Sunday, July 29, 2007

More Car Updates

Another busy week in the driveway. My son got his dream car this week. It took a lot of research and a lot of mediation, but we finally came to agreement and found the right car at a great price. We got him a 2004 Volkswagen GTI, 1.8L Turbo. It's red with black leather interior and a 5 speed manual transmission.

We traded in the Durango to buy the car. Once we found the GTI, Richard and I worked until after 11:00 pm finishing the installation of his old radio and speakers, pulling the wiring from the new stereo, and replacing all of the trim. It only took a couple of hours, but we were hoping it would improve the trade-in. We ended up getting the same amount CarMax offered, but at least we got the tax offset.
He has practiced dilligently since he got the car on Thursday and seems to have mastered driving the stick shift. I was even pleased that once he got past the first day, he now seems to be trying to drive the speed limit. That was my biggest concern because he likes to drive fast, and this car will go fast.

While we were waiting at the dealership for the boys to test drive the GTI, my daughter and I had time to kill.
She has been pestering me to get a perm. She finally broke me at the dealership while we were waiting. I made her sign a contract promising that she would not cry or complain when the perm turned out terrible. My sister also pointed out that this is perfect timing so she can start 8th grade and take her 8th grade pictures with a bad perm. But she'll still have time for it to grow out before high school. My daughter wasn't thrilled with these comments. She doesn't believe that everyone else could be right, or that everyone else went through this at about her age. We'll hope for the best, but I'm prepared for the worst.

I also ordered my new car on Tuesday. It's a red 2007 Mini Cooper S with a white top, white racing stripes and a moon roof. I drove the automatic also, but decided to go with the 6 speed manual transmission. I was originally going to buy the Cooper, but I made the mistake of driving the Cooper S while I was waiting to place my order. Once I drove it I was hooked. I guess after the Boxster, I needed the bigger engine.
I did drive some errands in my Beetle this weekend. Fortunately, it is still NOT popping out of first gear when I drive. So I'm hopeful it was just the shift plate, and not the transmission. I still need to replace the window tracks and fix the windshield wipers. But we're leaving for a week of vacation next Saturday so that will have to wait until we get back.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

When will you be posting pics of your bad perm days?

Anonymous said...

I am disappointed that you have given up on this project.

Triche said...

I haven't given up! I completed the interior. Then it got too hot to work outside.

I just got my new fuel gauge regulator in the mail this week, so I'm hoping it will cool off a little so I can get my fuel gauge working and start tinkering with the engine.

Anonymous said...

I am still waiting on your perm pictures.

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