"Hi! I'm a middle class, working mother of two with NO TIME to clean up those Doritos and Legos pieces strewn all over the car, much less time to have the front bumper repaired after that ASSHOLE ran into me with the kids in the car and DID NOT STOP in front of the Mighty Fine Hamburgers at the Megalomart shopping center. Carseats, check. We're safe, practical, and (save for the front end) indistinguishable from all the other mundane silver Honda Accords in the parking lot. Though we TRY to look cool with the KOOP radio sticker on the back of the car, I think you know we're just PHONING IT IN."
It could be worse, I suppose...Minivans broadcast, "On my way to the soccer game!" and Volvo station wagons scream, "I'm real pretentious!" or worse, "I'm a hippy!" (depending on your model). In fairness to us all, however, it's not like there are ANY COOL CARS out there in the world today. Nor have there been in the last 10 to 15 years or so. And those classic cars require upkeep, friends!
I learned recently that my friend Hugh, may be parting with his '97 Lincoln Mark VIII. How rad would that be? Just check out the tail lights...The exciting, two door feature would do wonders for my plan to discourage my children from getting in the car with me ever again. This bitch goes fast too, with a V8 engine. I wonder how many cup holders it has...
What are you driving?
Two cupholders in front, they're fragile and break. :-)
ReplyDeleteI applaud your wanting a cool car, but get a Miata as a second car and keep the Honda for daily use and hauling the kids.
For a while, I loved my 97 Mark VIII. But I sold it for several good reasons. Bought it in 2004 with only 39k miles, sold it 4 years later with only 65k miles and gave it away for $2800.
I can give you lots of details on why I sold it if you want to PM me, but essentially, many of the very cool electrical gizmos will fail, the transmission is fragile, the air ride suspension is expensive to fix when it fails -- which it will, the auto seat adjustment and steering wheel adjustment will work intermittently, the A/C blend door (too complicated to explain) will break and cost a lot to fix because it's buried under the dash. The taillights are very cool, but when they break, big bucks. Not sure how old your kids are, but that back seat is hard to get in and out of with a two-door. Gas mileage was awful in city driving.
Don't get me wrong, I'm a Ford, Lincoln, Mercury guy. But I won't own another M8.
Here's another bit of advice for any readers on here. Before you fall in love with ANYused car, find an online forum for that make and model of car. There's a forum for everything, and it's usually got a lot of owners who love their car but will also offer good advice for what to expect before you buy. Usually there's a thread or file available with buying tips telling you of problems to watch out for.
Whew, that's a lot. If you're already in love and the car has low miles, think seriously about getting an extended warranty. It will pay for the A/C breaking or tranny or air ride dying on you.
Two forums for the Mark VIII are both good. www.markviii.org and www.lincolnsofdistinction.org
Ha ha I swear you have to have an SUV around here to belong to the "club". And they are all 4-wheel drive, and none of the Moms ever go off road, they go to the Mall lol...
ReplyDeleteI'm too embarrassed to admit what I drive ha ha. But it says "economical-had to get a car fast because the last one broke and needed a new one".
And when I get another new one, I'm going to ask Uncle Atom about it lol...
Well, I am a bit of an enigma. I love unique cars. In the mid 1990s I had a 1970 Cougar as a daily driver, until I got fed up with breakdowns and not having electronic ignition and fuel injection. It's fun to drive something that's not a belly button car, but it's good to have a reliable car for daily use. I'm currently driving a Volvo wagon because I like the utility and it's comfortable. Took me a long time to get over the pretentiousness of it, but it's a decent car. Got an F150 pickup for weekend hauling. And while I work for an environmental science agency, I also have three old carburetor-powered Mercurys that I barely drive at all right now (1963, 1964, and 1967) since they're all in different stages of restoration. It's a lot to fix and maintain, just to satisfy my need to have something fun. But there's a lot to be said for reliability. So I'll stick with my recommendation, keep the Honda and get a gently used Miata for fun driving. And just say no to that creampuff Mark VIII !
ReplyDeleteNo hydraulics? No fluorescent undercarriage lighting? Pffft.
ReplyDeleteUncle Atom, usually it's my children who kill my buzz before 7:30 AM, but today you get that honor, LOL! Thanks for commenting. I must confess, am in love with the idea of the Mark VIII for the LUXURY. This one has 57K miles on it. I can tell that Hugh doesn't particularly want to sell it to me though, because he doesn't think it's too practical for me. I've been obsessed with Lincolns for many years and swore I'd get one when I could afford it. Now they don't make them anymore... Can't see myself in a Miata. Too small.
ReplyDeleteAtomic Ranch house--yup. I've always wondered by those soccer moms need 4 wheel drive to go to the Mall...
Mamacita, we don't want the car to get stolen right of the bat now, do we?
Sorry to be so blunt like that, it is a sweet looking ride, especially in black. Good luck, at least go into that car, or any car, armed with info.
ReplyDeleteWe drive a 2005 Chevy Venture minivan. And we're not even soccer moms. AND, I used to have a Volvo station wagon........But wait, once, long ago, I had a cool car. A 1985 Peugeot STI sedan-leather seats, sunroof, seat warmers, the works. It finally died, but I still miss it.
ReplyDeleteUncle Atom,You are probably right. What do you think these newer Lincolns?
ReplyDeletePerry--my friend Claudette had a Puegeot. Very cool!
Ha ha ha... just catching up on my reading.
ReplyDeleteI drive a 2002 Honda Accord. I bought 15 months ago to replace my old 2001 Honda Accord that got totalled because of black ice.
And, I love it!
So, did you get this dream car after all?
If I could have any cars in my garage, it'd be a Honda Prelude! Love those cars.
Other people probably feel the same way about their cars. However, it's just a matter of acceptance and contentment. Some people can feel disappointed when they don't get what they expected. But he or she will someday feel blessed with it. A car shows the personality of its owner, too! That's one of the unique features that cars have. People should choose what car suits them the most.
ReplyDelete--Kevyn Hagemann