to charge the passenger surge rates. PLEASE get away from Uber NOW, get a real job. Things to consider, pukers in the car, violence against drivers , a friend of mine was car jacked nearly beaten to death, continuing pay cuts, car accidents..... all for negative earnings!!


Every Word True!



Risab1981 said:


> You spent 30k on a car to drive Uber and limited yourself to 1 Tier (X) in a market where that tier pays .80 cents a mile. ???


In my market, it is .65 per mile.


----------



## LakerLeBron (Oct 10, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Next time spend only $5k on a 10 year old Camry or Corolla.


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## UbeeDubee (Dec 16, 2018)

New car purchase aside...you should not be interested in driving at night and picking up the drunks and freaks in your area. A woman can get herself into a ton of trouble doing that. Even the better neighborhoods can become a nightmare for a woman. I'm a guy and I won't drive after it gets dark...don't want to chance getting puke or pee or other 'stuff' on the leather seats in my car.

As far as the new car. Well, if you've already bought it, you've dug a hole for yourself that will be nearly impossible to get out of. If you're still considering it, DON'T DO IT. I went to a used car auction, stole a 2015 Mazda 6 Touring sedan with 18k on the odometer for $9500. Been driving it for 6 months and its already got 53k on it and depreciation value is probably about down to $8500 or so. But since I paid so little for it, with this mileage it's still worth more that I paid. I only drive 3-4 hours a day, 7 days week (wife recently died and the weekends are empty for me anyway).

Whatever you decide to do good luck and I hope it works out for you.


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

UbeeDubee said:


> I went to a used car auction, stole a 2015 Mazda 6 Touring sedan with 18k on the odometer for $9500.


How do you evaluate them? I can find the auctions, but I think you can only start the cars, not drive them around. What do you look for in evaluating them?



UbeeDubee said:


> wife recently died and the weekends are empty for me anyway


I'm so sorry! Please accept my deepest sympathy.

Christine


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## LakerLeBron (Oct 10, 2018)

UbeeDubee said:


> New car purchase aside...you should not be interested in driving at night and picking up the drunks and freaks in your area. A woman can get herself into a ton of trouble doing that. Even the better neighborhoods can become a nightmare for a woman. I'm a guy and I won't drive after it gets dark...don't want to chance getting puke or pee or other 'stuff' on the leather seats in my car.
> 
> As far as the new car. Well, if you've already bought it, you've dug a hole for yourself that will be nearly impossible to get out of. If you're still considering it, DON'T DO IT. I went to a used car auction, stole a 2015 Mazda 6 Touring sedan with 18k on the odometer for $9500. Been driving it for 6 months and its already got 53k on it and depreciation value is probably about down to $8500 or so. But since I paid so little for it, with this mileage it's still worth more that I paid. I only drive 3-4 hours a day, 7 days week (wife recently died and the weekends are empty for me anyway).
> 
> Whatever you decide to do good luck and I hope it works out for you.


I am sorry for your loss.


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## James Robbins (Dec 20, 2018)

I think it was a good decision and will make you a lot of money because there are people who rely solely on over. And if you want to avoid drunken people, then avoid driving may be in the dawn time.


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## 300Miles (Jun 6, 2016)

Christinebitg said:


> How do you evaluate them? I can find the auctions, but I think you can only start the cars, not drive them around. What do you look for in evaluating them?
> 
> I'm so sorry! Please accept my deepest sympathy.
> 
> Christine


You are correct. You can't drive them, but you can start them. What to look for is funky sounds from the car. Scarey clacking is probably a serpentine belt, which is cheap. If RPMs rev above say 1500 (on the left of speedometer) engine issue, means engine is probably past it and sucking gas. If it sputters, likely fuel pump (expensive) or alternator ($120). Move the gears from P to N to D to R even though you're not moving. If it is a hard sticking thing, knocking, or it moves like butter it's a transmission issue--avoid, expensive. Press through the mileage button that sticks out from speedometer as it will likely have the last average mpg, giving you a sense of what kind of mileage to expect. lights and bits not working--Look under the hood for chewed wires from rodent infestation. This is like $300. Check fluids. Red transmission fluid, good. Black or milky transmission fluid very bad. If oil is completely empty and not just low, bad. Generally mileage should be about $26K. Tires: Take a penny and place it head down in tire tread-if it goes beyond Lincoln's forehead to his eyes, it needs new tires. The cheapest place to buy tires in America is tires-easy dot com. Warranties go for 3 years/36K miles generally so if it's under this, much can be fixed for free. Good luck


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

300Miles said:


> What to look for is funky sounds from the car.


