When to let go?

[minnesotamom]

My main problem is that I worry too much about things and avoid making decisions because then I know I'll just worry that I've made the wrong decision..

But do think I've figured out what to do. I'll keep the car and drive it until it isn't economically reasonable to do so..but in the meantime I'll start watching Craigs List for a second car..something cheap and more fuel efficient. Then I won't have to worry about not having transportation when the DeVille goes and in the meantime, my daughter will be getting her license soon (yup..one more thing to worry about) and she can drive the backup vehicle...

Actually sounds pretty obvious now.

[Ranger]

You're already spoiled MM. You'll never be happy with "something cheap and more fuel efficient".

[minnesotamom]

Originally Posted by Ranger

You're already spoiled MM. You'll never be happy with "something cheap and more fuel efficient".

LOL..You're so right, Ranger..I am so completely spoiled. I was on craigslist looking at Kia's..next thing I knew I was browsing through Cadillacs.

[submariner409]

If you (later) find something in Craigslist, do your homework before writing a check. Caveat Emptor

[minnesotamom]

Good advice, submariner409. Oh, the tales I could tell about the crappy cars I've had to drive since the divorce. I got to keep our "good" car...a 96 Taurus wagon. The transmission went out for the 3rd time a couple of months later..then there was the Hyundai I drove for about a week before it's transmission blew. In a panic I bought a Bonneville for a few hundred dollars from a rural dealer. Turns out the police like to profile Bonnevilles as I found out one night after being pulled over for a burnt out license plate light. That was fun. They even called out a female officer to frisk me because one of the male cops thought I had weapons hidden in my bra...but that's a different topic and, quite possibly, a whole other forum. Regardless..shortly thereafter the brakes rusted out and fell off..spilling brake fluid all over the road...and that car was also toast. Then there was the Tempo..which was fine, but not really a very good family car. And one of my all-time favorite bad choices..the Blazer. The previous owner (one of my boyfriend's coworkers) had apparently tried to do some work on it..but after his futile attempts..apparently just threw all the pieces back in and didn't bolt anything back in. Lasted a few months before I figured it out..but not much longer beyond that.

So, anyway..I will be more careful next time. I don't want to have any more panic purchases, that's for sure.

[ld00deville]

Wait, Wait, Wait....Exactly what kind of weapons do you have in your bra??

[submariner409]

.................but first, a couple of pointers.

[Ranger]

If you buy a Kia after driving a Cadillac, to coin an old phrase, "You'll hate yourself in the morning".

A weapon in your bra? Think I'll just leave that one go.

EDIT
On second thought, I think he was just hoping you'd prove him wrong before he called for the female cop.

[minnesotamom]

Originally Posted by ld00deville

Wait, Wait, Wait....Exactly what kind of weapons do you have in your bra??

Bazookas? No...sorry to disappoint...no weapons..just the usual

It was weird..he really seemed convinced that I was hiding something...weapons, drugs...something. I have no idea why. I really don't look anything like a drug dealer and the only thing he would've found on my record was a speeding ticket from 1987.

Oh..but, just a little tip, if you get pulled over at 11:30 at night and the cop asks you where you're going and what you're up to..don't answer "just driving around" even if you are just driving around...apparently it's the wrong answer

[minnesotamom]

Originally Posted by Ranger

If you buy a Kia after driving a Cadillac, to coin an old phrase, "You'll hate yourself in the morning".


A weapon in your bra? Think I'll just leave that one go.


EDIT
On second thought, I think he was just hoping you'd prove him wrong before he called for the female cop.

Yeah..I think you're probably right. Although I am pretty adaptable to change, after reminiscing about the crappy old cars that I've had..I realized that I need to figure something else out. It seems like you're saving money, but in the long run you're not when you have to bring it in every other month for major repairs..not to mention having your safety jeopardized by the brakes falling off while you're driving or your car just breaking down in the middle of traffic.

