What Cars Have You Owned?

[2 of 3]

Just curious.

First Car: 1972 Toyota Corolla coupe. It was my brothers, bought it from him for 600 dollars, it had 209,000 miles on it. I finally sold it with 320,000 miles on it...for 600 dollars. Amazing reliability....never changed a thing except brakes and a timing chain. Great car.

Next car...I forget the date now, but it was a puke green Volkswagen Rabbit. Nice car, but was always breaking down.

Finally traded it in for a Volkswagen GTI...brilliant fun, but again....was alway in the shop getting "something" done to it.

Next car...Toyota extra cab pick up. Great vehicle, and it got 40 mpg(why do the new ones get 24?) Anyway, got T-boned in an intersection...wrote off the other car....I drove the truck for a month with the passenger  side caved in to the center console...and the glass didn't break! They finally decided to write it off too, and I was stupid to take the money, since it didn't pay for the remaining cost of the vehicle.

Next, was a Toyota Tercel....great little car, bought it used...finally just rusted out.

Then had a Dodge Van...great van, but was stolen. Gone.

Then bought a Mazda B pickup....used again....great little truck..but finally rusted out and could not safety it.

Then leased a Ford F150 pickup, extra cab.....great truck too....2 year lease at 198 a month...couldn't pass that up really...almost nothing down too..like 1200 or something...just silly. Of course, they never continued with that every again.
Current vehicle, Chevy Astro van......nice van...but mechanically, a peice of Sh.....err.....poop.

Next vehicle will be.......something that gets at least 50mpg....still waiting 

[mervap]

Hey, Two, was the Toyota x-tra cab a diesel? Just wondering...

1. 1969 Pontiac Firebird- Dark Blue, named the UBAR...Teenager with a 350 Firebird? Tickets ensued at an alarming rate, so I had to let it go....DANG!!!

2. 1977 Ford Pinto- Rust colored, auto, with a depressed looking teenager behind the wheel!

3. 1983 Dodge Colt- This is the car that made me fall in love with MPG...high thirties with just enough pep to keep me happy, but not enough to attract the Fuzz. Sold to bro-in-law.
4. 1989 Ford Festiva- Blue, with a four speed and 58 heart stopping HP...routinely got 41 MPG, but was later traded in.

5. 1981 Dodge Colt- Now that LC has the Festiva, Merv needed something cheap and reliable. This car was a carbon copy of my 1983 Colt, with the exception that it had A/C. Bought for $367.50. Later sold to bro-in-law.
6. 1991 Ford Escort GT- Possibly the best car we have ever owned...5-speed with 127 HP, Cayman Green, sunroof, and LC's fave. 211,000 miles and we have just given it to my 15 yr old nephew...He LOVES it!
7. 1991 Ford Festiva- The 81 Colt developed a bad motor, so LC recalls the great 89 Festiva and allows Merv to purchase this one...upgrade to 63 HP
8. 1991 Ford Ranger- Merv totals the 1991 Festiva (Cadillacicide) and is forced to do what was called a collateral swap to secure the debt still owed on the Festy...the Ranger did not suck too badly, but....sold to bro-in-law.
9. 1995 Dodge RAM- Now THIS was a man-truck...however, the trannies on these were wimpy and died quickly. Put two in this one. Nicknamed Strabo.
10. 1998 Volkwagen New Beetle- Merv loved these when they came out, so LC got one....Drove amazingly, but was in the shop for various electrical snafus more times than I could count. Traded for...
11. 1998 Chrysler Town & Country- A mini-van? Yep....ideal for carting Merv's drums around. Wimpy tranny was the death knell for this one. Sold to unsuspecting dude. Not really, he had it checked out before he bought it!

12. 2006 Mazda 3- LC's current drive and might surpass the Escort GT as her fave if it stays around as long. Super-fun to drive!

13. 2008 Chevy Aveo- Merv renews his love affair with MPG...gets about 38 MPG in combo driving, but is somehow unsatisfying, so...

14. 1989 Ford Festiva- Merv's current project car...bought from a fellow Festy fanatic in Maryland.

