Tough decisions, Oppo help me with my car dilemma!

"deekster_caddy" (deekster_caddy) 07/17/2015 at 09:12 • Filed to: None

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So... I have to make a tough decision. A few of them actually. My wife’s DD is an ‘08 Passat Wagon we bought new. It’s a 2.0T, 6 MT. Very fun to drive, very practical, very useful. The problem is that we have occasions to meed more passenger space. We have two kids, but a needy mother in law and if she comes with us my wife has to sit in the back in between the two kids. Mrs deekster_caddy and I both aren’t big minivan fans, but see the practicality in them and don’t see much else in the way of options, so we are probably going to have to break down and embrace the minivan. (we’ve talked about the Flex, but not too sure if it will be accepted)

The question is... what to do. Do we sell the Passat, which I love, or do we sell my Volt, which I also love.

The Volt is half-paid for, I owe about what it’s worth and could get out of it for near zero plus or minus. The Volt is a 2013 I bought in December 2012, has 37,000 miles and is a very enjoyable car. Selling it would free up a $600/mo payment. I can afford the $600/mo, but not an additional payment on top of it. That would free up payment money to get a minivan with a small used car loan and we keep the Passat Wagon.

The Passat Wagon is paid for, has 110K miles and we just did a major service (clutch, timing belt, water pump, rear main seal, etc) so it should be good to 200K at least. We bought it new in 2008 and have taken very good care of it. I think it’s worth about $8K or so. We would use that money to get a used minivan.

I really enjoy driving the Volt. It gets about 80 MPG and it’s a pleasure to drive. 2-1/2 years in and it still puts a smile on my face every time I drive it, which is almost every day.

I also really enjoy driving the Passat Wagon. It’s responsive, I love driving stick, it gets great milage for what it is (~24 city ~30 hwy), it handles well and is much more practical than the Volt. (ie I can put a bicycle in the back, etc).

The Volt is also small. I am big. I have to duck my head when I get in and out. The seats are well made and comfortable, actually in both cars the seats are great. I went into the Volt thinking long-term. I want to see how well it works at 100K miles. I want to see how well the battery holds at 150K miles. I’m sure it will be fine, the overengineering that went into this thing still amazes me.

I’m torn. I really like the Volt. I really like the Passat. Keeping them and adding a minivan is kinda out of the question, financially and because I also have two other cars... I would feel silly having 5 cars at our house for two drivers. I guess it’s not totally out of the question, because I would consider it, but that doesn’t leave any money to buy the minivan with.

Maybe we should just rent one when we need it, does zipcar do minivans? Seriously, I would subscribe to a van sharing service. Maybe I should start one! Just take a passenger van when you need it without all the hassles of renting!

So ugh. How do you make a decision like this? What other things do you take into account?

Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:19

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Mazda5. Can be had under 8k now.

KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:23

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I thought at one time VW had a third row seat for their Passat/A6 wagons. They must not offer that as an option.

Side story: My grandmother loved her Mercury Sable wagons, a grey 1988 and a blue 1992. Both had the third row seat that faced backwards, and as kids, we got put in the back and didn’t fight, since we had more fun, and my grandmother and grandfather, and my parents would have the forward facing seats.

Honestly, I’d get a used Odyssey in place of the VW, unless you really really want that Routan.

Or you could go insane and get a Transit Connect.

qbeezy > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:27

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Sell the Passat, and get another car payment, have less usable room overall by keeping the volt.

Or sell the volt get a cheaper minivan, lower that 600$ a month to around 350-400.

Profit???

I say bye bye volt.

OPPOsaurus WRX > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:33

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plan ‘A’ eliminate the mother-in-law.

if that is unacceptable plan ‘B’ I frickin love the flex. Sell both and get a nice Flex. I sat in one with second row captain chairs and it was amazing. And with the ecoboost it hauls ass!!! as for you get something cheaper but fun that will meet minimum family requirements like a WRX or something.

uofime-2 > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:33

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Drive 2 cars when you have to haul the MIL around, everyone will probably be happier that way anyway

Patrick Nichols > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:33

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Can you get rid of the volt and DD one of your other cars for a few months and save the 600/mo. to put a larger down payment on something else?

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:40

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Needy mother in law? Make the old bag sit on the roof if she wants a ride.

TheRealBicycleBuck > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:44

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If I were in your situation, I would consider how often I need to accommodate an extra passenger and whether or not it really means I should spend THOUSANDS of dollars just to make one person a bit more comfortable.

We realized that for some trips where we needed just one extra seat, it made more sense economically to take two cars. For those that know that my wife drives an Explorer with a third row, yes we do have a couple of trips a year where taking two cars makes more sense than cramming 7 passengers into the Explorer. Everyone is more comfortable and happier that way.

deekster_caddy > OPPOsaurus WRX 07/17/2015 at 09:46

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A WRX would be smaller than the Passat Wagon, so ummm I don’t think that’ll work. Sell both? How do we get to work? I’ll have to give Subaru seats another chance. When we were shopping in 2008 the VW seats were much better than what Subaru had. I am 6’4” and always found Subies seats lacking in the comfort department.

