Today, we discuss how to do your part in a consumer driven, materialistic economy without being repeatedly taken to the cleaners by savvy mattress salesmen and the like. There’s no trick to it. It’s just a simple trick.
There is one battle-tested, solid gold, consumer tactic that will never fail to deliver value. Across the board, whether you’re shopping for clothing or a car, this little gem is guaranteed to deliver savings. It’s simple really. I’ve used it all my life, and it has never failed me.
Want stuff most people don’t want.
That’s it. Simply be fundamentally different in your desires than the vast majority of the people surrounding you, and you’ll never be far off from the yellow brick road to value. Nothing reflects the truth of this consumer philosophy more than the purchase of big ticket items.
Recently, I’ve been forced to begin the process of purchasing a car. For two decades the wife and I have gotten by swimmingly with one vehicle. Alas, our boys are soon to complicate the matter. With a third driver merging into young adulthood, the time has come to add a second gas-snarling, budget-gobbling monstrosity to the driveway. (Or to the street in-front of the house. We don’t really have a driveway.)
Call me strange, call me lucky, but I’ve never seen automobiles in the same light as most North Americans. For my first car, I was given the option of a police-auctioned Ford Mustang SSP. But I really, really wanted a Volvo 240 GL. That tiny, European four-banger was capable of 30 miles to the gallon during an era of land yachts more likely to be discussed in gallons per mile. It had the highest safety ratings. The engine was so straight forward and well-constructed the vehicles routinely lasted over 200,000 miles while American car companies stumbled over themselves to introduce planned obsolescence in the most dramatic fashion possible.
As a result, I drove that 1984 Volvo until the year 2006 when, after accumulating 240,000 miles, Blue Lightning threw a rod and died in spectacular form. Even when the wife and I upgraded to the more popular Toyota Highlander Hybrid (such granolas we are!), we scored a discount by flying to Wisconsin to buy the only 2-wheel drive version of the popular SUV I could find. Why would anyone in their right mind want a 2-wheel drive version of a 4-wheel drive SUV? A person who doesn’t want the added expense and headache of the unnecessary universal joints, that’s who. And let’s be real, how many times have I actually needed 4-wheel drive over the fourteen years I’ve spent driving the Highlander? Four times. Maybe five. Did I die as a result of not having the optional 4-wheel drivetrain? Not that I’m aware of.
This time around, my odd consumer preferences are paying off again. It appears I have succeeded in finding the plug-in hybrid model that has depreciated the most over the last five years (probably due to being ugly, poorly marketed, and overpriced to begin with), the Ford C-Max Energi. Hello my below-market-value sweety. I think I’m in love. And my pocket book (who even uses these things anymore?) is pretty okay with you as well.
At the Desk This Week
I’m on vacation! And I’m still writing this email. That’s just how I vacation. Chill Montana mornings and late Montana nights. Hikes, fishing, and rednecks waterslides in between. Hope you are staying cool out there.
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