The BIG fireworks were last year for my step into the world of the Septaugenarian when my children threw a surprise birthday party for me. Any celebration this year was going to be hard to top the one in 2015: the Thanksgiving Dinner the day before the party with EVERYONE in attendance, the family picture shoot, the make-your-own pizzas, and the homemade donuts ala Maude Huggins who used to make them per my request for my birthday instead of an ordinary cake when I was growing up . Oh, and the personalized Trivial Pursuit Game with questions straight from 10 years worth of the Nichols Family News.
Yeah. That was a show-stopper event. One that could never be duplicated or even measured up to. So, I bought a new car.
Actually, I didn't set out to do that. I knew I needed to purchase a new vehicle pretty soon since the Momma G Eclipse was 14 years old. And, though it is still a near-perfect ride, I knew it would soon begin to need major replacement parts. The original ones weren't designed to last forever. But I just couldn't bring myself to even THINK about the overwhelming prospect of finding a car that I liked or could afford.
So, I thought I would just keep my eyes open for something that struck my fancy. There was a little criteria I had already set up : had to be more than just a reasonable car for one person i.e. something with four doors and room for TWO car seats if we had family visit--but on the sporty side. Plus, I wanted to make sure the back window wasn't just one of those little peep hole things but an opening with lots of space to look out of when checking the rear view mirror. I still wanted "four on the floor". Oh, and the price had to be right. Whew! I guess that was just a little more than a few requirements.
Still....I was in no market to even begin looking, though Louis kept trying to entice me to jump start the process by test-driving several vehicles. Beginning with a BMW which he thought I would look good in. (Incidentally, Brice thought the same thing and even offered an incentive.) Not ready. Not interested.
Then I got a letter from Mitsubishi with news that the visor over the passenger side window was defective, and I needed to take it to the car dealership to get it repaired. No money involved. Why not. So, I went up to Fort Collins Mitsubishi and had the recall taken care of. (They put a "bra" on the visor because there were some Eclipses in which the visors just flipped down on their own and caused some kind of mayhem--however minor. Mine had never even thought about flipping down!)
Louis suggested it was a marketing ploy to try to sell me a new car, but not one word was said about buying a new car or even looking at one of the models on the showroom floor during my visit for the recall/repair. I was pleased about that as I have such a difficult time saying "no" to a salesperson even though I know most of the ploys they use. I used some of them myself to sell computer memory years ago.
But one day a few weeks later as we passed by that dealership, I remarked to Louis that I kind of thought the little white sporty SUV parked out in front looked sort of like my style. He turned right into the lot and insisted I take a test drive. I was embarrassed. I wasn't ready. I didn't have enough money. I had a thousand reasons NOT to. But Louis wouldn't take no for an answer.
Turns out the little white sporty job was a RAV 4! Well, I was in the dealership. It wouldn't hurt just to take a look at the two cars on the showroom floor. One was a great color blue. Yet when I found out there was a red one on the lot behind us, I hung with the instant thought to check out the red one. So, the salesman brought it around. Turns out it was a full-sized model I was looking at, a car the same size as Louis'. Didn't want THAT huge thing filling up space in the garage and guzzling gas. I was used to going between 425 and 450 miles per tank of gas!
But it was love at first sight when I saw this little Outlander Sport made by Mitsubishi. I asked the agent why I have never seen them on the highway. He said it was a model that was mostly marketed in Australia and just recently made its debut in the United States but that they were going to expand across the country in the next year or so.
I went on the test drive. I was as nervous as could be with Louis to my right and the salesperson in the back seat. But I hadn't gone more than a few blocks when I had the overwhelming assurance I could handle a car like that. We went in to see what the damages were going to be. As it turned out, it was a "doable" offer.
The car is a 2016 model, so the price came down for that. Obviously, no credit for my car because it was way too old, but there turned out to be a few thousand dollars in rebates and concessions including $500 because I am a current owner of a Mitsubishi. And there were only 27 miles on the odometer! It isn't the fancy version with all the bells and whistles like the back-up screen Louis has on his car or the spoiler or upgraded seats. And no four-on-the-floor either--automatic which I am still getting used to (like NOT putting my foot on the non-existent clutch). I just want a basic, dependable car. This looked like it was the one.
We left the car dealership telling the salesperson that we were going to go to a couple of other places to check out similar vehicles, but instead we went home. I knew I wanted to buy this car, so it seemed pointless to traipse over to Loveland Ford or Peak KIA and get inundated with reasons I should buy their sporty versions of an SUV. After a sufficient amount of "wait time", we went back to Fort Collins Mitsubishi where I inked the papers and became the proud owner of a Rally Red Outlander Sport for just $254 a month.
There is no pre-payment penalty, so I will double the payments every month for a year, throw any bonuses and profit sharing (if we get some this spring) toward the principle, and add what little I will get from the sale of the Eclipse to that, as well. That now delays my plan to retire until my 72nd birthday, but I am confident the year will pass quickly. I may have to get a little job after I retire just to cover the car payment for a while, but my goal is to have the vehicle paid off in two years.
I did ask that they keep it on the lot until the first of December. I just had sooooo many things on my plate during that time, I couldn't wrap my head around getting a new car home and the old one into the garage and readied for sale. (That part STILL hasn't happened yet. It's a work in process.) I had to change all the info for the toll road, the parking lot for DIA, and the insurance, etc. Way, way overwhelming those first few days. Then, I settled in on my next day off and started doing all the paper work so I could take possession of my new ride. That sporty little car found its spot in the south side of the garage after Louis took ALL the patio furniture and Burgandy's stuff down the basement so he could park the Eclipse behind the little garage door on the north.
The first trip to DIA was a little disconcerting. I felt like the car was going to topple over when I was going around curves since I was used to a low car that hugged the ground and responded to down-shifting. But....all in good time. I will get used to how this car works and the little ins and outs like how to set the clock. It took TWO weeks before I figured that one out!
I often get myself something for my own birthday, but this is the first time my happy birthday present to myself was just too big to wrap. But it was worth it....
A shiny red wagon!
Ooooooo! The car looks so beautiful. Congratulations, nothing feels quite as fun as a new car (whether brand new or new to you). Enjoy the sporty fun ride, it will feel new for a LONG time, which is a wonderful feeling.
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