Cooper!

In 2003, a terrifically mesmerizing action movie starring Charlize Theron hit the streets and blew my mind. "The Italian Job" featured a cheeky title, tons of good-looking stars, an intriguing plot, and tons of twists and turns. It also featured a tiny little vehicle called the MINI Cooper which was just as much a star of the movie as the actors. This (slightly modified) go-kart looking car could carry more than it's weight, fit in standard household hallways, navigate stairs, drop underground, and out-race a helicopter. I was in love. I have always been way too susceptible to ads and commercials and implicit consumerism, but this was different. I wanted one so bad I could taste it.

Looking into it back then, I sadly realized it was the cost was way too big for my college budget, and the car was way too small to fit my social lifestyle. I put the dream on my mind's backburner, but always felt a twinge of jealousy when I'd see an adorable little MINI out on the road. Worse was when multiple friends purchased them and parked them in my driveway during parties, just taunting me. :)

My current car, a 2001 PT Cruiser was adorable in its own way and I loved the look of it, inside and out. After a car accident back in 2006, the cause of which still mystifies me, I have not really felt terribly safe in my Cruiser. It felt too light and the tires too traction-less, and I have had a love/hate relationship since then. After mounting repairs and several mechanical failings, Anthony and I finally decided the daily stress of driving it was not worth waiting for it to die, and I began to look into replacing it. (Side note: Anthony's car is 2 years older, with over 50K more miles, but it is still the safer car. Go figure.)

As soon as I began to research cars, the MINI was of course at the back of my mind, but it being a 2door standard was just never going to work for me. Logging onto the site just for fun one day, I was shocked and elated to learn they finally introduced a 4 door model, available in Automatic and AWD!! It's like they read my mind! I called Anthony immediately, and of course he asked all kinds of practical questions about the nearest dealership and availability of used models. (Buying new cars is just not something my family does.) My research yielded some sad facts, mainly that the 4 door model only came out in 2011 so used models were practically non-existent. Also, that the AWD model I wanted started at a price tag I would never pay. As I researched other cars, it became increasingly clear that used cars in this economy are hard to come by at a discounted price. With more people being frugal with used and more people hanging on to their cars, we began to seriously discuss the option of buying new. I also learned that AWD would maybe not make me feel as safe as I thought it might, since the Cooper's only kicks in when you need it, and the gas pedal has to be engaged for it to work. After those two hindrances had been dismissed, I logged back on to the site and utilized their "Build Your Own" tool to see what kind of customizations and colors were available. What I came out with was truly my dream car, and I struggled mightily to not get too attached to it.

This past long weekend, Anthony and I thought it might be a good time to hit up dealerships in case there were good President's Day sales, and we thought it would give us some time to consider our options before my car actually died. Of course the first place we went was the MINI dealership...as soon as we pulled in and saw their parent company is BMW, my heart sank and I had little hope I would get to own a Cooper. Though I had brought a printout of my dream car to show them what *sort* of model I was looking for, Anthony advised me against it in case they got the idea they could actually talk us into building a brand new custom car. Hah!

After we test drove two models, our salesman showed us what kind of automatic models they had on their lot and I was growing less hopeful. The only automatics were brand new and were tricked out with all kinds of options that raised the price by several thousand dollars. After I shot down several choices, he finally asked what I would get if I could design it. We pulled up the same site I had used and began to mess around with options. Shockingly, the price point was less than anything he had tried to sell me, used or otherwise. At this point, my hope started to bound wildly. I struggled to keep a poker face as Anthony told the guy what we had budgeted for this car, and what we might be willing to pay. After several hours of debating and negotiating the price and options (and getting a few thrown in for free), Anthony and I finally got him down to a price we could afford for my dream car, and the fact that we could custom-build one for less than the models they had already tried to sell us seemed too good to be true! We ended up signing on the dotted line five hours after we walked into the very first dealership of the day.

I still can't believe we did it, and I'm almost embarrassed to say I'm getting a new custom-built version of my dream car! But with all factors considered, buying new and customized really was the cheapest way to go for that car. I had wanted it for so many years, and we are lucky enough to be in a place where we can buy it, and the convergence of the economy and our age and our savings just made this the best time to pull the trigger on that purchase. This will definitely be our "luxury car" and I will be driving it until the day it dies, and will be taking immaculate care of it until then. Happy dance! :) But this will most likely be the longest 6-8 weeks of my life.

Of course I told Anthony now that we finally bit the bullet and replaced mine, we can expect his 1999 VW Jetta to die any day. :)