A Life of Vroom

My first word was "car." A defining moment, I think. Seems to have always been a fascination with all things automotive. I used to be able to name make, model, and year of every car I saw. Harder to do now, but I can still get close.

About 10 years ago, I finally decided to get a car I could love, and not just transportation. It was a 1976 Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser. What fun. Top off, doors off, great for cruising around. Also had major rust and leaked/burned oil by the quart. Surprisingly reliable, but really not the best vehicle for a young guy with no garage and few tools. So after a year or so, it was back to modern, boring. A couple of motorcycles followed, but I was continually thinking of automotive fun.

In 2002 I got my first house with a garage (we've since sold that house and bought a different one, with a decent garage as well). Time to save for that project car, one to tinker with and not have to rely on to get me to work and gigs. In November of 2004 I made the commitment to myself to get the research done and the funds saved. I was off.

The quest started with my long time Ford Mustang obsession (the 64 - 66 models in particular) but in the course of my researching and test driving, I became somewhat disillusioned with them. Possibly it was that I had (re)found the wonderful world of Little British Cars (LBCs). I wound up with a 1962 Triumph TR4. After six months of puttering around, I came to realize that I didn't get the car that I wanted. So in early 2006 I sold that car and bought a 1959 Austin Healey Sprite, known as the Tunebug.

The adventure continues.

Vehicular History

I've had a pretty varied vehicular history since I got my first car, a 1990 Ford Escort wagon, in 1994. This was a gift from my parents when I graduated from college--my mom's old car. I kept this one less than 1 year, and dove into something I liked better. I've had a hard time keeping any car more than a few years. A few bikes were added in later as well, for a total of 15 vehicles in 16 years (this doesn't count my wife's cars). Not a bad start.

Cars

1990 Ford Escort Wagon           1994 - 1995
1976 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40    1995 - 1997
1994 Suzuki Sidekick             1997 - 1998
1990 Ford Aerostar               1998 - 2001
2001 Subaru Outback Wagon        2001 - 2004
2003 Hyundai Accent              2004 - 2008
1962 Triumph TR4                 2005 - 2006
1959 Austin Healey Sprite        2006 - Present
1974 MG Midget (parts car)       2006 - 2007
2009 Honda Fit Sport             2008 - Present

Bikes

2000 Kawasaki KLR650             2000 - 2004
2000 Kawasaki W650               2004 - 2005
2005 Suzuki V-Strom 650          2006 - 2007
2007 Triumph Bonneville          2008 - 2010
1966 Honda S90                   2008 - 2008