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Thursday, June 29, 2006

Mandy. A 1980 AMC Spirit. First car I ever owned. Bought in 1982. Got a used car loan at a whopping 19% interest. It had the big tires, and was a really heavy, solid car, yet it got about 30 mpg. When we moved to Germany, I sold it to my cousin, who in turn sold it to his sister's boyfriend, who ended up being killed in it in 1986 when an elderly driver ran into him. He'd have been fine if he'd been wearing his seatbelt--it was being thrown from the car that killed him.
Fritz. A 1980 VW Rabbit diesel. Carl bought this while we were dating, in 1984. It wouldn't start unless the seatbelts were fastened--something which really worried the used car dealer until we figured it out. It also took a while, and a rather expensive set of glow plugs to figure out the peculiarities of driving a diesel. It was a rattletrap, and puffed black smoke while driving up hills. We ended up selling it for $100, only to find that the only thing really wrong with it was that one of the engine mount bolts was broken, which caused all the vibration which caused the rest of the problems.
1985 Audi 4000S. Our first new car. Thanks to a great exchange rate, it cost $10,000 at a time when the same car was selling for over half again as much in the States. We didn't name this one. We tried a few times, but nothing stuck. It was always "the Audi." I couldn't find a picture in color, but it was dark blue. It had a great, deep trunk. We loved it, but on retrospect, it was a lemon. A couple of months after we bought it, the electrical system shorted out, and it was in the garage for 3 weeks while they replaced the entire thing. Carl had to replace the door handles at one point. The worst, though, was the oil light, and the *#$@* buzzer. We kept taking it back to the shop, and they kept telling us it was because we used "inferior American oil" in it, and they could check, but it would probably require replacing the oil pump at a cost of several hundred Marks. After living with it for far too long, we finally told them to go ahead and fix it--it was the freaking sensor, and cost DM50 to replace. Grrr. The Audi was stolen in 1991 in Ann Arbor. It was recovered in Detroit a couple of months later, completely trashed, but the insurance company had already paid us for it, and we didn't really want it back.
1988 Mustang GT Convertible. We'd paid off the Audi and Carl had been promoted, so we wanted a new car. Went to the dealer on post, and looked at Mustangs. Asked about convertibles, but they were too expensive. So we decided to settle for a T-top. We filled out all the paperwork to order one. The next day, the dealer called us--we'd forgotten to sign the order. And oh, by the way, he'd found a convertible for us. It was new, but the previous year's model, so there was a big discount on it. That, coupled with the $1500 servicemember's discount, made it about the same price as the one we'd ordered. We jumped on it, of course. Unfortunately for the dealer, the $1500 discount had already been deducted from the price he'd quoted us, but since we had signed the papers this time, we got the additional discount. (don't feel bad--it was AAFES, not an independent dealer) We only had the car for a year when it was stolen in San Antonio.
1988 Mustang GT Convertible. The insurance company gave us cash for the first one (we had a car loan for it, but the interest rate was 15%, so we paid it off with a signature loan from a German bank at 9%, so there was no lien on it), more than we'd actually paid for the car, and we found this one, used, and fully loaded, to replace it. It originally had a white top, but when thieves cut the top to steal the radio, we had it replaced with black, which I think looks much nicer. We had to replace the clutch a couple of times, and the a/c needs fixing, but OMG, I love this car. It was very, very nice to drive on the Autobahn. We've still got it--it's in the garage in San Antonio now, damnit--and it only has 80,000 miles on it, and still looks like new.
1986 VW Passat. It was this shape, but not this color--it was a dark gray. We bought this as a second car when we moved to Heidelberg in 1992, and paid way too much for it. At that time, only a couple of years after the wall came down, used cars were at a premium, most of them making their way to the former East Germany. It needed shocks, badly, which gave me a great excuse for a couple of months to drive the Mustang to work. (I had the longer commute, and the Passat, ugly as it was, got better gas mileage). We sold it for about what we paid for it when we bought our next car...
...a 1994 Plymouth Voyager. We resisted and resisted buying a minivan. We'd finally paid off the signature loan for the Mustang, so we were in the market again. We were actually thinking of looking for another Mustang--getting his & hers cars, when we found out we were expecting our 3rd child. Well. No way you can fit 5 people in a Mustang. So we started looking for station wagons. The AAFES dealers in Heidelberg were horribly condescending, and kept trying to steer us toward inexpensive sedans--Carl was a captain at the time, making decent money, but we'd gone car shopping in jeans & sweatshirts, and they assumed we couldn't afford more. So we went back to Kaiserslautern, where we'd bought the Mustang, and encountered a very persuasive salesman who talked us into the something we were determined to avoid. It really was a great vehicle, once we got over the stigma of owning a minivan. It had built-in child seats, which was just perfect. And it could go 180 kph on the Autobahn. We sold it just before we moved back to the States to a guy in Italy, and boy, was that a Papierkrieg.
Moby. 1997 Ford Expedition, 4wd. When we moved back to the States, we went directly to Michigan to my mom's house. The plan was to buy a car--we needed one, the Mustang was being shipped--then leave the kids with my mom and drive to San Antonio, find a house, then come back and pick up the kids. We'd intended to get another minivan, having been convinced of their utility. We'd done some research, and settled on the Windstar, or maybe a Grand Voyager. We'd seen Expeditions in magazines, and while we lusted after seating for 9, we thought it was just way too huge. Again, we found a persuasive salesman, who let us test-drive an Expedition, and Carl was completely hooked. It took me a little longer. Being Michigan, it had 4 wheel drive, and the extreme weather package, and the bench seat in front, so it would carry 9. Four years later, it was still going strong, but it was paid off, and we were lusting after dual a/c--San Antonio tends to be a little warm in the summer--so Carl drove to the dealer one day, intending to just look, and maybe price a new one, and came home with....

