Need to re-work my vehicle situation-suggestions?

[Badfish740]

So right now we have three vehicles:

2001 Toyota Corolla - Wife's DD
2003 Ford F-350 - My DD
1991 Toyota Pickup - Bare bones, 4cyl, 5 speed, 4x4-I got it for free and use it occasionally

My wife has had her Corolla since college-she bought off lease cheap and owns it outright. It has 150K miles but runs like a top-I just did front struts on it, the first really major maintenance aside from replacing the catalytic converter and exhaust system a few years ago. This car could go to 300K I without too many problems I'm sure. The problem is we now have our daughter, her carseat, her stroller, and the dog to cart around. To say that it's tight would be an understatement. We did a lot of research on carseats and bought the best we could afford. The problem now is that its so large (and the car is so small) that the passenger sitting in front of the child seat has to have their seat so far up it could be dangerous because of the airbag. Furthermore-the matching stroller that works with the carseat system doesn't fit in the trunk. Long story short, it doesn't really work for my wife to drive this car anymore since she is home with the baby and the dog. However, with an hour commute, the Corolla would be great for me.

The truck, being a regular cab, no longer works either-the front is not the ideal place for a child seat and, baby, wife, and dog in that is impossible even for a short trip. The truck was immensely useful when we first bought our home three years ago. I probably saved $1000s picking up lumber, furniture, appliances, etc...and avoiding delivery costs-not to mention firewood. The problem with the truck is that I've used it hard and it's beat up. Mechanically it's solid, but there are dents, rust, etc... I'm worried that a dealer will really beat me up on a trade-in.

My idea is that the Corolla becomes my car for commuting to work, the Toyota pickup gets some much needed TLC (and maybe some better tires and helper springs) and becomes my wood hauler, and the wife gets either a new or fairly new Ford Escape. The Escape is a nice compromise for her because she doesn't like large vehicles, but it would allow the carseat and the dog to peacefully coexist with two or three other passengers. It also comes in 4WD which is important around here during the winter. How should I approach the dealer about the condition of the truck? Should I feel them out about the damage or just bring it in and have them look it over? Or should I try to sell it on my own and just come to the dealer with cash in hand? Diesels tend to be popular around here, but again, there's a lot of "little things" that a private seller would want to knock off for... Any ideas? I wish I could just find someone with an Escape in decent shape that they'd be willing to trade outright for my truck, but I doubt that would happen. I'm open to suggestions on other types of vehicles (I like the Escape but not dead set on it), or any other ideas...

 

[RSNovi]

I think the Escape is still to small for hauling kid stuff around. You might consider an Edge. I think if you drive a Flex you will leave the dealership with it. Even if you don't like the looks at first. The interior is awesome.

 

[timfromohio]

The Escape is too small - we had a similar issue years ago when son #2 was born. Up to that point, the carseat for son #1 fit nicely in the back seat, centered. Once two carseats were required, the front seats in the sedan had to be so far up it was physically impossible for me to drive the vehicle. We got a Honda Odyssey and I love it - with kids in carseats, the sliding doors are awesome. It fits an incredible amount of stuff, gets excellent highway miileage, and is safe. If you can get over the minivan stigma (I'm simply don't care- want functionality) the minivan is an excellent vehicle.

 

[Gary_602z]

You will be better off selling your truck outright rather then trading it in on a new vehicle. Start higher on your asking price (you can always come down). Be honest with your self on what it is worth and what the minimum is that you will take for it. Have you tried putting the baby seat into a new vehicle to see how much room you have?



Gary

 

[Corey]

The only reason to trade a car would be if you absolutely can't stand to be without a vehicle, or have to do the deal immediately (ie, it's your only car, your DD, etc) Then the few thousand you waste in trade is made up for in convenience of driving the old vehicle in, driving the new one out. If you can wait a while, or do without the vehicle, you'd be much better off selling private party.

If you absolutely have to trade, I'd look up the dealer retail value and consider the honest condition of the truck (shine it up as much as possible, though) - memorize this number. Now start dealing only on the new car and work to get the best deal. Don't let them try to start mixing up the numbers between new and old vehicles and NEVER let them sell you a monthly payment. Now, once you have a price you like on the new car, negotiate on your trade. But NEVER start with the trade in value. Start with dealer retail and say "OK - here is the retail value, I know you guys would probably put $XXX into it and you'd probably like to make a few thousand, to so how about [dealer retail minus $1500] and start bargaining DOWN from that. Much easier than trying to bargain UP from trade-in, because you can always point out how much they are making between your dealer retail price and the trade in offer they are giving. (It will likely be multiple thousands of dollars.

