How about a redux?

A couple of weeks have gone by since our visit to the local Ford dealer, which didn't work out. Well, after that, it was time to bring in the Traverse for some needed maintenance and repairs. Unfortunately, it's even worse than what we anticipated. First of all, it's terrific to bring your car to a local shop that does quality work, is fair in their pricing, and attempts to save you money. It's like taking the whole car shop business, turning it upside down, and doing the exact opposite of what the majority of car shops do, which is to run a quality, honest business. So, a big thank you to Midway Automotive Repair. We needed two more tires replaced, a very much needed alignment, rotors resurfaced, and then came the leak. Since Chevrolet did a replacement on the timing chains for what was only a two year old vehicle, a small leak has developed. Where's the leak? The rack. So, there will be another $1,000 repair on the Traverse in addition to another two tires at some point sooner rather than later.

The car has been a real disappointment. Jennifer and I purchased a car that was basically twice the cost of any other car that we've ever purchased and in twice the cost, there has been way more than twice the amount of problems of the other cars. Between the warrantied timing chain mess, seat issues, and now the rack, this two and a half plus year old car has about $3500 worth of problems. That's absurd. You can't even get a standard alignment on it based on the factory settings, which adds to even more cost.

After ditching the Ford idea, we decided to do something at the end of the year with the Traverse. That timeline doesn't work now, rather now. It's time to part ways with the big tank. I know you have every gadget you can imagine from dual sunroofs, to automated everything, and the best sound system we've had in a car, hands down, but you're expensive, and you're only going to get more expensive over time.

There are two cars that I've had on the list of cars to buy for several years. They are the Cadillac CTS and Toyota Prius. They're at opposite ends of the car spectrum, but are both awesome vehicles in their own right. With the Traverse, I don't think we're all too high on GM right now, even though a certified CTS could be had. No, how about 50+ MPG, high tech, and environmentally right car? Yes, that sounds right. So, now it's off to visit the Toyota dealership and test drive the Prius. They have two 2011 models left that are the Prius Four trim and they're discounted $3,200 to get them cleared out of the inventory. We're coming for one of 'em!