Thanks all. My income levels are pretty healthy - my salaried job pays 110k a year, I have a side business that made 58k in '14 and 69k in '15, and my wife makes about 60k a year as a nurse. My net worth is 378k, and I'm about to turn 33. I only recently started making this money so I'm confident in continuing to grow my NW quickly. So it certainly was not a necessity, but just a way to grow my stache a little quicker. Giving up my baby would also make a strong statement to my wife who I am trying to convert over into the mustachian ways of life.
So I made the decision to sell. I found the KBB value as a trade in was about 22,900, and I had my eye on a '13 Focus, also with 27k miles, that was listed for 13,200. I went into the dealership with the goal of getting 10,000 more in trade-in for the Mustang than the Focus and dropping my balance for the car from 14,500 to around 5k. However, the dealer dropped a bomb - the mustang has a recall out for airbags going off randomly, and there won't be parts to fix it until Mid 2017. If they buy it, they can't sell it until its fixed. I can't sell private party. They called several wholesalers who offered 16k. I balked at everything and told them I would not trade in a defective car THEY sold me at a huge discount to true fair market value because of a defect THEY can't fix. At one point the salesman got a call and said that they had found a wholesaler who would offer 17k, which I'm sure was a setup all along between the salesman and the other dealership employees. I also mentioned to the salesman that I felt the car was potentially a goldmine because it has a known defect that can't be fixed and they won't purchase back at a fair price so if the airbag does go off, I'd have a huge lawsuit. I'm seldom on the highway with the car, so I still feel relatively safe. With only 14,500 left on the loan, it is not terrible. I keep it in the garage during the winter when all the kids bikes are put away, so after cutting down on all the unnecesary trips I use it for, I could have a car I enjoy for a long, long time.