Do you have more cars than you need?

[jordanb]

As inspired by the "What kind of car do you drive?" thread, and the exciting sequal, "Do you have too many maps in your car?"

My answer: No.

 

[Chet]

As inspired by the infamous senator from Texas,

"Ah Hay-uve mooah caahs than I neeeed, buuut less caahs thun I wawnt."

 

[el Guapo]

Maybe

I have one car per driver in our two-car family, and maybe we have more cars than we need. I'd like to share a car with my wife but she is not there yet. If my work had a shower I'd bike commute on most days. When you operate at the bottom of the used car market old car reliability is enhanced by multiplication.

I think buying a new car (even a EV) is more of a eco-sin than driving a used SUV. It just encourages disposable cars to be manufacutured. Cars could easily be made to last MUCH longer if more people found longevity of value. Cars should be upgradeable as far as safety features and should not be thrown away like last years GAP wardrobe.

 

[BKM]

Just one car, unless I win the lottery tonight and an Audi S4 joins my stable. No way would my dogs ride in my new S4

 

[Seabishop]

My answer: No.

We know!

I don't like driving everywhere and if I were a college student in Chicago I wouldn't have a car either. But, how many places in the country have good, comprehensive transit systems?

No, I don't have too many cars. I need one to get to work and so does my wife. We can't car pool or take transit. We can't realistically move to a location where we can take transit all the time. Where we are now is served by buses but the route doesn't help either of us.

 

[donk]

If I had the money, I'd have multiple cars.

i'd have a fun summer car, a winter beater and possibly a beat up pick up truck for those days when you need a truck. Since the jetta is paid off, I am considering the summer fun car option. Just have to wait and see if I am moving or not.

If I ever have to move to Milwaukee or environs, I now know who to call when I need a pickup.

 

[SGB]

No. We have one car per liscensed driver in our household.

While we do have nearby access to public transit, our divergent commuting patterns and shared parental responsibilities (read: daycare drop-off/pick-up) make use unlikely.

 

[tsc]

yes,,, 3 cars... 2 people.

We both hate the process of selling and buying cars...and rational for keeping Volvo gas hog as commuter car.... is lame. (If I keep her long enough (the Cube) ... she will be a classic 1991)

 

[Downtown]

Maybe - we have one car per driver, but really only need 1.5 cars for our household. 90% of the time, Rob and I commute to work together, and every single good or service we ever purchase/utilitize is within a 5 mile radius of our house, so our one car gets maybe 5,000 miles a year on it, and that's mostly me driving home to visit my folks in Syracuse.

 

[michaelskis]

I only have once car. My GF’s parents, yes. They have a Lexus SUV, Jeep, Ford Ranger, and a Mazda Miata, for just the two of them.

I would like to get another car at some point in my life.

Jordanb, do you have a car? If I lived in downtown Chi town, I wouldn’t. I have a friend that lives over by the Melrose stop on the blue line, she just sold her car because she did not drive it at all since last November.

 

[nerudite]

We have two cars in our household, and it's very much a necessity due to our disparate schedules. Bus service to/from the town I work in to Edmonton is pretty much non-existent for 'reverse commuters'. It's great for people living outside the city and commuting into Edmonton, but really bad the other way around.

I drive right by BME's work every day, and I've thought of commuting to work with him, but the reality of night meetings vs. having to pick the kids up at daycare at 5:00 p.m. every day just doesn't jive. Maybe someday though...

 

[OhioPlanner]

We have two, one per driver. But we really need one plus a car sharing program. I usually walk or ride the bus, but need a car at least one work day per week.

Too bad we don't have a car sharing program. Although our regional planning agency is working on developing a pilot program.

 

[biscuit]

Nope. I just have the one and she only really gets driven on the weekends or roadtrips anymore. Since she has a car payment and I don't, my fiance and I have talked about going to one vehicle after we get married. That way we could hopefully buy something a little higher end than what we each have now. The battle will be settling on what to get.

