The Van Purchase

Last week Wednesday, we went to look at the van we now bought. I had seen it online for a while and kept telling Jared that we should go look at it. He was hesitant because it was from an unfamiliar used car lot and the price was between $1500-$3000 less than all the other similar Odysseys we were finding online. He thought maybe something was wrong with it. I told him it wouldn't hurt to go check it out, so we did. We got there and it was quite scuzzy-looking and in a not nice neighborhood. The salesman was a short Greek guy with rotting teeth and a cane and his manager was a middle Eastern man. They had a lot of nice vehicles on their lot, though, and it was jammed full. They had to move 2 other vehicles just so we could access the van! He told us right away that the price wasn't negotiable and that if we liked it we would buy it and if we didn't then we wouldn't. Simple as that. He said they fix the vehicles + safety them right there, so it costs them less than getting the work done elsewhere and then they price them right the first time so there's no "bartering." We test drove it, loved it, and put a deposit on it right away. We know that Honda recommends changing the timing belt at 100,000 km and this van has 111,000 kms (69,000 miles), which is very low mileage for a 2003. It's normally a $700 repair and if the timing belt breaks, it turns into a $2000 repair. We asked if it had been done and he said he would call Honda and find out. He said if it hadn't been done, they would do it for us for $200, which is a steal of a deal! They told us that they would have it ready on Thursday at 5:00. He called Jared on Thursday morning and said the timing belt hadn't been done and they had to order a part and they wouldn't get it until Monday. So we had to do a bit more waiting and that was hard because I just wanted to tell everyone, but didn't want to say anything until the van was on our driveway. They had it ready on Monday at 6:30, so Jared went with a friend to pick it up. I absolutely love it! It is fully loaded with leather seats, cd/dvd player, sto n go, rear air + heat, climate control, and power everything. One of my favorite features are the power sliding doors. It is so comfortable and it actually makes me not want to drive our car! I drove it for the first time today with the kids in it and have never felt more like a Mom! We are so thankful that God has provided after what felt like "the search that never ends." It's so nice not to have to think about it anymore or spend hours looking online. I'm doing a happy dance!