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Back in May my brother, who currently lives in Cyprus, ordered a new car which was delivered five months later.
I mentioned this on Saturday to the young man who was selling me a new car and he was incredulous.
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It had only been the previous week that the thought had even occurred and I could have driven away in the new vehicle the same day, but we needed to have the undercarriage treated, so we opted to get that done before taking possession.
Prior to 2000, I had always had to wait on the delivery of a new car, though never for months.
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Off to collect the car…
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When I transferred to Seattle, I had my Mazda shipped which was a fiasco I could have done without.
It would have been wonderful to drive but time was of the essence and I had little old Yeti to consider.
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In retrospect it would have made better sense to sell the car and purchase a new one in Seattle but the move was sudden and it would have been difficult to arrange.
The terrain around Seattle is mountainous and my Mazda was a stick shift. While I managed, there were times when getting up some of those steep slopes was tedious.
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A few months after I’d installed myself in my new quite different existence, a friend came to visit and he had recently been for a ride in a Prius.
“That’s the car you should have!”
So we went to a Toyota dealer.
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It had never occurred to me that I would drive away in a new car that very day. The whole transaction took but a couple of hours, including a loan to pay for the vehicle.
Perhaps I had an honest face?
Yet this is now how things are done and it still boggles my mind. Maybe it’s a way of hooking people into rash purchases.
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Was mine a rash purchase, given that I had not been considering it?
Car dealerships periodically offer to purchase back your vehicle with the intention of persuading you to buy a new one and I had received numerous such offers which I ignored.
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So what changed?
Suddenly it seemed not a bad idea to trade my car while it still had value, if I could do it in a manageable way.
If you are an astute shopper I believe one haggles. Car prices are adjustable and deals can be struck.
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Even in the markets of SE Asia where it is expected, I was never able to make a more than half-hearted effort at bargaining.
On holiday with friends once in Burma, we stopped to buy samples of their lovely lacquer-ware and one of my companions argued prices.
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Finally in frustration the seller said, in perfect English:
“In your country you have so much. Here we have nothing.”
He was right too and I cringed.
My feeling is, when considering such purchases, that you pay whatever it is worth to you. In some cases I know I paid more than the item’s technical value, but so what?
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Saturday saw us taking the old Subaru to Vermont to exchange it for the updated model.
Having transacted the deal, we had to preserve the condition of the old car upon which it was based. Talk about tempting fate. Which is why we confined ourselves to base!
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So there we were, on our way to Vermont the Friday after Thanksgiving.
Black Friday, they call it, a big shopping day but not really for cars!
The previous day’s snow made for a scenic drive.
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With very little traffic.
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Delightful first snow.
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Parts of Western New York are currently buried under four feet of snow, so I’m not sure how delighted they may be but people who live along the Great Lakes have to expect it.
When you don’t have to drive somewhere or deal with delayed flights or the many other problems it creates, heavy snow is magic.
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Blizzards are almost spiritual. Maybe it’s being a part of something natural, huge and uncontrollable.
You might say a hurricane is such, but those are immediately damaging and terrifying. Blizzards are different entirely. Their aftermath is a thing of great beauty.
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After the hours of howling wind and groaning tree limbs, rattling windows and the creaking of roof joists, it goes terribly still.
This happened at night once, when I was in Maine. I pushed open a door and went outside to total hush.
There may be no greater silence than one that occurs after a blizzard, especially at night.
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Our first snow was not like that, but light snow has its own visual merits.
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Lightly dusted fields and hills.
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The drab countryside seemed to regain colour.
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Over Vermont the sky had become overcast as we abandoned the old Crosstrek 😢
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New York was still bathed in sunlight.
Daft, isn’t it to think of leaving an old vehicle as abandonment? But one spends a lot of time in one’s car. It witnesses many moods and dramas, so it’s almost like giving a part of your history away.
Isn’t it?
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When I changed my 2007 model car in 2023, I really missed it. In many ways I still wish I had it, but they no longer made parts for it so keeping it running was impossible. I hope you enjoy the new Subaru.
Best wishes, Pete.
Lovely, peaceful pictures of your snowy landscape.
Thank you for sharing.
I have always felt a sadness, when trading in my car, for all of the reasons you mention. 😥
Have fun making new memories in your new car.
Catherine
I love new cars and have had more than my fair share over the years, although I have kept my current car since 2012 and do not intend to change it as I drive so few miles now.
You’re right, what a scenic drive indeed to pick up a new car! Congratulations on your new car and I hope you will make as many happy memories in this one as in the Subaru.
Your photos are lovely … I always “read” your posts twice. Once for the story and then I go back to the top to look at all your beautiful photos.