Wish i had a car rant

[lizzie bargain]

Although we do have one small car I ordered a bunch of stuff with free delivery from the Walmart Anniversary sale last month. I have never done this before but so far we have received the energy efficient light bulbs, the Irish Spring soap and the toilet paper has just been shipped. The prices seemed good and free delivery even better. I suppose this works best for folks who are home during the day and can bring the package in off the step!

[krrosell]

I currently dont have a car either and I am only spending around $20-$25 on cabs each month plus bus fare, so it is about $125 a month. That is a great insurance rate! lol, not including car payment, gas or maintenance. I break down every 2-3 months and rent a car for a couple of days when I know I have a build up of larger things to get, last time I rented we got our air conditioner, went to canada;s wonderland and did a large costco run with lots of bottled water, and an ikea run. Looks like we will be renting one next week and I plan on doing a large costco run and ikea run again. for 3 days a car rental with insurance was $180. still a lot cheaper than a monthly car payment. I wait to go to costco when I know I need a lot of heavy stuff. Sometimes though I feel your pain when I want to stock up on laundry detergent can only do 3 or 4 and no other groceries or plan to pick up a lot so the cab is worth it.

[nana2276]

Let me make something perfectly clear, I am not about to defend WM, but if those shopping carts are taken off the property, no one from the store can go and "retrieve" them. It is a liablity problem. The people who go into the parking lot to get the carts are not insured if the go off the lot and get hurt. So the store has to pay someone privately to go and get those carts, which cost upwards of $300 or more. And that cost is build into the cost of the groceries that you are buying.
Now and the good side, I have brought home many many groceries in the shopping carts on buses. The four wheeled ones are good and hold a lot, but the wheels are made of plastic and don't last. You are better off with ones a better ones with cloth sides, and rubber wheels or change the wheels on the others with an old baby buggy or a SHOPPING CART THAT HAS BEEN TAKEN OFF THE MALL PARKING LOT. Always when you are getting on & off the bus have driver lower the bus. We have a problem here where I live, & I have broken wheels because they bounce off the curb.

I figure yeah, every so often someone has to go and retrieve the carts and it might cost (min wage) x 1/4 hr to get someone to do that ($3?) but on the other hand, the store is getting as many large purchases that wouldn't be possible without their cart service. It is a net profit to them (and great customer service).

[lecale]

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[toban]

I have carpooled with a neighbour when they are heading to big box complexes far away (takes 3-4 buses to get their). I offer to give them gas money or buy them lunch. They usually refuse but I like to offer anyways. Other times I take the bus to the complex and taxi home. I like the idea of renting a car for a few days. I've ordered online from Best Buy etc which helps cut down on travel time.

[sporatic]

You want a car just for couponing . I think you save way more by not having a car. You have to pay quite a bit for insurance , roadside assistance (unless it is new car), regular maintenance (oil change, tire rotation etc.), plus any issues that come from nowhere and have to get it fixed. Just check quotes for yourself for a hypothetical car that you might own and see how you would feeling paying that much every month.

I do agree that without a car it is a little bit more work to shop or run errands but it does save quite a bit money. It actually makes a much bigger chunk of saving compared to little little savings we get by our individual coupons.

[tjthemanto]

Let me make something perfectly clear, I am not about to defend WM, but if those shopping carts are taken off the property, no one from the store can go and "retrieve" them. It is a liablity problem. The people who go into the parking lot to get the carts are not insured if the go off the lot and get hurt. So the store has to pay someone privately to go and get those carts, which cost upwards of $300 or more. And that cost is build into the cost of the groceries that you are buying.
Now and the good side, I have brought home many many groceries in the shopping carts on buses. The four wheeled ones are good and hold a lot, but the wheels are made of plastic and don't last. You are better off with ones a better ones with cloth sides, and rubber wheels or change the wheels on the others with an old baby buggy or a SHOPPING CART THAT HAS BEEN TAKEN OFF THE MALL PARKING LOT. Always when you are getting on & off the bus have driver lower the bus. We have a problem here where I live, & I have broken wheels because they bounce off the curb.

Not sure if this is true....but someone who works in the industry was telling me each shopping cart costs $ 150

So I guess each time a cart goes missing and not retrieved its 150 bucks out of the store's pocket..and pretty much like shop lifting we all end up paying for it in the long run

[lecale]

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[uanoor]

I hear ya. I go to Costco regularly, and am accustomed to dragging home big loads in my backpack/bags, but that's not very far. For me it's No Frills that isn't close - there better be some deals if I'm going there, and even when there IS, much of the time they're sold out of the item I made a long trip on transit to get.

Looking on the bright side, we don't spend $150 a month+ on gas, right?

and $200+ on car insurance too, lol

[fierce_angel_6000]

Car's are convenient but think about the perks you get when not having a car:
- more exercise, not having a car forces you to keep fit and you get to build muscle because of carrying your grocery bags
- car's are expensive! Gas is expensive! Insurance is expensive! Maintenance is expensive!
- you get fresh air from walking to the store, plus I find the walk relaxing
- no need to hunt for a parking spot during busy store hours
- no need to worry about other people dinging your car with shopping carts/their car door

I used to not have a car, and had to be strategic with what I bought. I have a car now, but prefer to walk to the grocery store though (for exercise and save on gas).