Over the last three weeks, I’ve had a battle with my car and getting it registered. The first two installments/blog entries are at the following links: Part 1 and Part 2.

I spent the weekend deciding if I should keep the car and pay the dealer an obscene amount of money to allow it to pass emissions or trade the damn thing in for something newer and less susceptible to an annual lighting of the “Service Engine Soon” alert.

The Final Verdict

I won’t go into detail about all of the new cars I saw on the road and the drivers with the big smiles or getting behind the old beater cars that pollute the air, while sporting current year registration tags. Nope. In the end, my final decision was to give my vehicle one more year and a brand-new catalytic converter.

In the stern talk I had with my car, I warned it that if the light goes off again next year, it’s splitsville and to look forward to having a new owner. I can’t keep pumping all of this money into a car [so far, just over $1,000 in the last month] when there is really nothing wrong with it. It’s too much frustration to deal with.

So for the next 8 months, I live with this paid-off car that runs great but pisses me off once a year. Only time will tell if it heard a single word I said to it.

As you can see from above, the “Service Engine Soon” light is still on, which prevents my car from passing emissions. If you are just joining us, read the first installment here.

In this annual on-going battle to make it legal to drive my car on the roads, I am once again needing to spend almost $1,000. Last year it was the O2 sensors ($850). The year before, it was some manifold replacement ($700). This year’s “issue”: the catalytic converter ($900).

Ok….I’ll be honest here. I’m no expert when it comes to knowing how a car works. I know some logistics, but I am not skilled in knowing how to fix cars. I do, however, make sure I keep them maintained with regular oil changes and the such. And it’s not like the car is a broken down piece-of-shit….. it works perfectly. I’ve never once had any major issues with it. It gets 28-35 mpg on a regular basis. But for some reason, a few weeks before I need to get it licensed each year, there is always something that prevents it from passing the emissions certification that the state of Utah requires before sending out new license plate tags.

So each year, I consider dumping the car and getting a different one. And the temptation this year is greater: I made my last payment on it in February. And as much as I need to take that car payment that I was making and apply it to my growing credit card debt, the thought of having a brand new car that is covered under a warranty would remove the stress and anxiety I experience each year.

Decisions, Decisions

As the weekend approaches, I am going to evaluate all options before making a decision on Monday. The two I am considering are:

 
OR

So until Monday, when I make my final decision, tip a glass and drink often.

above image is free to download and use from (c) Adam Hart-Davis