CarMax loves us.
Last night, we traded in the van we got in October for a 2019 Ford Explorer Limited.
Shortly after we moved to Iowa in 2022, we traded in the Lexus for the Ford Edge. When we decided we were going to spend last summer traveling, we sized up, trading in the Edge for the F-250. After our Summer Tour, we decided to get something a little more fuel efficient that we could take shorter trips in so we bought a 2015 Nissan Quest in October 2024, after which I sold my Equinox (sad to see her go…)
The van was… OK, at best. Neither of us liked it very much and I found myself avoiding the use of it when I could justify it.
“I have to get groceries, there’s no way they’re fitting into the minivan…”
Brandy and I discussed and decided on our way home from Cripple Creek that we would just pay it off and get something else. She’d spied the Explorer on the CarMax website. The vehicle was in Minnesota and would cost $100 to move it to Des Moines. We paid the fee and, once we got the title for the van after it was paid for, we took it to Urbandale and made the swap.
We left the house at 3:00 on the dot on Thursday, driving through light rain as the sun set on our day. We got to the dealership just before 5:00 and promptly started the process. Considering this was set as an “Express Pickup”, it still took right around 2 hours to get through the process.
Brandy was antsy the whole time. She was tired (as was I… I had been up since 1:00 that morning) and wanted to get home and go to bed.
After the last of the paperwork was signed, the plates swapped over from the van to the Explorer and the keys were in our pockets, we hopped in and made our way home.
The interior is pretty much identical to the Ford Edge we traded in for the truck. It is a larger vehicle so it has improved cargo space and even includes a third row of seats. Ya know, just in case.
Getting situated in a new car is always a process. You have to find what’s comfortable, get mirrors adjusted, seats positioned correctly, even make sure the steering wheel is in a comfortable spot that still allows you to see the instrument panel. Getting the setup dialed in while driving home in the dark wasn’t happening so the drive home was a bit uncomfortable. I will eventually get it together though; I’m confident of that.
Anyway, the drive home was rather foggy. There was a significant mist in the air all the way out of Des Moines, through Carlisle, Knoxville and into Oskaloosa. Once we turned off of highway 163 toward Ottumwa, things got a lot worse.
The Explorer, bless its little heart, tries real hard to anticipate the drivers’ needs and automatically turns on the high beams when it’s dark enough. Unfortunately, this made things a million times worse. The bright lights reflecting off the fog reduced the visibility to almost nothing. With the brights off , though, the visibility wasn’t much better.
The drive in to town was slow going. With limited visibility, in the dark, with deer sure to be active, I found myself doing 35 on a stretch of riad where the speed limit was 55.
As we got closer to town, and the speed limit dropped to 30, of course the fog lifted and I was able to loosen the grip on the steering wheel.
We made it home in one piece.
Today, January 31, we have a few errands to run. I will be fidgeting with the settings in the car as we are out and about, hoping to find that sweet spot. Then, Brandy will be taking it to Des Moines as she flies out Monday morning for a week in Arizona. She gets back home next Friday and will be home for a week before we pack up for two weeks in Montrose, Colorado, for her birthday. We will be taking the Explorer on that trip.
We have nothing else of note going on until then, so the next time I pop on here will be for that trip report.
See you then!
Phil