We've continued to research used cars in France thanks to ebay.fr. Definitely difficult to find a car with leather seats, and without a black interior. We've learned that wagons all called "break". And that most have tow hookups, since we know that having a "donkey cart" is a necessity, not to mention if you want to tow a "caravan" (what a camper is called in Europe).
Another brand we have seen many times in France is Alfa Romeo and we have located one outside Paris with a saddle leather interior. We may be making a purchase. The question remained how to get it registered and transported to Provence, but a friend has connected us with someone who can provide this service and store the car until June. He is a mechanic and assured us that the Alfa was not the old Alfa - unreliable, but the new Fiat owned Alfa, reliable and sexy styling.
We've also been exploring insurance and determined that USAA, the company who provides us our US auto insurance, can provide for damages, road side service, and rental, but not liability. Our local agent, obtained through a friend is providing quotes including the basic liability. The pricing is so different that our policies here. Maybe it's being in NJ versus the countryside of France, maybe it is because we will only be using the car a few months each year, or even because the French are a less litigious society, but it is a significant difference. Over the next few weeks, we will be setting this up for the summer as car rentals are becoming more prohibitively expensive, especially as we stay longer and into August.
So, Alfa, here we come.
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