Thanks, that was a great description! I appreciate it.


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## 300Miles (Jun 6, 2016)

My pleasure. Also, once you buy tires from tire-easy--I go through 2 sets per year and paid $168 for 4 new ones, delivered--the place to get them installed is costco, which charges $15 per tire.


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## LAbDog65 (Nov 29, 2016)

corniilius said:


> If you have a decent warranty , then you should be okay. Just don't let them know that you drive for rideshare. Might void a few things.


Definitely this could happen. I know from a family member that an extended warranty claim was denied because of his driving for uber


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## wonderfulcarscent (Aug 26, 2018)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


You spent $29K on a brand new car for Uber?


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## vtcomics (Oct 9, 2018)

Depreciation update: according to my cancelations that I just pulled out of my fat a** you're down roughly $12k on the investment to date. Next update in 6 months.


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## SheVegas (Jan 18, 2020)

I think it's a brilliant choice, if you get your butt out of bed you should take in over $1,000 every week or more. That thing will go 300,000 miles easily with little more than tites?, Oil changes and spark plugs. With the had savings you could pay it off in less than a year andake a ton the following years with nearly zero cost.


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## UberBeemer (Oct 23, 2015)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Did you verify whether that car is on the list of accepable vehicles?


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## Lissetti (Dec 20, 2016)

UberBeemer said:


> Did you verify whether that car is on the list of accepable vehicles?


OP hasn't been seen in the 2 years since she started this thread

:wink:


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## UberBeemer (Oct 23, 2015)

Ha! Alrighty then. I think i need to logout.


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## Retired Senior (Sep 12, 2016)

Merc7186 said:


> It may seem like a good decision today but in 3 years when you still have 2+ years of payments left and the car has 150k miles on it, you will regret your decision.
> 
> Best of Luck.


This is almost 100% the situation that I am in. I was broke from trying to keep my Santa Fe road-worthy and went thru dealer financing and bought a 2013 Tucson. Terrible mistake. The car had 57,000 miles on it when I bought it and in one year I have put on about 53,000 miles. I have 4 more years of payments of $325 a month and I am quite certain that the car won't last another 2 years.

It is similar to going to the supermarket when you have not eaten all day and your blood sugar levels have crashed. You don't make rational choices. I should have waited and calmly chose my next vehicle. Instead, I let the fear of not being able to pay monthly recurring bills seduce me into taking on a 5 yr commitment that is slowly strangling me.

"They" say that a new car loses a good percentage of it's value when the new owner drives it off the seller's lot. That being the case, I would definitely buy my next car from a private person and look for a 1 year old model.


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## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

SheVegas said:


> I think it's a brilliant choice, if you get your butt out of bed you should take in over $1,000 every week or more. That thing will go 300,000 miles easily with little more than tites?, Oil changes and spark plugs. With the had savings you could pay it off in less than a year andake a ton the following years with nearly zero cost.


I've got a Civic with 210,000 miles and I'm still on my original set of tites that I was born with.


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

Newbie3477 said:


> Was my decision of buying this car for Uber really crazy???
> Let me know if my decision was good or bad and I'll be appreciated if I can get some advices from you considering my situations.


Your decision to drive Uber is crazy.

A driver needs to also be a mechanic so he can fix everything that breaks.

Your warranty will run out in about a year or less if you are driving full time. 50K miles yearly if driving 40 hours a week. Things will start to break, you will have to pay mechanic out of warranty.

Buying a new car only got you 1-2 years of paid mechanical work.

I would not advice anyone to drive Uber unless they also can do all the repair work on their car.


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## Jason X (Jul 29, 2019)

Fozzie said:


> I bought my current Uber car in May. (2016 Nissan Altima w/ 15k miles) I paid $11,900 for it, and with 24 month terms I pay right around $500 /mo for it. I'm not thrilled with the payments, but at least I'm confident that the car should still be sellable (4 year old vehicle with less than 100k miles) once it's paid off.


What model Altima did you get? (S, SR, SV, SL)


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## osii (Aug 21, 2014)

My sincere advice for you is to buy a $1,000 box truck. I hope you have GAP insurance. Use the box truck to smash into the Insight. Back up into it multiple times until you cannot recognize what kind of car it is. Hopefully the insurance will cover everything and you can walk away from this mistake.

