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End of an Era
7 years ago
Well, the time has finally come for me to say goodbye to my 98 Saturn. This week the entire exhaust system just plain fell off and the cost to repair it is worth more than the car. I'm bittersweet about it since this was my very first car and I've driven nearly every single one of its almost 219,000 miles. Twenty years I've had this car, my beautiful Manual Transmission, and it's been to many different places: Montreal, Toronto, Boston, St. Louis, Nashville, Memphis, Columbus, Philadelphia, and Northern Virginia, but its home was first Blacksburg, and finally Pittsburgh. I will miss its feel, a car I have grown very comfortable with and which has been known by many others and whose idiosyncrasies I fully understood.
We took a peek at one potential car today, and I quite liked it. We'll look at a few others tomorrow, but if none of them are better we'll buy the one we saw today (I hate buying after only seeing one possibility). By Monday I should have a new car. I don't want to say what we're looking at (silly superstition, but it's been that kind of week). I'm not looking forward to having another car payment and it is going to make things pretty tight until we finish paying off my wife's truck in two years, but at least I shouldn't have repair bills every few months and I shouldn't be apprehensive something is going to finally fall apart as I have been for the last few months (and which finally happened on Tuesday!)
Still, I do love my old car. I have one picture of it here on FA: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/9178613/
I also have some silly pictures of cool odometer readings: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2202261/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2202267/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8098212/
I am going to miss it even though it is time to move on. I'm so grateful that I had twenty years with this, my very first car. For me and my family it is very much the end of an Era. I only hope whatever car I get this weekend can last a good long while too.
Dominus vobiscum
We took a peek at one potential car today, and I quite liked it. We'll look at a few others tomorrow, but if none of them are better we'll buy the one we saw today (I hate buying after only seeing one possibility). By Monday I should have a new car. I don't want to say what we're looking at (silly superstition, but it's been that kind of week). I'm not looking forward to having another car payment and it is going to make things pretty tight until we finish paying off my wife's truck in two years, but at least I shouldn't have repair bills every few months and I shouldn't be apprehensive something is going to finally fall apart as I have been for the last few months (and which finally happened on Tuesday!)
Still, I do love my old car. I have one picture of it here on FA: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/9178613/
I also have some silly pictures of cool odometer readings: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2202261/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2202267/ http://www.furaffinity.net/view/8098212/
I am going to miss it even though it is time to move on. I'm so grateful that I had twenty years with this, my very first car. For me and my family it is very much the end of an Era. I only hope whatever car I get this weekend can last a good long while too.
Dominus vobiscum
Dominus tecum
Dominus tecum
*hugs*
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Dominus tecum
Found my new car on Carfox, It was kinda fun oggling over that adorable Carfox while shoppin for a new ride too :)
Hope you have as good a luck as I did finding your new car!
Dominus tecum
It's done anyway as I have a new car now.
Dominus tecum
My dad had a little pickup truck for 27 years until a deer ran out in front of it. Sure, it did have it's habit of eating money for repairs, but proper maintenance kept it rolling far longer than one would ever expect.
Unfortunately, these days, the car companies and banks and advertisers are trying to push people from car to car every two years, while financing for 5 or even 7 years. Too many never bother to keep a car like you did... until its mechanical heart fails.
Dominus tecum
I own a 2001 VW Jetta, manual 2.0, the day I bought it, I had somebody try to steal it, literally from under my nose from 15 feet away. Stalled it, stalled it a second time and as I came up, knocking on the glass. The guy fumbled around the inside, looking all over, even locked the doors as I stood there asking why he was in my car.
He looked at me, saying he was looking for his cigarettes and his friend had them "Inside the car", and I repeated "why are you inside my car?" Only when I pulled out my pistol (I'm a CCW possessor ) did he get the clue I was serious, I couldn't call the police cause the phone was inside the car with him. Once he saw the pistol did he get out and bolted away like a rabbit. I immediately called the police to give my report. I had a unit arrive within 2 minutes, I gave the description to the cop, who immediately knew who I was describing, saying the guy was a professional car thief. Then the cop looked inside the car, saw it was a manual and said "Thats why your car is still here, he doesn't know how to drive a manual."
And the cop informed me that roughly 25% of the driving population today, knows how to drive a manual. He said within 10 years, it will likely fall to 12-15%.
My 86 Mercury Topaz I bought brand new, finally sold it, long in the tooth and rusted, in 2009. Sadly my job requires I use my car for delivery, so I average a replacement every 2-3 years.
Dominus tecum
But I suggest having her learn to shift when the car motor is not running and parked, get her the feel of the pedal and shifting. Saves on potential clutch mess.
Dominus tecum
But the first few models were indeed great little cars. Its easy for a guy like me to understand how a person can get attached to a car. LOTS of adventures and lots of stories to tell with our mechanical buddies.
My Chevy is an 84' its been to Anthrocon....its been on a racetrack and seen almost all 50 states.
Id ask it to be buried with me when I die...but why cut its adventure short? Besides, in an odd and fun sort of way its a way of a small way of me living on after I'm gone.
Nice! Sounds like a fantastic car!
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*ducks the incoming hook from the side curtain*
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