Why didn’t anyone tell me…

I know I’m not alone in this one, but I bring it up because today was the day that I take the late morning to polish/glaze/wax my car, which is twice-a-year occurrence. Waxing is quarterly, but this job potentially eats into the clearcoat a touch, so you treat it like dentist visits.

The car is 11 years old (12 if you figure they actually make the ’97s during ’96). It’s never had paint redone on it, no bodywork (although the front bumper needs repainting for all the chips), and never been in an accident. The previous owner lived across the street from work, so this was her toy car. I picked it up for my daily driving car. It’s a 1997 M3 automatic sedan, luxury package (means more leather, wood trim bits, less sporty seats, cooler wheels). I pulled up next to a 1-2 year old Acura in the parking lot today, and my car looks newer. My wheels are clean, my leather still looks good, my glass is clean, and most obvious of all, the paint on my car reflects the sky like a mirror. The wheels on my car match the paint (their idea, not mine), they shine as much as the paint (wheel wax), they look like part of the package. The interior of my car is nearly empty – no permanent additions like tissue boxes, litter bags, organizer sacks, etc. The two addons I have are custom built gizmo holders to hang my GPS and my iPod/iPhone on, and look like OEM stuff. Very classy and all the wires are out of view. The leather matches and they don’t interfere with other things in the car. I’ve also added some of the more modern conveniences, like a bluetooth hands free kit (Parrot) and a radar detector. The detector is another story I’ll get back to one day, but there’s not really enough room to speed in the bay area, so don’t think of me as a speed demon and we’ll leave it there for now.

The paint on the Acura looked more like the paint on my old Honda del sol – grime layered on grime, baked by the sun into a cake of scum and grit. The wheels looked like the wheels on most cars these days – grey and no gloss or shine. Nothing interesting, but nothing derogatory. The interior was already showing signs of neglect and damage – the seats had box corners permanently indented, the bolsters were starting to show more age than mine do, and the rear deck (where the speakers poke up) was faded slightly by the sun. This car in three more years will be sold or traded up for another, and will look truly awful.

My car is still doing quite well for all its miles and years, and looks a far sight better, no matter what the blue book value is ($7250, ouch).

Now, I ask you, why do I bother? Some will insist that even though my car looks better, the miles and age and blue book value, above all the blue book value, will win out, and that I shouldn’t waste my time. Well, I see it another way. Consider not the value of the car as it is when I sell it, but the value in what it would take to replace it with an equivalent. How much would it cost me to buy a luxury sports car that is in essentially 2 years used condition for the body and interior with about 200 more kilomiles left on the operating bits? Especially one that should be not only reasonably reliable, but look good enough that I can live with it for that long. I’ve been looking recently (see previous posts), and the answer is somewhere in the 30-45 k$ range. Considering that I bought this car for 21 k$ and figure I can still use it for another 4 years without trouble, I consider the investment in keeping it looking good a very minor thing. Plus, insane as it sounds, I rather like doing it.

In a similar vein, consider maintenance on a house/condo/etc. Not even upgrades, just simple maintenance. Keeping the carpet shampooed. Keeping the walls in fresh paint. That kind of thing. A well maintained house is a serious investment, but over the ones that are definitely not maintained, you’re going to be happier with it, even if the difference in depreciation/appreciation is not as big. I’m less concerned with the monetary aspect than the enjoyment aspect. I spent an hour or two on Saturday shampooing the heaviest-use areas of our carpet, and what a difference it made. Is the carpet worth more? Is the house worth more? No. Do I cringe every time I see it any more? Goodness no. And that’s worth more to me.

Similarly to the car. Is it worth more than the new grungy Acura? Heavens no. Is it faster? Probably not. But do I appreciate it more than the Acura owner?