Also GAP won't cover rideshare so if you total your car driving for uber, you'll still owe money on the loan.

We all make mistakes. I did the same thing to a lessor extent. Bought a '17 Elantra new for $18k and financed $11k. Now it has 80k miles. I would have been much better off buying a used SUV or large CUV. 

As a rule in this business, you should look for something that is about 6 years old that has a good reputation for reliability. That gives you 4 years of operation in most markets which translates to 100 to 200 thousand miles over that time. You should be able to find something with between 40 and 80k miles on it so a good Lexis, Toyota, Mazda should make it to almost 300k if you need it too.


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## LADryver (Jun 6, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


Trade it in or sell it in a year. Buy the 2021 then. Don't add more than 40k to the odo on a new car in this business. You will love the hybrid. Only the best Pax deserve it. Airport runs, are an example. Affluent areas are no guarantee. But definitely not after most stores close. No bars. No fast food. No Wal-Mart's.


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## IR12 (Nov 11, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> For now, solely on Uber.


It doesn't have to be an accident or background check that gets you booted offline . It could be a negative review from a lying pax who wants a refund. Maybe Uber will understand, maybe not.

What is your Plan B?


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)




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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

300Miles said:


> You are correct. You can't drive them, but you can start them. What to look for is funky sounds from the car. Scarey clacking is probably a serpentine belt, which is cheap. If RPMs rev above say 1500 (on the left of speedometer) engine issue, means engine is probably past it and sucking gas. If it sputters, likely fuel pump (expensive) or alternator ($120). Move the gears from P to N to D to R even though you're not moving. If it is a hard sticking thing, knocking, or it moves like butter it's a transmission issue--avoid, expensive. Press through the mileage button that sticks out from speedometer as it will likely have the last average mpg, giving you a sense of what kind of mileage to expect. lights and bits not working--Look under the hood for chewed wires from rodent infestation. This is like $300. Check fluids. Red transmission fluid, good. Black or milky transmission fluid very bad. If oil is completely empty and not just low, bad. Generally mileage should be about $26K. Tires: Take a penny and place it head down in tire tread-if it goes beyond Lincoln's forehead to his eyes, it needs new tires. The cheapest place to buy tires in America is tires-easy dot com. Warranties go for 3 years/36K miles generally so if it's under this, much can be fixed for free. Good luck


I went to one auction before deciding to buy from a wholesaler.

The problem with auctions is that very experienced dealers are also bidding on the cars. So if you get a "deal", the most you will save is the amount a dealer could flip it for, which will be 1-2k.

Also, most auctions aren't open to the public, the public auction cars tend to be pretty rough.

That 9500 Mazda probably would have sold for 10-11k if a dealer had bought it, polished it, did some pdr, and resold it, but you outbid the dealers that day. Maybe it was previously a rental or had an accident. Doesn't matter for rideshare, but a dealer will care.

I love the idea of getting an auction car, but the most you will save is what a dealer could profit, and you are shouldering alot of risk.


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## nonononodrivethru (Mar 25, 2019)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


If you bought an extended warranty and gap insurance, cancel all of those because they're voided under rideshare. Get your money back and stash it away Warren emergency.


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## Darrell Green Fan (Feb 9, 2016)

osii said:


> As a rule in this business, you should look for something that is about 6 years old that has a good reputation for reliability. That gives you 4 years of operation in most markets which translates to 100 to 200 thousand miles over that time. You should be able to find something with between 40 and 80k miles on it so a good Lexis, Toyota,* Mazda* should make it to almost 300k if you need it too.


You misspelled Honda.


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## lcc421110 (Mar 29, 2017)

Newbie3477 said:


> Yes, I bought a Honda Insight(Hybrid car) Touring package 2019 (Almost $28~29k) for full time Uber and some people might think I'm crazy. However, all the options that I added for this car made me a lot more comfortable if I drive in a high way for a long time.
> 
> First, I wanted to get a used Prius that costed about $15k, but I did not want to care about something goes wrong with an used car. Also, even if I pay 15k for used Prius, if something breaks and I begin to spend money, it'll eventually go up to $17~18k. Plus new cars come with the basic warranty + extended warranty.
> 
> ...


This is same job like "pizza drivers". More than $4000 and MPG < 50 car is a totally loser.


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