 

[Plannerbabs]

Yes, my goodness, yes, but it's sort of justifiable. We have the Subie, the Golf, and a bohemoth F350 full-length cargo van that mr. plannerbabs, who's a musician, uses to haul his pa system in. it sits in the driveway most days of the week, and he drives the subie, which gets much better gas mileage. and the van and subie are nearly ours . as much as i love driving, though, i'd love to be able to take transit to work. ahh, to sit back, drink coffee, read, and just get there without fuming about idiot drivers.

 

[SkeLeton]

Just 1 car (the rattlesnake EcoSport)... you know... they're kind of expensive here... and gas isn't particulary cheap, nor the permits and insurance....

 

[JNL]

In my flat (or sharehouse or whatever you foreigners call them) I am the only one with a car; Texan flatmate has a motorbike and the other sold her car before moving in. She gets around on public transport quite happily. I would like to get rid of mine too but public transport is crap out to where I work.

 

[otterpop]

Right now we have two cars and one licensed driver. My old Subaru is now sitting idle on the street. The plan was for my wife to learn to drive this year, and for her to drive it. That did not happen. So the Subaru will sit there til snow flies, then I will get her back on the road, because we need its 4WD in town and my Honda will sit idle in the driveway on those days the roads are snowy or icy. So I guess technically I don't have tmore cars than I need. I need them both at different times.

 

[Plannerbabs]

Another subaru! Can we get a poll going to see how many of us have subies, running or otherwise?

 

[iamme]

I would be happy to give up my car (even though I love my Jetta) but public transport doesn't run as late as I work. I work for a distribution company and when I get off work is sporadic. Most nights about 12 but I have stayed until 5 am on a few rare occasions. I'm way too far for bicycling ot be viable that late. Otherwise I use my bike, feet, and UPASS for my errands, getting to school, etc.

 

[Zoning Goddess]

One driver, one car.

 

[Cardinal]

It's just me and my Subaru. I sometimes think it would be nice to have a pickup truck as a second car. I have too many times when the ability to carry things in the bed would come in handy. When I had a truck, I kept wishing for a sedan to carry passengers. The hybrids - trucks with full seating for four and a tiny bed - make no sense to me. As passenger vehicles you have no trunk to store things out of the weather. As a truck you do not have any ability to haul large things, like a sofa or plywood.

 

[Jessie-J]

I am looking to buy a car. So all you people with too many cars on your hands.....giddyup. I don't want to spend more than $1000 and it just needs to get me from A to B and have working heat. Reliability a must. I'm in St. Louis so I'd be willing to drive no more than a 5 hour radius. More if you're some place REALLY cool that I want to visit anyway.

C'mon, I'm making this too easy for you.

 

[kms]

Two drivers, two cars. Three busy kids, three different directions. I guess that two cars are not too many.

 

[prudence]

I have three cars and a motorcycle. One car for summer, one for winter, and one in storage becoming a classic. The motorcycle is for whenever the weather is nice...

Yes, they all are for one person.

 

[martini]

Three cars for two drivers. So I guess I 'have too many', but one is currently inoperable. Conversely, I have 14 bikes, does that make up for my extravegance in cars?

My parents though are car hogs. Two daily drivers. One towing vehicle, and four hotrods. For two people.

 

[Tranplanner]

One car, two people. My wife still hasn't mastered the standard transmission (she doesn't want to learn in Toronto driving conditions). She better learn before we get that Mini!

 

[The Irish One]

one car

 

[Mud Princess]

Yes: my car, his car, and his "summer"/project car. That's what I get for being married to someone in the automotive industry. And if he had his way, we'd probably have a 2nd project car right now.

 

[MD Planner]

We've got three for two drivers. I don't consider it too many though. My "summer/weekend" vehicle is a 1984 Jeep Scrambler. Nothing better than to take off the top and doors and go drive on the beach!

 

[El Feo]

Nope - 1 for me, 1 for the wife. We go separate ways every morning, though I typically just drive to the commuter rail lot.

BUT...

I'm not sure I get the concept of "too many." I mean, it's not like I can drive more than 1 at a time...

 

[Queen B]

Two drivers, two cars and the old beater Ford truck for haulin' stuff in. I don't think that is to many!