Your list of old, EX cars

samulis

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Didn't find a topic about it (yep search'd almost for whole 10s) so it is time to have one.
List all the cars you've owned. No matter if it was only a day as long you had your name on paper. And if it was when you were young and driving on fields, they count too, because driving as a kid is cool.

Please, share the stories as well, no need to be shy.



To start, here is my list, there is year following when I owned it.

1. 1978 Opel Kadett 1.2 1996
Baby blue. Did one wheel burnout. First car love affair, was stolen once and sold after realisation how much owning a car was.

2. 1980 Mitsubishi Lancer 1.2 1997
Poop brown. It was called Silver Lightning, had all tuning done that you could do with under 5 euros, spray paint every interior part silver etc.

3. 1983 Toyota Corolla DX 1.3 1997
Silver. This rustbucket had a week left of MOT, rallye'd it to death, jump'd 1.5m up in air, drove up and down the stairs, grinded and it died a heroic death.

4. 1976 Toyota Timangi (Toyota Publica 1000 Pickup) 1998
Mint green, rust bucket. Previous owner had had Cerwin Vega Stroker instead of the second seat. Had it for week and didn't miss it.

5. 1984 VW Golf 1.1 mk1 4d 1998-1999
Dark red. In brand spanking new condition, 78tkm, one owner from new, it did 138km/h in a loooong downhill. Really miss it.

6. 1984 Lada 1200L 1998
CCCP grey. Square lamps. Snow came, needed RWD asap, sold it to teenage guys who needed RWD for snow.

7. 1989 Mazda MX-5 1999
Red. First MX-5, fun and it sparked long love affair for them.

8. 1984 Toyota Corolla GT TRD (AE86) 1999-2000
Red rust bucket with a hand made exhaust, it was made from rusty 5cm pipes. Tired local TRD garage build 4AGE engine, group N ECU chip, exhuast manifold, MOMO steering wheel (According young lady it was MAMA), tired Koni yellow's, LSD and it was insane fun. Did sideways on fresh snow as long I wanted. Collected a ticket with it "rear was sliding first to the left and then to the right", thank you sir.

9. 1988 Nissan Sunny 1.5 2000
Burgundy. Took it to the ice track, missed 5th gear, so 3rd gear killed the engine.

10. 1988 Nissan Sunny 1.5 2000
Burgundy. One wasn't enough, this had an original leaking sun roof.

11. 1984 Lada 1200L 2001
Brown. Square lamps.Once again winter came and I needed sideways action. Sold after few weeks.

12. 1973 Datsun 100A 2002
In great condition, no rust! My little sisters loaned it without permission as teenagers and park'd in wrong parking spot. Loaned it to a friend, I asked to look after the oil level and use the 4 litre can in truck. He returned the car week later with empty canister, said it smoked alot :D Really miss it.

13. 1986 Lada 1200L 2003
Pristine. Red. Round lamps. One owner who retired driving, as new condition, paid 50? and it died as a field rally car. What a mistake it was to kill it. Miss it.

14. 1989 Mini 1000 2005
White. Was supposed to buy AW11 MR2, instead I failed with Mini. Went to see it and didn't want it so low balled insanely hard. Lucas and darkness, drove to work and blinkers died, returned week later after driving through standing water etc. Did my first track day in it.

15. 1995 E Carina 2.0 2005-2006
Gold. Swap'd it straight to Mini, boring, but heater worked, electrics worked, everything worked. But it was boring.

16. 1986 Porsche 944 2006-2007
White. Pristine, life long dream, but it was slow. So test drove 951... Miss it and I was swallowing tears when it left.

17. 1985 Lada 1200L n. 2006
Poop brown. Square lamps. Funny, winter and snow. Month and sold it.

18. 1988 Opel Ascona 2006
Thought I could handle Opel, I was wrong, sold after two weeks, would have sold it earlier but the selling took two weeks.

19. 1998 Seat Cordoba TDI "STW" 2006-2008
Ugly green, did 4.7l/100km. Boring, door lock's frozen so I had to climb in/out from trunk. But it did have BBS alloys. And I build great HiFi's innit.

20. 1989 Porsche 944 TurboS 2007
Red. Full of expecive tuning parts, 993TT wheels, made 375whp, had digital boost controller that kept beeping at 2.05bar, blew up in Autobahn and was trailer'd home. I had broken Porsche with no import tax paid and no MOT. I had a week untill my wedding and a "happy" wife to be.

21. 1986 Porsche 944 Turbo 2007-2008
White. Straight swap to turboS, this one was registered to Finland (import tax's paid) it work'd and I drove it 4 times before I sold it (new born baby, dont sell toys for babys, just park them for year).

22. 1998 Mercedes Benz E300TDT STW 2008-2011 (OM606 king engine)
Black. Great to drive, horrible to own. 3.0 diesel straight six sounds great at 6krpm.
After three weeks cam chain sprocket bolts gave up, 21 valves and 6 pistons were dead.
Engine swappers broke AC.
Bought pristine OEM Merc wheels that wife scrape'd next week.
Drove to road work and blew front shocks.
Young son broke off "the star" and cruise control stick.
ECU lost its working smoke so got tuned ECU (inc. steering lock, key lock and key) with too much torque that gearbox could not handle and started to slip.
Did brakes and forgot to pump pedal and crash'd into stationary object.
Wife spun it into railing the first winter she got her licence.
Mother in law spun it to the ditch next winter and stop'd driving in winter time. Winter!
Sold it with huge loss.
Most expensive car (in matter of fact, any object) I've ever owned.

23. 1991 Eunos Roadster Mazdaspeed B-Spec stage II 2009-2010
Silver. Paid ?1040, it had done 80tkm. We drove from Leeds, UK to Stockholm, Sweden in 27 hours and missed ready paid boat by 15 minutes. It had Mazdaspeed head, pistons, con rods, cams, exhaust manifold and cat back, ecu, intake, +50 yrs old PO had burned Mazdaspeed puck clutch in two days. Koni yellows, JDM very light wheels, R888, roll bar, KAAZ LSD, seat, belts. It was pristine and I track'd it to death. It was great and I still miss it. Still lives on as a track whore.

24. 1992 Eunos Roadster 2010-2012
Dark red. 2nd track whore, owned it with two of my friends. Weighted under 900kg, TEIN SS 13/7kg springs, 235/13" semislicks, rollbar, seat's, belts, it was loud as hell to drive. KAAZ LSD Diff died on track. Lives as a slammed, white street car.

25. 2003 Citro?n Berlingo 2011-2012
Silver. Ice cream van. Boring but work'd. Had a working AC!

26. 1991 Westfield SE 1.7 Kent 2012
I wanted one for 18 years, so had to have it. Paid ?3250 bank transfer to seller who I only had talk'd via Skype and waited to see if I was ripped off. Great fun for a week and never meet your heroes. Had horrible crams in legs. Sold it for doubl? what I paid.

27. 1993 Eunos Roadster 2012-2013
I was looking for non red, LSD, proper suspension MX-5 and all went out of window when I saw the Tuckin99 flared, SSR wheeled love affair. Bought it, drove home from UK and lost my licence to drive bus 3 days later, ended up unemployed and was forced to sell it.

