What disposable income?

Well, it looks like our already tight budget is about to be even tighter. We've reached the point where we have no choice but to look for another car. Our 1999 Honda Civic is finally starting to show its age and it's 120,000 miles. It still runs great but has some minor issues that need attention that I just can't give it any more. My wife drives it ino her office twice a week, 2 hours (in good traffic) each way. She's also a mobile notary and those trips can also nd up being pretty long given the area she serves. She needs a car that is absolutely beyond question where reliability is concerned and our little Honda doesn't fit that any more.

One side effect of this will be my already limited hobby budget being tightened even further. Priorities are priorities, though, so be it.

We won't be selling ours, just getting a second one. We could really use a second car anyway since when she's gone I have no way to get anywhere if I need to.

burnout said:

I'd love to find a civic with 120k.
P.M. me with the details

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HAha! Dan beat me to it! 120k is just getting broken in! (or into-one of the most popular models to be 'reallocated'-thieves don't steal junk!)

fyrwrxz said:

HAha! Dan beat me to it! 120k is just getting broken in! (or into-one of the most popular models to be 'reallocated'-thieves don't steal junk!)

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In fact, the #1 most stolen in the city of Houston!

A Honda will go just about forever!



Braden

Living in CA you could get a Suzuki Burgman 400 maxi-scooter and ride it most of the year and get 70 mpg.

beemerguy said:

Living in CA you could get a Suzuki Burgman 400 maxi-scooter and ride it most of the year and get 70 mpg.

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Wish I could but my motorcycle days are past. I was riding home one night in 1999 when someone made a left turn in front of me. Hit the passenger side headlights and took a short flight with a very hard landing on the far side. Spent the next two weeks in the hospital getting plates and screws in my shoulder blade, collar bone and left thumb. Add in broken ribs, a moderately severe concussion, various road rash and assorted muscle strains and I was not a happy camper. Even then I would have kept riding after I recovered but since it happened 2 months before my wife and I got married...

Now I suffer from trauma induced, accelerated progression arthritis in my back, another legacy of the accident. It's the main reason I'm retired and really limits what I can do. Unfortunately riding a motorcycle isn't one of them any more.

Well, looks like this Saturday we'll be the owners of a new (to us, anyway) car. Found a 2012 Honda Civic LX with 11k miles on it for a price we can afford. Fleet lease return, appears to be in near-mint condition, still has most of the factory warranty remaining. So Saturday morning we'll be heading up to Bakersfield to look it over and if all goes according to plan we should be driving it home that afternoon. Payments are going to hurt, especially any extraneous expenses which in all likelihood means my rocketry expenditures are going to be severely curtailed. It's a necessary expense so I really can't complain.

On a related note, we will soon be putting my dad's 1999 Dodge 2500 wheelchair van up for sale. If you know of anyone in the SoCal area or nearby that is looking for a lift equipped van PM me for info.

Tarasdad said:

Well, looks like this Saturday we'll be the owners of a new (to us, anyway) car. Found a 2012 Honda Civic LX with 11k miles on it for a price we can afford. Fleet lease return, appears to be in near-mint condition, still has most of the factory warranty remaining. So Saturday morning we'll be heading up to Bakersfield to look it over and if all goes according to plan we should be driving it home that afternoon. Payments are going to hurt, especially any extraneous expenses which in all likelihood means my rocketry expenditures are going to be severely curtailed. It's a necessary expense so I really can't complain.

On a related note, we will soon be putting my dad's 1999 Dodge 2500 wheelchair van up for sale. If you know of anyone in the SoCal area or nearby that is looking for a lift equipped van PM me for info.

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What did you do with the other car? I can fix an ashtray or maybe a seatcover or two....

Tarasdad said:

Well, it looks like our already tight budget is about to be even tighter. We've reached the point where we have no choice but to look for another car. Our 1999 Honda Civic is finally starting to show its age and it's 120,000 miles. It still runs great but has some minor issues that need attention that I just can't give it any more. ...

One side effect of this will be my already limited hobby budget being tightened even further. Priorities are priorities, though, so be it.

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Don't feel too bad. I just dumped $10K into my diesel. The chain in the transfer case wore a hole in the case, replace. Plus it's a Duramax LB7 and it needed it's 100K injector job done (again). That's a LOT of really big rocket motors....

I have no income...it's all outgo.......

I should have a small amount of disposable income, but I keep disposing of it on this hobby!

Cheers,
Michael

We have a little disposable income thanks to our '94 Honda Civic with 123K on it. Recently our pockets had been hit hard Medicare medical insurance payments...Oh, the joys of retirement. Thanks to my wifes budgeting we can still enjoy ourselves. Now, my '93 Dodge Ram, is the one that can really drain the reserves quick everytime I fill it up, but it is a keeper and it only has 78K on it.

We sold my wife's 1990 Civic with 170,000 miles on it a few months ago for $2,000. These cars go on forever, so if you have some anticipated expenses at low mileage (120K) then you need to consider that putting additional money into the car will probably be a pretty good idea. Around 120K you're probably looking at a new timing belt, struts, etc. But those repairs will probably keep the car going for a long time.

My two prior Accords were both driven to nearly 200K miles before I sold them. My one Accord was sold to my nephew who drove it to 250K miles before trading it in for a new one.

The reason we are getting another car is that we can't afford for the one we have now to be out of service for even one day. Having a second car will allow us to do some of the maintenance our current one needs. I fully anticipate getting another 100k+ miles out of it once we can get it serviced. With all the driving my wife has to do that would only be another four to five years at most with a car that's already 14 years old. Add in the price of gas and slowly decreasing gas mileage and the cost of driving the older car is going up. The new one is EPA rated at 39mpg highway but we've been seeing reports of 45+ from owners of the 2012 model. That alone will cut her driving costs by 1/3 or more.

We've been wanting to get another car for a while anyway, just been hesitating because of the expense involved.

The local water department just auctioned off two full-size Chevy vans, a 1993 and a 1995, both over 120K miles. A lot of rocket stuff would fit in the spacious cargo area. They both went for $500 each.

My definition of disposable income is: Spending money I should be saving on things I need to do, but in a position to put them off for what I want. Thank goodness I want for little.

RocketT.Coyote said:

The local water department just auctioned off two full-size Chevy vans, a 1993 and a 1995, both over 120K miles. A lot of rocket stuff would fit in the spacious cargo area. They both went for $500 each.

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I bought one of those "company vans" once and learned a very big lesson. People that drive company vehicles run the hell out of them because it's not theirs to have to repair. IE, they usually aren't in the best condition. It was also a Dodge which compounds the issue.

Well, we did it. Went to the dealership and came home with a new(ish) car!

2012 Honda Civic



This was a new experience for both of us as we had never financed a car before, we've always paid cash. Going through that process was a new and nerve wracking experience for sure!