Right. So here I am. Thinking. Wondering. Balancing pros and cons. There's probably another sleepless night ahead of me.
Why? Well, here's the thing: My 2004 Cadillac CTS is on its last days with me. I just can't stand it anymore, honestly. It's been a pain in the *insert noun* since we bought it last February. And it's been such a let-down. Let me explain the history and why I'm now facing another sleepless night just because of a car... or cars.
Because of a totally enraging event last February, my pristine 2003 Nissan Maxima SE was destroyed. And before you wonder quietly to yourself, no it wasn't my fault. I was the 5th car of five involved in a five-car pileup. I ended up underneath a Mitsubishi Lancer. So my Japanese beauty was gone. And I was between the weekends when I have my son, so we only had less than two weeks to find another car.
Because of a rip-off insurance review of my Nissan, (ho-yeah, THAT was an experience in itself!), we didn't have much money to buy another car. But we shopped around and set our budget at $10K. I know, not much today. So, I find this all-black Chrysler 300 and a silver poster-Caddy CTS. We went out to check them both, test drove them both. Oh yeah, there were the odd sounds coming from each, and in the case of the Chrysler 300, funny smells. (Hmm, I wonder if this car was from Toronto...?)
Anyway, we balanced pros vs. cons, they were so closely priced and the mileage difference between the two, negligible. So when we decided on which one we wanted, I called the dealer, said we'd be coming in for the 300 and that was it. So, later that afternoon, we get there to find the 300 is missing and we're told it was sold within the two hours between when I called and when we got there. Hmmm, so which car should we go with then?
So, fate had decided it was to be the CTS. Now, at the time, I was fine with that. It was a well-reviewed car, it resurrected Cadillac and even made an appearance in The Matrix: Reloaded. Besides, we had nearly no other choices. Anyway, we drove away with the CTS. From day one, I had been pursuing the dealer to replace the rear brakes, they were grinding beyond belief. So he sent me to a garage he knows, get this: 'Cousin Eddy's'. Ooh, sounds exotic. It wasn't.
I went there in what was the worst snowfall in Ottawa history for over 50 years. I got stuck in the entrance. I could barely back the car out. The next day, I went back and got the car into the garage's property only to have one of the employees clearly demonstrate that he had no idea why I was there. After 20 minutes of haggling and a phone call back to the dealership, we finally got enough of this mess cleared up for them to understand that I was there for new brakes.
Hmm, 'new'. I don't quite think so. After less than three weeks, the so-called new brakes were grinding again. "That's it!", said I! I went to the local Cadillac dealership for new brakes. And the used car dealership actually agreed to pay for half the work. Wow, I thought, 'that's more than I expected', so at that point, I was content.
But then during the summer, I had to disconnect the battery so I could install the rust-inhibitor. Noting that the frame is aluminum, I realized that I didn't need to install it. It was after this that the sunroof started opening on its own when I brake. (It still does this today). It is incredibly aggravating. I know it's a matter of "re-programming" the car. But I don't think it's necessary to go to the Caddy shop and pay $89/hr so that some guy can sit in the car, open and close the windows and sunroof and then charge me $300 for a day's worth of fictitious work. But I haven't been able to locate the proper coding procedure. Maybe cars were better when they had carburetors and vinyl.
Then on Canada Day, I was driving my son back to Montreal when I was passing a line of cars. As I was doing so, a bright yellow Volkswagen Golf just came up on my rear and was 'pushing' for me to move ahead faster. Now this irritates me too, so I pushed the "Sport" button on my center-console, (this lets the transmission downshift sooner and climb to red-line before shifting, to maximize acceleration and to make up for the absence of a Tiptronic transmission).
Anyway, so I hit the button and BOOM, there's this sudden cloud of white smoke billowing out the back of the car. So I immediately finished passing the line of cars and pull over hard onto the soft shoulder of the road, braking hard too, maintaining a straight line as the car wants to swerve all over the place with braking so suddenly. (The only 'fun' thing about all this was seeing the shit-brown Golf speeding off with his wipers smearing engine fluids across his windshield).
As it turns out, the additional pressure from the higher rpms pushing fluids through the radiator and its relevant hoses, just blew them off the radiator. As it turns out, the fluids had been mixing for months or even years within the radiator. The rad is chambered into two parts, one to cool the engine, the other to cool the transmission fluids. The previous owner probably put in the wrong fluid in one of the chambers and as rubber reacts differently with different chemicals, it was being corroded from within, in which on this day, the pressure just blew it to bits.
$1600 later and a new radiator and hoses, I'm once again looking to get rid of this car. The sunroof's still acting up, the engine is sometimes buzy, the coolant is slowly leaking from under the engine block, this car has been a pain and an embarrassment.
So I want it gone. But what to replace it with and how much can I get for it on a trade. trading a car is just so much easier than trying to sell it privately. You could wait weeks or months and not get enough to have made it worth your effort. So, what should I replace it with? I'm looking at the following cars; Audi A4/A6; Chrysler 300(C if possible); Dodge Charger, if it's 'just right'. Nissan Maxima Se, 2004 and after. Infiniti G35x or Acura TL. There are so many cars to choose from and any given day there will be more or less.
So, I found this awesome Chrysler 300 that I went to see and try. I had noticed it had been for sale for 6+ months. I knew they were obviously desperate to sell it as they're losing money everyday on it. And on the day I finally convince my wife to go look at it, they sold it the night before!!! Once again, fate demonstrates it has a sense of humor and that it's a jerk too! And so we're stuck with either a Dodge Charger that is $5K more than we want to spend. Or we can buy one of two 8 and 9 year old but mint, Audi A6s. Or I could put the 2002 BMW 540i that's in my garage, on the road. the thing with that is A) it's in mint condition because it NEVER went out in the snow, and B) I don't know if my steel wheels will fit on it because of the bolt pattern. And C) I have to sell the Cadillac privately.
So as I started out to describe, I have a difficult decision. My wife is opposed to the Audi because of their age however Audi ARE cars that can still be running by the age of ten years. But then I would have to say goodbye to the BMW and I really don't want to do that.
As I said, Fate has a sense of humor however, I ain't laughing!! So, it's a toss-up for what's to come next. Despite this experience, I will never say the CTS is a bad car, only THIS one is! Counter to my belief that whomever would pay almost $50,000 for a car, would treat as a $50,000 investment, the previous owner of this specific car didn't. The neglect shows in the disrepair of the car. I honestly can't understand that. How can someone be so intelligent as to earn such a salary that can afford them such a car, yet be such an idiot as to never invest in the care of the car? It totally escapes me.
To demonstrate further, when we took ownership of the car, it seemed to me odd that when sitting at idle, the car sounded like a diesel: clakclakclakclak, but not when I'd engaged the throttle. Well after two subsequent trips to 'Cousin Eddy's' who could not determine what was wrong, I decided I'd look too. I went under the hood to check the oil level. BONE-DRY! Good Gawd, how long had this car been running without oil?! That goes to show A)how bad the previous owner was at car-care and this is what led to the imploding radiator, and B)just how bad the mechanics are at 'Cousin Eddy's'.
So, other than the fact that this story has yet to conclude, two things are to be learned from this adventure: 1) never buy a car from two guys in a trailer, and 2) Don't go to a garage called 'Cousin Eddy's'.
Hopefully, this story will end happily and without any more folly... I doubt it though.
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