So there's my history so far.
Let's hear yours!

Cheers
 
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Oldest to newest:

1995, started driving with:
1987 Oldsmobile Cutlass Cierra (same color as the one in Fargo). Result: sold it for $200 because it was taking over $100 in repairs every month. Saw it still running 2-3 years later.
fargociera5.7842.jpg


1997 Ford Ranger XLT, 2WD, 20door, with step sides, manual, 4cyl engine. Result: flipped it upside-down 3 weeks before the end of the 2-year lease.
FordRangerAccident-February1999005.jpg


1996 Jeep Wrangler, Manual, 4-cyl, soft-top. Shitty Maaco black paint-job over the previous hot-pink color made is dark dark purple. I was on my way home from test-driving this vehicle when I rolled that Ranger. Result: Sold it after 5 months when I realized I live in Wisconsin (cold winters, hot and humid summers) and bought a car with vinyl seats and no air con.
jeep-wrangler-tj-08.jpg



1996 Ford Explorer Sport, 2 door, 4WD, 4.0 V6, black. Man, this thing was fun. Result: traded it in as it needed more repairs than I could afford after moving to California.
99_ford_explorer_sport_4x4_black.jpg



2002 Dodge Stratus, silver, 4cyl auto. Holy crap, was this thing a piece of shit. 5-year lease nearly bankrupted me because the remaining balance of the Explorer was added to my payments. Worst financial decision I've ever made. Result: paid to have it taken away at the end of the lease. I *could* have bought it for just a little more, but I wanted it out of my life.
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Went 6 months without a car after getting rid of that financial situation-ruining, shitty-ass Dodge.


2001 Mercury Cougar, V6, dark-ish metallic red, auto. I think this was tied for 1st as my favorite car, with the Explorer. Although, the Ranger was fun...and I'm really diggin' my current car...this one is something special, even though it is likely on it's 3rd transmission with less than 100,000 miles. Paid it off in 2013. First time without a car payment since 1997. Result: sold privately after I bought my current car.
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Current car: 2015 Mazda 3 S GT:
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Old to New

91 Eagle Summit ES. 3 door hatchback/wagon with a 1.something liter I4 and a 3spd auto. It was a gift from my grandparents since my grandmother could no longer drive and I was the first grandchild to get their drivers license. It was a great first car and my family only got rid of it because my sister went to college and my parents wanted to get rid of the extra car. They choose to get rid of this one and thats how I ended up with my second car. I really liked this car and it would have been a blast with a stickshift. Probably started my infatuation with low power, light N/A cars.

01 Suzuki Grand Vitara. 5 door SUV. This was awful to drive. My parents only kept it over the old car because it had more space. It had 4wd but it was just as bad to drive in winter as 2wd mode was. I ended up saving money and bought my Prelude.

Those are my only ex-cars. I still own the next 3 cars I bought.
 
1997 Nissan Maxima SE
Bought it with all my savings at the age of 17. The good news was that it had Nissan's award-winning VQ30 engine - a 3.0L V6 with 190hp and 205tq. It had power leather seats, a sunroof, and an LSD out of an Infiniti I30. The bad news is that the car was a lemon and then some: one of the shocks had snapped in half (yes, really); it needed a ton of work; the LSD was swapped in because the original transmission died on me; and it got 16mpg on premium and therefore ate all of the money I made working part-time throughout high school. I loved it because it was my first car but in reality it was a massive turd.













1998 Honda Accord LX
My father graciously handed the Accord down to me after the Maxima died and he was buying an Audi at the same time. Slow, boring, bland... but superbly built. I never forgot that feeling of quality, which is partly why I ended up with another Honda product down the road (more on that later). I don't have a ton of picture of this car but here it is next to the Maxima:



Of course the Accord's main claim to fame was via the Sound Racer, administered by yours truly and our very own Blake "Zeus" Rong:







1999 Mazda Miata
The love affair car. Coming up on five years with this thing and I giggle every time I drive it. Fun fact: I laughed in my friend's face when he suggested I get a Miata back in college when I wanted something "sporty!". :lol: The little Mazda has been through five or six owners; it's been a commuter car; it's been flung sideways in mud; it's been autocrossed; it's been airborne; it's driven past 4x4s that had slid off the road in the snow; it's been on long-distance drives; it's been on Google Street View; and so on and so forth. Now, finally, it's been put into winter hibernation mode and I can't wait to get it back out again.













2006 Acura TL
As you would expect, I've done this properly. 3.2L V6, 260hp, 7k redline, 6-speed, LSD,, Brembos. What a superb vehicle for fast backroads. Utter comfort that will hopefully get me through the winter while the Miata sleeps.

 
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1. 1985 Volvo 244DL, one of few 240's delivered with the B200K engine, which was the one used in the Volvo 340. At first when making it into a manual, we swapped in a B21, but that broke... so we put the B200K back in, with the intake and carb from the B21, the car suddenly got quicker. Turns out that a proper carb on the B200K in addition to gear ratio from a automatic, meant acceleration. My 244DL would beat my friends s13 200SX at 0-60 kph. I also somehow got my hands on a bodykit for the car, so i've actually had a brick with a bodykit. :p
Actual picture of my first car.
HSLl68z.jpg


2. 1978 Ford Mustang II Coupe. And it wasn't even the version with the 5.0 302, i had a 90hp 2.8 V6 version, it kinda looked like a Honda Prelude in a way. It was surprisingly quick for the low power, it was enough to overtake and lose a R33 Skyline GTS-t, the top speed i reached with the car was Unleaded Fuel Only. :p
Actual picture of my old car.
iWkPZpm.jpg


3. 1980 Buick Century Estate Wagon. It was a fun car, i really do miss it... but no money to fix it made me have to sell it, had the 4.9 301 V8 from Pontiac, 140hp... in a V8... how do they get so little in an angine that big? but like with the Mustang II, it was quicker than you'd suspect, was enough to hold a e30 325i with a cam up to about 100kph, not bad for 1750kg of car from 1980 :p
How the Buick looked just before i sold it, with a unfinished 350 swap.
X8XuWGs.jpg


4. 1979 Ford Mustang Ghia, a first gen notchback Foxbody, bought it while me and some friends rented a garage, was planned fixer uppper project, was gonna do a 302 swap, as again.. i'd found a 2.8 V6 version :p but as we lost the garage, it was scrapped... too bad really... i still would love one of that gen Foxbody
GFKIKrC.jpg


5. Hyundai Pony GLSi, or Hyundai Excel X2 as they're known in the US, it was a car i got cheap, as i needed a daily driver, but when we went to fix what we thought was just a headgasket that had gone bad, it turned out the whole head was fucked, so i ended up scrapping it.
w30dfTJ.jpg


6. 1991 Volvo 240GL. Went back to a Volvo again, and i loved it, the car felt great to drive, felt really solid, i'd started getting the look i wanted... then suddenly one year, it failed the MOT check, everything was fine i thought, but turned out the floor was barely existing anymore... heavily rusted, so it was scrapped.
m5NyZcv.jpg


so now i got a 1993 Volvo 240GL instead. :p
g0G3i6B.jpg
 
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had the 4.9 301 V8 from Pontiac, 140hp... in a V8... how do they get so little in an angine that big?


