A paid off vehicle always seems to bring me misfortune

There is not a much better feeling, for me, than paying off a debt. 

There is not a much worse feeling, than paying off a car and having something go wrong with it very soon thereafter. 

Of the last three vehicles I have managed to own free and clear, none of them have gone more than a year without having some major issue.

Case 1 - The Oldsmobile Bravada

Less than three weeks after paying it off I had to have the transmission rebuilt.  At the time I figured the cost of it roughly equaled the car payment I would have made over the next two months, so instead of trading it in I had it repaired and moved on.


This isn't the actual car, I walked away unharmed.

 As I was moving on through an intersection a month or so later, I was T-boned by a guy running a red light.  He lied and said I was the one running the light, but fortunately there was a witness who called 911 and reported what they'd seen. 

His insurance company bought me out, but I still had to spend some money for a new car since the value of the Bravada was not enough to buy a new car outright.

Case 2 - The Nissan Pathfinder

Less than nine months after paying it off the brakes went out as I was driving home on the interstate from work one day.  I took it to my mechanic (very carefully) and was informed that the strut tower housing had rusted through.  When it did that it collapsed and crushed the brake line.  He told me to scrap it and wouldn't let me drive it. 



Tats for Papa?  Nope.



Thankfully, Nissan was aware of the potential issues, and is working to repair the car, though they had never seen it crush the brake line.  Yay me for breaking the mold!  It's been two months and still no word from them, so I'm guessing they'll be buying me out and I'll have to get a new car - and a new car payment. 

Case 3 - The Chevy Trailblazer

Less than seven months after paying it off, and only two months removed from the Pathfinder incident, we discovered a repair that needed to be done on the Trailblazer.  It's fine to drive for now, but soon the axle will fall apart if we don't fix it.  I don't think that's a safe vehicle for Mama to be toting the girls around in, so we have to get it fixed.


We all know this Axl is broken.



Future issue?

Trying to stay positive about the whole thing, I'm computing the cost in terms of car payments that I have not made.  Thankfully this repair will only cost two car payments, so we are ahead by five.  Guess we'll hang onto it until the next big ticket item comes along - or until we stumble into some cash to buy a new one.
Is this just a phenomenon that happens to me, or is it true across the board?