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so how responsible should a person be?
Sep. 6th, 2006 02:09 pmi'm looking at cars, and i have my list down to 4 - a hybrid, a sporty sedan, and two convertibles (one a higher-end sports type). all 4 have high ratings for safety, reliablility and owner satisfaction, and they are all supposed to be good driving cars - all on my list of Important Things in a Car.. the three standard-engine cars have quite similar (and reasonably decent) gas milage. the hybrid is of course higher, about 10 mpg overall. and it will probably be happy with regular, the others all prefer premium.
of course the one i really love is the serious sports convertible. the most expensive, of course - but it's (lightly) used, so i don't have the new-car premium, and it will probably do best at retaining its value. most expensive to service - although the dealer says 15,000 between oil changes - the next best car is 10,000. and i will get at least 6 months of manufactorer's warranty, which includes maintenance. much more expensive to insure - although even the least will nearly double my insurance rates. to say nothing of my license fees. but i waste a lot of money. and, of course, if i have no money for food, my diet should progress a lot faster.
i can (with an effort) convince myself that it is not completely impractical. the trunk is only slightly smaller than that of the sporty sedan, and is probably similar to the trunk size for the hybrid (although i haven't seen that one yet). and (obviously) the roof comes off, so i can put big things in the front seat. no rear seat, of course, which the others have - but they are all 2-doors, so with the exception of the other convertible, not necessarily real accessible.
i've wanted a convertible for years. i am a believer in buying the best car i can afford and holding onto it as long as it holds together. any of the ones i'm considering should last me for for 10 or 12 years...and by then, i will need to go with a solid, sensible, dependable car. so this is probably my last chance to get a convertible - especially this convertible. who knows where the world will be in 10 years? i hope it will be using renewable energy, i hope it will have loosened up enough to make those sane, sensible cars still fun to drive...but who knows? and this one will probably be the easiest to sell for a decent price, if i decide in a few years that a convertible is more trouble than it's worth. but is it acceptable to indulge myself in the meantime?
the environment is important to me, smog and global warming and reliance on foreign oil. and the hybrid is the best answer available to that. and it's a good, sensible car. and it probably wouldn't be a chore to drive.
biut i really want that convertible. i want the wind in my hair, and the power it has, and yes, even the leather seats. and the look of it. yes, i want a flashy car, stupid as that is. but of course, i don't want the stigma of being a person who thoughtlessly buys an expensive, wasteful car, just to say 'look at how well _i'm_ doing". which actually wouldn't be fair to this car - it's far from the most expensive one in the line, or even in its class, and there are a whole lot of much more expensive luxury cars driving around my neck of the woods. and seriously, the gas milage is in the middle of the pack of cars i am looking at - with the 6 speed, and my driving style, i expect i will still be getting over the rated 32 mpg highway milage. or, of course, i could be totally deceiving myself. i am probably deceiving myself that i really feel a difference in how this car handles (although probably not in how well it accelerates). it is easily the most luxurious - probably the most luxurious one i will ever own. i wouldn't choose a car just for that....but it would be nice to have, just for a bit.
i haven't driven the other convertible yet. it's actually only a couple thousand less than the high end one, but overall costs are less, and people are less likely to look on it as a brainless yuppie car. it has its own distinct look as well, of course. my choice seems to be looking like i'm doing the midlife-crisis sportscar thing, or looking like i'm still pretending to be 20. and it's completely stupid to spend any time even thinking about what other people think. why do i do that anyway?
energy use and wastefulness are important to me. i have energy-efficient appliances, i live in a small space, i recycle. i work in a new building, built with energy efficiency in mind (not that i chose that, or anything - but surely it counts, in my share of the world's energy costs?) so which will be worse - the guilt for not going with the hybrid, or the regret for not going with what i want? is it worth the extra money to have something really special, or will i feel the pinch too much? will i remember to actually put aside the money for the insurance (whatever i buy)? can i be responsible enough in the rest of my life to offset being irresponsible in one thing?
and am i working to hard to convince myself that i want what i think i want?
of course the one i really love is the serious sports convertible. the most expensive, of course - but it's (lightly) used, so i don't have the new-car premium, and it will probably do best at retaining its value. most expensive to service - although the dealer says 15,000 between oil changes - the next best car is 10,000. and i will get at least 6 months of manufactorer's warranty, which includes maintenance. much more expensive to insure - although even the least will nearly double my insurance rates. to say nothing of my license fees. but i waste a lot of money. and, of course, if i have no money for food, my diet should progress a lot faster.
i can (with an effort) convince myself that it is not completely impractical. the trunk is only slightly smaller than that of the sporty sedan, and is probably similar to the trunk size for the hybrid (although i haven't seen that one yet). and (obviously) the roof comes off, so i can put big things in the front seat. no rear seat, of course, which the others have - but they are all 2-doors, so with the exception of the other convertible, not necessarily real accessible.
i've wanted a convertible for years. i am a believer in buying the best car i can afford and holding onto it as long as it holds together. any of the ones i'm considering should last me for for 10 or 12 years...and by then, i will need to go with a solid, sensible, dependable car. so this is probably my last chance to get a convertible - especially this convertible. who knows where the world will be in 10 years? i hope it will be using renewable energy, i hope it will have loosened up enough to make those sane, sensible cars still fun to drive...but who knows? and this one will probably be the easiest to sell for a decent price, if i decide in a few years that a convertible is more trouble than it's worth. but is it acceptable to indulge myself in the meantime?
the environment is important to me, smog and global warming and reliance on foreign oil. and the hybrid is the best answer available to that. and it's a good, sensible car. and it probably wouldn't be a chore to drive.
biut i really want that convertible. i want the wind in my hair, and the power it has, and yes, even the leather seats. and the look of it. yes, i want a flashy car, stupid as that is. but of course, i don't want the stigma of being a person who thoughtlessly buys an expensive, wasteful car, just to say 'look at how well _i'm_ doing". which actually wouldn't be fair to this car - it's far from the most expensive one in the line, or even in its class, and there are a whole lot of much more expensive luxury cars driving around my neck of the woods. and seriously, the gas milage is in the middle of the pack of cars i am looking at - with the 6 speed, and my driving style, i expect i will still be getting over the rated 32 mpg highway milage. or, of course, i could be totally deceiving myself. i am probably deceiving myself that i really feel a difference in how this car handles (although probably not in how well it accelerates). it is easily the most luxurious - probably the most luxurious one i will ever own. i wouldn't choose a car just for that....but it would be nice to have, just for a bit.
i haven't driven the other convertible yet. it's actually only a couple thousand less than the high end one, but overall costs are less, and people are less likely to look on it as a brainless yuppie car. it has its own distinct look as well, of course. my choice seems to be looking like i'm doing the midlife-crisis sportscar thing, or looking like i'm still pretending to be 20. and it's completely stupid to spend any time even thinking about what other people think. why do i do that anyway?
energy use and wastefulness are important to me. i have energy-efficient appliances, i live in a small space, i recycle. i work in a new building, built with energy efficiency in mind (not that i chose that, or anything - but surely it counts, in my share of the world's energy costs?) so which will be worse - the guilt for not going with the hybrid, or the regret for not going with what i want? is it worth the extra money to have something really special, or will i feel the pinch too much? will i remember to actually put aside the money for the insurance (whatever i buy)? can i be responsible enough in the rest of my life to offset being irresponsible in one thing?
and am i working to hard to convince myself that i want what i think i want?
