Adventures in Car Buying
Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2016 6:36 pm
My old car got hit while sitting on the street in front of my house. It was 10 years old. Before it got hit: cracked windshield, no A/C, hail damage, salvage title. Book value: $2400 IF it wasn't on a salvage title already. Insurance payout: $4700. That means I'm getting me a new car.
So I found a deal online that seemed too good to be true. A 2013 Ford Fusion with all the cool toys in it I want. Certified clean Carfax report and only 1 previous owner. Being offered for $1500 under book value. It's two hours away in Lincoln. No problem.
Lisa and I both took the day off work today. Took it for a test drive. Drove it over to a friend (my wife's sister-in-law's brother-in-law) who runs a body shop. He spent some time with it and showed us a couple little cosmetic flaws, but otherwise pronounced it clean and a pretty good deal. Awesome.
The loan was supposed to have been pre-approved, but somehow it took 3 hours to get it all sorted out. 3 hours. Oh well. Aidan was with us and we had an awesome lunch while we waited. BUT because the loan took so goddam long, we DIDN'T beat the weather. Vehicles were literally falling off the interstate and rolling down the embankment. We saw one on the way to an airport hotel where we are now staying the night.
Luckily, everyone is safe. Grandparents are taking care of the younger boys. Now we just have to wait out the ice and snow. I think I'm gonna go get some McDonalds and dream about my new car.
So I found a deal online that seemed too good to be true. A 2013 Ford Fusion with all the cool toys in it I want. Certified clean Carfax report and only 1 previous owner. Being offered for $1500 under book value. It's two hours away in Lincoln. No problem.
Lisa and I both took the day off work today. Took it for a test drive. Drove it over to a friend (my wife's sister-in-law's brother-in-law) who runs a body shop. He spent some time with it and showed us a couple little cosmetic flaws, but otherwise pronounced it clean and a pretty good deal. Awesome.
The loan was supposed to have been pre-approved, but somehow it took 3 hours to get it all sorted out. 3 hours. Oh well. Aidan was with us and we had an awesome lunch while we waited. BUT because the loan took so goddam long, we DIDN'T beat the weather. Vehicles were literally falling off the interstate and rolling down the embankment. We saw one on the way to an airport hotel where we are now staying the night.
Luckily, everyone is safe. Grandparents are taking care of the younger boys. Now we just have to wait out the ice and snow. I think I'm gonna go get some McDonalds and dream about my new car.