Out with the Old...

The last quarter of the year would be bringing us to the end of a three year lease on the 2012 Honda Pilot (where does the time go?). This blue Pilot was the successor of a leased red 2009 Pilot, and we loved both vehicles. They were both well-equipped, big, heavy, safe and could haul any amount of people (8, comfortably) or gear (lots and lots and lots).

We have loved our Honda Pilots, and they have treated us well. However, we have been aware that the number of times we have needed to haul three seating rows worth of people or a ton of gear have been relatively few and far between. The flip side of "we have a ton of space and hauling capacity on those few instances when we need it" has been counterbalanced by not very good gas mileage and the fact that these big tanks eat tires for lunch. Needing to buy an expensive set of tires inside of a three year lease kinda stinks...

So with the realization that there are only four of us, and routine gear hauling requirements are minimal, we went to our go-to guy at Scott Honda to pick out a new vehicle (Eric Bausman, highly recommended, tell him I sent you...). We had agreed that the incumbent choice would be another Pilot, but that we would also look at Odyssey minivans and CRV small-SUV's. On the drive to the dealership, Grace asked Amp what color car we were going to get, and Amp said "anything but white."

Three hours later we drove home in a brand new 2014 CRV. White of course. Go figure.

2014 Honda CRV

Leasing isn't the right choice for everyone, but I like the fact that Amp and the girls get a new vehicle every three years. Safe. New. Reliable.

In some ways, I will miss the Pilot. It was big and could haul anything. And it was heavy and solid. Short of having Amp and the girls driving an actual tank, it is hard to imagine something that felt bigger and therefore safer than the Pilot. I have always like the thought of Amp and the girls safe and sound in their big blue tank.

But the CRV's safety ratings are excellent, it gets 50% better gas mileage than the Pilot (yes, 50%, that's not a typo), and the chances of it burning out an $800 set of tires inside of three years is basically non-existent. So... thus begins the era of the CRV.