Chapter 106: New Wheels

Thursday, April 7, 1983

On the way to school, Ang and I stopped at the bank and deposited the insurance check using the night depository drop box. My plan was to purchase the car with a cashier’s check. That would slow things down a little, but would mean I could get the car immediately, instead of waiting for the check to clear, and would leave a paper trail, unlike paying cash.

We discussed cars at lunch. Everyone else pretty much agreed with my favorite, though Angie mentioned pimp-mobiles several times, and Paige felt it necessary to agree with her.

With everyone on board, hopefully Dad and I could get the car purchased after school. We’d gotten all of our ducks in a row. It’d be a cash purchase, so the dealership should just roll with it. Dad had insisted that the car should be in my name, but he’d have to sign as co-purchaser all the same. I really didn’t care, but it was important to him, and that made it important to me, too.

Angie and I, along with Jas (but not Paige, who’d decided to head home for family dinner), made a beeline home after school. Dad and Mom were waiting for us, and the three of us piled into the back seat of Dad’s car for the ride to the dealership.

We chatted about cars, of course. Both Ang and Jas seemed to delight in pointing out cars I should consider. I made the point more than once that the cars they were pointing out were well outside of my budget. That mostly got giggles from them and laughter from Mom. Dad sounded sympathetic, at least.

When we got there, a salesman (not the same one as before) came right over and started talking to Dad, asking how he could help.

I stepped up and pulled out a card. “Excuse me. I was working with Mr. Mandell. If he’s available, I’d like to continue with him.”

The salesman looked at me in apparent confusion, blinked, and then said, “Um ... Andy Mandell? Yeah, I’m pretty sure he’s available. I could get him...?”

“Please,” I said. “That would be very helpful.”

He walked off, shaking his head.

Dad smiled. “Not that I’m surprised, but that was still well done. You didn’t waste time on details, just asked for the correct salesperson.”

I nodded. “Mr. Mandell was quite helpful, and he’s spent time on it. I’d hate for anyone else to swoop in and take his commission or get credit for the sale.”

“He really was,” Angie said. “I mean, I like this car, too, but he was one of the best at treating us like serious buyers and not just annoying teenagers.”

“Admittedly,” Jas said, grinning, “we can be annoying teenagers!”

“But not to salespeople,” Angie said.

“Yeah, usually not,” Jas said.

Dad chuckled. “I never find you annoying!”

“Our teachers do, occasionally,” Ang said.

“Yeah,” Jas said. “But ... it’s usually when we’re being annoying.”

“True enough!” Ang said.

Mr. Mandell came over, looking right at me, and extended his hand. “Steve! A pleasure to see you again! Have you come to a decision?”

I nodded. “I have. Unless it’s been snatched out from under me, I’d like to buy the ‘78 Delta 88.”

“Financing?” he said.

“Nah. I’ll pay with a cashier’s check. Of course, I’ll have to bring it by tomorrow morning, but if we can get the exact price agreed and put down a deposit, then we’ll be in business.”

He frowned. “We don’t usually take deposits on used cars.”

“I can’t get the check tonight, bank hours being what they are, and I don’t want to find that it’s gone tomorrow. You can’t lose here. If I drop out, you keep my deposit. If I don’t, you get a cash sale.”

“I ... let me run that by the general manager,” he said, smiling.

“That’s fine. We can wait.”

He hustled off. Dad chuckled. “They always need to talk to the general manager. We’ll be back and forth on that a few times.”

“It’s a stalling technique,” I said, nodding. “In this case, it might actually be valid, because we’re making an exception.”

He came back a few minutes later. “We can take a ten percent deposit if you’re paying by cashier’s check within twenty-four hours.”

“That’s fine,” I said. It was actually quite a lot for a deposit, but then I wanted to buy the car anyway.

He led us back to his office, I think slightly nonplussed at there being five of us. Dad let me handle everything, only stepping in when needed to verify that he’d co-sign. Since it was a used car, I pushed back on the extras they offered. I might not have, decades later, if it was a certified used car and in nearly-new condition, but I wasn’t planning on keeping this car for an extended time and, in 1983, most of them were fluff to pad their profit margin.

‘Cash sale’ is a phrase that works wonders (though dealers love getting you hooked on their financing). It took four ‘Let me talk to the general manager’ trips, but in the end, I wound up with the car at five percent under the listed price. We had a written agreement that I’d be able to have a mechanic (one Dad recommended) inspect the car. If he found major issues, they had the option to make it right or return the check, as long as we reported it within twenty-four hours.

