New Car

In 2009, we needed more room in our vehicle.  If we were going anywhere and taking friends with us, we didn't have any room.  The friend would have had to ride on the roof or in the storage area of our CR-V. So after much searching, we found a 2005 Honda Pilot with a cassette player.  The cassette player was absolutely necessary because the boys' traveling music was only on cassettes and was required for the long trips to visit family.

Matt was in Pre-School and MikeG was a first grader when the "new to us" Pilot joined the family.  Flash forward almost 10 years, our wonderful Pilot had traveled 240,219 miles.  The oil leaked a little. We had to top off the power steering fluid once a month or so.  Transmission fluid was also disappearing from where it belonged.  It was time for the old girl to retire.

So the search began again.  We knew the size we needed - that third row seat is important. A minivan was NOT an option. Newer technology was a big plus.  We narrowed down the field to another Pilot and a Toyota Highlander. Let the test drives begin.

After the first round, I liked the Pilot and my wonderful husband was leaning towards the Highlander.  The test drives for the two cars had been a about a week or so apart, so we decided to check them both out again on the same day - head to head so to speak.

Each car had pluses and minuses.  Pros and cons.  Good colors, bad colors, different bells and whistles. Different levels of technology.  Decisions, decisions, decisions!!

When all was said and done - the Highlander eked out the Pilot.  Either car would have been wonderful, but for us the Highlander was a better fit.  So after "the talk" with the dealer, and a day scheduled to pick up the car (we needed to have a towing package installed, which would take a couple days), the emptying of the Pilot had to take place.  Over nine years of stuff had accumulated in the pockets and crevices of the seats, cup holders and storage areas.  We filled one trash bag with junk and two baskets with junk that wasn't to be thrown away. There was another small basket of stuff that would find a place to live in the new car eventually.  Almost like cleaning out a house for moving, but on a smaller scale.

After two days of driving the Highlander, I feel spoiled.  The new car smell, the clean seats and scuff free dashboard - lovely!  I wonder how long it will last?