Buying another Hybrid

While we were in Tennessee we started having problems with our Nissan Xterra.  Kevan is VERY handy and he is also very good with car problems, but after replacing the spark plugs and doing a few other things he could not figure out why the Xterra's engine was "missing".  It started to get closer to when we would need to leave for Florida and we were very concerned about driving it all those miles.

So, I started doing some research online to find out if we could trade in our Xterra for another vehicle.  We have been wanting a Highlander Hybrid for about 5 years and we also thought about getting a Nissan Pathfinder.  I found a beautiful used 2006 Highlander Hybrid about 1.5 hours from us so we went to look at it the next day.

Well, we bought it! 

We prayed for several days before we went to see it about whether we should buy a new vehicle and then we prayed on the way and during the time we were at the dealership.  We really felt like God wanted us to make the purchase so we went ahead with it.  I have to say, I LOVED MY XTERRA.  When we got home with the new car I was depressed.  I wanted to get back in the car and drive back and get my Xterra.  I cried when I had to give it to them...that is how much I loved it. 

I loved my X because it was rugged and manly.  We could drive it around the farm and get it all muddy, climb into it with muddy boots and accidentally scratch the paint on the outside (because it already had scratches) and I was okay with it.  The Highlander is so different.  It is pretty, clean, feminine and doesn't have rubber mats.  I'm not okay with driving it around the farm or getting in it with boots on.  I'm definitely not okay with scratches!  I am still sad about giving up my X, but I am learning to love the Highlander (even with it's fake wood interior trim).  It has heated seats.  I love heated seats.....even in Florida.

Many of you may remember that we purchased a Toyota Prius back in 2006 and then Kevan was in an accident back in 2009 and the car was totaled.  We did not replace it with another hybrid, but with an older Mitsubishi Eclipse convertible.  One thing we learned with the Prius was that we do NOT like car payments.  So, we have tried to pay cash for our vehicles.  We were blessed that we were able to do the same with the Highlander.  Dave Ramsey would be proud. 

Also, we purchased it from Nelson Mazda in Antioch, TN and it was a great experience.  I would highly recommend them if you are in the area and needing a vehicle.  Maybe one day when Kevan and I retire we can go there and buy a Mazda Miata from them.  Kevan had one when we were dating (it was also totaled in an accident) and we LOVED it.  We really miss it, but it is not practical for us right now.  The only thing that was not very nice about the dealership was that when we drove it off the lot it was EMPTY so we had to go straight to the gas station to fill up.  Nelson Mazda....you should pay the $$ to fill up your customers tanks before they leave your lot.  We've never bought a car that required us to go to the gas station as soon as we left the lot.

The Highlander Hybrid has been getting about 27-28 mpg and the Xterra got about 17 mpg.  So, that is an improvement of about 10 mpg.  The HH has a smaller gas tank...when we fill-up we pay about $32-$35 in the HH, but the X was about $50.  So, we are also saving about $15 per fill-up.  The X only went about 300 miles on a full tank and we've been getting about 315-325 miles on a  tank in the HH.



Another really cool thing about the HH is that it has a 3rd row of seating that folds down into the trunk when you don't need it.  This came in REALLY handy when my parents came to visit.  It was great that we were all able to fit in the same vehicle and we didn't have to drive separately.