Moby II, a 2001 Ford Expedition, also 4wd, also white. (Geddit? Moby? big white whale?) The only difference was that Moby II had dual a/c and bucket seats in front, reducing the seating capacity to 8. Moby II was totaled 3 hours into our trip to TTP when we were rear-ended in a construction-zone traffic jam. None of us were even mildly injured, and Carl did an amazing job of driving after the crash, keeping us from hitting anyone else, or getting hit again.
Moby III. 2003 Ford Expedition. When we got back from TTP, we needed a new vehicle in a hurry. We did some research, but honestly, the Expedition was the only vehicle that fit our criteria: beaucoup seating, 4wd, and the ability to pull our 30-foot travel trailer which was sitting up at Canyon Lake, with the month-long limit expiring. Being Texas, it wasn't easy to find a 4wd in stock (which surprised me--really, what's the point of having a 2-wheel drive SUV?). And the only white one we could find in the area was an Eddie Bauer version. Now, we'd been ridiculing the Eddie Bauer version, but, damnit, the new XLTs had that nasty gray plastic crap around the bottom, while the Eddie Bauer's plastic crap was gold. I swear the deciding factor, though, was the leather seats. Carl has a bit of a thing for leather. The demise of Moby II was a blessing in disguise, though. The redesign makes Moby III handle much better, and made me happier about bringing it to Germany. It's still a PIA to find parking for it here, though.

1999 Saturn. When our daughter turned 16, we wanted another car. No way were we going to set a teenager loose with a giant vehicle like Moby, or one with as much power as the Mustang. Besides which, the Mustang would be a huge PIA to try to learn to drive stick on--it has a very stiff clutch. We wanted a mid-size sedan, something sturdy, with decent gas mileage, and this is what we came up with. It was totaled a couple of months before Moby II, when our daughter and our youngest son were rear-ended at a stop sign. The car was a mess--they were completely fine. So we replaced it with...
... a 2001 Saturn. She's still driving it.
1990 Mitsubishi Colt. Remembering the problem we'd had finding used cars here, when we moved back to Germany, we tasked Carl's brother with finding us something to drive while we waited for Moby to be shipped. This is what he came up with. It was a decent little car, and with the back seat folded down, you could fit a heck of a lot of stuff in it. Good thing, too, because of all the furniture-type items we had to buy before Moby got here. Carl had to do a lot of work on it, but by the time we sold it to a young airman, it was in good shape & pretty reliable. When we got it, it had a couple of bull decals on the back. I thought they were amusing--Carl found them terribly embarrassing, and they disappeared one day.
1989 Audi 80. A co-worker of Carl's was leaving, and wanted to keep this car until the day he left, then junk it. Carl talked him into selling it instead, but when it wouldn't pass inspection, he just signed it over to Carl. It really didn't need a whole lot of work--the exhaust system was clogged and the fan was broken--and after about $500 worth of repairs, it's an okay 2nd car. The boys are much happier not being stuck in the bitty back seat of the Colt, especially now that the teenager's taller.

