We found out today… The car is totalled. We were going to pay the difference between what the insurance said it was worth and what the repairs were going to cost. The insurance company said if we did that they were going to give us $1000 less. How crazy. Gosh I hate insurance companies. I mean we have been with Allstate for over 10 years with homeowners and auto and have never had a claim.
Now they are making us total a beautiful car for no reason. It was in mint condition before the wreck. GGGGRRRRR 
Oh, that’s just awful, AmyB. There is something very sad about your car getting totalled. I wonder what method the insurance company used to determine whether a car is totalled or reparable? I hope that you can use the insurance money to buy an equivalent car for your son.
Thanks,… Gosh wish us luck. We bought another car. I am PRAYING that is lasts a WHOLE LOT LONGER tahn 6 hours.
We ended up getting close to what we paid, but were short. However the insurance paid for the time my husband took off work to deal with the car and deal with his headache and money for his pain so that made up what we lost when they totalled it.
I think the Insurance companies must throw darts at a board… if it hits on the right then the car is fixable, however if it hits on the left you are screwed and it is totalled
SO I went today and bought another one and we will be picking it up this evening. Gosh what a roller coster. I really didn’t need to deal with this. I have the move to b-burg in a few weeks, applying for my loans this week, getting a window fixed in the basement that the kids broke playing basebal, etc… AAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUU, sorry I felt like I just had to scream. I’m sure you all know the feeling.
Take care all, and thanks to all the well wishers here. OPMers are so cool.
Wow…that seems very un-insurance company-like to pay for the time your husband had to take off work to deal with this. Obviously, where they give, they obviously take in another place, so it all balances it out, but I’ve never heard of that before.
I know, it also surprised us. It doesn’t make much sense to us, but we are closing that awful chapter and PRAYING that NOTHING happens to this car.
So did you decide to take your Mazda after all? I think somewhere you were debating between an SUV and your new car, and leaning toward the new car, so I assume that’s the one?
Anyway, being from Minnesota, here’s what I know about winter driving:
Ice: I learned that you SHOULD pump the brakes on ice, and that’s always been the common wisdom around here. Pumping the brakes is where you tap your foot on and off the brakes for very short periods. If you were to just brake once, and then hold the brake pedal down, the car would skid. But if your car has ABS, then DON’T pump the brakes. The point of ABS is to do this for you, and since it’s automatic, it does a better job than you could by using your foot.
Tires: yes, there are different tires for summer and winter. Winter tires have more grip, kind of like mountain bike tires do. Summer tires would be comparable to ten-speed tires… Chains are mostly used in the mountains, I think. In some states they are outlawed, because they are bad for the roads. So it is common to switch to winter tires in the fall, and take them off in the spring. But I don’t know if this is necessary where you’ll be living. Bryn Mawr’s just outside Philly, isn’t it? So I imagine it’s pretty urban, and not nearly as cold and icy as we have it here. Then maybe you can get by with regular tires. I just mentioned the winter tires in my other post because my car, a Mazda Miata, has summer tires, rear-wheel drive, and almost no weight over the rear wheels, a combination which I have noticed makes a pronounced difference on ice and snow.
Salt/sand on the roads: in some areas the DOT will salt or sand the roads when it’s icy. This helps melt the ice and improve traction for your car. Beware of the salt that gets on your car though! It will rust your car very quickly if you don’t wash it frequently. It will also ruin your nice leather shoes too, just so you know. But again, in PA I doubt it’s terribly common.
Car maintenance: you need winter weight oil, which the mechanic will put in when you have the oil changed in the fall. Also the mechanic can check your antifreeze level and so forth. Be sure to have plenty of washer fluid around too. In general though, with a new car there shouldn’t be too much for you to fuss over.
Snow: well, that’s where you might want a larger car, I guess. I don’t remember how big the Rx-8 is. (Also, is it front or rear-wheel drive?) And how much snow will you actually be driving on? Unless you are going into the true outback, it shouldn’t have a huge effect on your life. Just drive slowly. If there’s too much of it, school gets cancelled and life comes to a halt anyway.
Cold: you’re in NYC right now, aren’t you? So you probably are used to the winter weather. Yeah, it’s wise to pack boots and a blanket and stuff in your car, but if you are just driving to the grocery store and back, the hazard is pretty low to begin with.
I can’t think of anything else. Unless anyone is thinking of taking up snowmobiling or dogsledding, because of course, that’s how we actually get around in these parts…
Andrea, you’re awesome. Thank you so much. Yes, I was leaning toward the new car. It’s an RX-8, not much bigger than a Mazda Miata. I can’t imagine the tires will be winter duty. And yes, it is rear-wheel drive…could this present a problem or make a difference?
