Saturday, August 20, 2011

Baby, you can drive my car


Our burned-up car was finally towed away - it took three visits by Malibu Towing to figure out how to do it. The fire damaged the transmission so badly it was stuck in Park, pointing face-in to the carport. And our  narrow Topanga driveway was too steep for one of the trucks to navigate down. The car disappeared on Friday, and both [The Man I Love] and I were not around to see it, but our neighbor said it took them hours to do whatever they did.

No determination was made as to the cause of the fire, but I suspect rodent damage. With hybrids, its more dangerous because there are high voltage components inside.

 

Everyone now go open your car hood and check to see whether there are droppings or nesting materials inside.

We finally heard on Tuesday that the insurance company deemed it a total loss. No duh. Then we waited for them to tell us what they would pay us for it. We were worried that the payment would only barely - or not at all - pay off our loan.

We began to worry. What kind of car could we get? We hoped we'd get at least enough for a down payment. But what if we didn't even get that? Would we have to get some old beater?

1981 Chevette
As it turned out, the market value for a Ford Fusion hybrid is quite high! They are in demand, and they are also scarce, because production was interrupted by the earthquake in Japan (some important part is made in Japan.) Plus - having never made a claim before on a car, I didn't realize that the insurance company also includes sales tax in the payment. So we actually came out better than even our best hope.

Well, then the thoughts of a new car changed dramatically! We contacted Autoland through our Credit Union.

A brand new Ford Fusion hybrid would be great. Or maybe a Toyota Camry hybrid. Our Autoland guy even proposed a Lexus hybrid. Wow! What about a BMW?

The rental car we got from the insurance company is a Toyota Prius, and we knew we didn't want one of those, because it was so low it had the same problem going down our driveway that the tow truck had. I've been driving the Prius to work, and [The Man I Love] has been driving my pretty little Honda Fit.


And as he thought about it, he realized he was really enjoying the Fit. Zippy little thing, easy to get in and out of. Not only that, it will hold a string bass - which, in our family, is a requirement. Hybrids are nice, but for the same reason we were awarded such a large payment, they are expensive. So why not get something a little less pricey and use the rest of the money to pay off some bills?

So yesterday afternoon, we met at the Credit Union to sign papers and pick up a cute little 2011 Honda Fit.

A bright orange one!

Ain't it purty?
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10 comments:

  1. Hamish MackAugust 20, 2011 at 8:14 PM

    That's called a Honda Jazz in these here parts and i test drove one a couple of weeks ago. It is a lovely little car and a pleasure to drive it. The one I drove was also orange but not metallic orange. There is more room in them than you might think. That's a good choice.

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  2. ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®©August 20, 2011 at 9:21 PM

    Congrats, I bet you get pretty good mileage with those, hybrid or no.
    ~

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  3. CloudiaAugust 20, 2011 at 11:48 PM

    Beeb Beep!


    enjoy dear-


    Aloha from Waikiki;


    Comfort Spiral
    > < } } ( ° >



    ><}}(°>

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  4. M. BouffantAugust 21, 2011 at 3:03 AM

    Now you're a two-Fit family.

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  5. Gary's third pottery blogAugust 21, 2011 at 6:23 AM

    what a horrible fire, but a great outcome!

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  6. GillyAugust 21, 2011 at 10:14 AM

    We have a Honda Jazz (just the same as a Honda Fit) and we are very happy with it. Easy to drive, and great in towns. Have a wonderful time with yours, even if you had to have a bonfire to get it!

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  7. CaShThoMaAugust 21, 2011 at 10:29 AM

    OMG; I can't believe that burned out car!
    But,
    I must say the new one is a mighty sweet shade of metallic peach. Now I know why you posted the rose in the post just prior. Enjoy your new car!

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  8. Mrs. G.August 21, 2011 at 11:49 AM

    Yay! I love it!

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  9. cactus petuniaAugust 23, 2011 at 11:48 PM

    Sweet! Love the color! Glad it turned out well.

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  10. Fe PenleyDecember 27, 2012 at 2:08 PM

    I think you ended up with a really good car, and that you used the rest of the insurance money really well. It’s fortunate that you got your car insured in the first place. You were able to save a lot of money and get a great new car as well!

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