There are few things that annoy me more than being tailgated while travelling the on ramp. I have no control over the cars in front of me, so it is no use for you to ride my bumper. Let’s all get on the road and then we can sort out who should be where. I am particularly disturbed when I am tailgated by a lesser car. It is a quality in myself which I find abhorrent.
See, several years ago I was tempted into purchasing a luxury vehicle. It was used, the price was right, and the lease on the car I was driving was going to be up. That car was everything I needed in a car and not much more. It made me feel good to have a decent, utilitarian vehicle in good working order. Alas, I gave in to those inner voices crying, “Go ahead, you deserve it!” or “You need a car like this so that people will recognize your status.”
And I have to say that it has been a nice car to have. The stereo sounds good. Not only the driver’s side but the passenger’s side windows will go down and up automatically. But I don’t like looking in my rear view mirror and thinking “Don’t even try it, Kiaboy!” It’s not about getting passed, it’s about getting passed by an Echo. This type of judgement is not something I need in my life.
So, several months ago my Sweet Lady and I started to talk about our cars. Both of them should be able to make it another 5 years or so, if we treat them well. This means that they are both likely to expire at the same time. While we don’t really need a car payment, we definitely don’t need two. Given that mine has the greater trade-in value (and that we will realize a greater net benefit in fuel consumption by ditching my V-6), it makes sense to let this ride move on to another owner.
While I am sure there will be things that I will miss, I will not miss the feeling that I need to stick up for the reputation of my car’s brand. It’s my hope that driving a simpler, more functional car will remove some of the competitiveness of my driving. Somebody some day soon is likely to think, “Don’t even try it, Legacyboy!”