TAT CN Header

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Car Buying: Not My Thang

Unlike some, I do not enjoy buying a new car.  I like having a new car, yes, who doesn't?  But, buying one?  Yuck. 

Let me back up 4 years.  We bought our Ford Escape before I got pregnant with Norah thinking that we were thinking ahead to starting a family and that a 5 passenger Escape would be plenty roomy for the family we pictured for our future selves. Past Selves: You shoulda thought again.

Turns out, the "5 passenger" Ford Escape is NOT a 5 passenger vehicle once you add 2 behemoth car seats.  May I present exhibit A:

Obviously, parenthood makes you too tired to care if you're wedged in sideways.

We "worked" with the Escape for the past year, and had planned to extend "working" with it for even longer since our other car is a very old Ford Ranger, which hauls ZERO kids.

But, then, the Escape had a hissy fit, and long story short, Jerry found himself stalled in the middle of traffic on a 90 dgeree day, with two kids in the back; Norah repeatedly asking, "The car's not working?"

A mechanic's assessment was bleak, so we did the "superficial fix" for the problem and decided it was in our best interest to trade that sucker in.  Pronto.

And, I tell ya, it's been a week!  I hate going to all the dealerships and listening to each salesman's spiel, and test driving everything under the sun, and finding that nearly everything we thought would work for our expectations, won't.  In short?  Honda Pilot, I love you -- if I had older kids -- but for people whose kids are in car seats, you suck!  We felt as though we were pretty much being forced into the minivan option, which I was totally cool with and was advocating on behalf of, but Jerry wasn't ready to toss in his man card.  Yet.  One day I'll break him.

In the end, we discovered a compromise: The GMC Acadia.  Which, as it was described by one online review: "It's got all the features of a minivan, but is for those who don't want to drive a minivan."  Yup.  Sums it up exactly.  3rd row?  Yup!  Plenty of truck space?  Yes sirree!!  Necessary new car bells and whistles?  Sho'nuff!

From there, it was a matter of price.  In the end, we went with a "new to us" Acadia that is still a 2012 and has minimal mileage.  And, after talking those suckers into overpaying for our trade-in, we got the Acadia for a price we're pleased with.  So, without further ado, here are my new wheels:

The outside: So shiny!


The front row and, yes, I was driving so the seat is ALL the way up!


A view of the 2nd row (car seats) and the 3rd row (all other passengers, you go here).


Yay!  Now, hopefully this car lasts longer than our 2008 Escape -- fingers crossed, but I hope I drop Norah off at college in this thing (that's how long I believe cars should last) -- and if nothing else, I hope it lasts far enough into the future that I can haul half a soccer team around in here.

For now, if we have someone come visit us, guess what?  I don't have to wedge myself into about 6 inches of car space!  Woohoo!

14 comments:

Erin said...

It's a sweet ride. You found a good fit for the family. I guess they could say it leaves 3 feet of leg room for the passenger...if they sit behind you.

MCM Mama said...

Nice! We have a 2011 pilot and I adore it, but my kids are WAY older than yours LOL.

Carrie said...

Yay! I love it! And I'm happy you don't have to wedge yourself too;)

Anonymous said...

Awesome ride! I'm so jealous. :)
Shannon

Unknown said...

Car buying isn't my thing either.

I ended up buying a Ford Explorer way back in the day when I had car seats. 20 years later we still have it. Didn't exactly drop the son off to college in it, but he does drive it when he's home.

Crissy Rae said...

Nice ride! Looks like there will definitely be more room for you guys and a visitor or two. It certainly is a pain in the ass to go through the whole process, thank goodness you are done with it and can enjoy your new wheels.

Carly said...

awesome new wheels!

Razz said...

We're about a year away from that hell. And we're also having the minivan/SUV discussion. Ugh.

Anita said...

The only part of buying a new car is when we have driven it off the lot and the haggling, etc. has been complete. Very nice ride and very spacious--room for drivers, kids, passengers, AND truck space. Your post reminds me of how we drove off the lot when I was pregnant with #1 adamant that our subaru wagon would be the only family car we needed (a few months after baby #2 we upgraded to a van for your same reasons)...boy did we have surprises coming for us.

I'm so glad you have returned to blogging. I was weeks pregnant with #3 and looking for running while pregnant information when I found your blog. It was helping against my frustration when my jogging changed so unexpectedly and so quickly for being just a few weeks pregnant. About two weeks after you stopped blogging, we found out that I am not only expecting our third child but our fourth and fifth children! I'm glad you're back as I hope to return to jogging after they're born. Not sure when I can, but I know I want to!

Marie said...

so jealous! i'm not a good researcher and we ended up with the Explorer. it's a great vehicle, but i really wanted captain chairs second row. i thought the only way to get this was with a minivan and i was NOT ready to make that leap. i think i'm resolved to "next time" though :/

Erwin Calverley said...

Congrats on your great deal! Bringing your car to an auto shop for maintenance every 6 months – or every 8,000 - 10,000 miles, if the car isn’t used often – would very much increase the vehicle’s service life. Oil change, washer fluid filling, tire depth check, brakes, spark plug wires, power steering fluid, and brake fluid check are among the items that need to be checked for the vehicle’s continued performance.

Erwin Calverley

Tyra Shortino said...

I agree with Mr. Calverley, and might I add to not forget your tires, since these are the parts of the car that is in contact with the road. Don’t let them be smoothened out. That would cause traction troubles, especially when it rains and the roads are slippery.

Tyra Shortino

Kerstin Shed said...

You had a great bargain! How’s the car now? Remember to never miss your scheduled engine oil change. Also make sure to change oil filters, since debris and dirt cling to the filters. When the filters are not changed, the debris and dirt would just contaminate the new oil that you placed, making the entire process almost moot.

Kerstin Shed

Lone Mountain Truck Leasing said...

If you are going to buy a car then it will be very interesting and good for you.Many ways where you can buy or sell a car.