Does your first car hold a special place in your heart?

[rayinpenn]

Mrs. Ray in Penn casually said there’s a car on fire outside. I rushed to the window to see this not 30 feet from my front door


The owner, a young lady of perhaps 19 or so, standing on my front lawn told me it was a 2003 Honda Civic with 203,000 miles on it. I asked and was told It had a full tank of gas. She said she had smelled something and was trying to limp home. Yikes. By the time the fire department showed there was not much left - a total loss. No one was hurt and at 65 I can tell you cars come and go.

It reminded me of another car fire about 50 years ago. My late brother Bruce’s first car, a 60 something corvair burned in our driveway. Shortly after it was purchased my Dad announced he was taking it to work that day. My brother was not at all happy with this but, what could he do? Dad came back from work and parked the car in the driveway. The fire erupted a few minutes later. It was rather spectacular, the fire department was on site within a few short minutes, The fire was put out and amazingly the car lived. Corvairs you see were not very well engineered. Neither was his next car, an MGB. I’m sure he will forgive me if I say Brother Bruce had a penchant for buying unreliable cars. Yes, I remember fetching him in the early AM on cold winter's night, him being nearly frozen when his Torino failed him yet again.

Brother Bruce went on to become a bit of a ‘gear head’ and seemed to put a fortune into his cars. The futility of it must have struck home with me because my first car, a 1966 VW Bug, was as unglamorous as can be. It was simple, functional and it has a stick shift. It was my MG in drag. There was no sporty car in my youth. Maybe there should have been.

I loved that VW’s reliability - it had a new “heater box” and was toasty in the winter. No air conditioning, not much of a defroster and the truth be told the headlights were a bit on the dim side. Still that car was freedom, and my ride to college. It started on the coldest nights and up near Canada that was a blessing. On one very cold night the door handle came away in my hands. Super cold does funny things to metal. Did you know Porsche is VWs rich cousin? Ah that speedster...it’s calling me.

Does your first car hold a special place in your heart? Why?

 

[Dawg52]

Drove a VW Beetle. No.

 

[davebarnes]

Loved my 1968 MGB-GT but is was crap.
First car was a 1963 Rambler American. Gift from parents.

 

[Onward]

Ford Pinto. Uh, no.

 

[RE2Boys]

1963 Ford Galaxy POS

 

[W2R]

No, my first car was AWFUL. What a nightmare.

 

[RobbieB]

Yup, a 66 Ford Fairlane. I worked on that car a lot. Exhaust system, kept soldering radiator leaks, brakes and master cylinder, bondo and Earl Schibe paint job.

But I felt my first boobies in that car! And it lasted through my college days. Drove it to the junk yard ans sold it for $35

 

[steelyman]

Used ‘66 red Corvair. Great fun to drive. But later, Nader.

 

[mountainsoft]

I felt my first boobies in that car!

Too funny! I love that.

While it was not my very first car, the first car I really considered my own was a 1975 Rabbit. I soon replaced that with a 1976 Rabbit. Similar to you, that was the car I lost my virginity in.

I had a version of that car for 36 years before I finally sold it. While I know I made the right decision, there are still times I miss that car.

Life With My VW Rabbit - Anthony Watson

 

[calmloki]

1967 Datsun SPL311. 4 cylinders, two sidedraft carbs. Warped and planed the head repeatedly, ended up running two stacked headgaskets. Lovely car. Went off a deep snow lonely road corner somewhere outside Los Alamos one night and spent the night before some Indian loggers spotted me in the dawn and dragged me back onto the road. Had a right rear axle that would drift out of engagement until the tire bumped into the fender. Weird to look under the car and see the draveshaft spinning like mad but making no progress. Jack the corner up, kick the wheel in, carve more corners. Loved that car.

 

[bmcgonig]

Does indeed. 40 yrs ago. 1976 Chevy Malibu used. Had it only a few weeks.

