Here’s my situation-
Saturday before last (4/12/14), I was t-boned at intersection by a drunk driver. I was making a left turn and had the green arrow and he ran the red light at 45-50mph and plowed into the passenger side of my car. Thankfully I no one was in the car with me and, amazingly, I walked away with some bruises and some burns on the left arm and left side of my face from the side-impact and side-curtain airbags.
My 2014 Mazda6, which I had just leased back in January, is totaled. My insurance company has already paid the claim to the leasing company because the drunk driver’s insurance company is trying to deny coverage because he was intoxicated. My insurer paid the actual cash value toward the lease balance out of my Uninsured Motorist (which has $0 deductible) and the balance of the lease contract from my GAP coverage.
I’ve owned 15 cars in my 24 years of driving and this was the first one I have ever leased. The only reason was because I got a great subsidized lease deal. I already owned a 2012 Mazda CX-9 SUV, so I qualified for a $1500 Owner Loyalty Incentive and used that as the lease down payment ($0 out of pocket). My payment was only $274/month for 36 months and with a 15k/year allowance. To lease the same exact car now would require a $2400 down payment and it would cost $301 plus tax and tag/title fees per month ($340-ish). No thanks!
My Mazda6 was the mid-grade Touring model, but to get the same color that I had (a grayish-blue color called Blue Reflex with Black interior) I’ll have to get the top-level Grand Touring model. I can get one for about $27,500 ($31,390 MSRP) and with $4000 down my payments will be $428/month for 60 months at 0.9% APR. Technically, I can afford the payment, but I have never had a car payment over $350/month and I’m much happier keeping it closer to $300. If I spend $21,500 on a 2012-2013 slightly used car and put the same $4000 down, I’d pay $316/month for 60 months at 3.49%.
I’m very picky when it comes to cars and there are only a handful of 2012-2013 models in my price range that interest me. I like the 2012-2013 Mazda6, a 2012-2013 Acura TSX V6 or TSX Sport Wagon and the 2013 Honda Accord. The Acura and Honda models are pretty tough to find close to my goal price of $21,500. I’ve found a Certified Pre-Owned 2012 Mazda6 Grand Touring V6 that I like with only 17,500 miles on it. The dealer had it priced at $22,995 and I offered $20,500 IF I decided to buy it and they agreed.
I also found a 2012 Acura TSX V6 that I absolutely LOVE! It’s the exact color I would choose if I had bought it new- Graphite Luster (Dark Gray) with Ebony Leather. It also has the Technology Package which adds Navigation with Real Time Traffic & Weather and a rockin’ 415-watt 10-speaker Acura/ELS Premium Sound System with subwoofer and amplifier. It only has 19,200 miles on it and it is priced at $22,995, but I got the price down to $21,200 on the spot and they called to offer it for $20,795 the day after my test drive. It’s a steal for this particular car but there’s one minor issue……
The car was involve hit in the right rear corner last year and there was just enough impact on the right rear door to trigger the side airbags! I have always avoided any car that has been in accident severe enough to deploy the airbags, but it has always been frontal airbags. If the crash is severe enough to make the front airbags pop, there has obviously been major damage. There’s a good chance of frame damage and any mechanical components that didn’t get replaced (A/C compressor and/or other A/C components, transmission, engine itself, electrical systems, alternator, power steering pump and anything else under the hood) may fail prematurely. They aren’t designed to take a hard hit, but if they remain functional after the accident, they don’t get replaced. I had an accident in 1997 and the airbags deployed but the damage estimate was barely $1000 away from totaling the car. So it was repaired and I was stuck with it for several years and always worried that the replacement airbag might not work if I had another accident. The car always felt very “loose” after that and it was just 14 months old when it was crashed. So I’ve always avoided cars with frontal airbag deployment history….
But this Acura has me on the fence, so to speak. I drove it for over an hour and then I spent almost 90 minutes in the dealer’s parking lot crawling underneath the area that was repaired, taking the trunk apart to see the quality the repair from the back side and going over the whole car with a fine-tooth comb. I didn’t find any red flags and the painted area was matched and blended perfectly. My brother-in-law has been the manager at a body shop at a Honda/Acura dealership for 21 years. The selling dealer is letting me take the car for the day tomorrow so I can have his expert eye scrutinize it. Then I’m taking it to my mechanic who knows is a former Certified Honda Master Mechanic for 12 years prior to opening his own shop. If both of them give it their blessing, I REALLY want to buy it this weekend!!!
What do you guys think I should do?