A Car Graveyard, likely where our car will end up!
It happened. We knew it would eventually, but I was holding out hope the hubby’s 10 year old car would last another 2 years. Enough time to finish paying off our debt, and save up for a new car.
But lady luck is not on our side, and our car was pronounced dead by our mechanic today.
The car is a 1999 Passat Wagon. It was a dumb purchase. We had been a one car family and decided it was time for a 2nd car after about a year. I researched, and feel in love with Volvo wagons. Too expensive though. So I started looking for another wagon, and found the Passat Wagon. Found a great deal at a local car dealership, and we went and bought it.
We had 2 kids. I did NOT want to be a minivan mom. What can I say, I was 25?
Nearly a year later we welcomed our 3rd child into the world. OOPS! We had to purchase a minivan anyway, and suddenly we had 2 big car payments. It was tough, and I regretted buying the car.
We paid off the wagon last year. We also put about $1,200 of work into the car over the last year. And the $300 back windshield.
Here’s how the math works.
Repairs= approx. $2600
Trade-in Value according to Kelley Blue Book, fair condition =$1925
Private Party Value according to Kelley Blue Book, fair condition =$3,290
Our car is NOT in fair condition. It’s undriveable right now. So sinking $2600 AT THE LEAST into it is not worth it. Especially considering the amount of cosmetic damage, and other things that would need replacing or fixing to make it fair or good in value. Things like the lack of floormats, the dings and dents, and the broken sunroof.
To make it driveable, we’d need to put $2,600 into it, there is no getting around it.
So we’re thinking about options. I’m of the mindset that we can get by for this month without 2 cars. We’ll be on vacation for a week, and there are no obligations that overlap. This will give us about 30 days to make an informed decision on how to replace his car.
We do not have the money to buy a car outright, and we are working out if we can squeeze a monthly payment out of our super strict budget.
I’m sure we can get something out of the car, even if it’s just selling it for scrap, and selling off the nearly new tires.
What would you do in my shoes?
Kelly
UPDATE
Word from the cashier when we went to pick our hunk ‘o junk up was that the mechanic is interested in buying it from us!
The hubby is also on board with saving up for the next few months and going to one car for now. That should give us time to save, and get rid of some debt, and earn more making buying a car more affordable.
Who knows maybe we’ll love the one car thing and never go back. It will certainly make us use our car more thoughtfully.
I’ll update you when we make any decisions or sell the old car.
Thanks for all your comments!
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