Labels: TT

// posted by Darla @ 6/29/2006 12:00:00 AM

Comments:

That's a lot of cars. And a lot stolen and totalled. You don't have such great luck with cars, do you?!

Actually, considering nobody got hurt, you probably have very good luck!!

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/29/2006 2:45 PM

I love the fact you name them. we don't get cars too often, but are going to have to do it again this fall.

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/29/2006 3:20 PM

That *is* a lot of cars. And I like the names - especially Moby. Thanks for visiting my Thursday Thirteen list, too.

# posted by

Katrina @ Callapidder Days : 6/29/2006 3:45 PM

Chez Red w name our cars too (well, I do!).

My very first car, before Husband, was Geena (a Twingo), then we had a VW Golf called Tallulah and now we’re on to a Vauxhall Astra called Elmo. You’ve got to, don’t you, they’re like one of the family!

And I love that 1988 Mustang!

# posted by

Red : 6/29/2006 3:50 PM

How cool! I would never have thought of doing a list on cars that I owned. Hehe, you name your cars too! That is so cool. -Margie

# posted by

Margaret : 6/29/2006 4:17 PM

Wow, that's alot of cars! My two favorites are the Mustangs and the Passat.
Thanks for visiting my TT!
Have a great Thursday!

# posted by

Unknown : 6/29/2006 4:48 PM

Naomi, our car insurance has definitely paid for itself.

It's funny--some of our cars have demanded names, and others haven't. There doesn't seem to be a common deciding factor, either. *shrug*

# posted by

Darla : 6/29/2006 5:00 PM

Wow, you've owned alot of cars!!!

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/29/2006 5:43 PM

Ditto - What Tenessee mom said! Thank you for dropping by my TT :)

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/29/2006 6:22 PM

You crack me up! We name our cars, too :-)

Thanks for stopping by!

# posted by

Jen : 6/29/2006 6:44 PM

You've had many cars!!! so sorry about the accident which could have ended up better had he worn a seatbelt... I am getting a new car in sept. No, we don't name our cars. happy TT!

# posted by

MaR : 6/29/2006 6:52 PM

What a great T13 topic! I enjoyed looking and reading about all your automobiles. We broke down and bought a mini van after having our baby back in 2000. I have to admit it has been a lifesaver.

Thanks for visiting my blog.

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/29/2006 8:54 PM

What an interesting list! And thanks for dropping by mine earlier.

You're right, it does tend to get hot in San Antonio in the summertime. :)

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/30/2006 2:17 AM

Those were beautiful cars.
Thanks for dropping by.

# posted by

FRIDAY'S CHILD : 6/30/2006 3:14 AM

I won a Saturn L300 three years ago as our county's Teacher of the Year. My son now drives it and loves it. Many of these cars, I know well...either friends had them or we did.

My TT is up here. Drop by for a visit sometime!!

# posted by

Susan : 6/30/2006 3:26 AM

We call 'em Ford Exhibitionists.

My TT is up, and finally getting a link to yours ;)

# posted by

Anonymous : 6/30/2006 4:49 AM

Doug-- :-Þ

3 kids + friends, pulling a trailer... it's practical, I tell you. Practical! :) (yeah, I can hear the "Canyonero" song from the Simpsons).

# posted by

Darla : 6/30/2006 1:04 PM

I am so impressed that you could remember all of this...and that you were able to get all these pics together...This was very entertaining.

# posted by

angela : 7/01/2006 5:14 AM

Thanks, Angela. I was surprised I was able to find pictures of all the cars, too, especially the older ones.

# posted by

Darla : 7/01/2006 11:23 AM

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Thursday, June 29, 2006

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