Car Status

My lady friend, Nuria, bought insurance for her newly-purchased Toyota yesterday. Her car insurance cost much more than mine, though I purchased my Jeep in that far-off time called Long Ago. I've had the same insurance company and insurance policy for many years. Nuria hasn't owned a car for the past ten years, so the insurance company made her pay higher premiums. For example, for Nuria's car, a 2009 Toyota, collision insurance would cost over $700 per month. So she declined to buy it. 

We went to Richmond today and picked up the car. That sounds much easier than it really was. First we found some scratches on it and requested they be touched up. Then the paint had to dry for a while. There was much paperwork to be read and signed. All of this took a while. We went out to lunch while the paint dried. Then I drove the car (and Nuria) home in heavy I-95 traffic (again). The car looks like this (although this isn't the actual car; hers has a darker color, but you get the idea.
 

We rolled into my backyard just ahead of a thunderstorm that brought a lot of rain, so the car got a cleansing off of the interstate dirt and grit. I tinkered with the dashboard controls a little, locating where important switches might be (such as headlights and wipers) but I went into the house as the rain began. It's Nuria's car, anyway, so she needs to find where everything is located, and she will. She can be quite tenacious when she wants to be.

For the curious, my 1995 Jeep looks exactly like this one:

I bought it in 1998. I used to park it on the street in front of my house, but after somebody smashed the driver's side window one night, I began keeping it in my garage, and I'm sure that has prevented a lot of sun damage. For all its years, it still looks good. It has a 220hp V8 with AWD, I drive it fairly gently, but if the situation calls for it, the Jeep can boogie. It's nice to have that horsepower and AWD in my back pocket. You never know when you might have to move fast! 

"What's the difference between 4WD and AWD?" I hear you asking. 4WD (four wheel drive) can be turned on and off and it uses a center differential to split power to the front and rear differentials, 50/50). AWD (all wheel drive) is always on and it uses a transfer case to split power to the front and rear differentials, and it is able to send more power to the differential that needs it. So, for example, if a rear wheel loses traction, the front wheels get more power. 

I've written far more about cars than I intended. It's 10PM and I'm going to hit the Publish button and think seriously about going to bed. Or something. Have a good Friday, y'all.