In a lazy reaction to the increasing emission standards and fuel crisis during the 70s GM (along with the other Big 3 automakers) detuned (lower compression ratio) the engines so they would still have some torque but could meet the standards. But as we all know, the detuned engines did not work on two levels. Having a lower compression ratio means less torque, a need for more throttle input, and that also means less fuel mileage. I had a Regal with the 4.9 and left it that way for two weeks and swapped a 350 Chevy into it too.
 
We did have a thread similar to this, but damned if I can remember what it was called. Anyway, a new one would hurt.

I have bought and sold quite a few cars in the 18 years I have been driving. I'll do my best to describe each car.

1. 1981 Honda Civic Wagovan - Silver - Bought for $400 as my first car. I learned to drive it at the dragstrip in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The gear on the cam stripped that drove the oil pump. My dad and I replaced the cam and the oil pump, but never got it running again. It was hauled off when we sold the house we lived in in Tulsa.

2. 1988 Dodge Ram 50 - Dark Blue - My first vehicle that I actually drove as a licensed driver. The A/C worked, it was slow, automatic. Sold it to my brother to replace his junk Maverick. He then sold it to my dad, where it was used at the racetrack. Eventually sold after it developed overheating problems.

3. 1986 Acura Integra - Light Blue - Loved this little car. Drove it to Houston, Texas for a job, drove it home and sold it to my brother. At 210k miles the oil pump locked up on him, engine let loose and it was sold for scrap.

4. 1995 Nissan Truck - Magenta (Nissan's name, I called it purple.) - After returning from the job in Houston, I put a sizable down payment on this truck. This was a fun truck, I put tons of miles on it. Lowered it with spindles and blocks. Got into an accident with it, fixed it. Stripped the lowering stuff off and sold the truck to a Mexican who took it to California.

5. 1986 Honda CRX - Dark Blue - This was my first failed project. I bought it wrecked, planned to fix it and then have a CRX. Although I did get to drive it a few times, I never finished it. Engine still sits in my shop 15 years later.

6. 1986 Toyota Truck - White - My uncle bought this truck new in 1986. After 200k miles the clutch finally failed. I replaced the clutch, then sold it to a man who was going to take it to Guatemala.

7. 1988 Nissan Truck - Silver - Found this in a local paper for $600. Ran, but the key-way on the crank was fubared. I welded the balancer to the crank. Then sold it to my dad as a truck to use around the racetrack. Eventually the headgasket failed. I parted the truck out. I still have a few parts kicking around the shop.

8. 1986 Olds Cutlass - Cream - This car was given to my brother and I to build a racecar from. Had the trans built, gutted the interior, had contacted a engine builder, but nothing ever happened with it after that. Transmission is still in my shop. Car was given to a buddy of mine. Never heard what he did with it.

9. 1992 Saturn SC - Red - My girlfriend (now wife) needed a car after she missed one too many payments on her Cavalier. I bouth this one for $1,995 from an individual who had listed it on a website. This was the first car I bought from the internet. She lightly rearended a Grand Cherokee with it at one point, with the headlights up. I fixed it with about a million self-tapping screws and an old Coke sign. It overheated multiple times. I really learned to hate it. Eventually we sold it to a fella that was still driving it 5 years later.

10. 1989 Honda Civic - White - Another car that the wife and I used. I don't remember why we replaced the Saturn with this car, but it was a million times better. Bought it from a family that had it since new. It was slow, fun to drive though. Automatic. We got rear-ended by her brother in it. Fixed it with an old scissor jack and some wood posts. Eventually sold it to my sister-in-law. She drove it until the engine let loose. I bought it back and sold it as a pair with another I bought to replace the engine.

11. 1992 Nissan 240SX - Dark Grey - This was a $250 car with a bad engine. I bought a good engine from a 1995, dropped it in and sold it to a guy from St. Louis. Fun car to drive, but man did it need a LSD.

12. 1985 Ford Mustang & 13. 1986 Ford Mustang - One was maroon, one was silver, I don't remember which was which now. - These were bought as a pair for $100, but I had to drive 16 hours total to get them. Started to build the silver one into a racecar, lost interest, sold both.

14. 1985 Ford E-150 - Silver - Only reason I bought this is for the 351W and the 9" rearend. Sold those off for more than I paid for the van. Then took the rest to scrap.

15. 1993 Nissan Altima - Champagne - Another car bought for the wife. This one was well loaded for a mid-sized car from the early '90s. Dual zone climate control, leather, heads-up display. Again, was an auto. Wasn't exactly the most fun car to drive, but we racked up the miles on it. Sold it after is started burning oil. Saw it for a couple years after that, but haven't seen it lately.

16. 1995 Ford F150 - White w/dark blue rockers - I replaced the 1995 Nissan truck with this. It was my first full-size truck. I bought it from a friend. I once had to change the rear brake hose in a hotel parking lot after the spare rubbed a hole in it. Drove the piss out of it and then sold it to a co-worker of my brother's. Odd fact, that co-worker eventually ran-off with my brother's wife.

17. 1991 Ford Mustang - Maroon - Yet another failed racecar project. Bought it cheap, did nothing with it, sold it for more money.

18. 1981 Ford Fairmont Wagon - Blue - I bought this one on a bit of a laugh. It was $850, had a 351W in it, did burnouts, ran high 14s in the quarter. After some transmission trouble I sold it to a friend. He and his daughter raced it for years.

19. 1993 Ford Mustang - Silver - This one is about as far as I have gotten on a Mustang project. Bought the car, bought most of the parts for a 331 stroker, things were coming together and I sold it. Saw it later on for sale for a large amount of money with a serious drivetrain in it.

20. 2001 Honda Accord - Silver - My wife and I financed this one for her to drive. Great car, never gave us a lick of problems, was a fun front driver even with the automatic. We got into a wreck with a pickup that had stalled on a dark country road. Car was totaled, we survived.

21. 1984 Ford Mustang SVO - Dark Charcoal Metallic (9W) - First car I really took from nothing to something. Bought from a friend who had let it sit under a tree for 5+ years. Car was slow, ran like crap, but I soon figured out the problem. The clip that held the wastegate flapper to the actuator was missing. After that and some upgrades I got the car to run a best of 13.21 @ 102. I sold it five years ago, have looked for it for the last four.

22. 2003 Ford F-250 - Dark Shadow Gray - My first adult purchase. Truck was the 6.0 diesel, it pulled great, it ran great, no real problems, until one day, no start. I hate to admit this was during a tough financial time for my wife and I, so it was repossessed as part of a bankruptcy in 2008.

23. 1991 Ford Mustang LX - Grey - This was a running driving 4 banger that we bought for my wife to build into her own Mustang. Later we used it as daily transportation after #20 was wrecked. Started puking transmission fluid out the front. Sold it to a friend's brother. He now is a great pitcher.