The downside is, you're dealing with someone who 'deals' day in, day out for years - it's their job. We buy a car maybe 10x in a lifetime? So they have substantially more experience 'dealing' and dozens of little tips, tricks, etc to lead you down a path of parting with your money. IMHO, you'll most always find a better deal private party, but if you need to do the deal quick and want some warranty behind the new car, the dealer can make sense.

 

[Dune]

Volt.

 

[SolarAndWood]

I would think long and hard before giving up a F350/7.3 for a 4 cylinder Toyota as the third vehicle. Nothing against the Toyota and we loved ours, just a different class and it doesn't sound like you are going to free up that much cash selling the Ford anyway.

 

[Dune]

There is a Volt for sale up the street. I will go check it out and see if it has enough room for you.

 

[heat seeker]

+1 on the Flex, I love mine. It comes in AWD, and used ones are available.
I'd just take the old beater to the dealer and see what he says. He's probably just wholesale it off, anyway, and give you next to nothing for it. Plus side is that you're clear of it, and don't have to deal with morons looking for something for nothing. Some states make the seller responsible for the vehicle even in a private sale, like a warranty, so that may be a factor for you.
As with buying a tractor, I think you should always buy more than you think you'll need. If another child comes along, you'll need even more room.
The Flex is large enough so it can serve as a pretty fair hauler. The seats all fold flat, and the passenger seat folds down so you can carry long items. I've carried ½ ton of pellet in mine easily.
The Flex takes a lot of garage space, though.

 

[begreen]

Personally I would never trade in a vehicle to a dealer. Sell the truck outright. Same for purchasing the slightly used Escape or other vehicle. A dealer is going to low ball you on the trade and highball you on the new purchase. Instead of going through the dealer, get a one owner, low mileage and well cared for vehicle with the service records. For a family car, my preference would an Outback. Save the wood hauling and messy stuff for the Toyota.

 

[JustWood]

The 91 and 01 vehicles are basically $500-$1000 outright sale vehicles.
The 03 Ford has some value but not as a trade . Dealers are looking for clean vehicles for their used lot.
If they're paid for and all mechanically sound keep them and rethink your situation.
Buy a cap for the F-250 and ride the dog back there. I'm sure your trips in this vehicle are short any way.
Find a smaller stroller set up or a luggage rack for the corrola. I have a cheap setup thats on or off in less than 5 minutes(very light weight). Bought it at a yard sale for $5. Had to modify the frame work but on a beater vehicle self tapping screws and silicone go along way. The frame work stays on the vehicle but the actual carrier comes of quick.
Thats a pretty good combination of vehicles that cover good mileage and hauling ability. If it were me and they were paid for and sound I'd keep them and retool to fit your needs.
If you have the $$$ and feel the need go for it and buy a new vehicle.

 

[RSNovi]

The used car market is very strong right now. I recommend that you sell your used car and buy new.

 

[btuser]

Ask your wife what she wants and get it. By now you should know this.

 

[JustWood]

The used car market is very strong right now. I recommend that you sell your used car and buy new.

Late model yes.
Pre 06, no.

I just bought a MINT southern 03 ext cab S-10. LOADED with 56,000 miles for $3000 off a lot that had sat for better than a year.
New tires electric seats and mirrors (heated also), V-6, premium sound . The works. I stole that rig.
Also just bought a southern 95 Mercury Tracer wagon with newer engine and tranny for $475. This rig is CHERRY. Original paint still on the A arms and underside. Owner said it gets 34 MPG. I can take the tires off and scrap it and be $ ahead without even puttin miles on it.

Have had a MINT 04 F-350 with 54,000 miles for sale for 2 years for $8500 with no takers but got a down payment yesterday.
The used car market is hot for late model premium select units but older stuff even in good ,,, for get about it.

 

[Swedishchef]

Ask your wife what she wants and get it. By now you should know this.

Smartest thing I have read/heard all day

A

 

[Swedishchef]

Badfish: Here's my suggestion. I am a HUGE fan of Subaru's. It's all I have driven (other than Volvo's) and it's all I will ever drive. Why? Because every single model they make comes in AWD. You can't get any model without it. I would sell both toyotas and try getting a nice DEMO Subaru Outback or Forester. They both have over 8 inches of ground clearance. They are stellar machines and I have never had ANY mechanical issues with any of mine.

