The old car

Ahhh - I have had a faithful friend in my Honda minivan. It's not considered a "man's" car, the minivan, but it has really been my favorite vehicle of all. Fun to drive, comfortable on long trips, incredibly nimble - more so than any car I've owned, great utility - carries people or belongings in a multitude of configurations, and relatively easy on gas at over 20 mpg. Oh, did I mention reliable? Yes - amazingly reliable. That is, until recently. At 9 years old and with 278,000 miles, that reliability is, I'm afraid, coming to an end.

Things are wearing out, and I am entering the struggle that a lot of us go through. When is "enough enough?"

Dropping $1500 or $2000 a year to keep a car rolling is now forcing me to consider picking up a car payment. Trouble is, I don't want to pick up the $500 or $600 a month a new car will cost. So I look at recent used cars, in the $12-$15000 range.

This is how I picked up the Honda. 3 years old, one owner, available on Ebay, close enough to go look a it and drive it. What a great find. Good enough that I will probably do the same thing and head for Ebay motors. [Disclaimer: I do not work for, or have any vested interest in EBay - it is simply a service that I have used with much success]

Now here's the trouble. The van just sucked out another $1500. Do I replace it now, or try to recoup some of my money by driving it longer. What happens if the motor dies? The transmission falls out? The brakes fail? All of these are real worries, and I must weigh them against picking up another monthly payment of $200-$300 for a late model used vehicle. That is $2400-$3600 per year (without interest) for hopefully trouble-free driving for a few years.

BUT - if I'm willing to spend $2400-$3600 per year, why don't I just keep spending $1500 on the OLD van? I mean I like it! It still looks good, inside and out. It has been my favorite car. And I AM on a pretty tight budget.

Still - the attraction of something new and different...

See?

Something that should be simple, is a dilema after all.

What would you do?