It’s a common cliche to reminisce on cars that simply got away from you. The $500 RX-7 that went to scrap, the reasonably priced E30 3 Series that sold before you could get there, the squarebody truck you just didn’t have space for. However, it’s about time we put a spin on it: Not the cars that got away, but the ones you walked away from. Today, I want to know about cars that you almost bought before deciding to spend your hard-earned cash on something different.
Weirdly, both cars in my current stable have been my top picks. However, that doesn’t mean I wasn’t close to buying something else before. See, about three months before I bought my Infiniti G35, there was a trade-in at work that I was trying to justify selling my Crown Vic for. That car? A blue Buick Estate, complete with woodgrain and aluminum wheels.
It was in much better shape than my Crown Victoria, felt more lavishly appointed than my Crown Vic, had the cargo space for carting a lifetime of detritus across the continent for college, and was just an absolutely magnificent beast. However, for whatever reason, I just decided to instead fix a few little things on the Crown Vic and aim it east. It made for an entertaining road trip, and just barely got the job done before suffering a series of dramatic and entertaining failures that led to me moving on into the world of sports sedans.
Do I still love these B-body wagons? Absolutely, but I don’t regret passing one up. In a way, I’m happy that the big Buick didn’t work out, as the opportunity that opened up a few months after that led to me learning how to heel-toe, learning how to enjoy a somewhat powerful car without getting into trouble, meeting a whole bunch of people, and in a way, becoming who I am today.
So, what’s a car that you almost ended up with, and what stopped you from making the move? As ever, I’d love to hear your answers in the comments below.
(Photo credits: Buick)
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“They arrested the driver on felony evading charges and cited the three other occupants.”
I actually just switched cars about 2 months ago. And I was ready to buy a nice 2014 Tesla Model S in great condition for CAD $18,500.
But then I got the insurance quotes. I was expecting to pay more for the Tesla… like maybe 50% more compared to the Honda Fit I was replacing. And I based that on some online quotes I got.
HOWEVER… when talking to an insurance agent and getting FIRM quotes, compared to a C-Max Energi or a Prius Prime, the Tesla costs more than double to insure. We’re talking about around $1500/year for the C-max or Prius… and nearly $4000/year for the Tesla.
And once my kids get their drivers licenses, that rate would only go up by a higher dollar amount than with the CMax or Prius Prime.
So I did a pivot and ended up buying a 2017 C-Max Energi (for CAD$16,500) … a vehicle that gives me around 75% of the benefits the Model S would have… but with a lower TCO mainly due to insurance costs.
Though it is better than the Model S in one way… it has very long driving range. I drove about 1800km on my last tank of fuel (about 45 Liters). Part of the reason for that is I make full use of the plug-in capability. But even if I didn’t plug it in, I estimate I would still get around 1000km/tank.
And subsequently, I came across some info regarding why insurance rates on Teslas are much higher:
https://opposite-lock.com/topic/105410/best-worst-drivers-by-brand
Apparently Tesla is up there with the Ram brand when it comes to attracting Terrible Drivers.
The only good thing you can say about Tesla drivers is that they have a much lower rate for DUIs. For drivers that get DUIs, apparently BMW is #1, Ram is #2 and Subaru is #3.
I’m hoping that when the electric Dodge Charger and the electric Ram pickup truck comes out, the bad Tesla drivers will migrate to those models and insurance rates on Teslas will come down.
Because I still want to own a Model S eventually.
What I walked away from (in 1988):
– 1984 (86 maybe?) Civic HF, four speed, low miles, great condition. They wanted as much as a new one, so instead I got:
-1984 Ford EXP, high miles, five speed, lower (but not low enough…) price. Turns out it had a bad head gasket and a bunch of other cooling system problems, and I traded it in (for a huge loss) THREE WEEKS LATER on an ’86 Tempo that appliance’d me through college.
I’ve wondered how long I would have kept the Civic (maybe until I got my SE-R in 91?), but then I’d have to pick a different user name…
When: 5 years ago
What I bought: 2008 Porsche 911S
What I almost bought: 2003 BMW M3
I wanted the BMW. Still do. But the 911 option came up, at a price I could not pass up. And I’d wanted once since my first ride in a 911 SC. Which was a long time ago. So, bucket car list item checked. And once I sell the 911, I’ll be shopping for that E46 M3.
