I didn’t intend to bore you again with my little automobile problems, but as my fellow columnist shared his on 98.5 on Paul Arcand’s show this week, I said to myself, well, why not me , on the network of my darling coops?
Especially since our stories are similar in several aspects, the parallel seems interesting enough to me to be highlighted.
First common point, the flat.
Him, returning from dinner at the wheel of his Tesla. Me, returning (unlikely) from a Home Depot in Brunette’s 2013 Honda Fit.
Another similarity: neither of them realizes at the time that they are driving over a puncture.
For him, it’s his vehicle’s computer that alerts him to a drop in pressure in one of his wheels. For me, it’s a guy in his beat-up van who honks at me, before moving to my right, at a red light. He rolls down his window: “You have a soft tire on the back, on the left, my friend!” By his accent, I would say someone from Eastern Europe.
It also seemed like something was wrong with the handling, but the streets are so bad in my area, I attributed the bumpy ride to the condition of the pavement and the car’s tired suspension, which squeak-squeak.
Third similarity, neither the Tesla nor the Honda has a spare tire.
In the case of the Fit it’s, I believe, a question of space. This compact is known for its astonishing loading capacity, once the seats are folded. I also deplore the disappearance of this very practical model with reasonable proportions. On the other hand, when you drive over a nail, you have to turn to a temporary inflation kit (I found out later, by searching on the Web), then manage to get to the nearest garage.
After several unsuccessful calls, I found a small garage run by an Italian capable of welcoming the Fit within the hour, three kilometers from where I was. I was able to get there on my flat tire. Cost of my mishap: $28. If I had been on the highway, it would have cost me a tow truck.
As for the electric car, at least on the model of our protagonist, the spare wheel is replaced by a “24-hour” assistance service, accessible through the Tesla application. After an initial contact, communication continues by text messages, in English.
This is the tasty bit in the anecdote from the author of Do you really need it? First, he learns by text that it will cost him more than $500 if the tire needs to be changed. Five hundred dollars for a single new tire! I still have my last St-Hubert double-thigh dry for $24 stuck in my throat, am I the one who’s made it cheap?
The accountant picked up his tank the next day, the tire was repaired for $177, taxes included. As electric cars are heavier than gasoline vehicles, they require special tires, explains the colleague to his listeners, which I have difficulty recognizing in this story.
I sent him a message after hearing his story, delayed, to express my astonishment. What is Pierre-Yves McSween doing with an expensive Tesla when he has always advocated the purchase of used cars, ideally rudimentary, which cost much less to maintain and insure?
Obviously, he explains to me all the financial logic behind his choice, starting with the context in which he changed cars, when used vehicles were sold at or almost the price of new ones.
And then, the purchase of a relatively luxurious car does not contravene the spirit of the teachings of our friend McSween, those contained in his second book, Freedom 45. Once you have accumulated enough assets that they generate more return than you can put aside yourself, you are free to do many things, including driving in the car you like, without moving. crazy either.
“Between you and me,” McSween said, “if you buy a Tesla before you have accumulated your down payment for your first home, it’s a bit of a tata…”
Pierre-Yves McSween leaves his morning hut, following the departure of Paul Arcand, the king of the airwaves, after nine years on the most listened to show in the province. During that time, he published three personal finance bestsellers and piloted television shows in the same niche, at Télé-Québec, not to mention his conferences.
I know he can get on the nerves of many people, starting with my hairdresser who spends like there is no tomorrow, but no one has succeeded like him in raising public awareness about personal finance issues. . He gets up at an indecent hour for the last time on June 21. I wanted to greet him. Thank you and well done.
As for me, I’m staying. I still can’t afford to drive a Tesla.
Car Insurance
Speaking of cars, a reader wrote to me about this recently. Mario wonders why pay for liability insurance on each of his three vehicles that he is the only one to use when he can only drive one at a time.
Exactly, what is the idea of having three tanks if you only need one to move? He retorts that we don’t all live in condominiums in the city, implying that the reality of the countryside requires a van for the woodlot and a car for traveling. OK. And the third? A sports car, for pleasure, in addition to a motorcycle, which costs as much in insurance as its three other vehicles combined.
Answer, basically: because our civil liability can be engaged even if we are not behind the wheel of the vehicle, in Canada and the United States.
Another one still much richer than me.
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