24. 1992 Ford Mustang LX - Red - We bought this as a parts car for #23. It had been rolled over. Car was a cut and shut. Had a rear clip from an earlier car welded to the 1992 front. Ended up parting it out and never completing #23. Surprise, surprise...

25. 1984 Toyota Truck 4x4 - White - I paid something like $200 for this. Never drove it, but planned to build a Formula Toy out of it, guess what? Never happened. SOld the body for scrap and gave the chassis to a neighbor.

26. 1991 Ford Ranger - Black - After the bankruptcy I needed a cheap truck, bought this for $1,000 from a friend. It didn't have a muffler, was loud, slow and a hoot. It had a rear sway bar, but not a front. So it would oversteer randomly. I got rearended in it, sold it to my brother, who got a DUI in it. He then sold it.

27. 1995 Acura Legend - Black - We thought this would be a great car, but it was far from it. Dealer that sold it to us was an absolute liar. I fixed many of it problems, but got sick of the car and traded it for #30 after we bought #29 for the wife to drive.

28. 1998 Ford Ranger - Red - After #26 was rearended I bought this to replace it from a friend of a friend. Great little truck, had the 2.5 and a 5-speed. Ended up selling it to a racer about a year later.

29. 2000 Ford Taurus - Silver - Former rental. Had column shift, front bench seat. Not the sportiest car, but would absolutely eat up the road miles. My wife disliked it, so we sold it to buy #32.

30. 1995? Toyota 4-Runner - Tan - As mentioned above, traded #27 for this. Was a decent runner, but then it developed a rod knock. Sold it cheap and hated myself for trading.

31. 1992 Ford Mustang LX - White - This was the sought after 5.0 5-speed coupe. Loved this car. Best handling Mustang I've owned. Had many aftermarket upgrades. Ran high 13s. Sold it to have a down payment for #32.

32. 2002 Honda Accord - White - In 2010 we had a kiddo on the way and the wife didn't like #29. So we bought this. Was a well loaded car. Ran great. We put 50k miles on it and the transmission started acting up. Traded it in when we bought #44.

33. 1986 Merkur XR4Ti - Red - This was bought as a project. I got it about 95% done and lost interest. I drove it several times and it would have been a great toy, but I needed something reliable. Sold it and bought #34.

34. 2004 Ford Mustang GT - Dark Shadow Grey - I bought this one from a car lot, they financed it through a bank. Car was decent, but was a little rough around the edges. I fixed the small mechanical problems, barely put any miles on it and freaked out about the payment (a whopping $200 a month). Sold it at a loss. I'm an idiot.

35. 1986 Ford T-Bird Turbocoupe - Black (though was originally silver) & 36. 1989 Ford Mustang - White - Bought these as a pair, plan was to put the turbo motor from the T-Bird in the Mustang. Started the swap, had back problems and sold it to a friend.

37. 2000 Ford Mustang - Blue - This was bought with a bad engine, dropped a new one in it and sold it on to a friend to buy #40.

38. 1997 Ford Explorer & 39. 2000 Ford Explorer - Bought the pair for $750. Sold them for the same. Had a little fun with the 1997 in between.

40. 1985 Mercury Capri - Red/Grey two-tone - Loved this one even though it was an automatic and had the Ford Central Port Injection. It was slow, rusty and ugly. Sold it to a guy in Arkansas that fixed the rust and painted it. He sold it to someone in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Last report I got on it, it was sitting on the side of the highway looking pretty rough. Sad really.

41. 1985 Ford Mustang SVO - Black - Still have this one. Still in a million pieces.

42. 2003 Ford SVT Focus - Red - This was probably the most fun to drive car I have ever had. I put 21k miles on it over a three year period. Traded it for

43. 1993 Ford Mustang LX - Blurple - I bought this as my first and only internet auction purchase. It was wrecked and I knew it, but from the photos you couldn't tell how bad it really was. It donated a lot of parts to #45. The rest was hauled off for scrap.

44. 2010 Nissan Altima - Silver - My wife's current driver. We've had it for going on three years. Had 15k miles on it when we bough it and now is nearing 80k. It's not very fun to drive, the seats make my ass hurt after an hour on the road and the CVT transmission sucks my will to live. She likes it though, so whatever...

45. 1993 Mustang LX - Red - Bought without an engine or transmission. Swapped in the drivetrain from #43 and sold it to a friend of my brother's.

46. 1988 Ford Thunderbird Turbocoupe - Silver - This was just a parts car to donate the drivetrain to #41. Sold most all of the other parts to racer restoring his 1988 T-Bird, then crushed the rusty shell.

47. 1981 Ford Fairmont Wagon - Blue - Yes, same one as #18. This time around it had a 302 with EFI. Fun car, did donuts, ran low 15s. What else could you ask for? Ended up selling it to a racer, who sold it to another, then he sold it to guy in a town about 10 miles from me.

48. 1993 Mazda Miata - Black - This one was bought about a year ago. Fixed a number of things wrong with it, the sold it this spring for a very small profit.

49. 1998 Mustang V6 - ? - Another racecar project gone wrong. Bought and sold in a matter of months at a loss. Heard the guy I sold it to crushed it. Bastard.

50. 1998 Mustang Cobra - Bright Atlantic Blue - This was (and still is) a roller. No engine or transmission. I'm still searching for a suitable donor. Maybe this winter.

51. 2014 Nissan Frontier Pro-4x - White - Current daily driver. Logged about 6,000 miles in two months. Only complaint is a slightly squishy brake pedal.

52. 2007 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor - Silver - Got this in trade for #42. It's for sale. You know you want it.

I'll try to round up some photos and attach it to some of these tomorrow.
 
Wasn't it just called "Your Own Car history" or something like that?

Yes, here it is, and you started the damn thing! :lol:
 
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Wasn't it just called "Your Own Car history" or something like that?

Yes, here it is, and you started the damn thing! :lol:

Also: https://forums.finalgear.com/general-automotive/your-vehicle-timeline-40856/
And somewhat related: https://forums.finalgear.com/general-automotive/cars-your-family-has-owned-over-the-years-23162/

EDIT: And my favourite: https://forums.finalgear.com/random...ugged-you-about-every-car-you-ever-had-57180/

But it's good to repeat every few years, the people and lists keep changing ;)
 
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It's good to do a new thread every few years. So here we go:

HPIM1319.jpg

1. 1982 Ford Sierra L, originally a 1.3, but it had 1.6 with Weber DGAV carburators. Crap car, but it was the first, so it was awesome. Discarded it on the first autumn, when front suspension froze up. Would have needed new dampers. Bought and sold in 2004.

hpim2277.jpg

2. 1992 Mazda 626 2.2i SVX. Felt really modern after the Sierra, and not the least because it had power steering. :lol: Rusted badly, so I sold it. The only car I've sold with profit, I paid 2200 ? for it and got 2500 ? 9 months and 20 000 km later. Bought 2004, sold 2005.

HPIM2709.jpg

3. 1990 Mercedes-Benz 200 D. Great car, I liked it a lot. All 75 horses. Left me stranded three times, once a diesel line cracked after 160 km/h high speed run, and later both drive shafts snapped in half due to rust. I've later hated myself for letting it go. But sold because I was 19 and started to earn some money, so wanted to get something "better". My dad drove this a lot after I sold it to him. Bought 2005, sold 2006 to my dad who sold it in 2008.