I kinda like ‘Plan A’ though!

deekster_caddy > Patrick Nichols 07/17/2015 at 09:48

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Yes to the Volt, but no to the other cars. And I “promised” Hagarty I wouldn’t DD my ‘73 LeSabre, plus it doesn’t have A/C and I’m a wimp with the heat these days... Either way I could come up with a down payment if needed.

deekster_caddy > uofime-2 07/17/2015 at 09:49

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We’ve been doing that, and it’s actually causing a lot of stress.

deekster_caddy > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 07/17/2015 at 09:50

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First we need a family truckster to put her on! Wait, we have one!

uofime-2 > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 09:52

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how come, is it long trips where coordinating routes/stops for the two cars is necessary?

deekster_caddy > TheRealBicycleBuck 07/17/2015 at 09:54

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We’ve been doing that, and yes it’s more economical in the long run, but it’s more stress and people aren’t happy. My wife’s sister also has two kids the same age as our two kids, and we get together a lot but my wife has no vehicle she can use for 4 kids, and with me at work that means no 2-cars thing. Sometimes she will watch the 4 kids for her sister, sometimes her sister watches the 4 kids for us... but when we do this we are scrambling for ways to move them all and it’s very stressful. We see this going on for a few more years, which makes the minivan a viable solution right now.

I used to have a Yukon XL, and a full size van before that. The last two years is really the first time we’ve had no vehicle with enough seats to go together, and we aren’t liking it.

deekster_caddy > uofime-2 07/17/2015 at 09:55

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I’m not always available to be the 2nd car. My wife’s sister has 3 kids and we watch them a few times a month, and are always scrambling to make she can transport 4-5 kids. It’s frequent enough where it’s a problem.

TheRealBicycleBuck > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:02

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Now you are starting to make a bit more sense. All I saw was a blurb about the mother-in-law and how one person had to be inconvenienced by sitting between two kids. In my book, sitting in that spot is a privilege which is given to the grandmother (both of them) every chance we get. :)

uofime-2 > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:03

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do you commute enough where the fuel savings is significant? if you do it may be time to say goodbye fun wagon and hello practical transport minivan

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:16

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My point exactly! Give the old bag some options and let her decide.

1. You can sit in the back and enjoy it.

2. You can sit on the roof complain all you want we wont hear you any way.

3. You can walk.

PICK ONE!

Although I respect your reasons for thinking about it. I would not by another vehicle just to cater for the old witch.

Buy a car for what you are gonna use it for 95% of the time which in your case will most likely be you,wife and kiddos. For the other 5% of the time make due with what you have even if it’s not ideal.

Long story short it seems you are more than satisfied with your current fleet. May as well not change of thing since you’re the one sacrificing rather than the occasional passengers.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:18

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This clears things up a bunch. Thanks for explaining. Ignore my previous comments.

I own dead car brands only > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:20

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Divorce? That would eliminate the needy mother in law

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs 07/17/2015 at 10:21

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Or you could go insane and get a Transit Connect.

I like this idea.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:26

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How about another full size van? At least it’s not a minivan AND you can get it with a diesel.

Textured Soy Protein > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 10:35

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What are the 2 other cars besides the Volt & Passat?

deekster_caddy > TheRealBicycleBuck 07/17/2015 at 11:01

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Yeah, there’s another problem too - she (MIL) doesn’t fit in the back seat with both kids. Like I said, needy... I wouldn’t be here posting if there was an easy solution!

deekster_caddy > uofime-2 07/17/2015 at 11:02

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Fuel isn’t a big concern for me. The question is which car to say goodbye to. Fun Wagon or Fun EV?

Or, as some have pointed out - keep them and get a dirt cheap minivan...

deekster_caddy > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 07/17/2015 at 11:04

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The other problem is that MIL doesn’t FIT in the back seat with the kids, so my wife dutifully takes the abuse while I drive. We’ve been making due, but the problem comes up often enough that we’ve got to change something for our own sanity.

deekster_caddy > I own dead car brands only 07/17/2015 at 11:05

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No way no how. She’s awesome. Awesome enough to make sacrifices for, like messing with the fleet... (not the MIL part)

deekster_caddy > Textured Soy Protein 07/17/2015 at 11:07

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These aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. She _could_ drive the ‘73 Buick, but I’ll have to get the A/C working first.

deekster_caddy > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 07/17/2015 at 11:08

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Looks great! Too expensive though, and not really good for my wife’s parking lot where she works.

deekster_caddy > KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs 07/17/2015 at 11:09

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I’m not a big Chrysler fan, I guess I’d rather get the Odyssey than a Routan. But yeah, no 3rd row seat that I’m aware of.

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 11:13

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The Kia Sedona is the best looking minivan out of the bunch keep that in mind.

deekster_caddy > Luc - The Acadian Oppo 07/17/2015 at 11:35

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Hmm, new or near-new is out of our price range at the moment. And I’ve never been a fan of Kia. Maybe they’ve changed. I really don’t like working on Japanese cars after a few months in salty winters...

TheRealBicycleBuck > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 11:58

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Here’s the best solution I’ve found so far. Find a wrecked Passat and do this:

deekster_caddy > TheRealBicycleBuck 07/17/2015 at 12:00

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Well... interesting! Are passengers allowed to ride in a trailer like that? Also, that’s awfully not much ground clearance for a trailer!

TheRealBicycleBuck > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 12:04

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It depends on the state. In general, it really is a bad idea.

http://towingworld.com/towinglaws.cfm

OPPOsaurus WRX > deekster_caddy 07/17/2015 at 12:09

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lol when u go for plan ‘A’ take mine with you. the WRX works fine for me but i’m also 5’10. I’e heard taller people cant get the seats to work. The thought was having your wife’s vehicle as the primary family/kid car and you getting something that is fun but can still handle the occasional family day.

deekster_caddy > OPPOsaurus WRX 07/17/2015 at 12:40

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Both cars we have now are fun. I really like driving either one. The Volt is really fun to drive, I’m really down with electric driving. But the Passat is fun and holds more stuff - I can’t bring my bike with me in the Volt, but I can in the Passat. That’s why I’m having so much trouble deciding anything. I don’t want to get rid of the Passat or the Volt... it’s looking like Plan C might come into play, keeping both and getting a beater minivan for those times when we need 7 seats...