Up until yesterday, I owned that Ford which now had 178,000 miles on it and was as dependable as the mythical Honduh legend of durability.
Of course driving a car that is 22 years old and that has 178k on the odometer does bring with it some trepidation regardless of the brand. So few original parts have failed that sooner or later, the cascade of failures was due to come. And on an icy January Saturday night, this Ford gave me a hint of the future that was going to be a costly one - for the first time ever, the brake light lit on the dashboard. Usually this light is activated when the parking brake is still pulled, but this was not the case. For the first time ever with this car, I was afraid to drive it. I got it to an automotive parts store and opened the hood and the car was nearly devoid of brake fluid. I topped it off figuring that somehow this was low due to a rubber brake hose that had been replaced last year (original part); unfortunately two weeks went buy and the brake light again was lit. Brake fluid does not evaporate; it leaks.
The end was near, I surmised.
Of course I am many things - irritating, trifling, and a profound seeker of facts on which to make buying decisions. Over the past year, I had become informed on what the market was like for used cars (I don't need to be the one who gets soaked with the initial depreciation of a new car); and because of this research, I knew what vehicles were on sale and I verified what was still available and I took the gut wrenching decision to jump into a car payment - something I had not had for the last 17 years.
For the first time ever, I considered other brands but Ford - though I eliminated Honduh and Toyoduh from the list because their owners are assholes who think they own the road and I wanted no part of those brands - plus their vehicles are ugly as shit and the quality is highly overrated and the prices match the foolishness of thinking Honduhs and Toyoduhs are superior cars to others.
Ultimately I decided to confine my shopping to CarMax because of the ability to transfer in vehicles from out of my region to my local branch and I wisely chose vehicles that matched my needs that did not cost me anything to transfer. I was told I would have three days upon arrival to accept or to reject the vehicle so that the car would be available for others should I not want that particular car.
Fortunately the decision to transfer a vehicle ended up being a 2016 Hyundai Elantra SE that had 21k miles on it and it had a manual transmission! The car looked amazing in pictures. It was actually even better looking when I saw the car in real life. I sat in the car and was so impressed with the reality of quality design and features (something Honduh and Toyoduh don't deliver); and while some reviews of the Elantra noted hard plastics, I know that soft items get hard with age and crack badly; I wouldn't have that problem with the Elantra if I decided to keep this vehicle for years.
The Elantra was a former fleet car (not a rental car) and had been immaculately cared for. It was as pristine as I could have ever hoped and it drives like a new car - quiet - tight - and no rattles. The exterior is flawless as is the interior. The only thing missing was the remote for the locks but I solved that by purchasing an OEM one from a parts supply place and they provided the code reader device that programmed the key fob within minutes. The cost: $45. And that was the only flaw on this car. It had an optional spare tire upgrade and the inflator and air pump that were standard were also un-used and present.
My buying experience was just fine with CarMax though I was troubled at having a car payment which greatly diminished my buying experience; however, now two months into ownership, I have no regrets on assuming this debt because the car is kick-ass wonderful. And it delivers 45 mpgs per tank of gas consistenly while delivering more performance than I'm used to and a cavernous interior that puts a mid-size designation on interior space on an exterior no larger than the Ford it replaced (a compact car).
Ford could have earned my business but they've chosen the cowardly route to discontinue building cars not named Mustang and while there are still Fords on the used car market, I've never been impressed with the small Fiesta or the Focus which was the same size of car I'm used to. Honestly, I found the prices for Fords to be low enough, but the Focus is a cramped POS. The Fiesta is essentially a two seater with a pipe dream back seat that could carry a couple bags of groceries. The Elantra is so superior to these vehicles and it also has a HUGE trunk. Not large. It is huge.
I had no real choice but to abandon Ford after all these years - a divorce that had to happen and one that I have not regretted. I had parked the Ford for the last several months because Ford never issued a lien release after these 17 years so I could not trade in the car; after two months of fighting with Ford to issue the digital release to Virginia, I finally told them to send me the release in written form and I'd handle the Virginia DMV on my own. And so finally that problem was resolved and I parted company with my Ford in the rain yesterday. Oddly, I have no separation pangs since I've had two months to finally see the reality that my car was really going downhill and that rose colored glasses can't mask the impending over $1,500 in repairs that would likely need to be invested for the car to pass the next inspection. And there is the rub - if I was going to have to spend that money anyway, then why invest on a car that was going to continue to nickle and dime me while I could drive something newish with modern safety equipment and still covered under manufacturer warranty for another year?
I may be frugal, but I am no idiot - a newer car was the only option and my buying decision bore this out with a vehicle that I love more and more and whose car payment is barely felt as I'm good with my money and still am adding money to my savings while paying 10% more on the payment than I am required to do - I'll pay this off about 13 months earlier than the term and save several thousand in interest as well.
Consider Hyundai and Kia for your next car purchase - there are some impressive vehicles that aren't overpriced like Honduhs and Toyoduhs and you get a 10 year, 100,000 mile warranty if you are the original buyer.
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