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4. 1994 Mercedes-Benz C 220 Elegance. Rusted badly, got rear quarters fixed, but a year later it started rusting again. I found out later that it was crashed both front and back. Still going strong though, this was for sale last week for 750 ? in Nettiauto. This time I was really not tempted to get it back. Bought 2006, sold 2007.

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5. 1997 Honda Prelude (PYC link). Got this as a part exchange when I sold the C 220. Didn't really want one but got too good of a deal to pass. Cheap to run, some rust issues, but my main annoyance was the awful road noise. Bought and sold 2007.

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6. 1996 Mercedes-Benz E 300 D Elegance. I drove only 3 months with this, as my dad fell in love with it and wanted it for himself. Bought 2007, sold to my dad in 2008, who sold it forward just a month ago, almost 150 000 km driven (I bought it with 295 000, when sold it was 445 000). Lot of rust issues, as expected, but otherwise really reliable.


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7. 1997 Ford Scorpio 2.3i. The love of my life. Bought with just 108 000 km on the clock, sold it at 140 000 km and regretted selling it. Two years later I had the chance to buy it back, and I did. Bought for the first time in 2008, sold in 2010, bought back in 2012, and never going to sell it again.

8. 1999 Volvo V70 2.5D. Fully loaded, which was nice. First actually full-specced car I ever owned. Traded the Scorpio to this, because we moved out of town and my commute increased to 40 km/day, and our first kid was on the way, so I thought we'd need a wagon. I drove 55 000 km, main (scary) issue was the brakes, which lost their boost randomly. I even replaced brake booster, but it did not help. Bought 2010, sold 2012.

9. 1994 Ford Escort 1.8 CLX. Cheap means of transportation as a second car. Didn't care enough to even take a picture. No complaints, did what it was asked to do. Always. Bought probably around 2010'ish and sold in 2011.

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10. 2000 Saab 9-3 Aero. Got this as part exchange to the Volvo, again didn't really look for a car like this, but it was just too good of a deal. The power was insane, as I was used to way less of it... It was too tiny car for my use, so it had to go quite quickly. Also I got scared when in transmission fluid change out came some metal bits. This is still in the town, I still see it in my town every now and then driven by a tiny Asian lady barely seeing behind the steering wheel. Bought and sold in 2012.

11. 1999 Fiat Marea Weekend 1.6 ELX. Traded the Escort for this, as the Escort had rust that would've been too expensive to fix for the next MOT. Excellent little car, cost about nothing, did everything needed with minimal repairs. Only picture I can find is in the background of the Saab above. Bought 2011, sold in 2013.

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12. 2005 Renault Laguna II 2.0 Break Expression. Traded the Saab for this. Felt like a new car when I bought it, as it was the youngest I've ever had. Served quite well, until in the end I got the cam belt replaced, and the repair shop noticed there was a harmonic balancer soon to be dying. I asked them if it was okay to still drive, and they said it was ok, and ordered the new part. The next day I went to a business trip 400 km away, and the balancer snapped the cam belt destroying half of the engine. I had to pay some of the repairs myself, as I didn't want to start fighting for my 1500 ? part. The shop had to pay a lot more anyway. Bought 2012, sold in 2013.


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13. 1990 Buick LeSabre. My first actual "hobby" car. I didn't really need a car, but after I bought the Scorpio back, I had no use for the Fiat anymore. So I wanted to sell it. As the sales ad often leads to part exchanges, that was the easiest route to go. I wanted to get something strange, and that I did get. It had quite a lot of issues, but it was a good lesson for me. Last time I'm going to buy a car that has a salvage title in the US. :D Loved it nonetheless. I could consider another same body car, but it must be original. Bought 2013, and sold in 2014.


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14. 2003 Ford Mondeo 1.8i Ghia Wagon. I wanted to get rid of the Laguna after the issues and hauling immense amounts of cash towards it, and some more repairs waiting in line before soon-expiring MOT. I decided to cut my losses, and traded it for this. Good car, only the rust was a problem. Bought in 2013, sold 2014.

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15. 1990 Volvo 960 3.0i. This was the result of me wanting to get rid of the Buick's issues. So I replaced it with Volvo's issues :D Mainly electrical problems causing problems with starting, and it also stalled couple of times. A bunch of sensors were thrown in, but still the issues didn't disappear. Also the fuel consumption was really high. Not that it was a surprise per se, but Buick being a lot of more economical was a bit of surprise. When the 960 happened to work flawlessly, it was a really nice, fully specced winter car. But unfortunately the flawless times were not too often. Bought and sold in 2014.

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16. 2004 Renault Grand Espace 2.0t Expression. When we got our third child, I rammed in to a dilemma, where I noticed there's not too many cars that can fit three child seats across with ease. I tried to find a solution that would allow me not buy a MPV, but failed. MPV's just kick ass when you need to haul three or more kids. Several thousands were tossed to various repairs, but a lot of it was because my wife managed to offroad a bit. Bought in 2014, sold in 2015.


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17. 1996 Ford Scorpio 2.0. With Volvo acting all the time up, and a consecutive plated Scorpio turned up for sale in my town, I had no choise than trade to it. Haven't really driven a lot with this, it's just sitting and looking pretty. I'm not too sure if I should keep or sell it. The fact that there's a limited market for a car like this, pretty much favours the first option. Bought in 2014, not (at least yet) sold.

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18. 2005 Cadillac SRX 4.6 V8. I wanted to stop using Scorpios as daily drivers to save them from rust and all the other nasty shit that driving causes. So I started looking something interesting daily drivers. Winter approaching fast a four-wheel-drive sounded nice. And what's more fun than V8 to go with it. Saw an interesting example on sale, travelled to check it out, and bought it. Had fun with it, and realized that a car which cost 120 000 ? in 2005, is still expensive as f*ck to maintain ten years later and 200 000 km on the clock even if the purchase price is just a fraction. :D Bought in 2014, sold in 2015.

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19. 2008 Mercedes-Benz C 200 CDI Business. This came in when I got tired (and broke) of repairing Cadillac. I wanted to go to a completely other direction, just get the maintenance costs and fuel bills down. And in that this has been a success. No extra repairs, just soldiering on strong. Bought in 2015, not yet sold.

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20. 2002 Chrysler Grand Voyager 3.3 AWD. We're getting our fourth baby any day now. My wife complained for months that Renault is not going to be suitable anymore with four kids. It did have seven seats, but having the third row up meant no space for stuff at all. There wasn't really any else options than getting a Grand Voyager. My wife wanted a white painted, fabric seats and as little electrical gizmoes (to keep faults down) as possible. So naturally I bought a black, full-specced, leather interior GV. Not too many miles done yet, time will tell how this will turn out. Bought in 2015, not yet sold.


