Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Rain and Car Shopping

It warmed up and we had freezing rain.  It will snow some more….and then we will be thrust into the deep freeze again.  The roads were beginning to improve and now they are icy again.  Such is life in Minnesota.  It will be –50 F windchills on Thursday, now that is something to look forward to.  It seems the weather elsewhere is a bit crazy…at least we are not flooding and we have more than one snowplow.

We made a trek to town for essentials, fresh fruits and lettuce.  More organizing supplies were purchased. 

We have been looking at buying a new vehicle.  I will never use State Farm Bank for anything ever again, their customer service is non existent and when you call there you are never told the same thing twice.   The paper that clears the title on my vehicle has been in the mail since December 26…or has it?  Maybe something was mailed on January 9th.  Are you kidding me?  Far Guy was livid.

My vehicle (The Sunday Car) is front wheel drive, we really need four wheel drive or all wheel drive since we live where it snows everyday.  We call it our Sunday car because that is usually when we drive it!  Love the heated leather seats…nothing better…and auto start…and bluetooth…and it gets 36 to 42 MPG consistently.  I hate that it is black and gets dirty on the gravel roads and that it is low to the ground.  Far Guys vehicle is four wheel drive and it is our go to vehicle but it is getting older.  It is just fine for a second vehicle.

So we are car shopping. Unbelievable that vehicles cost more now than our first home.
snowy reeds along Shell River
Snowy reeds along Shell River
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17 comments:

  1. My daughter sent me a text with photo on her drive home last night with cars in the ditch all around her. It did make me glad I'm not making that drive to school where sometimes you couldn't even tell if you were on the road or not!
    Have fun car shopping! We always look for something that has been on the road a year or two, which helps bring the price down. And don't forget to consult Chance!

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  2. Your weather sounds like mine. Just plain nasty. I had an old Ford Crown Victoria that I absolutely loved. However, years ago I traded it in on a four wheel drive vehicle. Living her in WI that type of car is a must. Good luck with your car hunting. Can't believe how much they cost these days. Stay safe

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  3. I think a good car is essential in many place in the country, but especially up there where it gets so cold and icy. We had freezing rain Sunday night and I didn't realize it when I walked out. I learned pretty quickly that it was slick everywhere! There wasn't much and it was gone by noon. I look forward to hearing about your car shopping. :-)

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  4. We have purchased our last two cars through Costco. Costco has a program with certain dealers that they must sell at a specific flat rate. We have found the costs lower than what we could negotiate. But of course it is only certain cars within the program. In buying a Subaru for our daughter, the dealer matched the Costco rate although that dealer was not in the program.

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  5. Ain't that the truth! We've been looking ourselves for our "Forever" truck. Thinking a year or two old gets us a better price. Good luck

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  6. I didn't know how to shut off our new car when we got home. Pushing a button didn't seem to be the thing to do. I am still learning new things overtime we drive it. I am concerned about all the computerized everything but it is all that you can purchase anymore. Enjoy the new black vehicle. Ours works so well when we go to Chicago area.

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  7. When we were car shopping I was stunned at the price tags! Good Luck! We came across our car by pure chance!

    Linda

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  8. I drive a Jeep Patriot, 4WD. It has gotten me around on muddy and/or snowy pastures to check on cattle, and on some pretty snowy/icy highways. Not fancy, but workhorses. And less expensive than most others!

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  9. Subaru all the way! I had a jeep for 10 years before my Subaru. (Legacy) We have had several Subies and all have lasted well past 200,000 miles ( including the one I'm driving now.) My first one lasted well over 300,000! All wheel drive ( best according to car and driver) and fairly priced. ....Just my 2 cents.

    Wish I had known about them when I lived in Minnesota. But... it all comes down to what you have confidence in. Good luck in your search.

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  10. I had a car with heated seats and my mom loved for me to take her on a drive, buy her an ice cream cone while she enjoyed that heated seat! lol Best wishes with the car buying.

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  11. My car/truck is a 2002 Tahoe and it is wonderful! It has heated seats and 4 wheel drive and plenty of space for the girls and their beds in the back but Nitty can no longer jump into it so I have to use a dog ramp that I bought and it is a pain to use so for Chance to go for rides with you all the time you might want to think about that part. I'm sure the new Tahoes have all the bells and whistles. I also had Onstar until they changed from analog for communications. But who needs Onstar if you have a cell phone although it uses a satellite so no problem with not getting a signal. Maybe you should just put chains on your Sunday car and call it a day! LOL!

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  12. Good luck on vehicles. They are just one big sensor these days. I bought a CR4 all wheel drive in 2014. I like it.

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  13. It's amazing to me how little homes used to cost. Looking for a car is a challenging experience, though!

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  14. I'm horrified at the price of everything these days it seems. Car, trucks, sheet sets, houses, you name it. Today we went with our daughter and her son to look at a townhouse she is thinking of buying. Would you believe $303,000 and I personally wouldn't live in it without about 10,000 fixing up . Kitchen and bathroom need major work done. How can things cost so much?

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  15. My mom, who is 86, asked what we had to pay for our last truck...when I told her she said "for that kind of money it should have a basement under it".

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  16. Weather IS nuts! Good luck with car shopping - ewwww. Right up there with doing laundry. Look at your local banks/credit unions for loans and don't be afraid to tell them you found "X %" somewhere else.

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Thanks for stopping by! I appreciate your comments! If you have a question I will try to answer it here. I no longer accept anonymous comments. All comments will be approved before posting...due to spammers...may the fleas of a thousand camels infest every hair on his body. Connie