Shopping for a car started out fun, before all the realities set in. I started to research my mental list of favorites / possibilities. Running them past Ceil certainly shortened the list. Last week I researched on line at night, after long days at the office.
I was ready to get an SUV if at all possible, a seemingly cooler option. Ceil preferred a minivan. The Kia Sedona kept popping up as a viable candidate. Motor Trend compared it to the competition, and it beat out the Chrysler Town & Country and Nissan Quest, and came close to besting the Honda Odyssey. It was safe and scored well in several other places…and a slightly used model loses an incredible amount of value, making it a great deal. Ceil hated the thought, though.
Friday I mentioned to Ceil that we could go out and kick some tires that night, and she took me up on my offer. We drove over to Peachtree Industrial, where there were a bevy of dealerships. But when we drove past a Kia dealer, it killed the mood. We wound up driving down to Lenox, then on to Jalisco for dinner. I was sure I heard her say the Toyota Sienna was ugly. To me that said only a Honda would do.
So Saturday I hit the Odysseys hard. They were so expensive, with few of the new body-style (2005 & newer) under twenty grand. That afternoon Ceil suggested we ride out Cobb Parkway to visit a used car dealer favored by Conner’s parents. While there we saw a Mazda MPV next door. Ceil mentioned she would take another Mazda.
Next we rode up to Carmax, where she could have a look at a variety of vehicles. She hated the Jeep Commander but liked the Chrysler Pacifica, two American models that seemed to lose value quickly, making for a good deal. She also liked the Honda Pilot SUV, a little less expensive than the Odyssey. Thankfully, our salesman wasn’t overbearing. Later at home I discovered that not all Pacificas had the third row of seats we needed, greatly narrowing that selection. I did find a nice used car dealer in Stockbridge that sold Pilots pretty cheap, coming off leases.
Saturday night I went to bed feeling like I’d made progress, but knowing there were still pieces to the puzzle. All these vehicles got sorry MPG, even the Pilot. At church Sunday I spoke to Lee, and we discussed Mazdas…which get better MPG than any we’d looked at. On the way home I had an anxiety attack. We really couldn’t afford this new car payment and keep our kids taking classes as well.
Sunday afternoon I poured over the spreadsheet of cars I’d compiled, re-sorting based on differing criteria. Whereas one of Ceil’s friends talked of giving up Anna & Matthew’s Veritas classes to pay for the car, my thought was the car shouldn’t be the priority. I researched Mazda’s, finding some a little older than we’d originally looked at. The prices were much lower than Pilots, Pacificas, and Odysseys with similar miles.
Monday I focused on four candidates. My first two choices had been sold. The MPV on Cobb Parkway had a few thousand more miles, cost a grand more…and had been in two wrecks, according to the Carfax. That left a silver one in Stone Mountain. Drove over after work, test drove it, and bought it. A 2002 with a few more features than the one we had. Dealing with the dealer I felt beat, and there wasn’t much excitement when I got home. Not the perfect car, but hopefully safe, reliable, economical transportation.
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