Gonna get responsible? Or hang out in denial?

The vette as a family car has been under pressure for almost 3 years now. There are ups and downs to the amount of pressure, but recent family trips have made me start considering the move again.

At first, I was going to switch to a 300C before Sal was even born. I liked the Dick Tracy-esque styling and the Hemi and the loud aftermarket exhausts that one could purchase for it. There was even a cool color – Satin Jade. Catherine thought it sounded too much like a dancer’s name. I thought it should be two. Deposit was left with the dealership and I posted notes on various boards that I was gonna be selling my car.

Went to the car wash to get the car clean for pictures. While I was sitting there waiting for my car, a fellow customer complimented me on the car. No stranger had talked to me about my car in years. I’m pretty easy when it comes to signs…so we didn’t trade the car in.

Fast forward 3 years, we’re still getting by but I’m starting to feel the age. And the imprinting has been strong – both of Sal’s grandfathers have had the big Lexus sedan.

They’re solid cars – I’ve been in an accident in my father’s. The other car’s radiator was leaking, steam coming from his bent hood, and my brother licked his finger and wiped the bumper and there were no more visible marks of any contact on my father’s car. And there is lots of space in them. But they are old man cars. I think my father got his to get into the club with the other salesguys at his office. And it’s also a doctor’s status symbol. But there is also the fear that getting an old man’s car will give me a crazy old man’s mind. Honestly, I’m going there anyway, so I can look at it like the LS would just be accessorizing. I still like Kelly’s idea of the Dodge Challenger. That looks like the family car I want to be a part of. But deep down, I’ve got a feeling that it might not be the most responsible choice. Fun yes. Responsible, not sure (it gets 13 mpg City).

So we went to the Lexus dealership today. (Dodge will get Challengers in stock in about 2 weeks.)

Catherine was impressed with the covered parking and the driving on tile for the customers. The free coffee did her good too. I jumped into an ISF – but don’t really fit. Well, I fit, just no one really fits behind me. There’s no real use to getting a luxury car if we’re going to

Actually, the first car we sat in was the LS 460 L (long) that was a used 2007 parked next to us. I got the seat into position and asked Catherine to sit behind me. Asked her if it was okay. She replied that she could lay down. I thought she was talking about laying down across the seat but when I glanced back, she could lay down aligned behind me. It was a nice car.

So, getting her into the ISF made me realize that if I’m about to get a “family” car, I shouldn’t force it to be a 3 seater.

We went through the various models they have. Test drove a GS. Decided while driving it that maybe a lease makes sense, so that I can ease myself out of the Corvette…without committing to a car completely. Decided while the dealer was parking the GS, that I tend to keep cars pretty long (7 years for 2 cars each) and that we need to rip the band-aid off since there’s no reason we need to have 3 cars for the 2 of us. So buy an LS.

Still, when the salesman came back, I asked for some of the numbers on leasing and he ran them for me. After we got through all the numbers, he gave me the “Are you ready to buy a car today?” No. “What will it take?”

He was nice enough to joke about how he’s gotta ask, that’s his job, that they have the room recorded…and we laughed along with him. Then he said “Let’s talk about it on a scale. 10 being you’re ready to buy today, 1 being you’re far from buying a car – what would you rate yourself at?” And I was proud of myself for saying “1 or 2”. To which he replied with “What would it take to get you to a 10?”

This was funny. I liked the 2nd approach. Let’s break it down into numbers, just in case the words weren’t clear enough. If he waited 15 minutes and asked me again, we might have been in trouble. As it was, I really liked the salesman and the whole dealership actually. Doesn’t seem like they’ll give me the same hassles that I’ve been getting with my Chevy dealer – but maybe I’m just on a rebound dealership.

So, I held strong. We don’t have a new car yet. But will bring Sal with his car seat in to the dealer’s in a bit and go test drive the LS.

Then we’ll really be testing Mr. Impuslive.

Oh yeah – it’s also 20 inches longer than my current car.  Not sure how much the garage is gonna like that…