Death of a Legend

All good things come to an end. Unless you've been blessed with bringing things back to life. (e.g. Jesus, Pushing Daisies star) And boy do I wish I had that power now. Nothing super serious, except if you call needing a NEW ENGINE serious. Yes my trusty gas guzzling, super utility vehicle, 1st car I bought out of college, is pretty much kaput.

It turns out that my 1998 Expedition needs a new engine, due to a leaking head gasket or some mumbo jumbo like that. Coolant has been leaking into who knows where (nothing on the floor, most likely into the engine) My only symptom was a sudden increase in temperature for about 15 seconds and a red light which would go away in about 30 seconds. And you know we ignore all those flashing red lights on our dashboard that say "Emergency Something is Wrong with Engine, but lets keep our hopes up and maybe it will go away".

So when I finally brought it in to get checked at a dealer AND also getting a 2nd opinion from a local mechanic, they both gave the same diagnosis. It needs a new $5,000 engine (but that includes parts and labor)

Ok, so here are my options...

1) Buy the new engine, wait for other things to go wrong with my 173,000 mile truck, spend more $$$ on those, continue to spend more $$$ on gas, continue to destroy the environment BUT live the fabulous life by driving in comfort, bullying around those pesky priuses, and be able to pack my truck with whatever gear I want. I LOVE my truck. But I think its really time to go.

2) Be practical (as my wife would say) and buy another "basic" car (as my wife would say) which is more fuel efficient and not "pretentious" (as my wife would say).

Excerpt: My wifes definition of basic...
1) Lexus, Mercedes, Acura, Infiniti are a No-No, but a BMW X3 is ok because her boss drives one.
2) No leather, no navigation, no vehicle dynamics control because they are $$$.
3) Bluetooth, push button start, auxillary port for ipod are ok, if they are free.
4) No big hulking SUVs.
5) If it is a mini cooper or volkswagen beetle the rules above don't apply.

Im telling you, logic is not the most important factor with my wife and cars/technology. Its more of a fluffy science with her.

So I find myself at another crossroad in my life. Which car/truck do we get? I LOVE my truck (did I say that already?) Although we went through this process back in January and decided on a Subaru Outback, new models have come out and a whole new set of factors jump in. (Like can I live without a supersized SUV) I guess its a question of WANT vs. NEED. Damn, why does it always have to come down to that. Ill keep you updated.