Getting a company car...should I liquidate my collection?

So with a new job comes a company car which I can drive all the time, not just for work. So my current stable includes:

02 Sport trac 4x4 (wife drives now but she's wanting something newer) (2) 1991 Volvo 940 turbo wagons (Yes, I have two, I just got one of them) (1) 1991 Miata (Just got this car too) (1) 1969 Olds convertible 98

So my driveway / garage is all filled up...

Wife wants a ford edge, chevy equinox, or one of those subaru things whatever they call them. So I could have a challenge sell off and buy her something, drive my new company car and be normal.

I'm leaning towards keeping one car out of my fleet. What do you think?

What is the Co car?

don't know yet. my standards are pretty low however, if it has heat, air and a seatbelt im good.

If I were only keeping one, it would be the Miata.

Keep in mind that if you lose the job, the car will go as well, and that's a pretty sucky time to have to go and buy another car.

Normal is overrated.

No, keep at least one. I had a company vehicle. Sold mine. Three years later the job is gone but I still have no car.

Keep the Miata or the Olds, whichever one you prefer.

I went through this recently. I got a company car last year, a new Chevy Malibu. I've got the wife's Sienna, plus a Titan, Legacy GT Wagon, Galant VR4, and a Miata. I considered trimming the fleet. But the other car all all paid for, and I enjoy them. I drive a lot for work, and the Malibu is solid but boring. I've found that I enjoy them more since I don't have to drive them. I also don't spend much time or money maintaining them since I no longer put big chunks of miles on them. My advice is to wait a bit after you get the car, then reevaluate. By the way, even with a family of five, I find that I now drive the Miata the most of the other cars. It's great for running errands and just zipping around town. It's also my kid's favorite.

One of the wagons. The E36 M3ty one.

I'll agree with keeping a toy, as well something to drive should/when the company take their car or job away. Of your fleet, the Olds is the most unique and hard to replace.

Sounds like a Captain Obvious answer, but the only factor the company car really would play for me is that it would take the place in my fleet of the car(s) that served as my current DD.

keep the miata and the Olds

foxtrapper wrote: the Olds is the most unique and hard to replace.

I would also keep the Olds for the same reason.

What happens if things don't work out with the job and you don't have a company car six months from now?

I would sell the sport track and a Volvo for now and see if further liquidation is needed before selling more.

Never. EVER. be in a position where a Company car is your only transportation. You never know when you will have to walk away from a job, and relying on your employer's indulgence to pick up your kid from soccer practice makes that a lot harder. Also, if you have their car, they get to tell you when to drive it - weekends, nights, whenever they want you somewhere, you pretty much have to go.

Or maybe I just have bad past experiences. Having your wife's car takes the edge off the problem, but it's still a problem.

Keep the hobby cars, sell the transportation cars.

Sell the two you like the least. 12 months from now, if the job is going well and the company car is still available get ride of something else.

One more vote for keeping the Miata and Olds (it's a toss-up for the others). Aside from the fact that you have acquired The Answer, as a practical matter Miatas 1) get great gas milage, and 2) are just stupid cheap to maintain, repair, and insure. In the current job climate, owning a Miata can be considered a real transportation safety net because everything about them is so inexpensive.

Keep the Miata and the Olds.

I had a company car for years...still always kept a couple of fun cars in the stable. Only driving a base model Focus, Taurus or mini van slowly kills you.

If I was in your shoes and sold everything, I certainly wouldnt roll the cash into anything that was not fairly liquid, allowing for a fast purchase of a replacement appliance if needed.

At the very least I would keep $3k cash of my car sales in liquidity, as $3k would get you something you could daily drive

Oooohhhh. My dad had a '68 "98" 2-door Holiday Coupe. 455, 4-barrel he bought new. I have 17 years of memories. He had 6 kids but sometimes would fit 5 kids in the car. Four in back and one in the middle front. He bought it new when I was six and I drove it to my prom. I grabbed the air cleaner "455 Rocket" piece when he sold it for $500 in 1984.

We need pics of your "98".

Datsun310Guy wrote: We need pics of your "98".

That would be a funny quote if it came from the Amy thread....

If you lost the company car, could you DD the Miata? To me that would determine the fate of one or both volvos.