What I bought: 2022 GTI
What I almost bought: Veloster N.
It was not an easy decision, the Velosters were holding their value, especially with paint so the pricing was equivalent. (this was spring of 2023). In the end while the N was probably the better car on paper, the VW beat it on interior. Since that’s where I spend all my time I went for the GTI. While obviously I see other GTIs on the road, my eye is more often held by the Veloster still, the quirk factor is just so well applied.
Never had an interest in the Veloster; I simply cannot get past the aesthetis. The GTI/Golf R was on my short list however. When I saw a 2024 GTI and a Civic hatchback among the rental car lineup this week, neither of which I have driven yet, I picked the GTI.
I was primarily interested in the infotainment, which I was skeptical of, despite many people saying you get used to it in no time. My short 7-day, 350 mile experience was that the interior controls were an absolute deal-breaker for me. They were simply so much worse than I expected. Cruise control setpoints that would reset when my palm was too close to the wheel. Zero climate controls on the dash. Needing to dive into a menu to adjust dashboard display brightness.
It really was a pit because the rest of the GTI blew me away. The fuel economy was fantastic. It had superb chassis dynamis. The engine was fantastic. And for the first time….ever…the automatic did not have me thinking “if only it had a manual transmission”
With all that said, my test drive confirmed that my second choice remains a no-deal. I bought am MX-5 RF Club instead.
So I’m technically a boomer, not sure why that matters but I admit to a certain amount to “yells at cloud” behavior. I don’t understand a single criticism of the VW UX. I drive either “ten and two” or one handed around 7 o’clock, so I only rarely (over the last 15 months and 10k miles) accidentally hit something. I have hit the steering wheel heater maybe twice, and hit the “downshift” a couple of times. This is my first car with climate control, and I rarely have to touch it (I live in Mesa AZ), when it’s parked in the open for a while, yes, I have to increase the fan, and/or turn on recirculate. However hitting the “clim” shortcut button is muscle memory.
Now obviously YMMV, and my previous car was a 2003 WRX, basically a Farmall tractor, so I went into the GTI knowing it was all screens and generations ahead of what I was driving. Maybe that primed me for a lot of the “oddities” of the UX? Interestingly my older brother in law wants to replace his Golf R with a Santa Cruz, but is waiting for the 2025 because they are bringing back some knobs.
I love the transmission, in sport mode I average 36 MPG (compared to the WRX’s 22) and in “D” I can get up to low 40s. I can’t trade the responsiveness of sport mode though, in “D” it feels like an old school automatic. I was first blown away at how nimble and light it was, only to find out it was 900 pounds heavier than the WRX, VW really has worked magic with the FWD and chassis.
Now in terms of what you chose, the answer is always Miata, so I can’t fault that.
I looked at stuff like Bolts and Model 3s before I bought my Prius. I eventually concluded that a hybrid made a lot more sense for my situation and would keep a lot more miles off my truck because I could take it basically anywhere I would take the truck. The EVs wouldn’t work for some trips I do regularly due to lack of charging infrastructure (yes, even the Tesla). That may have changed by now, but I have no regrets.
I was all ready to get a 2.7 EcoBoost F-150 for my next truck, then discovered that you can’t get some important features to me (heated steering wheel and power fold mirrors) on anything below a Lariat, and I don’t think you can even get the 2.7 in that trim. It’s also outrageously expensive. I ended up with a Silverado that gave me everything I wanted for a more reasonable price. If the lifters manage to not grind themselves into fine metal powder I think I’m going to really like this truck.
2001 Ford Taurus with only 50k miles for 5 grand at a dealership back in 2011. My patience ran out with the Astro Van that liked to break down every other week while my other rides were Geo Metros that offered no city driving comfort. Was broke so I had to finance. They wanted to finance me alright! That 5 grand was going to cost me over 11 with the payments. I just walked out the door while two guys followed me yelling “we can lower the payment!”
A couple weeks later I got some cash together and convinced my old boss to sell me her ’97 Civic she quit driving because it kept getting stolen and crashed into. It had a history but that was the best purchase ever and turned me into a Honda fan. Good thing to as I ignored the red flag on that Taurus: Carfax showed it was a rental car from the midwest.
