My Automobile is a Piece of Crap

Oh, Gigi.  You have served me well.

I was driving to work yesterday, just as I have done every weekday for the past six months.  6:30 a.m. on I-15, 65mph.  I had the music up pretty loud, so I don't remember hearing anything, but I noticed that the check engine light came on.  Then the battery light came on.  I coasted to the side of the freeway, which happened to be right at an exit.  I called work to tell them I probably wasn't going to make it in today.

I called AAA (thanks again, Granny), and they sent a tow-truck out.  He picked us up and took us back to the repair shop (which hadn't even opened yet).  Luckily there was someone there, who took my information and told me they'd get to it sometime that day.  About that time, Allen was getting off from his night shift, so he came to pick me up.  Then we picked up Benji and came home.  I did a bit of laundry and dishes and waited for them to call me.  When they did, they told me they drained the oil out of the engine (there was only a pint of oil left, and it's supposed to hold four quarts), and they found bits of brass in the oil.  That means that the ball bearings are totally chewed up, and basically the engine is now worthless.  To replace Gigi's motor would cost more than the entire car is worth at this point, so she has been declared dead.  She was seventeen years old. 

I am sad.  She has been a great car, and she was a great little commuter.  When I went to clean her out, I tried to step back and take a look at her--she was in pretty rough shape.  She had a lot of dings and dents, holes where the speakers should be, the totally non-functioning interior door handles that are barely hanging on, the sagging cloth on the ceiling, the frayed seatbelts and torn upholstery . . . yeah, she was a piece of crap.  But she was my totally paid-for piece of crap, and she got me from point A to point B with 33+ mpg.

So, out of necessity (or so I tell myself), I decided I needed a to buy a car that day so I could get to work this morning.  But I am a very poor negotiator.  I hate confrontation and competition--I'll avoid it whenever I can.  This is why I needed my brother Dave to come with me.  He has a lot of experience buying cars ;o), and being a salesperson, he knows how to work the system.  We test-drove a couple of cars, but from the beginning we were looking at the Suzuki GrandVitara.  They had two models--one very basic red 2008 (stick-shift, which I don't mind) model with only 19,000 miles on it, and one suped-up silver 2006 with 65,000 miles.  They both started at about the same price, and I was having a really hard time deciding between the two.  We played the game for a little while, but the owner (the one the salesman had to go make our offer to) also played us (and I hate knowing that).  He wanted to sell the silver one, since it had been on the lot longer.  When we saw the actual numbers and the upgrades on the silver one added to the mark-up, I was definitely leaning toward the red.  He decided that he couldn't give me a better deal on the red, and came a lot closer to my offer with the silver.  So that's the one I purchased.  Yes, I drove it off the lot that night, because I needed it to get to work (although when I got home, Allen couldn't find his badge and thus couldn't go to work, so I could have driven his car and taken more time with this enormous purchase . . . "That's what you'd call ironic.").  I'm not sure I got the best deal possible, but I think I did pretty well; and that was 99% thanks to Dave.  I was much more confident with him there and I'm sure they didn't take advantage of me nearly as much as they would have had I been alone.

So I got a pretty sweet rig.  I have tried to take a picture, but it has been raining all day.  So here's an image from our friend Google:

I think this is a newer model, but the body style is just about the same.  Mine, however, has a sunroof, racks on top, leather seats, keyless entry, power everything, and ridiculous rims.  Seriously.  I'm afraid I'll come out to find my car on cinder blocks because someone has stolen them.  I almost want to get factory wheels put back on and sell the rims just so they don't attract attention.  Don't get me wrong, they look awesome, but they are totally unnecessary.  Actually, the idea of this much of an upgrade is still mind-blowing to me, and I honestly can't believe I purchased a car, let alone a super-sweet ride like this.

I love driving it, but . . .
a) I feel like a sell-out: driving Gigi was almost a badge of honor, an in-your-face maneuver to a crappy economy.  This car totally buys into the American attitude of excess. 
b) I'm still reeling from having made such a huge purchase in one day.  I don't need this much car, and I REALLY don't want to be making car payments for the rest of my life.
c)  I don't feel like I deserve it.  I wish I were at a point in my life where I could justify luxurious things, but I'm certainly not, and unfortunately, I sincerely doubt I ever would be able to justify it in my brain.

There is a clause in the contract that says I can bring it back within 14 days and we can forget the whole thing.  It's tempting, and honestly, I should do it and get something more practical.  It's not like this is a muscle car or a convertible--it's a small SUV with relatively low miles that really will last me for years (if I can manage to not destroy the engine).  That's what I really wanted; the rest are just perks.  I'm not 100% sure about Suzuki, but they have a 7 year/100,000 mile warranty that is still in effect and it has a good safety rating.  It's big enough to haul stuff (another requirement, one which Gigi simply could not fulfill), it has cruise control and a fantastic cup-holder and bun warmers and a decent stereo, and I really like the leather seats so I don't have to deal with nasty upholstery.  No, it doesn't have a DVD player, but if we need to we can get one installed.  It has some quirks, but all-in-all it really is a great car.  I'll probably end up keeping it, even though I shouldn't.

Now . . . who wants a ride?  (And what should I name her?)