Family and Consumer Science
Penndale Middle School
Name:______________________
Section:____________________
Buying A Car
Directions: Here is your chance to purchase a car, maybe even your dream car. Use this
guide and the “Buying a Car Web Quest” to guide you through the car shopping process.
Remember not only do you have to pick a car, but you have to finance it, and find
insurance that fits in your monthly budget. Read each question and then record your
answers on the chart on the final page.
Before we get started, a little bit about Car Loans
and their variables:




Interest is an amount of money that you pay the bank for them loaning you the
money for your car.
Time Period is also known as the TERM of your loan. The term is always listed in
the number of months. You have that long to pay off your car. The shorter the
term the less you pay in interest charges, but the higher your payment. The
longer the term the lower the monthly payment, buy you end up paying more for
interest.
APR or Annual Percentage Rate is the percentage of interest that you are
paying to get the money for your car loan. The lower the APR the less that you
pay. *Warning* if your credit rating is bad, you WILL pay a higher APR.
Down Payment is the amount of money that you have in your pocket right now to
give the sales company for your car. The more money down the less you have to
take a loan.
**Buying a car can be a slippery ride, take your
time and pay attention so you don’t slide.**
1. Look at your budget sheet. Your monthly transportation allowance is: $_______
2. Get PAYMENT CARD from teacher and record
that information here:
(You will need to refer to this information several
times during the webquest.)
LOAN VARIABLES
Time Period: _______months
APR: _______%
$_________ Down payment
3. Click on to https://www.thrivent.com/calculators/dinkytown/AutoLoan.html
1. Click on the total purchase price
Put a Zero in Trade
Allowance, and
Amount owed on
trade boxes.
Use your PAYMENT CARD
information and enter
Term in Months, Cash
Down (or down payment),
and Interest Rate (APR)
4. The highest Total Auto Purchase Price that I can afford is _________________.
5. Go to one of the following sites: www.carsense.com, www.autotrader.com or
www.vehix.com .Select a car that is not higher than the purchase price above and fill
in the information in the boxes. Print a picture of your car and attach to the
webquest.
A. Car
Description
(make/model)
B.
C.
Year
Mileage
6. Go to www.kbb.com and find the blue
of your car by answering the questions
car. (KBB price is listed on the CarSense
D. Asking
Price
E. Kelly Blue Book
Value of My Car
7. Do I pay taxes on my car?
Of course! Please add the 6% sales tax to the asking price of your car
a. Purchase price + 6% Tax = ________________ (F.)
KBB is the
trusted resource
for prices on
cars.
If the
book
value
asking
price
is
about your
not close, be
site.)
careful!
8. Now subtract your down payment from your total purchase price including tax
This is your auto loan amount.
-
=_______________(G)
9. Go to www.bankrate.com/brm/auto-loan-calculator.asp
Using the numbers from the payment card
and your auto loan amount enter that
information in the loan calculator. Click on the
calculate button. (K)
Total monthly
payment is…
$
10. Click on the Show/Recalculate Amortization Table button. Amortization can also
reveal the exact dollar amount that goes towards interest . Interest is a fee paid on
borrowed money. Scroll down to the bottom of the chart to find the total interest
paid over the life of the loan.
The total amount of interest that I will pay over the life
of my loan is… $
(L)
(L)
11.Can I make my car payments and SKIP paying insurance?
a. No. It is illegal to drive or own a car without insurance.
b. See your teacher to find out the following information and how it affects how
much you pay for insurance…
.
Basic insurance is $600’s a year.
If you have a bad credit rating add $200
If you have a car that cost over $20,000’s add $150
If you have had one accident add $500’s, two accidents add $1000’s
If you are under the age of 25 add $100
If you live in a major city add $200’s. Write you city name here
Total cost of insurance per year
Divide that number by 12 to get your monthly insurance
costs
$
$
(m)
Car Web Quest Summary/Grading Sheet
To get a grade, please record all information found during this web quest in the chart below.
(36 points)
A. Car
D.
E. Value of Car
B.
C.
Description
Asking
(Blue Book)
Year
Mileage
(make/model)
Price
F.
Car price +
Tax =
I.
Term
H.
of the
G.
Down
loan in
Auto
Payment months
Loan
you will
Amount
make
J.
APR
K.
Total
monthly
payment
for car
loan
L.
Total
Amount
of
interest
paid
over the
life of
the loan
M.
Insurance
Costs
(per
month)
N.
Total
cost for
fixed car
expenses
Write a summary statement explaining what you have learned about buying a car. In a
minimum of 5 sentences include 3 specific things learned during this web quest.(10 points)
Computer print out of car is attached and paper filled out (4pts).
Total: __________
50 possible points