auto shopping
(cross posted at Midcentury Modern Moms)
So last week I mentioned that Jen was involved in an accident, that her air bag deployed and that she walked away without a scratch.
The same cannot be said of her car.
I bought the car two years ago, right after Jen got her driver's license. Paid $2500 for a 1996 Chevy Cavalier -- the car had 150,000 miles on it, but the engine had been replaced when the car had only 70,000 miles on it (that must have been a story!). I expected the girls to share the car, I never expected Jen to need a car at college, and I expected the car to last about 3 years, maybe 4 if we got lucky. (I don't believe in buying brand new, expensive cars for teenagers, even if I could afford it....which I can't.)
Well, when Jen called me and told me that she had an accident with the car and that the airbag went off....I knew even before I saw the car that it was time to say goodbye to the Chevy.
So now she is without wheels. and she needs a car. She's got to drive to the local college for her summer class right now, in a few weeks she'll start her summer job, and when she goes back to school in the fall she will be living off campus --- and there's no public transportation.
In other words, she needs a car.
She's about to take another step towards becoming a self-sufficient adult. She is buying a car of her own. I'm giving her a little money, and her father is giving her some as well, but the balance will come from her savings account -- all those summers of hard work are about to pay off. Of course, I agreed to put the car -- whchever car she chooses -- on my insurance policy (but only after she agreed to take a defensive driving class to lower my premium).
so yes, that's my daughter over at the used car lot, looking at cars in her price range, learning terms like "carfax", deciding which automotive features are "must haves" and which she can live without. Her money, her decision.
Of course, that she decided to bring her aunt (affectionately known in legal circuits as "the pit bull") to negotiate the price...well, that shows she's using her head, doesn't it?
Wish her luck on her search, ok?
So last week I mentioned that Jen was involved in an accident, that her air bag deployed and that she walked away without a scratch.
The same cannot be said of her car.
I bought the car two years ago, right after Jen got her driver's license. Paid $2500 for a 1996 Chevy Cavalier -- the car had 150,000 miles on it, but the engine had been replaced when the car had only 70,000 miles on it (that must have been a story!). I expected the girls to share the car, I never expected Jen to need a car at college, and I expected the car to last about 3 years, maybe 4 if we got lucky. (I don't believe in buying brand new, expensive cars for teenagers, even if I could afford it....which I can't.)
Well, when Jen called me and told me that she had an accident with the car and that the airbag went off....I knew even before I saw the car that it was time to say goodbye to the Chevy.
So now she is without wheels. and she needs a car. She's got to drive to the local college for her summer class right now, in a few weeks she'll start her summer job, and when she goes back to school in the fall she will be living off campus --- and there's no public transportation.
In other words, she needs a car.
She's about to take another step towards becoming a self-sufficient adult. She is buying a car of her own. I'm giving her a little money, and her father is giving her some as well, but the balance will come from her savings account -- all those summers of hard work are about to pay off. Of course, I agreed to put the car -- whchever car she chooses -- on my insurance policy (but only after she agreed to take a defensive driving class to lower my premium).
so yes, that's my daughter over at the used car lot, looking at cars in her price range, learning terms like "carfax", deciding which automotive features are "must haves" and which she can live without. Her money, her decision.
Of course, that she decided to bring her aunt (affectionately known in legal circuits as "the pit bull") to negotiate the price...well, that shows she's using her head, doesn't it?
Wish her luck on her search, ok?
Comments
Post a Comment