The female cop was the one who told me..to her credit, she seemed pretty annoyed by it, too. Rolled her eyes as she said "I have to look down your shirt now..Officer so and so thinks you have weapons hidden in your bra"

He was too busy going all "bad cop" on me..."what are you hiding".."just tell me the truth"..."why are you so nervous" etc etc

[chubbyranger]

Crappy car + rural area + bored cops is a combination for a nearly guaranteed traffic stop. The car is the biggest flag with condition being a signficant factor. The cops here will pull any ratbox they see for the slightest violation based on the theory that the driver is either a potential DUI trophy, involved in something illicit or kids that need a lesson. They also actively target anything resembling a zoom-zoom ricer or VW, even more now after 3 teenagers died in a speed-related VW Golf + tree accident. That got the cops 3 new Hemi Chargers, including one unmarked for speed enforcement. If you add light up washer nozzles, LEDs or a wing to any car you might as well get "Please Pull Me Over" painted on the bumper too. I've found the Cadillacs 0r any boring well-maintained sedan rarely get a 2nd look as long as you avoid WOTs in residential areas. So MM, as you evaluate a 2nd car for your daughter's use keep in mind that anything she will want will likely be a cop-magnet if you live in an area similar to mine (which it sounds like you do if they're doing bra-checks ). My vote for the car least likely to get stopped: a Buick Century since I believe the car was named for the average age of its owners.

[minnesotamom]

Worse than a rural area..this was a yuppy, upscale area..that poor old rust-bucket Bonneville might as well have had "please pull me over" painted on it...you're right about that.
I never worry about getting pulled over in the Cadillac...mostly because I'm a good and responsible driver (other than that speeding ticket in 1987) but you're right..they do profile based on what you're driving.
Funny, because I had actually mentioned the Buick Century (or Park Avenue) to her and you should've seen the horrified look on her face. She was like "but that's a GRANDMA car!"

Yeah, and maybe grandma's drive Buick Centurys or Park Avenues or Cadillac Devilles because they've learned a thing or two over the years

[bburt]

If you plan to stay with Cadillacs, then keep it. The newer ones don't have the little touches that the older ones have. Some say that's good, as there isn't as much to go wrong, but being a bit lazy, I like things like trunk lid pull downs and the like. Caddys still have more than most when it comes to features, but they are slipping some off the vehicle. I have a '97 DeVille that I put over $5000 into a couple of years ago, and it rides and acts like a new car. It turned over a 100,000 miles and will probably outlast me. The only issue are some plactic pieces tht are getting old. When enough of them become to difficult to deal with, then I'll probably move it on.

[minnesotamom]

It's funny, really..because at first I didn't even want the Deville. My boyfriend owned it and had decided to sell it and buy a new vehicle. My oldest daughter had just returned home for a while after living in New Zealand for a year and we were sharing a vehicle. He offered me a sweet deal on it (because he thinks I'm cute) and I took him up on it.
He went and bought a brand new Saturn Ion 3. A year later he traded it in on a 2004 Deville DTS. The Saturn wasn't a bad car, we drove it all the way out to Yellowstone last summer and the mileage was great..but, by the end of the day, we both had aches in our lower backs..and, it just wasn't a Cadillac.
Every time we ride in mine he talks about how much he misses my Deville..it really is the ultimate in comfort cars..And, I gota admit, I do love that autoshut trunk lid feature. Every time I go to close his, I think..."how tacky..a trunk you have to close yourself" : )

[hueterm]

Yeah, the trunk pulldown is nice -- until it breaks. Mine both work, but I'm paranoid that a passenger, or valet, or someone is going to slam it and break the thing.

(Don't ask if my mother likes it though, she didn't know from a trunk pulldown, closed the lid and it started grabbing onto her finger. We were wondering why she was staying outside so long after coming home. We still can't figure out quite how she did that.)

And going from a Deville to an Ion....OMG that would be tough. Glad to see he came to his senses.