[Paperback Writer]

The exact years I obtained the following cars is blurred, as are some of the year of the make/models, but all were very used.  From 1989 to the beginning of this year, I had 2 used cars at a time.

1962 Chevy Impala
1970 Dodge Monaco
1978 Datsun (?) compact
1975 Dodge Monaco
1965 Corvair Monza
1978 Volvo  DL
1962 Corvair Monza Convertable
1985 Volvo DL
1987 Chrysler Lebaron Convertable
1993 Jaguar XJ6
1997Chrysler Sebring Convertable
1987 Jaguar XJ6
2008 Ford Focus SE

The Volvos were the best buys and turned out to be the most reliable.  The Chevy Impala was just an old car when I had it, now it's a fabulous classic. The Monacos were reliable, who were victims of crime (theft) and drunk driver (one demolished mine) (no, not me!)

The Chrysler Convertables were good cheap, fun cars.  The Datsun was a disaster in "snow country" and the  bodies got eaten up and the engines were fragile - which -  kept me away from sub-compacts, which I now regret.

The Jags were sexy, expensive, fickle, head turners, and seductive, much like some of the women who sat in the passenger seat.

The Corvairs were the most fun, not practical (kept them to a 5o mile radius)  - I think they are beautiful!

If I had to do it again, I'd have stuck with one Corvair, put some time and money in it and done the same with a Volvo.  Then when Ford's Focus came out, I'd stay with them over Volvo.

I am very happy with the Focus SE, "Long May You Run" 
(by the way - Neil Young wrote that song about one of his old cars.)   

[lampie1970]

1. 1979 Orange Plymouth Horizon TC3 Fastback

2. 1983 Baby Blue Toyota Corolla

3. 1992 Teal Honda Civic Hatchback

4. 1996 White Mazda 626

5. 2003 Champagne Nissan Sentra

6. 2005 Navy Nissan Altima

[2 of 3]

Nice collections! I have always wanted a Volvo P1800...the one Roger Moore drove around in on The Saint....they are very hard to come by. I just about cried, when I saw one in a yard with trees growing out of it. I'm sure this guy has people stopping all the time asking if they can buy it...though, it's pretty much a bucket of rust now.

[mi]

None, since I don't have a driver's license... I have a serious problem of orientation so I'm simply dangerous behind the wheel. In my last test I  nearly crashed into a truck (and in red light... )

[Paperback Writer]

Mi, so when Paul tells you: "Baby you can drive my car....just say NO!

[mervap]

^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^

[mi]

Actually I wouldn't mind driving Paul's "car", if you know what I mean...

[2 of 3]

Hey PW....I like that Ford Focus...nice car and gets great reviews. I only wish we could get the Euro version with the diesel in it.....something like 70 mpg....dang, why can't we get these here? Ok...start the political blog from the last statement 

[Paperback Writer]

Right on, the Focus, from what i understand from an article on green cars in the SF paper: Because the US does not have clean diesel technology in place, it can't handle diesel cars and still meet the clean air standards, but if we had Euro's technology on diesel - it would be no problem,sounds like a combination of one hand not knowing what the other is doing - and BIG oil.

On a related matter:  Also in the SF paper, Neil Young has had his infamous Lincoln  gutted and re-ignited as an electric car that gets 70-100 miles a gallon.  There's an innovator in Kansas he drove the Lincoln out to and Neil moved there and helped the conversion process.  Now Neil is funding the man and they have started a conversion company.  They say as far as cars are concerned, size doesn't matter - no pollution, great miles!

[2 of 3]

Yeah, Neil has videos on Youtube showing the transition, and also talking about it on Letterman. Pretty neat. Love that old boat he drives by the way...very cool :)

[mervap]

Found this in TIME....very thought provoking! The 50 worst cars of all time!

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/0,28757,1658545,00.html

[2 of 3]

Haahaha!  The thing had more short-circuits than a mixing board with a bong spilled on it.  hahaha!


Hey, not on the list..but......

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=4zW10aTUChk

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http://autos.canada.com/community/logosquiz/index.html

Little car fun for ya....guess the car logo's. Some are very easy...some are just....what? huh?

Here is my score cut and pasted so as to not be a cheater hehe.



Your score:
43
out of
50