This is the story of how 3 teenagers learned to drive in a 1969 Chevelle SS 396.
It was 1970 and Mom had had enough of the broken down cars Dad had been dumping on her after he lost interest in them, so she decided to get an economical, fuel efficient Volkswagen. She took my 18 year old big brother with her to the VW dealership and he immediately wandered off to the used car lot while Mom talked to the new car salesman.
2 minutes later, my brother yanked Mom away from the new car showroom and showed her a beautiful yellow Chevelle SS with a vinyl top, white upholstery with a bench seat, and an auto on the column. It had room for her and the four kids and my brother was in love.
We coulda had a VW instead of the Chevelle!
After I wrote off getting a second Mazda (2013 Mazdaspeed3) I came very close to buying one of two low-mileage 2012 Fusion Sports in Blue Flame Metallic. I’m glad I didn’t as I couldn’t give up my manual transmission.
2011 Subaru WRX Wagon. This was in 2012, so it was used, low mileage, looked good. I was all set to go, but the salesman would not let me drive it or start it until I had an offer down in writing because “it’s a high performance car and too many people just want to joy ride it”. Yeah, no. I wanted that car badly, but he wouldn’t budge. Of course that also meant no third party inspection on the drive train.
Ended up with a new Mazdaspeed 3 for basically the same price. Turns out torque steer doesn’t bother me much, but I still think about that stupid car that was almost certainly suffering from a bent connecting rod or bad head gasket or something. Hi
“Of course that also meant no third party inspection on the drive train.”
Definitely a deal killer right there. I wouldn’t be surprised if the salesman knew it had an issue and what he was telling you was bullshit.
I knew that I wanted a hatchback or wagon for my current car. My wife and I both had sedans, and thought it would be nice to have something that could handle bulky items and a large dog if we ran out of backseat space. We only have 1 kid so getting a 3 row vehicle would have been silly. I started off looking at Golf Sportwagons, but couldn’t bring myself to trust VW reliability. So I bought a Mazda3 hatchback and have enjoyed 4 trouble-free years so far. Maybe things would have been fine with the VW, but when buying used cars you have to consider the odds. I trust Mazda more to make a car that won’t nickel and dime me to death.
Back in the stone ages when I was 18, I almost bought a 1982 Prelude. The only reason I didn’t pull the trigger was because I was going to need to replace a fender, and I didn’t want the trouble. I eventually went with a very boring 1983 Civic HF, which was a 5 speed instead of the Prelude’s manual, but it was slooooowwwwww. I wished I’d gotten the Prelude after a few months.
The last car I bought was my 05 Acura RL, I bought it from a co-worker in rough mechanical condition, I looked around at other cars to see if I was sure I wanted the Acura. It came down to that or paying a little more for a C class 4matic. I don’t regret the RL, it’s a fantastic car and I’m keeping it until it returns to its basic elements. I still want a Mercedes again though, the Acura was a safer bet for the price for me. I do have my eyes on a Daimler product as my next purchase.
What I bought: 2019 VW SportWagen 4motion
What I almost bought: 2020 Prius Prime
The Prius is a great car! But the low-refresh-rate giant tablet on the console induced vertigo in my co-driver almost immediately. Alas. If only gas were not $1.65/L.
Purchased a 2015 Forester, but earlier that week I almost flew from MN to FL for a diesel BMW wagon with a cold weather package, I don’t remember the year. It was outside my price range though, and a former rental vehicle, so I decided it didn’t seem like a smart idea. I also don’t have a garage and haven’t worked on diesel cars before, so it seemed like I would be paying extra to buy myself a lot of risk. Still kinda wish I had done it.
For me it was the daily. When I traded in the Jeep of expensive continuous repairs, there we to vehicles at the same price.
Purchased 2018 Subaru Crosstrek
Passed up: 2018 Mini Clubman.
I wanted the Mini and it has the same room as the Subaru. However the “It’s a BMW” though kept racing through my head. Still the Mini would have been fun. Also both were manuals.
What I bought: A 2013 JSW TDI, a week before covid in 2020.
