Something new and different.... for me anyway

[hoover1060]

this may be old news already to some already, especially if you were in Omaha.
On Sept 10 I went to go to work, and turning the key on the Grand Marquis out in the driveway the car refused to start. Well it would start, it just refused to keep running.
So I called roadside assistance, and they towed the car to the local Lincoln-Mercury dealer in Schaumburg for repair.
I called in sick to work, called my parents to let them know where I was, and parked myself in the waiting room. A little while later, my dad showed up "just to see how it was going" (read he was bored)
Well dad being dad he roamed the showroom looking at the new cars. I commented on one model, and he encouraged a test drive.
So I did.
Well, 2.5 hours later, after some weeping and gnashing of teeth I no longer owned a Grand Marquis, I owned this instead. I drove it home Monday at noon, and Tuesday evening Michael, Fred and I departed for Omaha in it.
It was wonderful!
So here it is, my new ride...a 2008 Mercury Milan Premier V6
its the first NEW car I've had in 20 years!

 

[hoover1060]

front view

after I finished washing all the bugs off it from the trip to Nebraska

 

[hoover1060]

rear view

even a spoiler! First one of those I've ever had on a car!

 

[hoover1060]

driver's seat

this thing is loaded, and to think I chose it for its test drive just because it had a V6...I didn't look at anything else, didn't think I needed to!
This is also the first car I've had with a console shifter...after 26+ years of a steering column gear shift, this is taking some getting used to!
(I even caught Michael reaching for a column shifter once)

 

[rp2813]

Wow the IL DMV sure moves a lot faster than the one here in CA. It would take at least a month to get license plates here and usually a lot longer.

Ummm . . . "faster" being a relative term. I'm talking DMV after all.

 

[hoover1060]

and to say farewell...

This morning I had to stop by the dealer to make an appointment for service, so I had a chance to grab this with my phone.
Here's my Grand Marquis as it appeared on the lot this morning.
It was a good car, and heck it only had 47,100 miles on it when I traded it in!
Farewell faithful friend, may you serve your next owner as well as you served me!

 

[frigilux]

The Milan is a cousin to the Ford Fusion, right? They are the highest ranking US sedans in Consumer Reports, coming immediately after the Passat/Camry/Accord triumvirate. And they're getting great reliability ratings, too. Fantastic! Congratulations----there's nothing like a new car.

 

[~sudsshane]

Good for you Jeff!

Your new car is beautiful! My guess is it will be alot more efficient on gas. Good for you!!
I will be getting a new car myself soon. I would really like to continue buying American, but my other half is insisting I buy import. any suggestions?

 

[zipdang]

That's a very spiffy new car, Jeff! I hope it treats you well, and that you have lots of fun with it.

I envy how quick your purchase was. I'm planning on purchasing a new car in 2008, and I've already started narrowing down what I might get. It's an overwhelming and angst-ridden process. More power to you for getting it done quickly!

 

[selectomatic]

I still think bigger is better,

but I looked at Milans when my Town Car was in for service once. If I had to go smaller, I'd certainly consider one -- I think it's nicer looking than the Ford version, and it had a few exclusive options I'd insist on.

-kevin

BTW Ralph, In Illinois, like most states, the license plates belong to the person and they get transferred from car to car when we buy new ones. It took nearly three months to get new plates when I bought a second car here in Wisconsin.

 

[petek]

It's nice Jeff. The Mercury division was dropped in Canada about 5 years ago now iirc though they continued to sell the Grand Marquis and that ill-fated Cougar a while back in the Ford dealerships. Now I'm not sure if any are available. They were always just a little bit classier than their Ford cousins

 

[gansky1]

Very nice, Jeff! I didn't get to see it when you were here in Omaha. Are you getting used to the "downsized" sedan OK?

Best of luck with your new baby!

 

[toggleswitch]

Nice wheels Jeff!

~I would really like to continue buying American, but my other half is insisting I buy import. Any suggestions?

Only if he is paying for any part of it does he have ANY input, IMHO

Saturn is a subsiduary of GM, with a foreign look, feel and ride.

 

[alexb1186]

the story of how you got it is new to me

Nice car, Jeff. Does yours have the All Wheel Drive option or is it just Front Drive only? And I can relate to the shifter thing, I borrowed my mom's Kia earlier this year while my Fleetwood needed body work done, and I was nearly always shifting the wipers for awhile until I got the habit of the floor shifter

Gene, the Milan is the Mercury "near luxury" sibling to the Ford Fusion and "luxury" Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ, all built on the Ford CD3 platform that the Ford Edge, Lincoln MKX, and Mazda CX-9 crossovers share, just some fyi's

 

[~sudsshane]

Hi Steve..

"Only if he is paying for any part of it does he have ANY input, IMHO"

Well, that is not how we do things. We make all decisions together.What's his is mine and vice versa. It works for us...=)

 

[petek]

Well at our house sometimes it seems like what's mine is his and what's his is his. Most particularly when it comes to "his" Ram whenever I want to use it for something LOL

 

[~sudsshane]

Hi Pete

"Well at our house sometimes it seems like what's mine is his and what's his is his"

that happens sometimes with us too, but when you get down to it and all is said and done, what we have is ours.God forbid something happens to him everything goes to me and vice versa.
I truly believe that if gays and lesbians expect full equality in relationships, we should demonstrate that at home first and foremost. Our relationship to us is NO different that any heterosexual relationship~~ IMHO

 

[selectomatic]

My dad, and his dad before him, was a Ford Man.

When my mother wanted to buy a Honda with her own money, my dad didn't have any right to say a thing about it. Which is as it should be.

I, like my dad, prefer to drive big Fords. What my mother drives is her own decision.

I wouldn't be caught dead owning a minivan, but my roommate loved his first one so much that he replaced it with another when it died. He loves to drive my huge luxury car, and I love it when he uses his minivan to haul my latest treasures. That way we're both happy.

Symbiotic relationships work best. You get yours, I get mine, and we all benefit from the whole scheme.

-kevin

 

[~sudsshane]

Kevin~

"When my mother wanted to buy a Honda with her own money, my dad didn't have any right to say a thing about it. Which is as it should be"

for them perhaps,but not for everyone..