Talk about first world problems...
I wrote about the 2011 Prius. That car lives in Vermont. I bought it used. Mike and I had intended to buy a small car to leave in Florida. Our ideas about exactly what constitutes a small car differed, so had Mike lived, the Prius would never have passed the start up gun and the checkered flag.
Anyway, I liked the Prius and thought it made a much more practical main vehicle for me. I ended up driving the Ford Taurus X, a car that had served us well when we had lots of stuff to haul around for various reasons, to Florida in the fall of 2013 and leaving that there.
The following summer I flew to Florida with my grandkids and we drove back in the big Ford. I realized I no longer needed such a big car and the price of gas, the low gas mileage, and my long time preference for small pushed me over the edge. I bought a used 2013 Ford Focus in the fall of 2014 and drove it to Florida that winter, where it has been ever since.
Google images (but just like what I have/had):
the Prius
As you can see, left entirely to my own devices, I am going to choose a small grey car. (The two other cars I picked entirely on my own--a grey Nissan Sentra and a grey Saab)
In spite of the fact that they look a lot alike, the Prius and the Focus are very different in how they drive. The learning curve when I make the switch tends to be steep each time.
The Prius key stays in my purse and I push a button to start it. I have to dig the Focus key out of my bag and insert it to start up. All the interior controls and the gas tanks are on opposite sides. The Prius has a backup camera. The Focus has backup blind spots in disturbing number. The Prius is a hybrid, the Focus strictly gas engine.
The Focus is lighter and a lot zippier. I am not saying it would make the ultimate getaway car (see previous post) or that it is sporty, but it is more fun to drive and more responsive.
So in a few short weeks, I will be going through the agony of having to change driving habits once again. I know, poor me.
I really do wish I were more like Linda on her Bag Lady Blog and be more gratefully philosophical.
I wrote about the 2011 Prius. That car lives in Vermont. I bought it used. Mike and I had intended to buy a small car to leave in Florida. Our ideas about exactly what constitutes a small car differed, so had Mike lived, the Prius would never have passed the start up gun and the checkered flag.
Anyway, I liked the Prius and thought it made a much more practical main vehicle for me. I ended up driving the Ford Taurus X, a car that had served us well when we had lots of stuff to haul around for various reasons, to Florida in the fall of 2013 and leaving that there.
The following summer I flew to Florida with my grandkids and we drove back in the big Ford. I realized I no longer needed such a big car and the price of gas, the low gas mileage, and my long time preference for small pushed me over the edge. I bought a used 2013 Ford Focus in the fall of 2014 and drove it to Florida that winter, where it has been ever since.
Google images (but just like what I have/had):
the Prius
the Ford Taurus X
the Ford Focus
In spite of the fact that they look a lot alike, the Prius and the Focus are very different in how they drive. The learning curve when I make the switch tends to be steep each time.
The Prius key stays in my purse and I push a button to start it. I have to dig the Focus key out of my bag and insert it to start up. All the interior controls and the gas tanks are on opposite sides. The Prius has a backup camera. The Focus has backup blind spots in disturbing number. The Prius is a hybrid, the Focus strictly gas engine.
The Focus is lighter and a lot zippier. I am not saying it would make the ultimate getaway car (see previous post) or that it is sporty, but it is more fun to drive and more responsive.
So in a few short weeks, I will be going through the agony of having to change driving habits once again. I know, poor me.
I really do wish I were more like Linda on her Bag Lady Blog and be more gratefully philosophical.
I think living in America is great. Where else could you have a 'problem' such as yours. Hope you don't 'suffer' too much in the car switch.
ReplyDeleteYour 'sympathy' is duly noted.
DeleteOlga, I think that you can go back and forth from Vermont to Florida is fantastic. If we could, I would spend my summers in Maine and my winters here in Texas. And as for cars, I drive my mom's 1995 Mercury and DH drives a 2005 Ford truck. We haven't had a car payment since we retired, but know that eventually the Mercury will have to go. (I just hate the idea of a car payment...) And grey (and white) are good car colors!
ReplyDelete1995! That is amazing. I'd say that car gave you its money's worth.
DeleteI love gray cars, too. A couple of years ago I bought a brownish colored car and two years later it still hadn't grown on me. I traded it off and felt weird for blogging about such a first world problem. LOL
ReplyDeleteYou have to admit the Prius has a lot of bells and whistles. I test drove one before buying my current car and was impressed.
ReplyDeleteHave fun adjusting.
I am another gray car aficionado as well as small cars. Since I am shortish small cars fit me better and since the streets in my neighborhood are so old and narrowish, and there is so much street parking, a small car works better. Great fun to move back and restructure and reinvent your life.
ReplyDeleteI do think the changes that you have to make are good for your brain, but having to do this with a car is a little intimidating. If was a washing machine or a thermostat....
ReplyDeleteyes, that is a first world problem :-)
ReplyDeleteWe zip around in a 2001 Toyota Corolla, small for city driving and parking garages, but with a big trunk for cargo. Yes, it is 15 years old, and we bought it used 14 years ago. I think it intends to live forever. When we go on a trip and rent a car, we have no idea what to do with most of the bells and whistles.
And frankly, I find many of those bells and whistles more of a distraction than I care to have to deal with.
DeleteI've always wanted a Prius, but it is just not big enough for the trip each year to FL, with all the stuff we take! Probably means we should take less stuff :-)
ReplyDeleteI used to have a black car. Then I had a gray car. Now my car is white. Just like my hair.
ReplyDeleteA certain symmetry in that
DeleteI prefer my Hyundai Accent, since I am Korean and the car was made in Korea. Like you, I like small cars.
ReplyDeleteOld dog and new tricks, and all that jazz! :-)
ReplyDeleteI was looking at a Prius a year or two before it became popular to have one. The auto dealer kept me waiting forever before a salesman showed it to me. Then they left me with the impression they didn't take the car as a serious product. I thought his attitude toward me was also cause I was just a lone woman there. Another day, I took my husband, but given medical issues he was experiencing, he said it was too uncomfortable for him. I wanted him to be comfortable in it, too, since there might be occasions when we would want to drive my car. Too bad I didn't buy the Prius cause when suddenly everybody wanted one, there was a shortage. I could have sold it used for much more than I paid for it. When I did purchase a larger used Toyota other than a new Prius I did so at a different dealer.
ReplyDeleteWe still don't have our untrustworthy Mercedes back from the shop. In South Africa, our next choice will be a Toyota.
DeleteI have a similar problem. I have a big Chevy Equinox. Rich has a tiny blue Toyota MR2. Add to it the Equinox is an automatic and the MR2 is a 5 speed. I love my Equinox - I call him Vern - but driving that MR2 is a blast! It is a good thing I don't do it often or Kc would get speeding tickets!
ReplyDeleteWe have a Honda minivan and a Prius. It's funny how Art keeps forgetting that he needs to unlock the van manually in the Honda when we decide to use it.
ReplyDeleteWe really do love our Prius and it has been serving us very well these past 6 years.
I really liked this article and other articles you've authored.
ReplyDeleteWould you be OK if I shared one of your articles with the WriterBeat.com community? I can provide more information about Writer Beat or answer any question, but better than anything I can say in words, please take a look at the site.
If yes, just give me an "OK" and I'll handle the rest (there is no fee).
Autumn
AutumnCote@WriterBeat.com