About a year and a half ago, Captain Cavedweller and I started talking about getting a new vehicle.
We knew my old red pickup (purchased brand new in 1992) was in dire need of retirement, although it still ran well and served its purpose of being a second vehicle.
Bracing ourselves for the experience of car shopping, we put that on hold when we found out we had to have our entire septic system replaced. Seven months later, we’d spent roughly the same amount if not more on the septic system than we would have on a new vehicle. Watching them bury all the septic equipment was like watching our dreams for a new car being buried in the wasteland that has become our backyard.
Then just a month after the septic drama ended, our poor Red Pickup met an untimely death at the hands of a texting teen driving a tractor.
We limped along short one vehicle for a few months trying to decide if we wanted to buy a brand new vehicle and retire my car to second vehicle status or if we wanted to buy something used to replace the red pickup.
When my folks moved to town from the farm just before Christmas, it just so happened Dad decided he had one too many vehicles and wanted to sell his pickup. We jumped at the opportunity to buy it as a replacement for old red (and actually, it turned out to be quite a nice upgrade!).
Then, as my car rolled over 130,000 miles a few weeks ago, we decided we really needed (okay – wanted) to get a new vehicle.
Mentally prepared to deal with car salesmen, we visited a variety of lots, checking out a number of vehicles. Most could quickly be eliminated as soon as CC sat in the driver’s seat. If his head brushed the roof, his shoulders didn’t fit in the seat or the steering column bumped his knees – it was off the list.
Finally, we narrowed it down to a handful we wanted to test drive. Two of the car salesmen made fun of us for not having smart phones (not a great way to make me want to spend thousands of dollars with you, by the way). One car salesman seemed terrified of CC and would only talk to me (again, not good for gaining our business) while another talked to CC like I wasn’t there. There were also the annoying salesmen who lied to us, stalked us on the phone and the final straw that broke the camel’s back was the one who was so rude, I would never, ever do business with him.
By this time, we had decided what vehicle we wanted, just not where to get it. I went online and did my research which resulted in finding exactly the model we wanted just four hours drive away – at a price none of the other dealers could match.
So we made the drive, worked with a salesman who was both courteous and professional (can you believe it?) and had a great experience trading in my car to bring home our new Jeep Compass.
Since we had to drive home through a snow storm, we got to test out a lot of the great features on the rig, although I have to admit my favorite were the seat warmers!
She Who is Loving the New Jeep
Savvy Entertaining 
