We sold our car 2 years ago: what we gain… and what we lose

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We sold our car to take off for a year. That was two years ago… and we still haven’t bought another one! 😅

At first, we just wanted to solve a practical problem. We were going to be away for a long time, so we started asking ourselves: « Where are we gonna leave the car? »

Leaving it sitting in a driveway while we were somewhere else didn’t sound very appealing. We weren’t on some big mission to fight car culture. We just wanted to travel without having to worry about it.

So we sold it.

We thought we’d be gone for a year. Turns out, our sabbatical got extended. We’ve now been living off our assets for two years, spending six months in Mexico and six months in Quebec, staying in furnished rentals.

And the car? It never came back into the picture!

🚗 Two years without a car… and we’re doing just fine!

At first, it was just a logical decision. We were going to be away for a long time, so why keep a vehicle we wouldn’t even use?

Problem solved. At least, that’s what we thought for a year. 😂

But our whole lifestyle ended up changing. We move between Quebec and Mexico, switch cities, and rent furnished places. We’ve gotten used to getting around differently.

And the funny thing is, we’ve never felt like we were missing out or « surviving » without a car. We walk, take the bus, and order an Uber when it makes sense.

It’s become second nature. We don’t wake up thinking, « Oh my God, another day without a car. How are we gonna manage? »

We just get on with our day!

🚶‍♂️ What we gain: freedom… and shoes!

For starters, it’s one less thing to worry about. No car to leave in someone’s care, no wondering what’s happening to it while we’re in Mexico.

We arrive somewhere, drop off our bags, and make do with whatever’s around us. Simple as that.

In Mexico, our legs do a lot of the work!

We get around by public transit, Uber, and our own two feet. And honestly, it’s pretty affordable.

We’ve lived in Mérida, Puerto Vallarta, Cancún, Bacalar… and plenty of other places too. We explore neighborhoods on foot, get around as we go, and end up getting to know a city in a completely different way than we would through a windshield.

We walk so much that our shoes have basically become our main mode of transportation. 😂

A $300 pair of shoes? We used to think that was ridiculous. Now, with all the miles we put on them, it suddenly seems pretty reasonable.

The catch? They only last six months!

So our car budget has somehow ended up… in our shoes. 👟

Toronto: 20 minutes on the subway

We have those little moments when we’re reminded how nice it is not to have a car.

Getting across Toronto in 20 minutes on the subway while everyone else is stuck in traffic feels pretty good.

We keep moving while the traffic sits there. And once we get where we’re going? No headache trying to find parking.

Those are exactly the moments when we don’t miss being behind the wheel one bit.

And what about the money?

That’s where the difference really hits home.

In Mexico, Uber rides and unlimited public transit cost us less than car insurance alone back in Quebec. And that’s before even talking about gas, registration, and maintenance!

Sure, we still pay to get around. We take Ubers, ride the bus, and rent a car when it works for us.

But we no longer have to pay to own one all the time. For us, that changes everything.

If you like talking about travel and money, we’ve also gathered some of our thoughts on our Travel + Money page.

Our next stop in Mexico is the Puerto Vallarta area, over in Nuevo Nayarit — somewhere we already know and love coming back to. Guadalajara comes next, in December. You can also check out our article 6 Months in Mexico: 9 Things You Only Understand After Actually Living There, or take a look at our guides to Québec and Toronto.

🛒 So, what do we actually miss?

Let’s be honest: yes, there are days when we miss having a car.

Grocery shopping: the great adventure

This is definitely when we feel it the most.

You go into the grocery store for a few things. You come out with ten bags. You look at each other, then at the bags…

« Damn. Let’s call an Uber. »

😂

Because hauling ten bags of groceries onto the bus? Forget it! We love walking, but even we have our limits.

That’s when we remember just how darn handy a car can be. Especially when your eyes are bigger than your arms!

When it rains, we stay inside

Another classic: rainy mornings.

You get up, look outside… and it’s pouring. That often turns into a pajama day. 🌧️

If there were a car in the driveway, you’d just hop in and go without giving it much thought. Without one, the motivation to face the downpour drops a notch.

The weather wins. We stay cozy inside!

Want to head out on a whim? Not quite as easy.

When you’ve got your car keys sitting on the counter, you get an idea and off you go.

Without a car, you start doing the math. Is the bus convenient? Is an Uber going to cost a fortune? Should we rent a car?

A place might look really interesting, but if getting there is a whole production, we might just decide to skip it.

That’s part of life without a car: you gain some freedom, but lose a bit of spontaneity. You have to plan things out a little more.

Same goes for long distances. Having a car ready to go makes things easy. Without one, you have to figure out the logistics.

And speaking of which, let’s talk about renting.

🚙 Renting a car when we feel like it

We didn’t sell our car just to swear a blood oath never to touch a steering wheel again!

When we need a car for a long drive or just to make life easier, we rent one. You don’t have to own a car year-round to drive one now and then.

Sure, renting takes a bit of planning and costs money. But we like this compromise: we use a car when it suits us, and the rest of the time, we don’t have to think about it.

But there’s something funny we’ve noticed.

Every time we rent a car, people honk at us, cut us off… Basically, we realize just how on edge people are behind the wheel.

The worst part? The minute we start driving, we get stressed and impatient ourselves! 😅

It’s like we’ve lost our patience. Or maybe we’re just getting a fresh reminder of all the things that used to drive us crazy.

It never takes long before we look at each other and say:

« Man, are we ever better off without a car! »

So we hand back the keys and happily go back to our buses, walking, and Ubers.

We haven’t cut cars out of our lives completely. We’ve just stopped owning one full-time.

“We haven’t cut cars out of our lives completely. We’ve just stopped owning one full-time.”

🤔 Would we buy another car tomorrow?

For the life we’re living right now? Probably not.

If our lives changed? Maybe!

We’re not saying everyone should sell their car. If you live far from everything, have no public transit nearby, or absolutely need a vehicle every day, our approach probably won’t work for you.

But if you already walk quite a bit, don’t mind taking the bus, and can rent a car when you need one, it might be worth thinking about.

No need to put your car up for sale tonight! 😄

Just give it a little thought and look at the place it takes up in your everyday life. Does it get enough use to justify all the expenses and stress that come with it? Or could you get by just fine another way?

We sold our car to solve a logistical problem for a one-year trip.

Two years later, we’re still getting around without one. We walk, take the bus, use Ubers, and rent a car when we feel like it.

Is everything perfect all the time? Nope. The ten bags of groceries and the rainy days are there to bring us back down to earth!

But so far, we still haven’t found a good enough reason to write a check for a new car.

And to think that, at the very beginning, we were just asking ourselves:

« Where are we gonna leave the car? »

Funny how the road unfolds one step at a time!

Luc N Steve