With any luck, I’d have the car by tomorrow night.

Friday, April 8, 1983

I spent much of the school day distracted. I really wanted to get the car done with.

On the other hand, I didn’t want to be saddled with a maintenance nightmare. If it had something ready to break, better to know it now and price it in. In the future, I’d probably have called a mobile auto inspector, but I hadn’t seen one listed.

So, instead, I’d pick it up, take it to the mechanic, and ... we’d see. He was staying open just a bit late as a favor. Thanks, Dad!

Of course, the money wouldn’t hurt, either.

One thing briefly broke my car obsession. Brad had asked Paige to Prom. I knew he didn’t have a girlfriend, so it seemed like he just wanted to go and she was someone he knew. That completed my list of ‘most likely juniors.’ I’m sure others would be there as well.

I’d found out through the grapevine that Jess would be there as Troy’s date. That both made sense and was clearly a holding action. It’d be interesting to see who she chose to date next year. I was sure there would be several. I still thought it would be unlikely for any of them to mean anything, but you never know.

Mel would be there, of course, but only as a host and organizer.

Ang, Jas, and I headed to the dealer in Angie’s car, stopping at the bank to pick up a cashier’s check. I think Mr. Mandell was a bit surprised to see the girls, but he handled it just fine. Perhaps my general seriousness settled any worry that I’d behave like a joyriding teenager. At this point it wasn’t quite ‘You break it, you buy it,’ but it was close to that. We’d lose the deposit and be liable for any damage. Our insurance would treat it essentially as a rental, but that’s not the best thing in the world, either. Nor would getting another black mark on my insurance!

Fortunately, the mechanic was close, traffic wasn’t bad, and it handled almost exactly like my old Delta 88. Not quite the same, but more than close enough.

We turned the keys over to Mr. Patton (‘Call me Fred!’) and settled in his waiting area on the battered furniture that most mechanics seem to find somewhere. We talked about this and that — Prom, Sadie Hawkins, State, ToC, the summer, and so forth — for almost an hour before Fred reappeared.

“Okay ... so...” he said. “Got some bad news and some good news. The bad news is, it’s an old car. Things that you’d expect to be worn are worn. You’ll need brakes in six months to a year, the tie rods are worn but probably have at least a year on them, and ... so on. They did the belts, hoses, spark plugs, fluids, and pretty much anything you’d change on routine maintenance. I think it’ll leak a little oil, but likely not enough to concern yourself with, as long as you check it regularly.”

“So...?”

“That’s the good news. It’s in good shape for its age and mileage. It should be reliable and safe.”

“Which is what I want.”

He nodded. “Funny choice for a teenager who’s got his pick, in a way. Even with that big engine, it’s no hot rod.”

I shrugged. “I’m a practical sort of guy, and I routinely take five friends to tournaments. Hard to do that in a sports car.”

He grinned. “Heck ... car like that, you could take eight, no problem.”

“Seat belts,” I said.

He grinned a little more. “You are practical! I used to hate ‘em. Then a guy I knew got in a wreck and was thrown out of the car. I mean, that’s what he said he wanted. Good news was, he lived. Bad news was, he broke his back and is paralyzed. Seat belts would’ve stopped that.”

I nodded. “I’m in this position because my previous land yacht got hit by a drunk driver. Jasmine and I would be in much worse shape if we hadn’t been belted in.”

Jasmine nodded quickly. “Yeah! It was really scary!”

“Well,” he said, “you take care of this baby and she’ll take care of you and yours.”

“Thanks, Fred!” I said. “Appreciate it!”

I paid him his fee by check, and then tossed in a fairly decent tip in cash. He just grinned and made it disappear.

“Say hello to your Dad!” he said.

“I will!” I said.

Half an hour later, the three of us left the dealer for hopefully the last time. I had a new (used!) car just in time for my date with Jaya. Jasmine suggested trying out the back seat, but that was a little impractical with Angie along, even if she agreed to ‘suffer through it all.’ Also ... not behaving.

Of course, it wasn’t the worst suggestion. So, after stopping long enough to tell Mom and Dad it was all done, and I was a happy car-owner again, Jas and I took off.

We only tried out the back seat for making out, as it turned out. We both decided her bed was a much better idea.