On Friday I was working from home to take my 95 Corolla in to get the check engine light diagnosed. I was quite agitated at the time because no one could read my check engine code because my car was too old! Three places ensured me they had the right connector, but when I got there, they discovered they didn't. I spent hours driving around before finding someone that actually could read the light. When I got it read, they said it probably wasn't a big deal and not worth looking into the exact cause. So that was that. I'd been planning on getting a new car in March anyway, so I resolved to let the light stay on.
On the way back from the dealership, I spotted a black Jaguar sitting out front the BMW dealership with a sticker price of only $8950. As I continued to drive home I looked up the number to the dealership to ask them about it. I assumed it probably had way too many miles on it or was too old to consider, so I didn't get my hopes up. When they called back, I was ecstatic to learn it was only 10 years old (the same age as my old car when I bought it) and had only 96,000 miles on it (I bought my old car at 107,000 miles).
Well, I was ecstatic, but my husband tends to put a damper on things, so I reluctantly mentioned it to him, expecting a quick "no way" to come out of his mouth. To my surprise, however, he started looking at reviews and blue book value prices on the car. Thirty minutes later, we were headed to the BMW dealership without a word of complaint out of his mouth!
When we got there we both test drove it. We then took it to a trusted mechanic to see they could spot any faults. Aside from the rotors, they said the car looked to be in great shape. Next thing you know, my husband was negotiating prices with them! He talked them down to $7000, and with my trade-in we were down to $6200. About an hour and a half later, I drove home in my new car!
I was in shock that whole day, that night, and the next day. The biggest shock was that my husband let me buy it without one word of complaint. He was quite pleasant through the entire thing, even though we spent about 5 hours at the dealership with a fussy baby. He knows my heart melts for jags, and he always laughed whenever I would stare enviously at one because we both knew we'd never be able to afford one.
This car is GORGEOUS and I still can't believe it's mine! It drives like a dream. It's a family car that drives like a sports car with it's V8 engine. V8!!! It just looks like a classic, and even though I've only driven it a couple times, it's already turning heads. The interior is plush leather with wood paneling, it has power everything, memory seating, heated seats in both front and back, sunroof, 8 speakers, 6-disc cd changer, and so many buttons and features that I've yet to figure them all out. How this beauty is mine, I still don't know. But it's gorgeous, and I'm in love with my car!
Tune in next week to learn about my scary postpartum experience ...
