When I was in the market for a new car, I wanted to get the Chrysler PT Cruiser. It screamed English-retro to me. And, to me, English-retro is cool. I did some research on Edmunds.com and the editors and consumers who bought the car gave the vehicle above good reviews. I was thrilled.
The disapproval of my parents set me back. They thought the Ford Explorer Sport-Trac was good. Well, I did some research on that car and found that people-in-the-know feel that the truck is not a valuable buy. They recommend that if I was to spend money on a new car, I should find a better deal.
I finally settled (or so I thought) on the Mini Cooper. My parents were still caught up on the worthless Sport-Trac, but once they saw some pictures of the Cooper, they got a little jazzed about the idea.
My dad finally made the strongest point in my car-buying decision. Since my job-move might make my income a little dubious, I should seek a car in which the payments can be covered by my emergency fund. Well, that means my monthly payments have to be under $400.
Back to the PT Cruiser. I like it more than the Mini because of the room. And, since BMW is jacking up the price on the Mini’s, the Cruiser is the most cost-effective buy. Sorry, Mini, tell your surrogate mothers to lower your price and maybe I’ll consider adopting you the next time I buy a car.