What I almost bought: A ~2017 Alltrack
I didn’t buy it because the TDI was $5k cheaper and I decided I didn’t need to spend the extra money, which ended up going towards taxes and my Fiat’s restoration. But in retrospect I kinda wish I’d gotten the Alltrack.
What I bought: A 1978 BMW 530i with an engine swap
What I almost bought: A 1972 BMW Bavaria
I’ve had a thing for Bavarias since the 90s and they’ve been cheap forever, but are getting less so. Someone I know offered me his really nice Bavaria for a really nice price. It was a little more (only a few grand) more than I wanted to spend. After I passed on it it promptly sold for $4k more than he offered it to me for. The E12 was my consolation purchase.
What I bought; 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7L
What I almost bought: I was hopping between 3 different Nissan Frontiers before I stumbled across the GC
As I work from home and we are empty nesters, we had been making do with one vehicle. But sometimes a second vehicle is really handy. So I was shopping convertibles in green over tan. I almost had myself talked into an MGB, when an ’06 Miata in the correct combination came available. I’m really pleased and occasionally increase my pleasure by imaging electrical gremlins, oil leaks, and rust issues that I might have had to deal with.
I bought a 2014 CTS Vsport in 2018, but I almost bought a still available new Chevy SS. The SS would’ve been worth more today than new and was a more special car despite the similar size and performance. Oh well, the Vsport has been a good car.
If you had purchased the “full-on” CTS V then I’d say you make the right choice. But as an owner of a ’14 SS sedan, you missed out on a badass ride. I love hoping into my SS and firing up the 6.2L – not too many people appreciate it (cool Malibu, dude) but that’s what I love about it.
Was going to buy a 2005 CTS-V in 2017 to be a daily driver. The rear end issues had me worried. Bought a 2014 Focus ST3. Have been recently looking for 3rd gen CTS-Vsports, but as a supplemental to the focus.
When I bought my current truck (2010 GMC Sierra) what I really wanted was a 2010 Dodge Ram with Cummins power. Aside from the price differential and low-key discrimination I would face driving a dodge the main issue was the price to insure the Dodge vs the GMC. At the time I was a 26-year-old male driving for 10 years, no accidents, no tickets and the monthly premium for the dodge was IIRC at least 400$ a month. The GMC was 63$ (full coverage) and even to this day it has only gone up to 82$ (5 years later).
Yup… apparently Terrible Drivers are attracted to the Ram brand… and Tesla as well.
https://opposite-lock.com/topic/105410/best-worst-drivers-by-brand
When I was shopping for a winter car, I originally went to look at a 1st gen Escape with a manual. Sadly that sold when I got there so I took a look at a few other options. Almost chose a 5 speed 2 door Focus (the US only 2nd gen), since my previous car was a 4 door of the same gen (albeit a 4 speed auto).
Decided on the Astra which was lower mileage and is far less of a rust magnet than the Focus. Hurray for option #3
The year was 1984, and I was lucky – I had a grandmother that was committed to buying a car for me for my 16th birthday. I was in love with Trans Ams and desperately wanted one as my first car. Found a ’78 special edition gold one on a local used lot – had those gold mirror t-tops as well. My family had other ideas, and took me to the Ford dealer where we purchased most of our cars instead. A freshly traded 1980 Mustang Cobra Turbo was waiting. The Cobra wasn’t nearly as fast as the T/A but was absolutely a better choice for a young driver. It was cheaper, a bit better on gas, and was a 4-speed, which forced me to learn manual on my first car. It was a good looking, well equipped car (for the day) which encouraged me to keep it that way. I thought a bit about that T/A over the years and honestly it was good that I didn’t get it. It was way too much car for me at that stage, and based on how much that special edition has appreciated in value over the years, I would have probably hated myself later for whatever ills would have happened to it at that time.
Buick Regal TourX
I bought a nissan frontier instead because my dad was talking smack about why I, a single guy, would want a funny looking station wagon…
i’m a sucker for oddball cars and now since this truck is paid off im gonna find my quirky 4-wheeled partner, dunno what it may be, but i’ll find it.
Both great vehicles.
What I bought: 2005 Lexus RX 330
What I almost bought: 1998 XJ Cherokee 4×4
Why I went Lexus: It was a family member’s car. One owner, perfect service records, new tires, brakes, suspension, and oil change.