On October 25 I was involved in a car accident which claimed the life of my second vehicle, INS8BLE II (2003 Toyota Camry XLE). The first officer on the scene did write me the ticket (following too close) although it was clearly the fault of a young woman two cars in front of me that stopped in the middle of the road for no apparent reason other than she may have been lost (or high?) at 8am on a Thursday. She, of course, fled the scene. There were five men willing to be a witness, however since I am pretty sure they were high, at 8am on a Thursday, the officer pretty much ignored them (I would have too). In the end, at 20mph it was either the car in front of me or jerking my car to the right and hitting a light post. I chose the car in front of me. While the damage from the outside did not appear substantial, internally various major parts of the powertrain were pushed back into the engine. My 2003 Toyota Camry XLE, on which I had 170k miles, one missing hubcap, paint scraps from the yellow posts in the garage I park and countless other dings was worth $6000 but the damage she sustained would cost over $4000 to repair. My insurance deemed her a total loss.
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| Together since May 5, 2005 |
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| RIP INS8BLE II - Oct 25, 2012 |
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Three days after the accident, I cleaned her out and said my goodbyes. Unfortunately, I was not able to car shop immediately as I was on my way to Cote d'Ivoire so that would have to wait. That's ok. I needed time to mourn her anyway.
After my return from Cote d'Ivoire I was indeed ready to procure a new vehicle. My mind was set on another Camry, of course. This had been my second Camry and both were been good to me with no major work having to be done only for both to be ripped away from me in major accidents. But I had been told that the Camry was the "old Black woman's Cadillac" and to try new, cooler things. So, as the open minded individual I am, I did. In the end I went to five dealerships and test drove the Acura TL, TSX, Lexus IS and ES, Toyota Rav4 and Honda Accord. I did see an Acura RDX on cars.com which I wanted to test drive but by the time I arrived from Africa, it was sold. I never encountered another one - they must be pretty popular! Anyway, last Saturday afternoon I found myself at a Toyota dealership and fell in love with a red 2010 Toyota Camry XLE V6, 32,000 miles, leather (heated seats), voice activated navigation, moonroof, leather seats and bluetooth - all the fun stuff plus its a dependable Camry. I test drove it and fell more in love. Then the talks of money came up and the sticker price was $24k. "...its certified..." "...free oil changes, filter and VA inspection for life of vehicle..." blah blah blah is all I heard. The car was not worth $24k and I offered $19k (willing to pay $20k) but he would not budge. At all. After 30 minutes of the back and forth, with a tear in my eye, I walked away. I went back to my parents house to cook dinner and on the way home I prayed and thought "Lord, you know my needs and my wants ... and my budget! Just get me there ..." While cooking dinner I did more research and on cars.com a new listing! A black 2010 Toyota Camry XLE V6, leather, voice activated navigation, moonroof, leather seats and bluetooth -- just like the red Camry BUT only 9,400 miles! And in my price range of $20k! #Godisgood #allthetime It was a Saturday night and so I immediately emailed the dealer and requested a test drive. However, due to the lack of a vehicle my request was for Thursday afternoon, Friday morning at the latest. Seneca Harris, the man who would prove to be quite influential in this story, picked me up Friday at 10am. He introduced me to the vehicle, showed me all the 'bells and whistles' and I realized that I did love the red Camry - that was lust. Sitting in THIS car, THIS moment -- that was love. I named her immediately in my heart - Phoenix - for out of the ashes has arisen a new, improved, updated Camry XLE. 5 hours later I drove away in Phoenix. She is mine. I own her. My favorite moment over the weekend: I was listening to 107.9 (el zol) and they were jammin'! Playing all my favorite bachata hits. For 40 miles I was quite contenta. Then I realized OH MY GOODNESS -- THAT IS MY PLAYLIST! I had no idea when you connected to bluetooth that it also connected to your music playlist on google! Que?! Well that makes me very happy -- no more CD clutter in my car! Anyway, enough writing about her. Please meet Phoenix - the Rise of INS8BLE!
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| From the back |
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| To the side ... |
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| Face to face... |
But its not about whats on the outside -- its the inside that counts *wink*
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| Voice activated navigation - cuz I stay lost! |
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| Leather interior ... |
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| ...wood grain detailing |
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| Sun/moon roof |
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I would also advise anyone buying a car to do their research! It is because of research that I knew the previous Camry was not worth $24k! My favorite site was http://www.cargurus.com. I found some great advice, things to look for and the site also details if the deal you found was a great, fair or bad deal! Phoenix was listed at $20,800 but based on condition and mileage she was listed $1500 below blue book! So yes, I got a GREAT deal. Again, I was reminded "sometimes rejection is God's protection!" Thank you Lord for the pocketbook protection! I would like to thank Seneca Harris at Koons Toyota in Tysons VA for
introducing me to Phoenix. He was not pushy, friendly and trustworthy. I would recommend him any day of the week, all year long! Clearly anyone reading this can tell I'm happy with the car AND the price!