Head on collision. Not wearing a seat belt. Left a clump of my hair in the top right hand corner of the windshield (passenger side). Was fine after a couple of scotches. Young and dumb regarding the seat belt but this was long before the seat belt laws came in.

First and last accident please God!

 

[Dtail]

I was an average high school student, so when I started getting A's in college, my parents were thrilled.
Thus they got me a 78 Camaro at 18 y.o.
I was in heaven.

 

[Winemaker]

71 Chevelle; I loved that car and I want another. However, my Chevelle had a straight six and was a 4 door, my next one will be a SS with a 454. One of these days....

 

[Gumby]

My parents had a variety of dodgy used cars when I was a teen and first got my license. None of them were in good condition or lasted long, but they were cheap, so when one broke beyond repair, we just got another on the verge of the scrap yard. My dad also wrecked a few. The ones I recall driving were a 1955 Ford F-100 pickup, a 1968 Jeep CJ5, a 1968 Austin America, a 1971 Ford Pinto, a 1973 Ford Torino, and a 1973 Ford Econoline van.

The first car I ever owned myself was a 1980 Chevy Chevette. It was undistinguished and underpowered, but it was cheap. I had no special feeling for it. I quickly traded it for a 1972 Triumph TR-6. Now, that car is the one I miss.

 

[Red Badger]

The Tank

64 Mercury Montclair. 4500 pound sled with a 460 CI power plant. Butt ass ugly. It had a power rear widow that was a bit of a novelty. After the front wheel assembly fell of one night, I chopped off the body and used it for hunting and hell raising. A little later, sold it for scrap and bought a bag of weed.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

I bought my first car in 1984 when I was 19. A '79 Oldsmobile Cutlass.


I don't miss the car, but I do miss being 19.

 

[atmsmshr]

First ‘car’ was a 1970 Opel GT aka ‘Kiddie Corvette’. (First 4 wheels was a van) My Eleanor and my Garage Queen. In December 1980, friend Dave helped me shop for a new set of wheels while we were stationed in Orlando. Dave was a motorhead, and drove a sleeper Mercury Monarch with Holly Carbs and a Hurst shifter. Lotta fun Friday and Saturday cruising in Orlando at 4 lane stop lights. Used car lots abounded – we looked at a Porsche and Dave tried to talk me into a Sunbeam Tiger (If only I had listened). Anyway, found the Opel and got my first car payment coupon book for too much (around $1,500 including tax, tag and title). Shown below and modeled by lovely Zoraida, a Puerto Rican girlfriend who would occasionally curse me in Spanish when upset.

The German two-seater was built with 6’2” Nordic types in mind – a perfect fit for me, but unlike any other car I’ve owned. My Opel was a was equipped with a 4 cylinder 1.9 L overhead camshaft engine, which produced a whopping 102 hp. Standard transmission was four on the floor. At least it had seat belts. The GT used a steel unibody and a front mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout. The engine was mounted far back in the chassis to improve weight distribution. This feature meant that when the engine and transmission were later changed, I had to unbolt the mounts and lift up the front end of the car to roll in/out the drivetrain!

Some unusual features of the Opel GT: The manually operated pop-up up headlights by way of a large lever along the center console next to the shifter. The GT was a fastback; lacking a trunk lid. A shelf behind the seats was only accessed through the main doors and a cloth panel that conceals a spare tire and jack.

I loved the way the car looked, handled, and its light weight made it a sprinter. But the GT bedeviled me from day 1 because it had been used hard by the previous owner. Rotten wiring in the headlights cost me a weekend to repair. A previous patch on the gas line sprung a leak and resulted in a tow from a parking lot. Fortunately, the Opel was not sparking and leaking gas at the same time. In New York state, I had let the brake pads go too low and drove for a short while using the emergency brake. Shortly after, the clutch wore out after how many miles? No idea – the speedometer and odometer did not work when purchased. In Groton, a squeal alerted me to something wrong, followed by a quick grinding stop and a rear wheel and axle spinning like a top in my rear-view mirror outside Electric Boat shipyard. (I managed to change out the bearing and reinsert the axel the next day with a hammer, chisel, jack and a small bucket of grease.)

