Das Auto
Behold a 2004 Volkswagen Jetta GLS, with a platinum gray exterior and slick leather interior, complete with a 2.0 L, four-cylinder engine and automatic (read: bummer) transmission.
It’s all mine.
I almost bought it Friday night, at this weekend’s big car sale, but gave myself the “I’ll sleep on it” treatment. Saturday morning, at about 11:30, it became official.
But even before this weekend, I’ve had “the itch” - that unconscious automatic response that has one glancing at cars while driving down the road, picking out worthy models, and planning for the next car-buying opportunity.
Auto Merchants had the car sitting outside our Event Center. It caught my eye immediately.
And the price was right.
I’ve had a spot in my heart for the most popular Volkswagen model in America for years. The Jetta gets pretty decent user reviews, with a few idiosyncrasies bobbing to the surface. Those I’ve covered with our base model warranty, however, and anything else that comes up I can readily afford.
It’s not that my old car, a 2002 Suzuki Aerio, was a hunk of junk. Despite some problems now and again, it treated me well and was decently fun to drive. It was nice driving a manual again, and the small car was surprisingly roomy and comfortable on the inside. My Aerio took me all over New England, Michigan, and to Pennyslvania, Ohio, and back on several trips. Over the years the wheel system started to give me problems, and this summer I’ve had to make a few trips to the repair shop to get it worked on. That gets old.
What really got me to make the switch was a decent trade-in price from Auto Merchants. They gave me enough to pay off the rest of my loan and have enough left over to put down some decent cash for the Jetta.
The whole deal was not a foregone conclusion, despite my love for the Jetta when I first climbed inside. Jim, the owner of Auto Tech, and his son Scott looked over my Suzuki from front to back, giving me an idea of what work it needed and what to expect in the years to come. I was this close to keeping my old car and waiting until it was completely paid off to move on to another vehicle.
This thing came Carter-approved, however, which counts for a lot.
The car? Boy, it’s a beauty. My GLS model is a step above the base model, with an automatic transmission, Monsoon stereo system, moonroof (something I’ve always wanted), and a zippy engine with stellar handling. Compared with other smaller/compact cars, it’s a winner.
“People who own them just love them,” one of the salesman told me.
Like other things in my life, that speaks volumes.
