Sell your car

Some one in the "Awesome Cyclists" discussion mentioned wanting to sell their car, but that it wasn't germane to the thread. I have been on the verge of selling mine for a long time. I'd be interested in hearing stories of others who finally took the plunge and sold their car. Any thoughts or advice?

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Permalink Reply by Mark Kenseth on October 8, 2009 at 8:39am
Oh, hey Howard. That was me, Elston and Webster. Nice memory. I find myself often at Elson and Webster (Webster is one of my favorite secret passage streets), thinking 'I remember this corner.'

How are you? I notice your discussions often. Nice to know that I know you. :)

I tell everyone about riding around in the middle of the night in Chicago, marking the bike route. It was peaceful and beautiful. It's something everyone should do (perhaps just the riding around at 2am part).

Also, I got a bike trailer (you inspired me). But it's not as grand as yours. Mine is an old wooden crate from Japan I found at work. I had a guy put some wheels on it and gloss it up. A real beaut, but a little heavy and slightly fragile, with a very rigid pipe set-up that hooks up to my bike (there's no give and take when going over bumps). Now I just need to find some reflectors for it.

Anyway. Nice discussing things with you. See you around.

Mark

h3 said:
Oh, Heya Mark-- I just dug through some old e-mail for you and realized you helped with route marking last year-- we met up at Elston and Webster I think.
Yours,
Howard
Permalink Reply by Mark Kenseth on October 8, 2009 at 8:42am
i 3rd this.

Gin said:
I 2nd Howard's comments about not shopping around for the best price. I support my nearby businesses, and am so grateful to be able to take care of most of my routine "needs" within a 5 mile radius.

h3 said:
Re: extra cash:
Used to drive around looking for the best price on something . . . now I buy if I'm there and the price is reasonably reasonable and I have a way to transport whatever it is, and the thousands I save each year on car ownership make up for any missed sale prices many many times over.

JFred4 said:
Sold my car in March. What a relief!! I am so much happier without the monthly payments, insurance, gas etc!
Plus I love the new bike I bought with all that extra CASH
Permalink Reply by Liz W. Durham on October 9, 2009 at 7:10am
Car-free for just over a year. After my car sat and sat throughout a Spring and Summer I took the plunge. It was a great decision! I am not a publice transportation fan but will take it if absolutely necessary. I had already been a winter rider for 4 years so that wasn't an impediment in my thinking. I know many are scared off of being car-free due to winter but don't be! It is easier than you might think.

I occasionally cheat by getting into my husband's car with him. Also, I just had a couple of months of minimal riding as my son was outgrowing his seat (he is 3). Now that I have my new bike we are back in the saddle. Woohoo! Riding a longtail bike means I can easily haul my son plus lots and lots of groceries or whatever I might need to transport. I love the feeling of independence and freedom that comes with being self-propelled. Even a ride in the rain is generally more enjoyable than sitting in a car in traffic in the rain.

Only rarely do I miss my car...like when the wee one is under the weather, it is crappy out and we have somewhere to go. And I occasionally have car envy for no good reason at all. It isn't that I want to drive certain cars, it is just that I want to own them just in case...
Permalink Reply by Brendan on October 9, 2009 at 11:16am
Clark said:It's like quitting smoking...the longer you go, the less you'll miss it. And the better you'll feel. After 30 years of non-ownership I enjoy every day I don't have to worry about that car at the curb: theft, vandalism, dealing with mechanics, cost, parking...etc, etc
Well similar to quitting smoking I have announced my plans to quit my car to all interested parties. Including the internet, apparently.
Permalink Reply by Eric R on October 9, 2009 at 11:28am
Being car-free is the best. It was the main reason I chose moving to Chicago over St. Louis, I really wanted to live the car-free life. Four years ago I did the car-free thing in San Diego for 6 months, but that was extremely inconvenient as was the year-round awesome weather.

Also, the smugness eventually wears off.
Permalink Reply by Liz W. Durham on October 9, 2009 at 12:11pm
Hurray for you! And "they" say that the more you speak of your intenetion to make a specific change, the more likely you are to follow through on it. So go yell it from the rooftops.

"They" in this case being numerous researchers in the medical and psychological fields.

Brendan said:
Clark said:It's like quitting smoking...the longer you go, the less you'll miss it. And the better you'll feel. After 30 years of non-ownership I enjoy every day I don't have to worry about that car at the curb: theft, vandalism, dealing with mechanics, cost, parking...etc, etc
Well similar to quitting smoking I have announced my plans to quit my car to all interested parties. Including the internet, apparently.
Permalink Reply by HauntedMyst on October 12, 2009 at 6:35pm
Julie Hochstadter said:
I sold my car in April....it will be 6 months in two days! I joined zip and igo (need a car for work frequently) and they are great.

It's been super fun. I feel some weight lifted off my shoulders and never need to remember where I parked my car or put money in the meter, (although once I borrowed a friend's car, double parked it on my street, ran in to drop off groceries, and almost left the car outside for the night! I forgot I had a car in my possession.....)

Now the question is getting through the winter, but I pretty much did a test run last winter and survived!

Hi Julie,

As someone who needs a car for work frequently, how do you find the cost saving with zip and igo to actually be given that you have torent one often? One of my biggest deterents to dropping my car is that my car is really pretty inexpensive for me to own.

Anyone out there with kids picked up a cargo bike or xtracycle and found it to be an adequate replacement?
Permalink Reply by Steven R. Slater on October 12, 2009 at 7:18pm
http://bikewinter.org/

Julie Hochstadter said:
I sold my car in April....it will be 6 months in two days! I joined zip and igo (need a car for work frequently) and they are great.

It's been super fun. I feel some weight lifted off my shoulders and never need to remember where I parked my car or put money in the meter, (although once I borrowed a friend's car, double parked it on my street, ran in to drop off groceries, and almost left the car outside for the night! I forgot I had a car in my possession.....)

Now the question is getting through the winter, but I pretty much did a test run last winter and survived!
Permalink Reply by Stacy Grimes on October 13, 2009 at 6:52am
I got rid of my car this summer! and I dont regret it one bit. I plan on registering with IGO(http://www.igocars.org/) in case I need a car in a pinch but I haven't needed it yet.
Permalink Reply by Dr. Doom on October 13, 2009 at 5:30pm
I never even bothered to learn how to drive and it hasn't been any real inconvenience at all. I suppose I'm limited to living in places like Chicago, New York, Boston and San Francisco, but I can't imagine I'd want to live any place where I'd need to drive anyway. Mrs. Doom drives an IGO car to get bulk groceries three or four times a year and we'll do the odd rental to visit family in the suburbs but that's about it. It's an infinitely easier lifestyle and having several hundred extra dollars a month makes the cost of living a lot more tolerable.
Permalink Reply by Brendan on October 14, 2009 at 8:12am
Great tip. Thanks!

Brian Kennedy said:
Right toward the end of the year, i-Go usually runs a really nice deal on a 1-year membership. Monitor their site until December and watch for a price drop close to Christmas. I think I got in when it went all the way down to $25 from $75 for your first year.

Stacy Grimes said:
I got rid of my car this summer! and I dont regret it one bit. I plan on registering with IGO(http://www.igocars.org/) in case I need a car in a pinch but I haven't needed it yet.
Permalink Reply by LarryN on October 14, 2009 at 2:28pm
I stopped using my car in early 2006, and sold it later that summer. So over 3 years now! (although I spent the next 15 months in the Netherlands for my job, and of course I biked to work there) Over 90% of my driving was to/from work, or to see relatives in the 'burbs, and now I use my bike and Metra for that.

So far I haven't missed not having a car.

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