Car Upgrade

With my 1998 Honda Civic accumulating around 170,000 miles, I knew that I would have to get a new car sometime within the next couple of years.  Especially since I travel home to New York for breaks, my miles will only increase and I would need a more reliable car. The plan within my family was that my dad will be getting a new car, I will be getting my dad’s 2005 Honda Accord, and my brother will receiving my car. With various subtle questions from my parents asking what I would like in a car, I figured that this plan has changed since the last time I was home.

A couple days later I received a picture message of a 2008 Toyota Corolla from my mom saying “Here is your new car”. I was taken back a bit, because my parents are never the impulsive buyers. Last time we were in the market for a new car it took a couple months and not a week. The next week my dad bought a 2010 Subaru Forester for himself. Since I am neither the decider nor the buyer in the family, I decided not to question their decisions. Needless to say my 16-year-old brother was ecstatic that he will receive my dad’s old Honda.

Three main reasons that effect my parents’ decision to buy two new cars. One my car was getting old and driving in the snow this season was not idle. Two my brother will have his own car to get himself to swim meets and practice so my mother will have time to go back to school. Three both cars were at a good price. Other reasons why they bought those specific cars were more high-effort decisions that I didn’t have much influence on.

As I was taking the Values and Life Style Survey (VALS) over this Thanksgiving break, I was curious to see what my mother would score since the survey shows what your typical favorite car was. While I ranked as an Experiencer/ Innovator, my mother ranked as a Achiever/ Thinker. A thinker’s favorite car is a Subaru, which is the new car my parents chose. An achiever’s favorite car is a Honda, which is our older car that we own.