Monday, January 30, 2006
Cars, cars, cars.........
So, for those of you who don't know ... I own two cars. And, for those of you who don't know ... I am a single person and live alone. So ... you may be thinking to yourself, "Why does Lou Ann own two cars?" Well, before I get into my whole current vehicle debacle, let me explain to you WHY I own two cars.
I bought a little blue sporty-ish Nissan NX in 1993. I bought it new. They only made that car for two years and discontinued it. It's a stick-shift, no power windows, no power locks, no air conditioning, etc. All the basics. BUT ... it drives GREAT, has GREAT pick-up, and I LOVE THAT CAR!!! In fact, that is the car that I drove on my first cross-country road trip: in 2001, when it was 8 years old, from DC to Seattle down the Pacific Coast Highway to San Diego and then back to the DC area (thus twice through the Rockies). On that trip it got almost 40 miles per gallon. In my normal DC area commuting, I usually get 30-35 miles per gallon. That car has never had any mechanical problems. Never. At 120,000 miles it needed a new clutch & transmission (that's normal wear & tear). It's FUN to drive, and I love it. Today it has 205,000 miles on it, and Kelly Blue Book tells me that it's worth less than $795 as a trade-in, but about $1500 for private party sale.
Anyway - during the winter of 2003 I decided that I still wanted to continue doing summer road trips, but that the little blue car could potentially die in the middle of nowhere, and that since I'd be making several long-distance trips to Buffalo during the winter that year, I wanted to purchase an SUV. The little blue car has nearly NO space to carry stuff. So, I started looking at SUV's. I figured that since I'd had such a great (GREAT) experience with Nissan, I'd look at the Nissan XTerra. And, since Honda has a wonderful reputation, I'd also look at the Honda CR-V. After some research, I decided that the XTerra would be better suited to my needs. I went to several local dealers, and found the XTerra that fit my criteria: stick-shift, six-cylinders, 4-wheel drive.But then, just before I was going to buy the XTerra, I realized that I was totally in love with my NX, and that I really didn't want to part with it. What to do? But, a good friend suggested that I check into the insurance. And, sure enough, there is something called a "multiple car discount". When I considered the gas mileage savings of using the NX to commute and the insurance discount, it was well worth having both vehicles. SOOOOOoooo ... I got the XTerra without selling the NX.
Thus, I have two cars. Fast forward a little. Since getting the XTerra, I have had trouble with the airconditioning EVERY summer. And driving with the windows open in that truck makes for almost unbearable wind. Everytime I take it to the mechanic, he says that he's got it this time (I've even tried other mechanics, who all say the same thing), and the air conditioning works for a couple of weeks, and then it's back to just blowing out the same air temps as the outside air. It was even a pain when I drove it to Alaska. And the weather was really only in the 70's that summer in Alaska.
I also have decided that the XTerra is too big for my purposes. Even in Alaska, I didn't really need the high clearance or such a big truck. The roads weren't really THAT bad. And I just don't see me as the "off-road" type. So, I revisited the idea of owning a CR-V instead of the XTerra. When I mentioned that to my dear friend, Nancy, she informed me that she wanted me to buy HER CR-V. She wants to sell it and buy a convertible.
So, she made arrangements with me to trade trucks for a week or so, so that I could get the feel for her truck, have my mechanic look at it, and make sure that I really do want to buy it from her. So ... we decided to pull off this trade this Wednesday (2/1).
THEN, just this weekend, the clutch on the NX went out. Ugh!! I drove it to work today (the mechanic that I use is across the street from school) and he agreed - I need a new clutch. The new clutch will cost just about what I would get for the car as a trade-in at a dealership. I have decided to replace the clutch, as it's been 85,000 miles since the last one, and otherwise, there aren't any other mechanical problems. The car has been VERY reliable for the past 13 years. How can I give it up now? I'll be REALLY upset the day that I have to give up on that car.
So, now, my NX is living in Arlington for a week (or possibly a few days less than that) while I'm supposed to be trading my XTerra for the CR-V that may eventually belong to me. So, I'll be driving the CR-V while neither of the cars that I actually own are within my direct control. Yeah.
How's THAT for an automobile-soap-opera? :-)
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