So … I Did a Thing …

Musings of an Aging Mind

By Jack Bagley

As we move along in life, we discover that the two biggest, most important purchases we have to make are (1) a home and (2) a car.
I want to relate my experience with my most recent automobile purchase.  (I bought a house back in the 1990s but that is another story for another time.)
The first time I bought a car, I was 19 years old and picked up a 1966 Chevy Impala four-door sedan for $595. A good price now, it was also a good price in 1978. Like most people do with their first set of wheels, I adored that car – and sometimes, even now, I wish I still had it.
The last time I purchased a vehicle was 2012. My car at the time had basically given up the ghost and I decided to get something new while I could still get some trade-in value from what was left of a very dependable Honda.
I enlisted the help of several friends in seeking out possibilities, and found my way to a dealership in Newnan to buy a 2010 Toyota Yaris. A nice car, it wasn’t exactly what I wanted – I had my eye on a hybrid Prius but the cost of the battery replacement killed that idea – but it was solid, dependable, and had about 31,000 miles on it.
The dealer and I haggled over the price, he won the haggle, and ten thousand bucks later, the Toyota was mine.
I want to say right here that nothing in this column is intended to be any kind of advertisement, not for cars or dealers, but when sharing a story one must share all of the story.  That being said, I got thirteen very, very good years out of that Toyota.
Sure, there were difficulties – I related a few here in this space, when the car developed a problem at a very bad time and a good friend stepped in and offered me another vehicle for free. I still appreciate what he did for me.
Overall, though, the Toyota gave me several great years. The odometer started at 31,000 miles and over my ownership I put on ten times that amount – it now sits at somewhere over 310,000 miles.
Like many of us, however, the Toyota began to show its age. In the past month I found myself having to spend about $800 on needed engine work, and the light came on – it’s time to give that dependable Toyota some time off.
Thus began the odyssey of an auto purchase in the modern world. While it could have been done in 2010, it is now a far, far easier process today, and I did it all online.
First, though, a brief story. A couple of weeks ago, I had to go to our main office in Perry on newspaper business, and used one of our papers’ two delivery vehicles. The ride down and back in that 2018 Chevy Equinox was a true pleasure – so much so that by the time I made it from Manchester to Talbotton, I was saying to myself, “I have to get me one of these.”
So I set out to do just that.
I put “2018 Chevy Equinox” into Google and got numerous responses. Scanning them all, I chose to go with Carvana, and found out the entire process was as close to painless as it can be.
Everything – everything – was done online.  I didn’t even have to speak to a human being until after I’d pulled the trigger on the purchase and income/employment verification had to be done. Contracts, registration, down payment, arrangements, everything took place on the Internet. And there wasn’t any in-person dealing until a very nice lady brought my car to my home in Waverly Hall.
Yes, Carvana delivers, if you want them to.
It was a simple, easy, and mostly painless experience. The only pain came from having to part with my hard-earned money for a down payment. Since my Social Security has gotten underway, though, even that wasn’t a real issue.
The photo is me with my new ride.
Cars have changed a lot since I bought my Toyota, as well. This new vehicle (new to me, anyway) has a sunroof, a fantastic radio system, and all the information you could possibly want to know right there on the dashboard – speed, fuel, oil, tire pressure, trip timer … it could probably file my income taxes for me if I need it to.
So, I did a thing … I bought a new car. I’m still learning about it, but I’ll tell you this:
I am enjoying it.  A lot.