I recently bought a 2010 Forester and have had it for 1.5 years. It's great. No problems whatsoever. However, as you said, when you have a child the space gets taken up quickly (on a side note, when you change your daughter's car seat to front facing, it takes up significantly less space). We just got back from a 1500 mile trip and I had: 2 suitcases (one big for the wife and I and a smaller one for the kid), playpen, golf clubs, booster seat, toy bags, diaper bag, cooler, Bob Revolution jogger and a few other goodies and it all fit into it.

Another piece of advice: don't get a HUGE SUV for the 3-4 trips a year where you may need it. Buy a mid size vehicle, get a roof rack and a 16 cubic foot roof box and some soft bottom duffel bags (to use as luggage). That way, when travelling, most luggage goes on the roof, dog in the trunk, kid in the back and you guys in the front.

Where do you live?

Andrew

 

[timfromohio]

Ask your wife what she wants and get it. By now you should know this.

This is true wisdom!

 

[firefighterjake]

Random thoughts . . .

Almost everyone always says you should sell your vehicle privately . . . and most of the time I do . . . of course I've also typically driven the car into the ground by the time I sell it so the price I ask is pretty low for most folks -- usually these are the guys who can manage to scrape up a few thousand for a vehicle . . . and even then I always make sure I tell them what is wrong whether it be a tear in the front seat or rusting out floor boards.

However, on my last vehicle purchase I actually traded in my vehicle . . . for two reasons . . . 1) the dealer actually gave me a halfway decent price for the trade in AND the out the door price of the truck I was buying was fair and 2) the vehicle I was trading in was new enough that I would have to ask a relatively high price on it, but it had a part that was failing that could be quite expensive and be a turn off to a private buyer. For me it was easier and economically sensible to get a fair trade price and have the dealer take the truck and whole sale it . . . coupled with the incentive programs and financing rates at the time I did pretty well (bought at the end of December.) I'm always one who is trying to figure out if I got stiffed or got a good deal and I keep looking back and looking over things and every way I look at it I can honestly say I did pretty well buying brand new and trading in the vehicle . . .

That said, I think in this case you would be better off selling privately . . . I mean you can always see what figures the dealer would throw your way on a trade in . . . but I suspect you will do better with a private sale if you do not need to sell right away.

I love Toyota Tacomas . . . those trucks are tough . . . but I'm not sure they would be the best truck for hauling lots of stuff or lots of firewood. I mean it can be done and I've seen some pics here of Tacos hauling some pretty heavy loads of wood and brush . . . but I would think the bigger trucks would be best. Perhaps an alternative would be to sell both trucks and get a decent 1/2 ton used truck . . . and sell the Corolla for something like a cross-over . . . like others I'm partial to Subbies . . . my wife has a Subaru Outback sedan (for you the wagon model or Forester might be a better choice) that she loves -- no issues and the thing is like a "tank in the snow" (my wife's words) as it just plows through everything Mother Nature throws her way . . . which is nice since she has a 20-25 mile commute in the evening and early morning and her work never cancels.

 

[semipro]

Our situation is similar what with the older an various vehicles you have, and the need for more seating.

We ended keeping an economy car (your Corolla?);
replacing everything else with a mid-sized pickup (Tacoma) with a crew cab, roof rack, bed extender;
and using a trailer for the big stuff.

 

[maverick06]

FWIW: we just bought a dodge grand caravan SXT (last winter). While looking around for minivans, we wanted a very new, but used, minivan. We ended up buying directly from enterprise rent a car. they also offered $1000 over bluebook for the trade in. The price was spectacular as well, no negotiation either. The van was about 8 months old and still had 3 year OEM warrenty and on top of that enterprise gave 1 year power train and 1 year road side assistance. I figured anything would show up in a year and no one will be really hard on a rental minivan.

Its been a great car. Its horrible on gas (16-18mpg) BUT it doesnt get many miles on it. I really like it every time I get in it! Quite a good way to get a car. Worth looking at their site.

My daily driver is a 99 VW jetta TDI, 162,000 miles and still getting 49-52 mpg on my 50 mile total commute.

 

[MasterMech]

Bought my wife a 2011 GMC Terrain. (Same as Chevy equinox.) She's upgrading from a 4dr '99 Civic and she's in love with the new car. Mileage is great with the 4 banger and I wanted her and the new baby (due in Jan) in a AWD, 4 Wheel ABS vehicle. I DD a 2005 GMC Canyon (crew cab) that I use until I get something big that needs moving then move into the old 1 ton. The Canyon continues to be reliable and provide enough "family room" since it's a crew cab. It also hovers around 20Mpg with the 5-cyl.