Actually I forgot one. I don't want to change all the numbers, so this goes here. Some time in the mid-2000's I bought a ice track Sierra together with two friends of mine. 1987, if I remember correctly, a tuned 2.0 engine which had absolutely no torque under 3000 rpm, but over that it was a blast. Added some extra lights, removed unnecessary seats, got tires with illegal amount of spikes. And then forgot the whole thing. Never even tested it in the ice. :lol:
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#1: VW Polo VAN 1.0 (2004-2005)
http://img339.imageshack.**/img339/6932/vwpolo100002et4.jpg
It was free. Nuff said.

#2: Ford Fiesta 1.3 Calypso (2005-2006)
http://img339.imageshack.**/img339/844/fordfiesta13calypso0001uv6.jpg
Got this as a replacement because I sometimes had to seat more than one passenger. Was a lot more fun to drive than the VW, too bad the engine was the 1.3l Valencia. Sold it about a year later to a friend of mine who drove it for a number of years before scrapping it due to Fordness rust.

#3: Peugeot 306 1.4 (2006-2007)
http://img103.imageshack.**/img103/6357/94708011gg3.jpg
Got this as a replacement after selling the Fiesta. Had some electrical issues, which turned out to be a bad starter motor. Sold this to another friend.

#4: Mitsubishi Carisma 1.6 (2007-2007)
http://img248.imageshack.**/img248/2084/carisma1yn9.jpg
Worst car decision ever. Should've gotten the slightly more expensive, slightly rusty E36 316i that was next to it, but I let myself get talked into this one because toys. After almost spinning out while doing an elk-test like manoevre at 120kph to avoid crashing into a dickhead in a 911 I swore to replace it asap.

#5: Mercedes 190E (2007-2010)
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Fell in love with this, and quickly worked out a deal where I would trade my Carisma for this. Loved the car, but in the end it was a little too small to fit 2 kiddie seats in the rear with me being comfortably seated behind the wheel. And I moved 75km, making my commutes a lot longer.

#6: Mercedes C220CDI (2010-2012 (me) 2012-2014 (wife))
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Longer commutes meant diesel became an interesting proposal. Drove this for a good 2 years, and then my wife drove it for another 1.5 years. Was a comfy cruiser, and we drove it a lot, 170000km in total.

#6: BMW 328i Touring (2012-2015)
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A change in commute meant that I would only drive to the nearest trainstation, or get a rental. So the diesel went to my wife, and I got something fun for the few drives I needed to do. Loved the car, although I drove it very little, less than 15000km in a little under 3 years. In the end the rust became too bad and I had to scrap it.

#7 (and current): BMW 330d Touring (2015-)
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And then I went back to diesel, because I once again changed my commute preferences (and no longer being stationed at clients meant I lost my rental privileges). I wanted something fast and comfortable that would not be too lacking in the fun department. Already drove >20000km with it since april.
 
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Owned only 3 cars:

1980 Ford Granada 2.1D
Owned from spring till winter 1999. Was a rustbucket, but i loved it. Went with it to Budapest to the F1 GP that year. Had to sell it because i didn't have the money to fix all the issues and the rust.


1996 Opel Astra F 1.6 16v sedan
Basically was given the car by grandma after i sold the Granada and had it untill march 2012 (yes, i owned it for 12 years). Mostly trouble free motoring without any major issues. Rust started to creep in in the end, despite my best efforts.


1989 BMW E30 325i Touring
Bought in August 2012. Best car i've owned so far. Already more good memories than with both of its predecessors combined.
 
I could've sworn I've posted in some earlier iteration of this thread, but maybe it was the What Bugged You thread instead :p

Most of these have been posted here, but it's good to do a re-cap so the photos keep hosted.

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2004: First own car, 1988 Nissan Bluebird 2.0 with 200k+ km on the clock. Creeping rust, howling de-studded tires, wafty waftiness. Probably got scrapped by the next owner.

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2005: Replacement due to creeping rust: 1993 Mazda 323 1.3 HB. 75 horsepower, five speeds, no budget to do any other improvements than to source 14" alloy wheels for it and a junkyard CD changer setup. Traded it for the 323F and it got scrapped by the next owner.

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2009: 1991 Mazda 323F, first hero car. 88 horsepower, five speeds, 94k km when I got it. Drove it for years and years and 55 000 km, dented up the driver side at a Finnish race track, found junkyard panels to undo the damage. Found gainful employment, so could buy other cars and this went to my brother. Ended up having theft damage and probably scrapped.

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2011: 1990 Mitsubishi Sapporo, first money pit/project car. Weird ultra-luxury saloon built in 1987 and only registered years later. Bought after years of following it on Nettiauto, saved from rotting at a used car dealer lot. Spent money on cambelt, rockers, random parts and so on, got it nice enough to be featured in the magazine that ended up employing me. Sold it a few years later and probably got even, first car that most likely hasn't been scrapped afterwards :p

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2012: 1995 BMW 518i E34. First winterbeater, first RWD car. 115 horsepower was almost enough, but I liked the package. Drove sloppily at first, got some bushings thrown at it, drove less sloppily then. Mounted E38 Style 5 wheels and ruined the handling again. Sold it to Polkky on this forum, he again threw some parts at it and sold it on.

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2013: 1990 Peugeot 205 XS, first ultracheap beater. Does everything, does most everything very well. Bought for 350 euros, have spent that in it a few times over with the headgasket and wheels and whatnot. Drove it to Romania, Croatia, Italy and the N?rburgring. Still have it, one of the best buys I've ever done. Still daily drive it.

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2013: Saab 900S LPT Auto. Bought to replace the Sapporo and the BMW, drank fuel like both combined. First automatic car, first turbo car, probably not the last? Supreme tank, sold to a good friend who still has it.

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2013: 1986 Volkswagen Polo Classic. Cheapest car in recorded human history, at 60 euros. Had a failed headgasket when I rescued it from the side of the road, removed cylinder head with my own two hands. Proceeded to do absolutely nothing for the next two years, so hauled it to a local school who are putting it back together while I order parts for it. It runs now.

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2014: 1997 Citro?n Xantia Ath?na Break. First wagon, first of many ~700 euro cars. Good parts hauler, comfortable, spacious, a lot better than I expected it to be. Owned it the shortest time as I felt wary about future fixes and sold it to a local guy. Still runs, still seen around town. Has needed a few bits.

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2014: 1990 Ford Sierra 1.6i CL. Sat for a decade before I bought it to be fixed up as a RWD winterbeater, turned out to need a good bunch of parts to make it reliable. Slow, ungainly, cumbersome, slow, dented. Decided to fix the too-tall ride height, which has resulted in the car being out of commission since last spring.

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2015: 1993 Mazda MX-5. Second hero car after 323F. Super cheap NA at 770 euros, sourced from Germany with the help of D-Fence, loose_unit and Beni, driven here via Poland and Baltia. After way overdue maintenance became reliable enough to be driven to Nordkapp and N?rburgring, has done 23 000 km since being bought in late Jan 2015. Will not be winter driven this winter to slow down rusting.

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2015: 1992 Peugeot 405 Mi16. A tentative winter beater, bought for less than half market value due to needing parts NOW. Will be kept in the same vein as the Sapporo, BMW and Saab, meaning it'll be a comfortable long-distance car that still fills a need for one realized in childhood.