At university in Pennsylvania, the rear engine seal started leaking (badly) and it was time for a complete makeover. A friend gave me space in a warehouse and I set about resuscitating the Opel. Buying not just one, but two parts cars was the perfect start. One had been completely restored and then rolled. No problem, I was after the rebuilt engine, transmission and rear end. Webber carbs and custom exhaust were perfect. The other wreck gave exterior parts including a new passenger door to replace the one I had sideswiped. Did some other restoration work on the rear that the previous owner did poorly, and set about repainting the car. Sand, primer, sand, paint, clear. It was a labor of love and learned a lot.

In 1986, I already had my third ride and it was time to let the Opel go. DW at college helped find the buyer for the GT, and there was a bittersweet goodbye before moving to Florida.

 

[jollystomper]

Ford Pinto. Uh, no.

+1

My Pinto (1975, purchased used) was just basic transportation to get to/from my MegaCorp job. I referred to it as my "bombmobile", due to the exploding fuel tank feature.

My 2nd car I remember, as it was the first (and only 1 of 2 cars in my lifetime) that I purchased brand spanking new. It was a 1981 Oldsmobile Omega, two toned in black and silver. The day I bought it, I drove it from work to a community organization I volunteered at. As I parked and got out of the car, still wearing my suit and tie from work (which I never wore to the organization) a female volunteer who had a gorgeous face and figure but had been a total ice princess and would ignore me if I said "hello" was walking by. She did a double take, and said "is that YOUR car??" She proceeded to give it a full walkaround... then looked at me and said "you look good with it".

I thought she went home after our conversation, but near the end of my shift. She was back. She said she had to come back to work on something, could I give her a ride home when I was done. I did, and on the way she had all these questions about the car and where I worked, etc. When I dropped her off she essentially asked me out on a date. The next time I was at the organization, more than a few people told me she was telling everyone how I had a new car and she was the first person who rode in it with me blah blah blah. I did take her on a few dates but she was too much of a "diva material girl" for me.

 

[Aerides]

My first car was a 1980 Chevy Monza my parents got for me in 1986 for about $1500. It was cute and red and had a nice shiny chrome luggage rack on the trunk for some reason.

But they were garbage cars and it didn't last long. Probably didn't help from that time I drove it over a median...

My first car I bought was a 1989 Honda CRX. Still red but MUCH cuter. No power steering, no power anything really, something under 100hp, basically a go cart, wouldn't be road safe today. Walked away from several accidents in it though. Finally had to say goodbye when the AC quit and no repairs worked, after 10 years. Yeah I loved that car.

 

[ls99]

1961 Pontiac Bonneville, bought used for cash After riding bicycle to work for a year and saving $. Yes this is the actual car's photo. Sold it when enlisted in Army in 67.

 

[eytonxav]

I worked a lot from 12 yo and saved enough to buy my first car in high school, a 67 SS396 Chevelle. I still miss that car even today.

 

[RunningBum]

Another Pinto here. It did last me 4 years, I'll say that for it.

 

[Tiger8693]

Yep. 1969 Mustang Mach 1 was the first, but owned many 'muscle" cars after that. That was the first, and paid $1500 for it when I was 14, before I could (legally) drive.

 

[MarieIG]

Yep. A 1964 Caddy a/k/a The Gray Ghost, or per DF - MarieIG's Bumper Car. It had wings.

It was like a moving apartment; and was frequently packed with teenage girls. I was the designated driver on Friday nights. The trunk was huge, I stored beach gear, riding gear, tennis gear, whatever I wanted in that trunk.

It was old, but it was freedom. I loved it.

 

[Downtown]

Yes! ‘72 Datsun 510. I loved that car!