Suzanne Thinking New Car, Again

Actually, it’s not as bad as the title might lead you to believe. She is thinking about doing this for a good reason. Normally, its me that wants the new car. 😉

About 18 months ago, we both bought ourselves new cars. I got a very nice Mercedes Benz E350 and she got a nice Volvo XC90. At that time, I told her that I didn’t think that was the right car for her. She was getting a vehicle that met the 1% out of normal needs as opposed to getting the right vehicle for the 99% of the time. I didn’t argue with her though because here I was buying a nice, expensive car myself.

Well, she has decided that while she likes the Volvo, it really isn’t the right car for her. The main reasons for her wanting to get a new car are:

• cost – We currently pay about $750 a month for the Volvo (don’t ask me about the Mercedes payment). With all the mileage she racks up, the maintenance bill isn’t chump change either.
• gas mileage – She is getting about 22 miles to the gallon in the Volvo. With our remoteness where we live, she is running up about $350 a month in gas bills, almost twice as much as me in the Mercedes. She actually puts on more miles than I do with all the running around for the kids. I get 28 or so mpg in the Mercedes. I think in the 18 months she has had the car, she has racked up over 40,000 miles.
• size – She really wanted an SUV with a third row seat for hauling the kids and their friends around. She has come to find out that we don’t use the third row seat very often and dont haul very much else in it either very often.

The overriding reason for her decision to think about a new car is cost. She wants to spend less on her vehicle so that we can take more cruises, visit family more often, etc. I certainly can’t and don’t fault her for that. By the time the new purchase is all said and done, we are likely to reduce our average monthly bill for her car, gas and upkeep by almost $600. Its certainly not a small chunk of change.

She is now doing research, research and more research on what kind of car she wants to get. I think she will end up with more of a commuter style vehicle. My primary goal is to keep her from going overboard on the low end. Safety ratings and features is still near the top of her list on the car too. I don’t remember all the cars she is research and/or test driving, but I think one of her favorites thus far is a Honda Civic.

More as the new car develops…