I'm leaving in a few minutes to head to the Faraway Dealership, also known as Butler Toyota, to sign paperwork on a new 2009 Toyota Sienna... Yes, the battle is over... I didn't get the DVD player for free, as was my original goal, but by the time all the dust settled on the negotiations and freebies they threw in, I estimate that I'm paying about $100 for it... And I can live with that... Especially when I consider that seven years ago, I bought a very basic van (it has manual crank windows, if that tells you anything) for $1000 less than I'm buying this fully-loaded one... I'm happy, Butler Toyota is happy, and when the kids see that DVD player (the one their Daddy battled the evil car salespeople over for a week) pop out of the ceiling, they're going to be thrilled... I've got a vehicle that, by all accounts I've read and heard, is the best or one of the best minivans out there for performance, comfort, reliability, safety, and retention of value... I'm battle-weary, but I can finally be excited about this vehicle that I've emotionally compartmentalized for a week...
I just got done pulling everything out of our current van and vacuuming it out... I know the dealership will detail it before they put it out on the lot, but Olivia and June do a number on the interior of a car... I figured I'd at least get the big pieces for them... I know it's their job to detail cars, but they're also human beings, and there was some really gross stuff stuck to the carpet and seats...
I found myself getting a little sad as I vacuumed the ol' Dodge for the last time... It's been my primary vehicle for 7 years, and I have a lot of good memories in it... It performed very well, I must say, only recently starting to cost me significant sums of money a few times to correct some age-related maladies... I remember why we bought it, and even though we had to wait longer than we originally planned, we brought both of our children home from their respective hospitals in it... My kids have both barfed in it, so has the dog, and the Mrs. nearly did one night on a ride home when she was pregnant (she made to a tree, though)... In addition to Indiana, it's taken us to Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and back without any problems whatsoever... The seats have been in and out of it more times than my back can count, and I've lost track of all the crap I've hauled in it... And it just keeps on running... It's been a good vehicle...
It's the first vehicle that I'm sad about saying good-bye to... My first car, a 1976 Datsun 710 affectionately known as the Grey Ghost by many in Texas, was 20 years old and on its death bed when I finally sold it... I had a lot of great memories in that car, but it was time to put Old Yeller down... The second car I owned was driven away by my ex-wife after my divorce... Good riddance... The third car I owned, also purchased when I was married the first time, was traded in for the Chevy Malibu that the Mrs. drives... That thing was rapidly falling apart, and as my mom would say, it was the last remaining bad ch'i from my first marriage to be exorcised...
I bought this Dodge with the Mrs. and am now turning it in with the Mrs.... It's got a lot of life left in it, and I have no bad associations with it... So I'm sad to see it go...
But I imagine that will only last as long as it takes for that new car smell to hit my nostrils in the Sienna this afternoon...
We've had a Sienna for about 6 years now and haven't had any major problems with it. There have been some minor annoyances recently- there's something wrong with the passenger side front window (won't go back up when you put it down), and the passenger side sliding door is finicky and doesn't open if the temperature is in a certain range. Good thing we have the sliding door on the other side LOL All in all, it's been a good vehicle to own. I hope you like yours.
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