That feeling you get when you see an old "girlfriend"

[Dragonsm]

Every now and then, I still stop in here to see what's happening these days.

In a prior post, I provided detail of my wife's 05 Vibe and the accident it was involved in.

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=46775

Anyway, initially my daughter was deeply sadden by it as it was going to be her first car in the next couple of years when she got of age to drive.
My wife loves her Subaru and wouldn't trade it for the world, however every now and then also makes a comment about missing her little car.

Last night, I was putzing around on craigslist as I was winding down for the night, and I happened to just do a search locally for a Pontiac Vibe.

Low and behold, I was a bit surprised at what I saw. One of those bitter/sweet feelings I don't think I have experienced in a long time....much like bumping into an old longtime girlfriend.

She still looks good, but has a new face. I recognized it in a heartbeat from the rims that were on it....and then the details checked out (mileage, options) and then I noticed a scrape on the rear passenger side bumper. The old flame kicked in a little bit for me. Just one little ride???...she wouldn't get mad now would she? Our marriage is strong enough.....

https://siouxcity.craigslist.org/ctd/d/ ... 42104.html

I'll pull it up for her tonight and see if I can't get a hall pass......actually, she'll probably want the hall pass.

Guess the ol' girl lives to fight another day...and a 1 of a kind 05 now.

Steve

[tpollauf]

Looks to be in great shape again ... with the 03-04 nose too ! Somebody put up the $350 salvage buyout and restored it! Price seems a bit high especially for a salvaged title car. What did the insurance company give you when it was totalled? If price is right and wife agrees, then get it for your little girl when she becomes of age. Then you may actually see ithit 300k miles like you initially wanted !

[Dragonsm]

Yes, the car looks to be in great shape once again, I would tend to agree the price seems a bit high with a salvage title.

My wife thought I was pulling her leg that it was her car.....until I showed her the scratch on the rear bumper she put there.

My daughter was a lot like my wife and couldn't believe it was her car.....and my 5 year old son is more like me.....Right away he said "That's mom's car".....but pointed out it had a different front....he has an eye just like dad.

Both the kids were screaming "Buy it".....they want to drive it, but it would come down to price and what exactly was done to it. I'm still back and forth on the fence....it's at least 3 years before my daughter will be driving.

When we went through insurance initially, we received just over 4,700 for the car after deductible.

Steve

[vibrologist]

They sure made it look nice. I would be delighted about seeing this effort as well.

We have had previously damaged cars in our fleet. In any of them the panel gaps were not perfect and neither was the color match. There was also evidence of short cuts taken. Some bolts were missing or not tightened to spec. In two cases these short cuts involved the steering rack. Even so these cars served us well for many years and did so inexpensively. In the ad I thought the gap between the hood and fender was a bit large.

In case you are going to have look-see:
One thing I would want to see is an alignment report. If there was trouble getting the alignment right I would take a pass.

For a test drive check the air pressure on all wheels, find a smooth even stretch of road and drive with the hands hovering over the steering wheel. On a crowned road it should pull slightly to the right. If there is no traffic go to the left side of the road and do the same. It should pull slightly to the left.

[ihaveavibe]

I looked at the craigslist post(s) and they say: "title status:clean". It seems like they should say "salvaged" or something. That, plus the fact that the dealer is re-posting it every 2 or 3 days, are probably against craigslist policy and makes this seller completely untrustworthy in my eyes.

[Dragonsm]

I looked at the craigslist post(s) and they say: "title status:clean". It seems like they should say "salvaged" or something. That, plus the fact that the dealer is re-posting it every 2 or 3 days, are probably against craigslist policy and makes this seller completely untrustworthy in my eyes.

Well, I didn't get down there and I didn't call on it last week due to my schedule......

However, I did share it with a few individuals (friends/family) and one of them decided to call on the car.

Interestingly enough, there is no way I'd buy the car as it has a "clear title". After the standard sales pitch of tires are at 80%, good battery...etc, it was mentioned that the front end was replaced as the bumper had a crack in it...and with it being one piece, it was much easier to just replace the entire piece from an 03-04, rather than fix the crack. There is no car-fax reports available for the car, and vin # wasn't provided over the phone.

The accident happened right as I was beginning to head into my busy time of the year....so I yanked everything for receipts...etc, and they are all in a box still awaiting for me to go through them.....In that box would be the receipt for the battery I replaced along with the tires and old insurance with vin #......There is a part of me that wonders what they'd do if I showed up to test drive and after the song and dance sales pitch provided pictures, receipts, car fax....etc.

I'm not even going to go there.....there was a reason for the "break up"......your playing with fire if you try and rekindle an old flame.

Steve

[tpollauf]

There is no car-fax reports available for the car, and vin # wasn't provided over the phone.

Interesting. I thought it was required by law to report a totalled car to all agencies/parties. Shows how naive I am Yeah being dishonest in this matter is totally scum and hopefully this seller gets burned

Too bad you couldn't set up a hoax buyer just to "back out" of the deal at the last second.

[vibrologist]

There is no car-fax reports available for the car, and vin # wasn't provided over the phone.

Do you still have an old registration receipt or insurance receipt? There is your VIN.