You can't be too careful...

In parking lots! 

I just wanted to make sure no random building materials came anywhere near my car.

Hey, maybe I will actually lose a little weight with all this extra walking!

When I left the house this morning, I wouldn't have guessed...

...that when I got home, I would be driving my dream car!

  (Well, "dream car" as in the family car that I really wanted but didn't think we could afford, not as in some exotic sports car that I KNOW I will never be able to afford.  HAHA!)

After months of research, looking, crunching numbers, and a really weird case of a "missing car", we finally ended up with the car that I wanted from the very beginning...A 2013 Nissan Pathfinder. 

I've been driving a Pathfinder for the past 7 years and I've loved it.  However, with it reaching almost 200,000 miles on it, I knew it was time to move on to something newer.  We have been so fortunate that we really haven't had to do much mechanical work on it, but I knew that the time was coming where it was going to cost us more to repair it than to get something new.  Plus, with all the miles I drive back-and-forth to work, I have to have something dependable.

I've wanted a new Pathfinder since the very first photos were released to the public, which was about a year ago.  We not-so-patiently waited for them to hit the dealerships....which finally ended up being late November.  But holy-moley Batman, they were expensive!  We didn't think we would ever be able to afford one. 

We changed our focus to something more affordable, which had us searching for Toyota Venzas.  They are pretty difficult to find used, and way too expensive when bought new.  We thought we had found the "perfect" Venza last week....well, y'all know how that turned out.  BUT, the one good thing that did come out of that trip, was the gum-smacking, pushy salesman told us that Nissan was offering VERY low interest rates on their new vehicles.

So, I went home, started crunching numbers using used car interest rates (for someone with our credit) and then using Nissan's credit rates.  Surprisingly, I found that we could get a brand new Pathfinder for just a few dollars more a month than a 2009 Toyota with 40,000 miles on it.  It was a no-brainer!

I found a super fantastic deal on a base model Pathfinder at Jim Burke Nissan, which just happens to be the exact same place we bought our last Nissan.  Their prices were literally at least $3000 less than all of the other dealerships within a 200 mile area (and trust me, we've looked at them ALL)!  We looked at the base model, but the above little blue beauty was sitting right out front...begging to come home with us!  Fortunately, I had printed out the ad for this one and was able to get it for LESS than the base models at all the other places!

I won't deny there was a lot of negotiating to get the deal we did, and at one point, we got up to walk away, but we ended up pleased with the final result!

We are so relieved to be done with this process and so happy with our new car!  It's the color I've always wanted, and it drives like a dream!

---------------------------

I was in no way compensated for this post by Nissan or Jim Burke Nissan.  Just sharing my positive experience!

New(ish) car fever.

Hey y'all!  It's another week already.  Time is just flying too quickly!

As much as we hate it, we are going to have to buy a new(ish) car at some point this year.  We still love our current Pathfinder, but it has almost 200,000 miles on it. We aren't having any problems with my car, but are scared to tempt fate for too much longer.  Considering my car is the one that we all drive about 90% of the time, and with the amount of driving I do (mainly back and forth for work), I really need to have something extremely dependable.   We've been looking around at new(er) cars for a while, and just couldn't find something we loved, but could still afford. 

We REALLY want a new Pathfinder, but whoa buddy, those things are EXPENSIVE!  Even the base models are way out of our budget.  

Photo from HERE

We've also been looking at Muranos, but to get the options we want, they are still really pricy. 

Photo from HERE

 We then started looking at various Hondas, Chevrolets, and Fords, but really couldn't find something that fit with the options we want, we can afford, and will also let us get 200,000 miles on it and not have to have it in the shop all the time.  We've really been lucky with our current Pathfinder.  We have almost 200,000 miles on it and we've only had to replace the rear end (where the bearings wore out) and do routine maintenance (brake shoes, tires, oil changes, filters, etc....)  We MUST have the same reliability in our future car.

After hitting some car lots over the weekend, we think we have finally decided what we want to get:

Photo from HERE

A Toyota Venza.

Yes, it looks like a jacked-up station wagon on the outside, but the inside is DIVINE...

Photo from HERE

especially compared to the super-boxy, non-fancy styling I've had for the past 7 years with the Pathfinder.  It feels like a luxury car on the inside, but it still sits up off the road like a small SUV.  There is still tons of room, and has much more rear passenger room than we currently have with the Pathfinder.  It also gets better gas mileage, which is definitely a PLUS!

Jameson fell in LOVE with the one we tested and got really upset we came home without it! (Honestly, we were pretty sad to leave that one in the lot, too!)  The great thing is, we can get a LOADED (gently used) Venza  for much cheaper than a base model Pathfinder or Murano.  It's going to be a few more months before we actually bite the new-car bullet, but we think this one is a winner!

Do any of you have any pros/cons of the Venza?  We don't know anyone that has one, and honestly hadn't even heard of them until a couple of weeks ago, so this is new territory for us!  LOL

I hope your Monday is as fabulous as you are!