<p>Spec - look at a weather report and tell her when you will be biking to work. There are very affordable rental cars out there, especially if she shops around. She can get a ride from someone else. She can bike!</p>
<p>she’s not exactly the outdoors type. I’ve brought up the biking conversation times, and she’s very passive about it. We’re going to the dealer this week.</p>
<p>You are a very kind friend. Car shopping is NOT my idea of fun times.</p>
<p>Okay, this is your friend and not mine, and we all have that PITA friend that we put up with for various reasons, but…</p>
<p>Your friend does not want to get her own car (or at least is passive about it). Your friend does not want to rent a car. Your friend is not “outdoorsy” enough to bike to work. </p>
<p>Maybe I’m old and cranky, but life is full of tough choices, and you seem to be describing someone who thinks she’s entitled to not have to make them.</p>
<p>yea… tell me about it. As you get to know her a little, she does come across as a quiet, but snotty person. </p>
<p>I’m just going to drive her to the dealership, and hopefully settle this, so I can go to work on my own terms. Hell, I might drive her there, and speed off the moment she steps out of my car.</p>
<p>just kidding</p>
<p>Actually you enable those who depend on you when you allow it to continue.</p>
<p>I think this has helped me learn that.</p>
<p>Good luck. Remember you are making neighbor stronger (yourself as well) by cutting the umbilical cord. (Easier said than done.)</p>
<p>now you’re making it sound weird.</p>
<p>Get her a bus schedule.</p>
<p>I wish. But honestly, I got it covered. Let’s get back to the topic, because I feel bad for hijacking this thread.</p>
<p>I think this is an excellent and very relevant topic. I am also somewhat interested in a very lightly used car (like a demo), but H is leaning toward a brand new car. Since our cars still run well, there is no urgent need to make a decision yet.</p>
<p>Was surprised but disappointed that S didn’t find Costco.com to be much of an aid when he shopped for new or used cars, since he was also on the fence. Was even more surprised that he found it was actually cheaper to buy new than slightly used from Hertz. I think it was good for him that he tried out a lot of models of cars when he was considering what to get, and fortunate that all the trials were free due to how many points he had from all his car rentals.</p>
<p>We’ve purchased rental cars in the family in the past and had pretty bad luck with them.</p>
<p>My Focus was a dealer demo. Came with about 7k miles on it, almost fully loaded, full dealer incentives on a new car, new warranty, and still running strong 10 years later. Price was similar to that of a one year old Focus before dealer incentives were added in (we purchased right before the new year, so there were a bunch).</p>
<p>anyone know anything about Thrifty car sales in Springfield, MA.
They claim to cut out the middle man…not sure about these cars??</p>
<p>Anyone know how to nicely talk my DS out of buying an old used Jaguar? Not kidding. He’s out test driving a few right now.</p>
<p>I had a friend in the 90s who had a used Jaguar (though not old), and she said the routine maintenance on it was very expensive. She did not keep it very long.</p>
<p>Also had a customer in the 80s who drove a Jaguar. We thought he was cool. Until he went to jail for dealing drugs.</p>
<p>We’re swearing off foreign cars (other than Japanese) because they’re too expensive to maintain. We’ve weathered three Volvos and I know our mechanic too well. H agrees we will get one that can be repaired by our friendly mechanic rather than one specializing in pricey European cars. Maybe you can find repair and maintenance amounts off true delta or similar website so he knows that it’s expensive maintenance.</p>
<p>Geeps, another place you could check is if there is a place in your area that deals with repossessed cars. About ten years ago I bought a car that was two years old with 12k miles for 8k. I kept it till it had over 100k and I just decided it was time for something new when new brakes and tires came up at the same time. Never had any problems with the car.</p>
<p>My dad bought a car at the same place a year or so after me and it also has been great. They didn’t have the car he wanted when he went there so they went to a car auction and got him one. Now that’s service! They said if he didn’t want it after test driving it they’d put it on their lot and sell it in no time because their prices were so good.</p>
<p>That place is always at the top of my list when looking for cars.</p>
<p>Maybe this of the type of place your thrifty is… Possible they buy the cars from auction instead of from trades? Thus cutting out the middle man? Who knows.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID BIONIC using CC</p>