A friend asked me, "Should I buy a new or used car?"

Being in the car business in a previous life, as a fixer, a teacher, and a seller, I shifted into sales mode. "You have to realize that used cars are sitting on a lot for a reason. There are few, if any, that are there because they are running perfectly and are paid for. Some reasons are legitimate, like a death or birth in a family, or some other change, but all used cars have a history, and like your ancestors, not all the history is good."

He sagely nodded his head to indicate that he was listening, but his arms folded across his chest told another story. He was closed, had his mind made up to buy used, not new, and I was wasting my breath, so he thought. This is not the first time I have made this argument, and besides, he did ask.

Watching the nodding head only, I plunged on. "When you are in a new car, you are driving on the best miles, the new ones. You are driving those miles under warranty. These are the carefree miles. You can drive anywhere without worrying about anything, and if something does break you are covered. They will even come get you off the road!"

He was still nodding, arms crossed. I was wasting my breath. I stayed quiet; holding my last shot in my gun, knowing what was coming next.

"That is all well and good," he began, "but how do you justify the huge loss in deprecation the moment you drive off the lot?"

He was right, and there is no answer to that. You have to weigh the options, the pros and cons as I outlined, and make a decision. That is pretty much where we were before he asked, he has his opinion, and I have mine. What works for me, may not work for him, but as I said, I had one more bullet in my gun. Ready-aim…

"Good point, but there is one thing a new car has that a used one will never, and cannot ever have, and no amount of money can buy it."

"Yeah," his interest was piqued, "and what is that?" He asked with a smirk, thinking he had me and that there was no refutation of his argument. The harder they smirk, the harder they fall.

"The smell," I answered, trying not to lord my victory over him.

"The smell?"

I could see him fraying at the edges, and with a look of pure innocence, I answered as I fired my bullet into his unsuspecting heart, "The smell of a new car."

He was silent.

I continued. "No amount of washing and detailing can ever recover that once-in-a-car's-lifetime smell. The new only lasts about a year, maybe a little longer, but once it is gone, it is gone, and some argue, it is time to trade it in," I winked, "and get a new one."   

 The gambit was so well played, that my friend, or maybe he will now be known as an acquaintance, could only thank me for my time and walk away.

I climbed into my perfectly good, three year old car and inhaled. Oh no, it didn't stink, but it sure wasn't new. I was impaled on my own sword. It was time.

I took a new car home for the Admiral to see, knowing exactly what was going to happen. She gave me every argument there was on why we did not need a new car and all of them valid. She wasn't angry, but she wasn't happy either.

"Please," I asked, fighting to suppress a knowing smile, "just sit in it."

She did.  I watched as she breathed in the essence. "Can't beat the smell of a new car, can you? How much did you say they wanted for this?"  Works every time.

Take a deep breath…hold it. Yeah, you are on your way.

 David Wilson Atwood is a local writer whose human-interest columns offer a unique perspective. He may be contacted, at: www.starchasers.us, or david@starchasers.us