Bryn Mawr is right outside Philly…it’s somewhat suburban but hardly rural, so I imagine they’ll do a decent job of cleaning up the roads. I lived in Phily for 3 years and barely snowed, but this last year, was an entirely different story. Also, I’ll be driving to see my boyfriend in New York and my best friend in Delaware sometimes, but not too often I imagine. There’s always Amtrak.
However, my brother recently threw a wrench in plans…he’s trying to convince me to leave my RX-8 bc his car lease is up in September and he really wants my car, so he’ll pay for the car payments during that whole entire year and I can take my Dad’s older SUV, which is in very good condition, and not pay. I’m spending quite a bit of money on school now so saving that $300 a month would be nice. And if the SUV will be safer, then that’s another draw. However, I’m a little nervous about having to deal with a car breaking down! The SUV doesn’t give us problems right now and it hasn’t, but it’s just older and I feel that it might be just a matter of time…and with my luck, it will happen on my watch!
Whadyall think?
The deal with your brother sounds too sweet to pass up! I say take the SUV and save the $ every month.
Andrea outlined winter driving; so, I will not reinvent the wheel. The winters in Bryn Mawr should be much more mild than Minnesota. Will you be living right near Bryn Mawr? Remember you will be very busy and have access to great public transit if you need it.
So, you’ll be driving your dad’s old car and hoping it doesn’t break, and your brother will be driving your car, presumably making the payments while the loan remains in your name. All right, I’m playing a little bit of Devil’s Advocate here, but doesn’t this sound to you a little bit like the introduction to a Judge Judy episode?
Hmm…honestly, if you can find a good mechanic who can give you perspective on the SUV’s future, you might feel better about it. You could put new tires on it for the cost of a couple of month’s car payments. But it would be cool if you could just sell your brother the car so the loan is in his name and he’ll have clear title when it’s all over and done with.
I remember recently reading an article debunking the belief that front-wheel drive is actually safer in snow, but I I have no idea where I read it or how valid that is.
PNP, you’re right. The deal is too sweet to pass up. My brother has offered to pay double payments the first and last month…I’m not sure I’m going to go for that, but he did promise/shake on the fact that if I changed my mind, he’d drive the Rx-8 up for me and drive the SUV down. I’m taking the SUV to the mechanic tomorrow and changing the belts, etc. I’ve grown attached to my RX-8, but truth be told, I’m not a great driver in the summer and so I’m just not feeling too great about the winters in a little car. I don’t want to kill myself or my car. Taking up the SUV gives me a lot more options in terms of what to take up there and even how to pick up furniture for my place once I’m there. Of course, not having a car payment is definitely really appealing, especially considering my tuition.
Denise, I could sell my car to my brother or someone else, but I put a significant down payment and my brother probably wouldn’t be able to afford that. I suppose that’s why he’s so anxious to get it, because he knows he’s getting a good deal - affordable car payments for a car he probably couldn’t afford on his own. My brother is a pretty good driver, so I’m not too worried about him. In any event, I’m not worried about my liability now that I’m officially unemployed, because I won’t have much beyond student debt to my name. I suppose you could also mean because of my credit, but if he even begins paying the car payment late, then I’d snatched the car away.
To be honest, for my own selfish reasons, I really don’t want to sell the car. I hate leasing cars and I hate car payments…I like to own my cars and drive them until they die. I don’t know where I’ll end up for medical school and if I’ll need a car, but I don’t want to sell my car and buy another one in a year. Bryn Mawr’s only a year long, so I’m really trying to avoid any big changes. I’m renting a cheap little studio, plan to furnish with used furniture, instead of taking up my furniture from Florida - why? necause I’m only going to be their for a year and it’s just too much hassle to move my household items for a year, when ultimately I don’t know if I’ll be back down South for medical school. Same thinking with car. Once I know where I’ll be settled for the next 4-5 years, then I’ll make the big decisions (keep or buy), move the furniture, etc. Thanks for the advice.
Quote:
To be honest, for my own selfish reasons, I really don’t want to sell the car. I hate leasing cars and I hate car payments…I like to own my cars and drive them until they die. I don’t know where I’ll end up for medical school and if I’ll need a car, but I don’t want to sell my car and buy another one in a year. Bryn Mawr’s only a year long, so I’m really trying to avoid any big changes.
