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February 02, 2008
Car Lust
I've never owned a new car. I've never owned a car I chose to buy. While I appreciate my big grey whale, and have enjoyed several cross-country trips hauling all my worldly possessions in it, I think it's time to move on. I'm excited about having the time to research cars and make a decision about what to buy, rather than having an emergency force me to get something right away.
I'm intrigued that my coworkers think used cars are the way to go. You can get the type of car you want at a good deal by going this route. Though, as a female with zero ability to gauge the honesty of repairmen, I'm wary of leaving myself open to abuse. Trust me, I've sunk enough extra money into my Mercury Grand Marquis to buy a used Honda over the 5.5 years I've been driving it.
The other interesting thing about my male coworker's discussion of cars is that no one seems primarily concerned with color choice. I mean, people are willing to take a deal (particularly on used cars) rather than wait for the color combo that looks perfect. This may be a chick thing, maybe I'm just childish, but once I make a decision on the make/model of the car the most important decision to me is exterior and interior color. This is a helluva lot more important than all the extra doodads (particularly the dumbass guy lust for cool rims) you could put on a car.
As a chick, I can't help but be surrounded by mothers. From my own mom's decision to drive a Toyota mini-van, to my sister's mini-SUV, all around me women are making choices based on hauling their own kids or kids they're related to. And to declare my own independence from such accessories, I'm determined to get a sexy, lil car to replace my whale.
Right now, my eye is on the Nissan Z Coupe Touring in black with Burnt Orange Leather interior or the Audi TT Coupe 2.0 TFSI w Premium Package in Brilliant Black with Fine Nappa Leather in Luxor Beige interior. The Z's estimated price is $34,075 whereas the TT's estimated price is $38,050.
Seems a good thing that this new fangled internet allows one to lust after material possessions without having to deal with salesmen, since both are beyond my budget at the present time.
Random research note - supposedly the trade-in value of my whale is $3,400. Though my coworker tells me it'd be easy to sell it in the Latino community, where the model is highly valued.
...maybe I'll go test drive some cars today. Looks like a good day to play...
Posted by cj at February 2, 2008 11:56 AM