It's been a tough year, I miss my FX...

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patrick_b

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I've always worked in sales, primarily biotech but started in big pharma in the mid-late 90's. Most big pharma companies provide company vehicles. I've had more iterations of Ford Taurus's & Chevy Lumina's than I can count. Once I started working for the smaller biotech's, I thankfully ended up with a car allowance.

I always put a lot of miles on vehicles so I never thought to buy something nice until I bit the bullet and bought my new FX35 in 08. I loved it!! My car allowance was ~$1k/month plus gas. When Super hit $4, I couldn't care less. I would even expense a full interior & exterior detail twice a year. Things were GREAT. I took advantage of the 0% APR and even bought a set of pre-owned 18" alloys and mounted Wintersport M3's. I LOVED that vehicle!

Last year, I got a job offer from another small biotech company which was just too good to pass on. Everything about the new position was great...except I had to go back to a company vehicle. So in July last year I had a 2011 Ford Taurus delivered to my door. To be fair, it's much nicer than the Taurus's I had in the 90's...but it is a Ford Taurus after all. It's like driving a couch.

I initially convinced my wife to keep the FX and sell her minivan. Things are again great...I get a free car and get to keep my beloved FX. Sadly. my excitement was short lived.

Fast forward 6 months and my wife hates the FX (too small, hard to get the kids in/out, etc.) and trades it for another Grand Caravan. In her defense, she does cart our two kids (7 & 4 y/o) & their friends around a lot and sure those dual doors are practical and the DVD players are nice on long trips, but is my FX really...sniff, sniff...gone...?

The used car manager at the Chrysler dealer took one look at my well cared for FX and bought it for himself. He even tried to get me to throw in the snow tires and wheels (HA...no way buddy, not for free). My wife is happy again. She no longer worries about getting "my" car dirty and full of sand every week in the summer (we live a few min from the beach) and the kids can eat in the car without me cringing.

In the grand scheme of things, it's not a problem that I should be complaining about. When Mom's happy...everybody's happy :)

But I do miss my FX. Every time I see one, I ache...especially when I'm in my Taurus.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Ah you're in a tough situation. Head to the "members rides" thread for some remedy...
 
Having had 5 kids I can totally relate to your plight. I had to laugh about the eating in the car and sand mess. We had a Chevy Astro Van and before that One of those Dodge 15 seater Vans that can transport a soccer team LOL. Kids can destroy anything. My wife had a Subaru GL-10 Turbo when we had only 2 kids and her Cassette player had quit working so when I looked at it I found that the kids had been using the tape player as a piggy bank it was full of coins.
We didn't even think about getting a nice ride like an FX untill all 5 kid's were grown up and had their own cars to drive. I think that's one of the reasons I love the FX so much (All the years of waiting to get something nice!!!)

P.S. Wifey loves the FX too (Happy Wife Happy Life):tup:
 
Sounds to me like you need to buy yourself your "own" car, perhaps a weekender that only you enjoy, minus the wife and kids?
 
sir21 said:
Ah you're in a tough situation. Head to the "members rides" thread for some remedy...
Click to expand...

That's exactly what I needed! I haven't checked out that section in months. Infiniti really got it right with the new gen FX.

MTN FX said:
Having had 5 kids I can totally relate to your plight...
...P.S. Wifey loves the FX too (Happy Wife Happy Life):tup:
Click to expand...

That is so damn true. Not sure why it took me so long to figure that out. Life is much easier when my wife gets her way :)

AlohaRacing said:
Sounds to me like you need to buy yourself your "own" car, perhaps a weekender that only you enjoy, minus the wife and kids?
Click to expand...

Great idea!!

Thanks for all the comments guys. I'll have to live vicariously through you guys for the time being.
 
Is there even the possibility of 3 cars in your household? If not, perhaps you can surprisingly find yourself with your wife at an Infiniti dealership in a few/several months after the JX comes out. Or, maybe Q?
Covert planning in motion?
(minivans are so damn handy though. I still couldn't drive one.)
 
porkandbeans said:
Is there even the possibility of 3 cars in your household? If not, perhaps you can surprisingly find yourself with your wife at an Infiniti dealership in a few/several months after the JX comes out. Or, maybe Q?
Covert planning in motion?
(minivans are so damn handy though. I still couldn't drive one.)
Click to expand...

Damn...I like the way you think...calculating. As MTN FX mentioned, I figure once the kids get a bit older, I can revisit the minivan issue. I don't know how I thought the FX could serve as a long term replacement for her 08 minivan. We traded in a Mercedes SUV to get the Grand Caravan in the first place in 08. She loves the practicality of the damn things.

I'm with you, as convenient as they can be...I just can't bear to drive it. Speaking of practicality, in addition to two separate DVD players, it even has a friggin hard drive in it. That surprised the hell out of me!!
 
When I was a kid, my parents had a Mercedes and I destroyed the interior casette player, removed and lost the knobs, etc etc etc.
 
A Taurus sounds pretty nice compared to the company car I get... '10 Chrysler Sebring. At least I get to drive the FX on weekends.
 
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