My week almost suffered when both my Ford Mustang and Audi A4 went out of commission the same morning. I also have a Toyota Yaris in this mix, not out of commission, but out on loan. Why in the world would I need three vehicles? That is a very good question. To answer that, I have to look at the history of my car ownership. This goes way back to when I first started driving in high school.
I was one of the lucky few who had the opportunity to own a car and forgo the bus to school. It was a used car but functional and practical. The maroon Pontiac LeMans was a hand-me-down from my parents. I am not sure what happened to it. When I got married, I remember we purchased a silver Chevrolet Camaro Berlinetta. I almost forgot about that car. I'm not sure what happened to that car either.
After that, the big step we took was buying a brand new car, which meant having my parents co-sign. My dad had so much faith in me to be responsible and make car payments, and so he did it without hesitation. We bought a red Nissan Sentra. CJ's dad and I were just 18 and 19 at the time, and so it felt empowering and so grown up to make such a major purchase. It was just like the feeling we got when we were approved for a credit card with a large limit.
I remember that we eventually sold the Sentra to my little brother, who one day parked it in front of the house where it was totaled by a drunk driver. The drunk driver had barreled down the street and proceeded to total other vehicles. He tried to get away but Good Sams stopped him until police arrived.
We bought nothing but new vehicles after that because our experience with used vehicles was terrible. Used cars always need attention and repair work, which can add up. We bought a yellow Geo Storm and a maroon Toyota Truck. The name of the truck escapes me, or maybe it didn't have one. It was a model that was somewhere between a Toyota Tundra and a Tacoma. I was fond of that truck because it had a V6 engine, one of the first. I believe the Geo Storm was donated to a charity. As for the truck, the engine froze up and died. My brother Zaldy replaced it with a new one that we bought from somewhere in Southern California. The truck served us well until we finally donated it to charity.
The next couple of cars we bought were the white Pontiac Grand Prix and the maroon Toyota Corolla. I took the Corolla in the divorce proceedings. The Corolla eventually went to CJ, who sold it at higher than Blue Book value. I gave CJ the Corolla when I purchased the grey Mustang.
Awww, the Mustang. I did a blogpost on this car. The Mustang is my baby. It's a 2002, well over a decade old with over 200,000 miles recorded on the odometer, but it still can run smoothly. What I love about it is the power of its V8 engine. I am an Indy 500 fan, and the V8 helps me maneuver past slow drivers, as I pretend to be in that race. *Chuckle*
The Mustang is also the first car that taught me about the ridiculousness of car payments. I bought the Mustang outright in cash, and so I had no car payments. In the long run, you save a ton of money. Some people get trapped in monthly payments hell, and an even worse situation are lease payments. Leasing to me is just plain dumb. Car payments are dumb. Dumb!
So why did I agree to car payments when I bought my baby blue Yaris in 2010? I did the math, and I am no dummy. The deal was 0% down, 0% financing. Think about that one. Why would anyone not take that deal? I could not refuse it. Oh I didn't go buy it just to get the great deal. I needed a second vehicle that was more fuel efficient and inexpensive. I thought about getting a used car but remembered my past with used cars. So the Yaris was a good solution.
When did the beige Audi A4 come into my life? When CJ needed a car. He sold his black Toyota MR2 in early 2011 and didn't have a car to drive after that. So he borrowed my Yaris. It felt like forever that he had it. After more than a year, CJ went used car shopping on Craigslist and found the A4. It's in good condition now after some major repair work on it. I ended up liking it so much that I drive it more than the Mustang. The A4 hugs the road and makes tight U turns. Alas, it needs to go to CJ. We're supposed to swap cars but CJ is being CJ. *Sigh*
So the used car ownership and experience still haunts me. The A4 would not start a couple of days ago, and I had to bring it to my mechanic. It turned out to be the battery, but my point is that you don't experience these things with a new car. And who doesn't like that new car smell?
So I am getting that itch again to buy a new car. CJ has been suggesting for many years that I buy a BMW because I "deserve it." "BMW my ass!" Just because I can afford a car doesn't mean I should go out and buy it. Besides, BMWs are the Mustang's nemesis. I can easily find BMWs by speeding on the freeway and looking in my rearview mirror. It's not unusual to see a BMW quickly approach, zoom around me, and jam. I've raced BMWs before, and they really have nothing on the Mustang V8, but I stopped playing that game. Perhaps that is why I have such a bad taste in my mouth when it comes to BMWs.
So there is no BMW in my future or even on my list for consideration. I have to go with the trend of buying an electric vehicle. The Yaris is not a hybrid, and it makes sense to go the hybrid route, but I may skip that all together and just go electric. I was a passenger in Steve's Chevy Volt a couple of days ago when we went to lunch. It's a nice car. I have heard great reviews about the Nissan Leaf. I need to leech a ride and check that one out. Tesla? Feels pretentious to me, but I shouldn't rule that out.
What to do, what to do. I don't need three vehicles. I need four!
My car history is still in the making...
No comments:
Post a Comment