New car; New friend?

As mentioned in the previous post, my parents were considering getting me a replacement car - The specifics like money etc... wont go there...

Anyway, about a week ago on Friday (11/9), I spotted an ad on the Smart website and discovered they were selling the standard Fortwo as a 'Spring clearance' sale. Added at no extra charge is what's called the 'Primo' package. This includes: Leather+heated seats, Soft-touch (Auto), Radio 10 (6 CD in dash), Audio package (2 tweets, 2 Mids and a Sub), Elec+heated mirrors.
Then aside from the Primo package, there also is added power steering and an extended warranty

I then brought it to my parents attention on Sat night (12/9) and very unexpectedly they said "call them up for a quote" - So did on Sunday morning and managed to get a quote.

My parents liked the quote and we then booked a test drive for Wed (16/9) and I took half a day off to go test it. I met up with my dad at the Mercedes Benz dealership out in Chatswood and gave it a whirl.

It was everything i exactly imagined since I was young. The car being ridiculously small but comes under my exact minimalistic specifications in terms of usage and lifestyle. We returned to the dealership and it began - The haggle

Dad put up an awful good fight with the sales guy, pushing harder and harder for the price to come down. Now I must say, I am DEFINITELY not a person who likes to haggle. There's too much greed involved but that's how purchasing cars is usually done - A struggle of what you want to what you need and how much you should get it for.

In the end, we got it for less than the original quote and we immediately traded my MPV for a measly 500 bucks. I wasn't too suprised at this price but heck, my car is OLD ('93) and done over 311,111kms already - It's time to let it go.
In the end, he sold us the one that I test drove - Floor stock - and it is totally in black. The Fortwo is a '2-tone' car. Being that the main shell is black or silver and the body panels can be whatever colour you want - Through the haggle, it was pointed out that we'd be given the floor car, if we kept going with it. Colour choice or cheaper? - meh.

All I have to do now is to pick it up (19/9) tomorrow/Saturday morning (technically this morning but meh.) and bring it home. Simple. Whole thing over in about 10 days (11/9 - 19/9)

So here are a few 'memorial last' shots of my Mazda MPV purely as a place to 'remember' it. It's been in our family for nearly a decade (2000). Yes, I do have some kind of emotional attachment to it since I've quite literally grown up with it in my life and all through my late childhood.
This makes it hard to let go - I've driven to everything in it, served the church with it, transported full loads of equipment, carried all me mates in the back in it and it's been an awesome experience. Through this week, I've had some mixed feelings about this whole thing. I am loosing an indespensable and very useful tool that I've grown to enjoy using and respect, and yet I'm replacing it with the exact car of my dreams. My ultimate dream car.

Top & Bottom: "Last night in the garage"

Some of you will think I'm crazy yakking on about all this; "Take the new car. Enjoy it and be merry" - But on the other hand, it feels like I'm saying goodbye to close and old friend who's been with me for many many years.

Top: My 'usual' spot at work

I guess this is where some blogs come into the light of personal use much like a diary. I can read back on my posts and reflect what kind of person I was in the past and compare it to what kind of person I am in that future point in time.

If all goes well (and that I remember to take photos), I'll be scheduling another blog post tomorrow.

ps: I didn't get the chance to take any shots while test driving it and everything. sowwies....
pps: Danny, if you ever get the chance to read this, I want to thank you for sharing your life. You always give a wonderful perspective on how we should view our lives and reflect on it; this indespensable 'skill' that makes a person grow and mature. thx so much.