BIG WHITE CARS and smaller plasma yellow ones

Why is it that when we don’t want a big white car to hire, we end up with one?

On our last few trips to Adelaide to visit Sebastian, we have wanted something large enough for 3 people, 3 big suitcases, and a cat and all its accoutrements for our adventures into rural South Australia. But this time, on a visit for Sebastian’s graduation, we were only going to be pottering around the city so we specifically booked a small car. But no. We were upgraded to the large Haval SUV. Its only advantage is that it’s a hybrid so we’re not burning up too much fuel. Why do people buy these massive cars for commuting in the city? 



It’s a weekend of cars. Sebastian had a bingle in his 20 year old jeep (no humans damaged) and his insurance company have written it off so he and Susan went off traipsing around the car yards of Adelaide looking for a replacement. I didn’t volunteer to join them because my track record of buying second handcars is abysmal right up until my current one. There was the mini I bought from Betty where you could see the road through the holes in the floor. There was the yellow VW sedan that no one had the parts to fix. There was the brown and white Holden Torana which I onsold to Susan only to have it burst in flames while she was driving it. My only risk-free purchase is my current car, a Toyota Camry, which was bought new while I was at MTC and which I then paid for when I left. It’s the best type of second hand car - single owner, perfect service record, no known faults. And 15 years later it’s still going strong. One flat tyre. One sensor replacement. One fender replacement which wasn’t my fault. Whenever I’m recommending cars to other people (which is somewhat ironic given my history) it’s always a Toyota. Dull but reliable. And Toyota are using that as a selling point. Have you seen the new Toyota ad with the parade of old and new cars? https://youtu.be/D2neBbq23lo?si=RmTNIqjg64rqT-in 

Sebastian and Susan went off car shopping last Saturday morning and miraculously, within less than 3 hours, he had bought one. A rather lairy 2021 Subaru XV in a colour called plasma yellow pearl. How is it possible to make such a decision so quickly? 



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