TFP Top Gear

I'll post a picture when I can. I drive a 2011 Golf TDI. The fuel economy is ridiculous, it's small and has more torque than my hubs' BMW. There's a four door version for families, but I have the two. I've hauled floor-to-ceiling shelves from IKEA, flooring, and moved from FL to Louisiana with my cats and my stuff in it. It's a little bad ass.

Previously, I drove a POS Vibe, a '97 Jetta (1997 was the WORST year for Jetta ever) and a Chevy Corsica. After I destroyed my 79 Volare (I loved that silly car), I ended up with a '75 Olds Delta 88. Think 8 Mile... But baby-shit-yellow with a baby-shit-brown top. My punishment?

I'll share my hubs' carstravaganza in the past 10 years when I get some more time. His is crazym

 

Here's my buddy (or a visual approximation thereof), a 2004 5-speed Mazda 3S sedan:









It had been my idea to insist on getting a 5 speed at the time that my ex and I were looking at cars, despite the fact that I couldn't drive one. I reasoned that I'd wanted to learn how for so long that buying one would force me to do so. Needless to say, that didn't happen for a number of years. The student/teacher relationship between me and my ex was beyond horrible—or she was just a horribly impatient and intimidating teacher—and having an automatic for a second car (her '97 Ford Ranger) and the ability to get around on my bike pretty much decimated whatever motivation I'd had to really learn to drive stick. I finally did get around to finishing the learning process out of necessity one weekend when she was out of town, the Ranger was in the shop, and I had to drive myself to a wedding gig 35 miles away.

We eventually traded in the Ranger for a 2009 Honda Fit (automatic), which became my primary vehicle. I loved it for its impressive storage capacity (hello, hauling bikes around), but she couldn't stand how it drove.





When we split up, she ironically took the lower mileage Honda with her and left me with the Mazda, reasoning that I'd be doing a lot less driving than she would (ha!). Less than a month later, her disdain for the Honda won out and she traded it in for a new Mazda 3 hatchback, automatic.

Lucky for me, I fucking love driving stick, and I love my little car. It's tons of fun to drive—maybe a little too fun, considering I earned my first ever speeding tickets, three of them, during successive road trips to and from the midwest last summer and fall. No regrets.

What is certain at this point is that my car, with its exterior speckled with bird shit and its back seat coated in dog hair, desperately needs a bath. That's what I get for bike commuting and leaving the car undriven for days at a time. My fingers are crossed that I'll be taking her out for another long drive west sometime very soon.

 

For this purpose, the Fit would be perfect!

 

My Tacoma gets me and mine where we need to go, it can carry and tow what I need it to. It's strictly a matter of practicality. Fits 5, 4 comfortably. Gas mileage doesn't suck (too much). 77k on it, so far, and zero problems.



For fun, I drive my bike.

 

Honda makes good small cars....the Fit may be a fit
look at the Mazda 3...also very good
xoxoxoo

 

Subaru invited me to OBX a couple of years ago to put their latest Outback through the paces. I fell in love with it. Handles like a dream, great for off roading and super comfortable. Had a blast on the beach and sand dunes.

 

We have a subaru forester 2001 model. Getting a bit old, but still drives really well. Unfortunately, the boys are growing and the back seat space in this model is pretty crappy. Pretty good fuel economy and able to fit quite a bit in the back.



We want a seven seat for the next car and are looking at either a Hyundai Santa Fe or a Holden Captiva.





I'll have to come back later to talk about the cars I've been in/driven

 

Mazdaspeed3. 2009. I've owned it since May 2009 and have put over 100,000 miles on it since then. 6 speed manual, turbo, hatchback, it's just a great car altogether. I love it! Made a 4000+ mile round trip with it to/from Utah last January and February, and it did great with some snow tires. Best car ever! Zoom zoom!

 

My first vehicle was a '91 Saab 9000S hatchback. My family got it for free from our landlord at the time, and it did basically nothing but nickle and dime us the whole time I had it.
Only picture I could dig up of me in the vehicle (Please forgive the hair, I was 17 and didn't know any better):


If you look closely at that picture, you'll notice the wood in the center of the steering wheel. The airbag had previously deployed, and instead of replacing the necessary components, the previous owner had just outfitted a piece of wood in the steering wheel instead. Not legal, not safe, wasn't worried about it too badly.
It was a stick. I miss driving that thing. I will own another standard drive vehicle eventually.

We traded in that deathtrap for some credit against a PT Cruiser that my mom purchased. As she got a new vehicle, I inherited her old one, a '96 Chevy Corsica.
That thing was a tank. I could throw it at almost anything and it would just keep going (well, almost. see below).
Unfortunately it had the good ol' DexCool issue and as a result would empty the contents of its radiator approximately once a month, which I had to keep refilling.

This was its fate.


Whoops. I was 20 and acting like an idiot. Nothing more to say about it.

Then, in April of 2011, I obtained my current vehicle, a 2000 GMC Jimmy.





The 4x4 capability of this thing has come in handy a hilariously large number of times up here in the UP. Well worth the money.

I love this thing, and I plan to drive it until the wheels fall off. It's already halfway there; sometimes it doesn't like to start and the transmission slips a bit under heavy load (then again, it had 177k on it when I got it and have put more than 12k on it in the past 3 years).

Depending on where I end up living, my next vehicle will either be another SUV, or a smaller car of some sort.

 

This isn't a photo of mine, but it's close enough. My favourite car that I've ever owned was a 1986 Jeep Cherokee. When we bought it, it was about 10 years old but it drove like a dream. We were able to haul kid, dog, canoe and all the stuff we'd need to the cottage. In winter, it made getting over snow easier and the 4x4 drive train allowed me to get up some pretty hairy logging roads for some great fishing and camping.

We sold it because we were trying to be a lot more fuel efficient. It was expensive to run.



Next to that, I'd have to say it's a neck and neck tie with my 1971 Vespa Sprint Veloce (again this isn't mine but it's a reasonable approximation). I don't currently drive a vehicle, but I do still own my Vespa. It's being stored at my brother's place. One of these days, I will get my Singapore license and seek out a Vespa. It will be an indulgence but, fuck it, we all need one of those every once in a while. In the meantime, I spend my indulgence money on bicycles (better for my health).

 

I've only owned one vehicle, personally, and currently don't drive.

From my very bad memory, this is the kind of van I owned when I was 17. (not sure what brand it was)



My van was mostly grey and had a Southwestern-type of mural on the sides, and iirc, had a couple of wolves somewhere on it.
It drove like a boat and was quite fun.
Unfortunately, sexy woman was not included.

 

This is what I drove in high school:

A 1993 Oldsmobile Eighty Eight Royale. In powder blue. With dark blue plush bench seating, and blue plastic and fake wood paneling on the dash. It was my baby and I loved it.
This gives you a little peek on the inside:




I loved that care more than anything, but it was a POS. The alternator broke twice, once on my birthday, the entire fuel line rusted out into my gas tank, and the engine failed twice. We pumped a lot of money into it, then finally unloaded it for maybe $300. It was my baby.

Now, I drive a 4 cylinder 2006 Ford Escape with AWD.

(this is the V6, but close enough).

I love this car so much. It got me through some ridiculous winter with little to no effort. Plus, having the smaller engine makes it more fuel efficient.

 

I love mine! I get about 25ish mpg on the highway, and about 20 city. So not too bad for an 8ish year old suv!

I love how much it holds. I moved my entire apartment (minus futon and dresser, which I sold to the next tenant) home from school in one trip. And varied around lots of people in Toronto!