Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
What I would do would be to allow him to trade the Escape in on a smaller, newer vehicle. However, he would have to pay the difference. I would not cover it for him. I would tell him your support for his transport needs has already been taken care of by giving him the 06 Escape. Of course, I would also talk to him about how his time to get his "dream" car is likely after college, and his primary focus should be getting a good education so he can afford the cars he wants in the future.
I agree his arguments are just building a case. An 06 Escape is just 174 inches long, which is shorter than a 4 door Civic of that era at 176. It is simply Not a big vehicle. It may be taller, but usually thats not a problem with city parking (tends to be an advantage with better visibility).
Gas mileage is not too terrible. College students generally are not doing enough driving for it to make a big difference anyway.
Plus, trading used for used sometimes means bringing in someone elses problems. Your often better off with the devil you know.
There are some cases where it does work out. I made the change a few years ago and it made sense for me. I started driving 3-400 miles a week. My Cherokee was only getting 12MPG as it was 100% city. The Focus got 29MPG city. Huge difference.
But, for someone that only drives 5000-6000 miles a year ... Also ,remember, that a 10 year old Ford Escape isn't worth anything. A F350 Diesel is worth quite a bit ... even more so than a Honda Fit. Depending on mileage, etc, he probably MADE money selling the truck and gets better mileage ... lower maintenance (oil, filters, tires)
Actually, kept the truck because he needed it for work and supplemented the daily driver duties with the Fit. Ford only hits the road when he needs a truck, daily driving the Fit in other cases.
Keep the Escape. Don't rock the boat. Let him go through the rigamarole when he's ready. Wife has an 07 Escape, well-maintained, and has lots of miles left on it at this rate. He'll be happy to have the AWD when the snow flies--and it will!
I don't even like the escape but my friends has 200k poorly maintained miles on his. Like said above you can buy a lot of gas for the price of a newer vehicle.
The car is paid off and whatever car we bought would be paid off. It wouldn't be new either. I really think he wants a very compact vehicle and could care less about 4WD. I also think he's only getting 18 mpg because it's just used around town and rarely on the interstate, etc.
I'm leaning toward keeping the 06 escape until he's out of school - then he can buy his own! Plus, you know it is going to get horribly dinged up at college and probably half his friends will be constantly begging to drive it.
I agree with the last part. The Escape is not very big. So unless you are talking about a Smart or Fiat 500 the typical compact car is hardly smaller than the Escape.
If his driving would be short distance, gas mileage really will have little effect on his fuel bill.
College campuses are hard on cars. Even if your son is a careful, perfect driver there is a good chance he is surrounded by idiots. One thing useful too about the Escape - high ground clearance means he can gently hop a curb if he needs to to get somewhere.
If you do the math on this, keeping the 06 is the ONLY way to go. Even if he doubled his mpg, the cost of the new vehicle, plus higher insurance costs, etc., make this a no brainer. You mentioned you would pay cash for it? Invest the money instead! He is in college. He does not need nor require a new vehicle and you as the parent shouldn't be catering to his needs. He is supposed to be learning how to live life on his own.
I have a 2007 Ford Escape with 83,000 miles and it gets good gas mileage because it's a four cylinder engine with no 4x4. I went everywhere in Michigan in the winter and never had a problem with getting stuck in the snow.
I think he should have the freedom to drive whatever he wants to within the price range, so long as it is safe and reliable. If he can trade in the Escape on something of equal value, so be it. If he wants to sell the Escape and use THAT money to buy something else, sounds reasonable.
Carmax will give me 6,000 dollars for my 2007 Ford Escape with 83,000 miles which is great compared to a regular car dealer.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
