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Can I afford a 10 lakh car?

At a 20% down payment over five years at 8.5%, a 10 lakh car means an EMI near ₹16,413 and roughly ₹14,333 a month in fuel, insurance, servicing, parking and tolls. That is about ₹30,747 a month before you have driven anywhere interesting.

Whether that is affordable is not a property of the car. It depends on what you earn, what you already owe and what you would have left. The calculator below is filled in at 10 lakh and waiting for the rest.

The four numbers that decide it

Monthly burden. The full cost of the car against your take-home pay. Under 15% is comfortable; past 30% it starts shaping the rest of your month.

The upfront hit. A ₹2,00,000 down payment on a 10 lakh car has to come from savings, and whatever it takes is no longer available for anything else.

What is left afterwards. Measured as months of total outgo your remaining savings would cover, including the new EMI. A car loan does not pause when your income does.

The five-year total. Down payment, every EMI, all running costs, minus what you get back on resale. This is usually the number that surprises people.

Questions about this calculation

What salary do you need for a 10 lakh car?
There is no single figure, because it depends on your existing EMIs, savings and expenses as much as on income. As a guide, this calculator treats a car as comfortable when its full monthly cost stays under about 15% of take-home pay. At a 20% down payment over five years, a 10 lakh car costs roughly ₹30,747 a month all in, which points to an income somewhere above ₹2L a month for it to sit comfortably. Enter your own numbers below for an answer that accounts for your actual situation.
What is the EMI on a 10 lakh car?
With a 20% down payment of ₹2,00,000 and a loan of ₹8,00,000 at 8.5% over five years, the EMI works out to about ₹16,413. Change the rate, tenure or down payment in the calculator to match the offer you have.
What does a 10 lakh car cost to run each month?
Beyond the EMI, expect roughly ₹14,333 a month for fuel, insurance, servicing, parking and tolls on a petrol car driven about 1,000 km a month. Insurance alone runs near ₹15,000 a year at this price. These are defaults you can edit.
What will a 10 lakh car be worth in five years?
The calculator assumes 45% of the purchase price after five years for a petrol car, which is around ₹4.5L. Depreciation is usually the single largest cost of owning a car, and it is invisible until you sell.
Is a bigger down payment always better?
It lowers the loan, the EMI and the total interest, and it raises the affordability score. The counterweight is that it drains savings, which is exactly what your emergency buffer is made of. The calculator scores both effects, so you can see where the balance sits for you rather than assuming more down is automatically better.

RealityCheck is a decision-support tool, not financial advice. Results depend entirely on the figures and assumptions you enter, and are a starting point for your own thinking rather than a conclusion.