I bought the Terrain brand new and will be selling the Civic privately. It's just one of those cars ppl love for the MPG and utility of a small 4dr and they are in demand around here so I plan to capitalize on it's popularity rather than give it away at the dealership. They really showed little interest in a '99 Civic anyways.

2 Adults and 1 baby isn't exactly a big family but toss in 2 dogs (1 big, 1 little) and all the baby gear..... it gets tight!

 

[jdinspector]

How about a Ford Transit Connect? I have one for my work truck. I have the 60/40 bench seat in the rear and lots of room for tools, etc. behind the seat. Yes, it's not the greatest looking truck, but it holds a lot of stuff, gets good mileage, and is very practical. Mine has all that I need for a work truck (auto trans., A/C, power windows and cruise control). I think Ford even has low financing on them right now.

Just a thought.

 

[SlyFerret]

My wife and I went through this same thing recently too. With the new baby, we were going to need a car for mom that would be good for traveling with the kiddo. Four doors, safe, reliable, all-wheel-drive for the snow, and plenty of room for stuff.

Prior to the Baby's arrival, we had two cars:
My wife's "little black sports car" was an '02 Chevy Cavalier Z-24.
My pickup truck is, well... my truck! I'm a truck guy, what can I say? 2004 Chevy Silverado extended cab 4x4.

My wife and I used to commute to work together every day (an 80 mile round trip drive). We were lucky to be able to only need to drive one car into Columbus every day. When she is done with maternity leave, she'll be working from home primarily, which will leave me commuting to work by myself.

As we started to look at getting a new car for Becky, I realized that I couldn't get rid of either of the two vehicles we already had. I can't get rid of the truck, since I need it for hauling wood and maintaining part of my sense of identity. I thought about getting rid of the cavalier, but it just isn't worth much, gets pretty good gas mileage, and would save me the fuel and wear and tear driving my truck commuting 80 miles every day. Both are paid off, so, I wasn't worried about eliminating a payment.

After driving a bunch of different small crossover/SUV type vehicles, my wife fell in love with the Hyundai Fe. The comments about the used car market being strong agree with what I found. I didn't intend to buy a brand new car when we started out, but prices for low mileage used vehicles 2-3 years old were high enough that I just couldn't justify buying something used. In addition, the base model Hyundai included everything we wanted except for all wheel drive. Bluetooth, cruise, AC, iPod integration, steering wheel controls, 5 12v power outlets, and tinted windows. The 10 year 100,000 mile warranty made me feel pretty comfortable too.

We couldn't be happier with the 2011 Santa Fe that we bought. My wife loves the car.

I've found that the car seats fit best in the center seat in the back so that it doesn't interfere with either of the front two seats. I bought an extra base for our travel system so so I can easily do this in both the Santa Fe and in my Silverado. As I think about it, the center of the back seat is probably the safest place for the baby to be anyway.

-SF

 

[woodgeek]

similar situation here, I'm looking at 'microvans'--6 seats in two rows (or 4 + big cargo), wagon-sized. Ford makes a nice one (in Europe, grrr). Here the Mazda5 is the most popular. My buddy has one and likes it a lot.

 

[JDC1]

We have done the car shuffle as well. Kids change everything. Since we moved back home to Ohio the 2wd suburban had to go as it was a dog in the snow. I have an crew cab F-250 which we need. I sent my wife out to check out a few vehicles by herself and she came back and said that she wanted a small SUV. Long story short, she chose to lease a new Honda CRV 4x4. I was skeptical at first as we have a 2yo and 4yo and was not sure if it would be enough car. It is great, the backseats actually slide back and lean so it makes the car seats fit great. There is plenty of room for her to carry everything that she wants, it is 4wd and she is averaging 25 mpg. We looked at the miles that she drives and the fact that we usually switch vehicles every 3 years or so and the lease made sense.

Put the corolla up on CraigsList and you will be surprised at how fast it sells. The Tacomas are going on Ebay for alot of money. I traded a Tacoma in 2006 for the same price that the same one is selling for today.

Take your kid and car seat with you to test drive. Dont talk about buying or trading, just that you are trying to find what you want. Make sure you plan for an additional infant carrier as well (a story for another day).