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Thread: Taking advantage of high used car prices...

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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    Taking advantage of high used car prices...

    Well, with the high prices on used cars right now I've decided to lessen my fleet of vehicles. After gaining a 2017 Outlander GT (for less than wholesale price!) to go with the Outlander Sport (also gaining a son in October so wanted a larger vehicle to support carrying three dogs, two kids, and my wife and I) I ended up selling my 2012 Tacoma Double Cab and paid off both Outlanders. No more car payments... hurray! The Tacoma was great but it was too much truck for what I really needed to do and too expensive to beat the crap out of it doing gross work.

    Then my wife wanted to reduce her debt so she sold her 2020 Mirage she bought new a year and a half ago and got almost what she paid for it. Ended up buying a 2008 RX350 used so her debt got cut in half.

    So finally, I was looking at my Mirages and my Outlander Sport that I haven't driven like at all the past few months. I absolutely ADORE my Outlander Sport... I bought it brand new... Just haven't been driving that much. So I made the decision to let the Mirages go. Sold my black 2015 DE 5 speed to the Lexus dealer for $4300 and the basketcase project will be either going to them or to a guy I know for his sister. Either way, it's getting put back together as a car instead of a microvan and will be finding a new home. I enjoyed the project bringing it back to life and want to find more Mirages to fix up since I do enjoy working on them. It'll be replaced halfway by my 2012 Prius C that I use as a taxi and halfway by whatever basic Tacoma I can get for cheap. I'm hoping for a nice standard cab 4 cylinder automatic two wheel drive that had the crap original frame replaced under the frame warranty program so it won't be a piece of junk. A truck is just too useful when you need to haul an engine, washing machine, and other materials for fixing up houses and cars.

    At any rate, I'll have some nice parts that need a home so I'll be posting those up most likely next week. Have surgery this Friday and will be recovering from that over the weekend. So if you want some G4 SE heated front seats, an 17-20 SE gauge cluster (which DOES work fine with the 14-15 models), a 17 Apple CarPlay/Android auto headunit with all the harness and stuff to go with it to make it work, factory 14-15 nav system with it's proper bezel and antenna, 15 inch G4 SE alloy wheels, 14 inch 14-15 alloy wheels, and who knows what else I have around here... let me know!

    I'm hoping to find a dead Mirage soon to put my engine or cvt trans into to bring back to life. I had a lot of fun making videos of the last Mirage I got that was messed up and fixing it... would like to do something more involved.


    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Cobrajet (07-14-2021),inuvik (07-14-2021)

  3. #2
    Debt free sure is nice - congrats!

    Are you getting out of Mirages in general? Or will acquire another one if the mood & opportunity strikes?

    I wish we had the unusually high used car prices you guys seem to have right now. I sold my 2008 Honda Fit last week for $2200, and figure I'll be lucky to get $3500 for my 2014 top trim Mirage when it goes on the block very soon..

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    Well, for me personally I don't need another one but I'd love to get another broken one and bring it back to life!
    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Moderator Eggman's Avatar
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    Debt free is the way to be. And the Mirage helps you get there (especially if you use them to make money, not spend it.)

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 49.6 mpg (US) ... 21.1 km/L ... 4.7 L/100 km ... 59.5 mpg (Imp)


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    Quote Originally Posted by Dodge Aries K View Post

    So finally, I was looking at my Mirages and my Outlander Sport that I haven't driven like at all the past few months. I absolutely ADORE my Outlander Sport... I bought it brand new... Just haven't been driving that much. So I made the decision to let the Mirages go. Sold my black 2015 DE 5 speed to the Lexus dealer for $4300 and the basketcase project will be either going to them or to a guy I know for his sister. Either way, it's getting put back together as a car instead of a microvan and will be finding a new home. I enjoyed the project bringing it back to life and want to find more Mirages to fix up since I do enjoy working on them. It'll be replaced halfway by my 2012 Prius C that I use as a taxi and halfway by whatever basic Tacoma I can get for cheap. I'm hoping for a nice standard cab 4 cylinder automatic two wheel drive that had the crap original frame replaced under the frame warranty program so it won't be a piece of junk. A truck is just too useful when you need to haul an engine, washing machine, and other materials for fixing up houses and cars.
    It would be a lot cheaper pick up small trailer and add a hitch your Outlander Sport. It would tug the items you just described. Less insurance, no extra engine to maintain, easier to load items, etc.... I bought a small 4' x 8' trailer with a tilt bed in 1994. Same year I bought my first house. I use that trailer for everything, & it looks that way, too! I am planning to put a third pair of 6-ply tires on it this summer. Other than replacing the wiring harness once, it doesn't take much to keep it going. 6 different vehicles that have towed that same trailer over the years. Smallest being a 1989 Plymouth Colt Wagon/1997 VW Golf, & the largest being a 1999 Ford Explorer. When I get a yard of gravel or something, I don't cringe when they dump the bucket load in it. It's meant to haul crap. I would be lost without my trailer. If something happened to it today, I would be buying a new one tomorrow.

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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    I thought about a trailer. The bad part is that it's basically a no go to haul that around in Chicago. Between mega expensive tolls, the rediculous price Illinois charges for plates for a trailer, and the fact that I can't park it in the driveway up front is why I shyed away from the idea a bit. If I could make a better cargo basket for the parts hauler car I'd possibly do that but fabrication isn't my strong suite.
    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Quote Originally Posted by Dodge Aries K View Post
    I thought about a trailer. The bad part is that it's basically a no go to haul that around in Chicago. Between mega expensive tolls, the rediculous price Illinois charges for plates for a trailer, and the fact that I can't park it in the driveway up front is why I shyed away from the idea a bit. If I could make a better cargo basket for the parts hauler car I'd possibly do that but fabrication isn't my strong suite.
    I understand. Your situation is different. I have a 72 acre backyard. I can tuck my ugly trailer behind my storage shed, & small trailers don't need plates in Wisconsin. If I owned a truck, I would still be lost without my trailer.

    My dad & brother live 4 hours away. They both own full size Chevy/GMC pickup trucks, & they still share 3 different trailers.

    Are plates for an Illinois trailer more expensive than small pickup truck?

    I can see having a beater truck being handy to have at times, too!

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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    Truck would be $151 a year. Trailer is $118 a year which is rediculous for something that doesn't move under its own power. I could ditch it behind my garage easily enough but I do like having a vehicle dedicated to being a disgusting grunge machine. My Outlanders are both kept very clean inside and I don't want grease, mud, fluids, etc. in them. If this corrupt garbage state lowers the trailer fee back down then I might consider that more again.
    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    Speaking of, there's a bill that passed the house and Senate here to lower that stupid fee so maybe a small 4x4 trailer wouldn't be a bad thing for the Basketcase Mirage to pull. The guy's sister backed out of wanting it so it's tempting.

    Especially after my experience trying to get a cheap truck. Good lord what a nightmare... Looked at three Tacoma's... They were all garbage. Messaged about a ton of vehicles just to get no reply.
    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Senior Member klroger's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dodge Aries K View Post
    Good lord what a nightmare... Looked at three Tacoma's... They were all garbage. Messaged about a ton of vehicles just to get no reply.
    There are no cheep trucks anymore. I tried to find one too. I found a Ranger Splash that I thought was a good deal... The biggest mistake I've ever made... Better to buy a new one, or if you don't want new, I'll sell a reconditioned Ranger Splash for what I have in it...


    I didn't know what to do, so I didn't do anything

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2018 Mirage GT 1.2 automatic: 37.3 mpg (US) ... 15.9 km/L ... 6.3 L/100 km ... 44.8 mpg (Imp)


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