I think that's it so far...
 
1- 1989 VW Fox 1999-2000 Dark Red I4 1,8 82 hp

2- 2001 Hyundai Accent GS 2000-2002 Dark Blue I4 1,5 89 hp

3- 2002 Mazda Proteg? LX 2002-2005 Dark Red I4 2,0 130 hp

4- 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt 2005-2005 Light Blue I4 2,2 145 hp - Worst car ever. Alway broken... even delivered without heating in January. GM took it back in September 2005.

5- 1987 Mazda 626 LX 2005-2006 Dark Grey I4 2,0 87 hp

6- 2005 Pontiac G6 2005-2006 Dark Red V6 3,5 200 hp

7- 2005 Ford Focus ZX5 2006-2008 Orange I4 2,0 130 hp

8- 2008 Honda Accord 2008-2010 Dark Blue I4 2,4 200 hp

9- 2010 Mini Cooper Mayfair 2009-2010 Brown I4 1,6 120 hp

10- 2011 BMW 323i 2010-2011 White I6 2,5 200 hp

11- 2008 Volvo XC70 2011-2014 Oyster Grey I6 3,2 240 hp

12 2014 Ford Fiesta SE Since 2014 Ruby Red I4 1,6 120 hp - Most surprising car. Economical, very good handling.
 
Pretty jealous of some of you guys. I've just owned a bunch of beaters. I'll keep it short, no parts cars, stuff I didn't register, off-road stuff. Either get bored and sell them or blow them up. :p

Listed in rough order since 2003:
1981 Chevy C10
1988 Toyota Celica ST
1985 Chevy Camaro
1994 Buick Century
1981 Pontiac Firebird
1974 Yamaha DT250
1984 Chevy Monte Carlo
1978 Ford Fairmont
1986 Toyota Celica GTS
1984 Chevy S10 (350 swapped)
1974 Honda XL250
1996 Pontiac Bonneville
1996 Honda VFR750
1988 BMW 325
1978 Ford F150
1994 Mercury Grand Marquis
1984 Olds Cutlass (also had a SBC swap)
1981 Kawasaki KZ550
1987 Ford F150
1984 Saab 900 Turbo
1986 Volvo 245
1973 Ford F100 Ranger
1987 Mercury Cougar XR7 (5.0 HO/T5 swap)

Owning a bunch of old beaters kind of distilled my automotive interests. I wish I would've hung onto the '78 Ford. 300 I6, T18 4 speed, 9" axle, power brakes and steering ... but nothing else. Perfect dirt reliable parts hauler.

I regret selling every bike I've owned. That's all there is to that.

Finally, I like the potential of fox body Ford's. I love the 5.0/T5 combo. But they're small cars. And handle like shit stock. I also miss my Volvo wagon. A lot. Miss the utility. Drove well too.

Someday I'd like to build a Volvo wagon with a 5.0 and T5. Feel like that'd be the ultimate daily for me. Cheap, good utility, drives well, roasts tires, loud as fuck ... so on and so forth.
 
Nice list's, keep em coming. MXM? LostSoul?
My list ain't that impressive. The whole buying/selling process causes too much anxiety, so I try to avoid it ;) I've only had 6 cars in my name in the whole 15 years.

1992 Civic 1.5 EG
1986 Porsche 944
2005 VW Golf mk4 Variant 2.0
1970~'11 Caterham 7
1995 BMW E34 520i
1985 BMW E28 528i

Civic was an amazing first car, also almost entirely rust free. I had no intention of parting with it, until I did. Sold it very quickly, and perhaps for too little, and only because got too excited about Porsches and had to have one asap.

The 944 was a real beater, and I certainly overpaid for it. But in the end it was my only transport for 6 years, and the most fun winter car I've driven. Ended its life as a parts car, sadly.

The Golf I inherited from my father, and I didn't like it a whole lot. It's such a tool, even with a 2L. Too characterless to be fun too simple to be luxurious... I really don't know where it fits, or why people can be enthusiastic about mk4. The good thing about it, was it was easy to sell and netted me a good amount of cash.. all of which (and then some) I immediately spent on the Caterham :lol:

The 7 - bought it, crashed it, rebuilt it, still loving every minute of it :) Details in the link in my signature.

E34 was never meant to be permanent, I bought it when the 7 was in pieces and 944 wasn't running just to have some transport. Pretty suomi-spec, but 6cyl and RWD, so not entirely useless in the winter.

Traded it for E28, which is like purer, distilled version of all the fun parts of E34, minus the noise insulation. But now the rust is creeping in, the "bulletproof" M30 is starting to leak a bit too much oil and doesn't start too well, the shocks are likely due, and everything in the drivetrain is a bit loose. It's almost at 330kkm now, so yeah... If I had space, I'd probably ground it for a major rebuild and get something else to daily drive, but for now it's staying "in service".
 
Car history in chronological order:


2007-March 2012: 1992 Saturn SL1


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Bought it a bit after getting my 2nd job at 18 for $800 bucks from a newspaper ad (remember those). Seller was selling it now that his daughter upgraded to a Ion- he put all his kids in Saturns and his son had a blue SC2 coupe. Anyway.... 85 HP coupled to a 4 speed automatic with optional air conditioning = slow going but it handled well and was easy to see out of.


Mine was one trim above base and came with the power package (Power Windows, Locks, Mirrors) and a driver's airbag as options aside from the automatic.


Car was fine (save for a quirky AT) for quite a while, got me to and from uni fine, survived vandalism in the uni parking lot, and I even did my first DIY repair (serp belt + tensioner) on it with the help of FG and my Dad. Unfortunately it wasn't always maintained as well as I'd like while out of my possession so it began to make distressing noises and begin leaking various fluids.


Anyway, due to this and overall just getting old I ditched it for the next car in 2011. It stuck around though as a beater for my dad until I borrowed it to go to pharmacy technician classes, the AT jerked forward and hit a Jeep Grand Cherokee while at a stoplight. Ended up having to sell my 6 month old laptop at the time to pay for the repairs to the Jeep.


Got sent to the crusher in March 2012 after this..it was not worth saving given the engine issues.


Would I buy another? Only if it was a Homecoming Edition or a 2001 "Silver Blue" edition though.




September 2011 - June 2013: 1992 Ford Taurus SHO


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I...I love this car...but fuck...did/do I ever hate this (particular) car. Lemme explain.


I love this car because it:
1. Introduced me to driving stick. I'm addicted and have only gotten better at it. Thanks 1992 Taurus SHO!


2. Introduced me to what a "fun" car can/should feel, sound and drive like. To that end, it was fantastic. Fast, comfortable, filled with toys...who could ask for more right?


3. Introduced me to my first FG member sighting IRL (sup EyeMWing!)


4. Saved my life (and several family members) thanks to ahead of it's time safety engineering and features (dual airbags, one of the first family cars to earn "Good" in IIHS offset test)


I hate this car because:
1. We were so damn excited about the car that we missed a red flag during the test drive that we should have noticed that would leave me questioning my health for the foreseeable future.


