The favorite car that you actually owned

Cafe Society
1

Throughout my life, I’ve owned, in chronological order:
1972 Chevelle
1977 Cadillac DeVille
1975 Mustang
1985 Buick Skylark
1990 Ford Probe
1991 Dodge Dynasty
1999 Olds Alero (current car)

The Chevelle was by far my favorite; my brother and my Dad helped me tear it down, detail it, and rebuild it over the course of the summer, and I learned so much about cars in the process. I bought her for $200 (it needed a new engine block, which we got at a junkyard) and eventually I sold it for $6500. I sometimes wish I still had the car; when we were done it was a pretty sweet ride, and I knew it inside and out so I could do repairs and upkeep myself, unlike some of the later cars I’ve had. It was red and had a small block V-8, but my brother knew some tricks to tweak performance, so it was a lot of fun to drive.

Anyone else want to tell us about their favorite car?

2

I’m still driving my 2003 Honda V6 Accord Sedan. Damn nice car.

3

1990 Honda Prelude manual transmission with sun roof.
Put 120,000 miles on it, had it ten years. Only traded it in because we had a kid and I needed a larger vehicle.

4

1989 4Runner SR5 V6 4WD…my perfect camping/roadtrip vehicle. (Once I got past the bad valve cover gasket fiasco, that is.) I put 240K on it before things started breaking with too much regularity for it to be trustworthy out in the middle of nowhere. I replaced it with a 1998 4runner that took me on multiple cross-county trips without so much as a hiccup. I liked the '89 better because it had a tailgate instead of the liftback configuration in the newer models.

5

Probably my favorite was my Honda CRX. That little car could go anywhere. I have thought about the new CRZ (since I will likely need a new car soon,) but am leaning towards believing that I’m too old to get in and out of a car so low…

6

hit enter to quick…

7

I don’t remember the year, but my Chevelle is the car I miss the most.

8

I had a red 1994 Honda del Sol. Every time I see a del Sol on the road I get a little misty. I sold it in 2003 to a kid who was ecstatic to get the car. That made me feel pretty good. I loved it, but it was starting to accumulate the miles and it was time for a “grown-up” car.

9

Hmmm… that’s a toughie because I’ve had several that were an absolute blast but for very different reasons. (These links are close but not my actual cars) The fun ones were:
1966 Impala
1969 Corvette
1976 Datsun 280Z
1986 Datsun 280ZX
1973 Riviera (455)
1988 560 SL Roadster

While each was lovable in their own special way, the best all around might have been the '76 Z. Indestructible, quick, nimble, stylish and a great date car. Lots of fond memories there.

10

My 2002 Land Rover Freelander. I paid it off in just about a year. It was mine free and clear it until I was in an accident last year.

It was small, but very sturdy. I could load it down with nearly a ton of horse feed (35 50# bags). I pulled fence posts out of the ground and other cars out of ditches. It was awesome in the snow.

I miss it. :frowning:

11

1981 (?) Pontiac Phoenix
1991 (?) Plymouth Horizon
1991 Subaru GL
1993 Ford Taurus
2004 Jeep Libery
2006 Dodge Ram
2010 Kia Soul

The first two were unabashedly rolling crapbuckets. The Phoenix needed to be revved at 3000 RPM for about 5 minutes before it could be driven on chilly days and it eventually grenaded on the interstate. The Horizon was also a miserable thing and my Haynes manual was well-worn - I was a frequent customer of the local Pick-A-Part wrecking yard and every single one of these things in the yard had no carburetor as that was one of the major parts to go bad with some regularity. We traded it into the same wrecking yard for $35 and were happy to get that much, Only thing worth salvaging on either was the gas in the tank.

By comparison, the Soob was a delight. Really thought I’d be seeing 150,000 miles out of it, but after 110,000 or so, it started to nickel and dime us to death with broken door handles, window regulators, crankshaft seals and so on. Good engine and drivetrain - everything else was just starting to perish around it.

The Ford was unappealing, but comfy. The steering and suspension were pretty vague. Gave it up after the head gasket blew out - a known issue with that particular engine - and was faced with a repair bill of more than the thing was worth.

The Liberty was the first actually new car I had. Surprisingly crowded on the inside, but it was a competent grocery-getter. Traded it in for the Ram after our new trailer was too big for the Liberty to handle.

Still have the Ram. Hasn’t needed anything other than maintenance - oil, brake pads, etc.

Current runabout is the Soul. Bought it technically as a used car, but with very few miles on it. Very nice little thing for scooting around and is utterly easy to park compared to the Lusitania, err, truck.

The Soul is probably my favorite out of all of these, but for a long road trip, I might rather have the cushy-squishy Taurus. That thing was like riding on marshmallows. Soft seats and soft handling made it a nice car to point down the freeway.

12

Used to own, and seriously regret selling, the Triumph TR8. Basically a TR7 with a factory V8, and better suspension.

Favorite car I still own? My 1985 VW Westfalia

13

My 1982 Toyota Tercel. My first Tercel (first of five) and my first ever new car. Unfortunately, I totaled it after six months and had to replace it with a 1983 (not nearly as cute). I still miss that little thing.

14

I’m still driving my 2001 PT Cruiser. It’s the most versatile car I’ve ever owned, and the one with the least number of problems.

15

89 Chevy Cavalier Z24.

16

I miss my '97 blue BMW Z3. I loved everything about that car, and I wish I’d never sold it. Second favorite was an '89 Nissan 240Z–my very first new car.

17

I miss my 1963 Buick Riviera 2dr–but I love my 2010 Acura RL!

18

My 1964 Impala Convertible which I bought new and kept for 14 years. White exterior, red leather seats, red upholstery, classic styling. I’ve never had an automotive experience, not even one in the back seat, that compared to driving around town in that car with the top down in the cool of the evening. It was still in A-1 condition when I sold it. The only reason I got rid of it was that it was getting too hard to find parts to repair it. The final straw came when I had to garage it for a month while my mechanic searched for a $2 clip that went in the steering column.

19

I officially envy you.

20

1968 Fiat 124 Sport Spider

It cost a lot to keep going but it was a dream when it did (so I called it the ‘Flying Prostitute’) I finally had to get rid of it in 1999 when parts started costing more than I could ever sell the whole car for.

It and my old '72 Datsun sedan were the only two cars I’ve owned that I could repair and maintain all by myself.