We Bought a New Car Today

Dear Family and Friends,

Chuck and I have discussed that when we have completed our first two years of residency that we would like to buy a 4 wheel drive, double cab, diesel truck and travel all over South America. The reason we are waiting until after the first two years is because when you become a resident of Ecuador the you can only be out of Ecuador for 90 days each year of the first two years. We have now begun our second year.

Chuck has been shopping on the internet and also at car dealers here in Cuenca. He had narrowed down his search to a truck made by SsangYong. This truck is made in Korea and I don't think it is sold in the USA. Mercedez-Benz bought this company awhile back and now sends their engines to Korea where the autos are assembled.

Chuck says that a Mercedez-Benz diesel engine should last us for as long as we will be driving.

Last week, Chuck and I were out having coffee with a friend. After we left the restaurant, he asked me if I would like to go see the truck he had his eye on.

We took the bus to the dealership. The truck was in the showroom and looked great. Chuck asked me to get inside and see how it sits. First I sat in the drivers side then I went around to the passenger side. It was then that I noticed that only the drivers side had air bags. I pointed this fact out to Chuck and said that I wouldn't ride around South America without my own airbag.

The salesman was quick to point out that he had a car with the same diesel engine, 4 wheel drive and it had airbags on both sides of the car. So, we turned our attention to the car. Chuck said he didn't realize that the truck did not have passenger airbags, he had only sat in the drivers seat.

We came home, thought about the car and today Chuck went to the dealer and agreed to buy the car. He came home and began the process of transferring money into our bank in the USA that he can write checks on in Ecuador. After getting this all accomplished, he went back to the dealer this afternoon to write the check. I went along to take some pictures so that I could share our new car with you.

As you can see from the pictures, the car is not big like most SUVs. It is shaped more like a hatch-back, but is really a great all terrain vehicle. We will need this when we start traveling some of the roads in South America.



Here is Chuck with our salesman, Santiago Terreros Polo. Santiago speaks perfect English. This was a big plus for us because we had many questions. Look at this kid, he is young enough to be our grandson. I promised Santiago that I would mention the name of the car dealership in our blog. We bought the car from IMTESE, which stands for Importadora Terreros Serrano.



Now we have to wait for the check to clear the bank in Ecuador. This could take a couple of weeks. So, for now, the car is waiting for us at the dealership.

By the way, Chuck is flying out tomorrow morning for a jungle adventure in the Amazon. I will tell you more about that tomorrow.

Love,

Nancy (and Chuck)