2. I got it at the wrong time in my life. In my opinion, I didn't have the income needed to properly take care of the issue that we missed. I feel like if it was in someone else's hands at the time, or if i was making the kind of money I make now, I'd still have it.


3. I didn't have the testicular fortitude to question my former mechanic at the time right away (i would have missed work)..something that i'd regret the next morning.


Anyway, I loved this thing. I honestly did. It was great: attractively styled, supremely comfortable, reasonably quick with a nice engine note. It got surprisingly decent mileage too...a nice to have despite that being slightly offset by the car's premium fuel requirement. It shifted well too and got me into the world of manual driving which I'm loving still.


I did get stranded a few times but the fixes were cheap and I was able to get back up and running alright. However, the largest problem was also a pricey one. You see, during the test drive, we both were distracted by the seller, him driving the car for me (thanks again dude!) and telling me what he thought from behind the wheel, me being slightly overwhelmed, etc. We neglected to notice the heat (or lack there of).


Totally my fault as I was buying the thing, not him, but I was floored when I didn't think of that. Turns out the heater core leaked something fierce spraying aerosolized coolant into the cabin through the defrost vents even when the HVAC was off. I was working relatively low wage jobs (still a pharm tech in training while going to school, later being kicked out of my mom's place and having to get a job that paid marginally more at a grocery store as a overnight cashier) that I couldn't really manage to afford the cost of the heater core replacement and AC system recharge. It frustrated me because I wanted nothing more but to fix it..."if i could save up just a bit more...." i'd say.


Embarrassing when you know others are so happy for you and can fix stuff easily themselves when you realize you've made a terrible financial and health mistake...it was too embarrassing to share really at the time.


It never got fixed. i put up ridiculous paper card stock over the defrost vents and drove with the windows cracked practically all winter. I had a rag i'd use to wipe/smear the mess away before driving. It was truly sad and I don't know what health effects this will end up causing me down the road. Given my dad's medical history, I'm sure I'll get some form of cancer from it. Which sucks but I'm going to get extra monitoring done by my doctor so hopefully any ailments caused by the exposure will be caught early and at least mitigated.


Anyway, to the end of the story. The car met it's fate with a light pole at probably 55 mph in a classic example of a offset crash. I was trying to pick up my brother after a shift working overnight to take him to my job ironically enough for a interview. Anyway some douche in a Grand Am was ahead of me but out of sight. decided to stop and start reversing direction...as I'm driving on the same street. hit the brakes and skidded. ABS light was on after picking up the car the day before from my mechanic who put on the wheel bearing that I tried and failed to install on my own. Was going to mention it but "hey no time, had to get to work!."


Guess what didn't work when I needed it...yeah.


Would I buy another one: Absolutely, now that I can actually afford to take care of it properly.


June 2013-March 2014: 1993 Ford Escort 5 door hatch (no photos..can't be bothered cause I didn't post a thread)

It was a very bad time to have a accident - I was days from giving my 2 weeks at the grocery store to start a new job at CenturyLink's call center in town doing DSL and Phone tech support. The training sessions were at least 3 weeks IIRC and attendance was mandatory....miss a day and kiss the job goodbye.


Not being able to afford to lose this job, I needed a car. And quickly. I ended up with a primer white Escort LX hatch with a blood red interior. Automatic with a somewhat firm shift into 2nd and seriously sketch brakes. It did it's job as a temporary form of transport but I had to push it harder than I'd like once I started commuting from my job to campus for classes 3 nights a week. They didn't give me that much time to get there so I'd be hammering the thing from the parking lot of work to the lot at school.


One day the little thing's notoriously frail CVH engine couldn't take it, head gasket blew as I was getting onto a on ramp.


Would I buy another one: Fuck no!


April 2014 - March 2015: 1998 Honda Accord EX


IMG_20140402_151101.jpg



Could it be? A Japanese by way of Ohio savior of 4 cylinder reliability?!? It's me here so nope, and it was a abject lesson in never letting your Dad strongarm you into buying a car.


I knew it'd need two new axles due to the clicks during my test drive, but it was well priced and I could afford that repair. However, the sellers were sneaky bastards who hid it's check engine light until all the paperwork was signed. As i was getting on the highway, the fucking light came on. A few weeks later, turning into the school parking lot, the airbag light came on. The transmission (a weak spot in both V6 AND 4 cylinder cars, no matter what the internets say) began having issues as well. It ended up getting a new cat to solve the check engine light, and new tires after it got stuck in my driveway in winter. It didn't get the axles because I wasn't sure it was worth dumping more money into it with the trans issues. Dumped it as a fixer-upper - a dad bought it for his daughter - he's a mechanic and was cool with fixing it up first.


Still, it introduced me to what Japanese build quality (if not engineering, looking at you 4 speed AT) was all about - the interior with it's finely grained padded panels, tight tolerances and velour like fabric oozed quality. The doors felt bank vault solid and overall between this and a contemporary Camry, the Accord was a better built car. The Camry's transmission likely would still be original though, even to this day. I loved having a sunroof - enough so that the next car I buy will hopefully have one.


Would I buy one again: Yes, manual only though.
 
A short list for me:

1987 Citroen Visa Leader
My first car and had it from 2003 to 2008. Saved it from scrapping because a relative had no use to it anymore. This opportunity came a day after I nearly won an auction for a Talbot Horizon 1.9D. I think the car gods were with me on that weekend. 5 years, 35k kms, one fuel pump, one fuel tank, two rear shocks and two rear upper shock mounts later I still have the car and is waiting for restoration of some sorts when my accomodations allows. This car had the power of a squirrel in a hamster wheel, ride of a jaguar and the comfiest seats ever known to man (or woman). No stereo which resulted in using a laptop and headphones for music. This car was and is a blast to drive in a comical sense.

1998 Ford Mondeo 1.8
A friend of mine had a car for sale and I bought it after a test drive. Bought 17" summer wheels for it and drove it from 2008 to 2010. Double the power, double the costs running it.. Liked it but started rusting a bit and slowly stacking up repair bills. Drove it about 40k kms.

2001 Ford Focus ST170 https://forums.finalgear.com/post-your-car/old-car-out-new-car-in-couldve-gone-smoother-46459/
Imported this from Germany. Seller was a former Ford mechanic with good service history. Only one fault was visible, error code P1381/P0011 Variable Cam Timing over-advanced (Bank 1). Got it checked in local Ford Service, the repair suggestion was the replacement of certain part. Long story short, the part they suggested was wrong. The first repair bill was a bit over 2k euros and got nothing from the seller (appart from the part which was suggested). There were german lawyers involved etc. and decided to cut the losses even though I thought i couldve had a strong case against him. The car was fine after that and later on I noticed that all the maintenance the former owner had done and advertised (new belts, new brake pads and rotors etc) were done wrong or with poor quality parts and resulted me in replacing them all in the course of owning the car. Drove the car for 82k kms and had a blast with it. Great car to drive if a bit heavy for the engine. Loved the high rpm hoonage which the car gave and needed.

Current car 2007 BMW 320d m-sport. https://forums.finalgear.com/post-your-car/stepping-to-the-dark-side-sifus-e91-320d-m-sport-59606/
 
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