I don't even have a car anymore. [&o][&o][&o] Still trying to find one after my last one ate its engine. [:'(]
But here's a brief history:
In the mid 90s I purchased my first car, a 1985 Ford Crown Victoria. Probably not the best choice for a new driver, for a variety of reasons. I'm really surprised I never caused an accident, got a speeding ticket, or killed myself or anyone else. [X(]
Here's a picture of it buried in snow.
Eventually engine problems forced me to buy new. Eager to stick with Ford, I sought an early 90s Mustang hatchback. I did find a pristine '91 LX 5.0, and was ready to buy. However, at 19 that just wasn't going to happen, not unless I drove it without insurance. [&:] My Mustang dreams shattered, the dealer still wanted to work with me, and so they slashed the price on a '92 Mercury Sable with everything but leather. Unfortunately this ended up being the WORST car I ever owned: hundreds of dollars a month in repairs just to keep it on the road.
Here's a picture of it in front of my parents old house.
My taste for American cars now gone, I was eager to try an import. A friend of mine had owned a Subaru back in the early to mid 90s and had beaten the crap out of it on purpose, yet it just kept running. Another friend of mine had owned one for years and I think all he ever had to fix was a timing belt. Wanting something different from the Honyotas everyone else seemed to own, I picked up a '95 Legacy Outback, the very first year they were offered. It was just a trim and option package for the standard Legacy L model, consisting of little more than two tone paint and different seat fabric along with a few options from the LS and LSi trims. Lacking the lift kit of the later models, many people thought I'd "lowered" my Outback, and kept asking me why.
This ended up being the best car I ever owned. But nothing lasts forever, and after nearly 200,000 miles of trouble free driving, the transmission lost reverse.
Here's a picture of it driving on a frozen floodplain.
I would have just fixed the transmission, but at around the same time my grandmother stopped driving, and basically gave me her 1999 Toyota Camry. Taking this was cheaper than buying a transmission, but there was a huge problem: I hated this car. [:@][:@][:@] The handling was scary thanks to the mushy suspension and the massive tires on tiny 14" rims, the tiny Corolla 4 banger had no business being in such a heavy car, and to top it all off I ended up with a mice infestation. Lesson learned: "best selling" does not equate to "best handling" "best driving" or "best overall", any more than Top 40 pop music equates to "best music". Anyway, due to my own negligence I destroyed the engine. I had stopped paying attention to when I'd last done an oil change and ended up being almost 10,000 miles over. So now I'm out several thousand dollars. Second lesson learned: Take care of the stuff you own. Even if YOU loathe it, it still has value to some clueless person who doesn't.
Here's a picture of it getting the problematic stereo replaced.
