We bought a car

We bought a new car last night (new to us anyway). A 2008 Ford Focus with 11,900 miles on it (grey metal-flake). I wasn't really even planning to buy it last night, since Jane had just had a colonoscopy and all, but we made an offer and they accepted, so... what the heck.

We had it narrowed down to three cars - all at the same dealership. We were looking at an '07 Focus hatchback, an '07 Ford Fusion, and this Focus. I would have been happy with any of the three. The hatchback was kind of fun looking, and I liked the idea of a hatchback for versatility. The Fusion drove really, really nice, and I really liked it. This '08 Focus was probably a good mix of the other two: it was nice, but also fairly sporty... and it was really the one that had everything we were looking for: it was the same year as the wrecked Elantra, it had low miles, ac, cruise, an ipod jack, and it's probably more comfortable and a better ride than the Hyundai. Plus it has "sync" for the phone! It has a much nicer stereo than the Elantra too.

The hatchback was listed for $11,900, the Fusion for 14,900, and the one we got for 13,900. This was kind of where the dilemma was. The Fusion was a bit more than what we had into the Hyundai, but it was a nicer car. So we didn't really know what to do. But let me tell you... these folks at Reimschisel Ford in Bluffton are something else. It is a father/son sales team, and they were THE NICEST salesman anywhere I've ever been. No pressure, super low-key - they were my kind of car salesmen. They gave us a deal (and service) we could hardly refuse. So... now all we have to do is fill out the financing paperwork, and it looks like we'll have us a new car! I am actually pretty excited.

I would totally recommend that if you live in the area you check out Reimschisel's if you ever need a car. It's not a big dealership, and they mostly just have Ford and Mercury, but they are all super nice people and really great to work with. I mean, if I can come out of buying a car feeling as good as I do, then you know it's a nice experience.

Hopefully I'll have pictures in a few days. We have had trouble finding time to test drive and get paperwork and stuff done because of our schedules lately, so I don't know exactly when we'll get around to getting the vehicle. The rental is supposed to go back today, but I may see if I can keep it one more day - since Jane has school tonight, and we both need a vehicle tomorrow.

Anyway, I felt very fortunate in this car-buying experience. I only talked with 2 dealerships, and both were extremely nice and easy to work with. Ahhhh... I'm glad it's over with.