If you read the Real Clunker post, you’ll remember that today was the day I was getting a new car. Ah well…the best laid plans and all that.
Our first visit was to Mitsubishi to look for the Outlander that their website said they had on the lot. It was the only Mitsubishi in the area that had the Outlander that qualified for the Clunker program and that had the 3rd row seat which we wanted.
Unfortunately, that particular car was the demo and already had 5,000 miles on it, which is about a years worth of driving for me. So…that was a no go.
We then decided to hit Toyota, because we also liked the Toyota Rav4. Like the Outlander; a little nicer. They had 4 that qualified and that had the 3rd row seat.
The salesman brought one out from the back. It had arrived from Japan yesterday. It was beautiful. He showed us how to work the third row seat. He gave me the keys and he and I went for a test drive. I loved it. Seriously. I loved this car. As we near the lot, after our drive, he asked if I had a trade in. I said, “Yep. We knew that as soon as the program expired, my car would die, so we figured we better take advantage!”
Then, he made that sucking in air between the teeth sound. You know the one. The one that says either “Oooohhh…major faux pas” or “Ooooohhh…this person is about to be really angry with me.”
“Yeah…well…about that. We aren’t participating in the clunker program anymore.”
My heart sank and I felt a lot like Adam Sandler talking to his ex-fiance after she dumped him at the altar. She tells him she isn’t in love with him today; she’s in love with him five years ago. To which he responds:
“…things that could have been brought to my attention YESTERDAY!”
You don’t write that on the website? It’s not the first thing you tell people when they walk in the door? You don’t take down the Cash for Clunkers signs you have hanging all over the dealership? Would have been helpful to know before I drove the car and fell in love.
Anyway, I completely get why they aren’t doing it anymore. Turns out the government wasn’t actually paying the owner of the dealership back in a timely fashion and so he said that he was gonna opt out before he put out any more money. I get it. But tell a girl, huh?
So, looks like I’ll continue driving my clunker until it clunks it’s final clunk. If you happen to be in the area and see pieces of a Dodge Grand Caravan Minivan on the side of the road, chances are, it belongs to me. Could you pick it up for me? I’m a whiz with the Super Glue.