Ohhhh. Now I get it. I have to admit I’m so parochial that it had not occurred to me that someone would leave the South and then contemplate the possibility of going back ON PURPOSE.
(Now, before anybody gets mad, it’s not the people, it’s the climate. Okay, in rural northwest Georgia, it’s some of the people, too. The Invisible Black Folk Phenomenon just creeped me out.)
Denise, I’m not sure I really understand your experience of South…and for that same reason, I take no offense.
Denise, I’m not sure I really understand your experience of South…and for that same reason, I take no offense. I’m from Florida…the most southern Non-South.
I bet you understand the climate thing.
I grew up in New Orleans. My last year in Louisiana, I lived in Baton Rouge, and I believe the high was in the high 90’s (with the usual 80% relative humidity) EVERY SINGLE DAY from May to September. I’d open the front door in the morning and I could just feel all the air being sucked out of my lungs. I’m heat-hardy, but only up to about 90F if it’s humid. Hotter than that, and I get droopy pretty fast and there’s not enough water in the world to prevent it. I love living in Wisconsin, where, when the temperature hits 80 and the RH hits 60%, people are tugging on their collars, clearing their throats, and complaining that it’s “muggy”.
I biked to work in sub-zero temps this winter and I was fine. Bundled up like a FedEx packager, but fine. This is the climate for me! I only have to drive or bus it to work about a dozen times a year. Of course, we haven’t had a really wet winter since I started bicycle commuting, either.
“I remember recently reading an article debunking the belief that front-wheel drive is actually safer in snow, but I I have no idea where I read it or how valid that is.”
Denise,
I know you’re a Wisconsinite and as winterized as I am. Maybe I’m wrong about the rear-wheel drive problem, (or maybe the article was referring to 4-wheel drive?) but I swear, every convertible in the state of Minnesota gets put away about October, and you don’t see them again til April. The main reason they are unpopular here is because of their notoriously bad traction. Same for pick up trucks, which also aren’t as common in the winter here. The problem with rear wheel drive (at least for front engine cars, or empty pick up trucks) is that there’s no weight over the wheels that are spinning when you put on the gas. So those tires have less friction. The steering wheels are still the front ones. The drive wheels just spin in the straightforward direction, and meanwhile the car doesn’t move OR turn. Also, in sportscars the traction in general is bad on icy roads. The heavier front part of my car stays somewhat straight, but the lightweight back part fishtails like crazy. Now in rain or on wet roads, I think the distinction fades away.
That’s just my view on the subject–I’m glad to see the debate is alive and well. Anyway want to talk about how to downshift next?? 
Andrea
You’ll get no argument from me. I’ve never had a sports car in Wisconsin. My first husband in Louisiana had a couple, but though I drove the Opel GT (and crowned myself Queen of Babying Recalcitrant Clutches since I could double-clutch it into second and he couldn’t get into second at all without forcing it and grinding the gears and trashing the clutch but-I’m-not-bitter), I’m generally not the sports car type. I grew up with Oldsmobiles.
In Wisconsin, I’ve had a Tempo, a Camry, and a Sentra (Sentra bad, but not because of the traction). The Tempo handled nicely once I got decent tires on it, and the Camry handles fine, too. So it’s been all front-wheel drive for me anyway.
Oh, you mean the weather is your gripe with the South…oh no, I do not understand it all. When I lived up North and I came here to visit in February, it was just divine weather…the bluest skies I’d ever seen and not too hot. In New York and Philly, a clear day included a gray backdrop and I found it was much hotter on summer days of there than here bc there was no breeze from the ocean…the hot air just stuck to you.
I found what was probably the article, and it makes no claim about rear-wheel drive being fine in slippery conditions. It just says it’s more fun, which you sports-car enthusiasts probably already knew.
http://slate.msn.com/id/2081194/
Thanks for the article Denise…I don’t think slip-n-slide is fun unless it’s outside on a yellow tarp with a garden hose. Sport car and icy roads just wasn’t part of my childhood slip-n-slide game. Anyhow, even though I own one, I’m not a sports car enthusiast at all. One time this parking attendant asked me how fast I’ve taken it…and I said “Huh?” Or did you buy it because you thought the car was cute…I said 80 was the fastest I’ve gone and yes, I bought it because I thought it was cute. GUILTY!
Also, dropped the ole SUV to the mechanic today…I told him to change the timing belt, replace the anti-freeze or whatever they do with that, and inspect the car and consider any tune-up to make it winter-ready and do all I can to avoid any break-downs within this next year. I know they’re no guarantees, but it never hurts to stack the odds in your favor.