Vehicles, lots of vehicles!

I decided to compile a list of vehicles I have owned over the years.  I’ve had quite a few and some if it is starting to get blurry.

Pre 1st Vehicle: (When I turned 16, I drove a few of my parent’s cars, so here they are)

• 1972 Dodge Dart Swinger – It was 70’s green, with a vinyl top and vinyl interior with an aftermarket A/C system that would literally throw snow at you.  It had a thin-rimmed steering wheel with power steering so strong, you could steer with your pinky finger.  It also had a lot of rust and duct tape.
• 1980 Volvo Wagon – It was white and very rusty.  It had been in multiple fender-benders resulting in dents at every corner of the car.
• 1983 Ford F150 Pickup – It was my grandfather’s old truck.  It was baby blue with a wood rack on the back.  Eventually it rusted badly and we replaced the bed with a wooden flat-bed.  It steered poorly as in 1986 or ‘87 I hit a stump with it, badly bending the frame.  The right front tire had to be replaced every 6 months afterward.

1st Vehicle and after:

• 1972 Honda Scrambler CL175 – A lovely maroon on/off road motorcycle.  I bought it at a garage sale for about $150.  It needed lots of work.  It had been sitting for years.  I spent quite a bit of my savings on it, replacing the chrome, tires, hoses, wires, etc.  When I was finished it was in 100% museum condition.  The Honda dealer at the time wanted to buy it and display it, but it was my only transportation at the time.  Shortly after restoration, I had an accident on the highway.  The engine siezed and I went into the grass (no guardrail luckily).  Badly damaged my leather jacket, ruined my helmet, and scratched the bike’s paint.  I wasn’t hurt at all.  Lucky me.  Turns out it was a split-pin that had slid out of the transmission shaft.  Apparently after years, the dissimilar metals caused the pin to expand and contract, working its way loose.  The Honda dealer safety wired all the pins in the engine and gave it back to me.  Unfortunately, I traded the bike for a pair of Chevettes.  They both died within a year
• 1966 Pontiac Catalina Convertible – Black with green vinyl interior.  Never did get it on the road.  Kept the engine and transmission, eventually gave them to my brother-in-law.  A Pontiac 389 with a TH400 tranny.  Potent combo.
• 1976 Buick LeSabre Bicentennial Edition – It was Bicentennial Red with a white vinyl top.  I bought it for $75 from a yard sale.  They had done a tune-up and it would no longer run.  After looking it over I gave them the money, turned the distributor cap around 180 degrees, started the car and drove it home.  I drove it too Oklahoma during my year at Spartan School of Aeronautics where it died due to a blown seal (lost all its oil).
• 1978 Subaru GL Sedan – I got this little blue clunker for $400 while in Oklahoma after my Buick died.  It needed tires which sent the price to $600.  It lasted about 3 or 4 months till it blew a cylinder head.  It never did like to climb hills either, a bad accelerator pump.  Very annoying.
• 1985 Chevrolet Camaro – My parents informed me that a friend of their, Mr. Seeley wanted to help out.  He loaned me $5,000 to buy a decent car.  I went to a Honda dealer to try and get a new or nearly-new Civic.  They couldn’t approve me so I went to the used car dealership on their lot and fell in love with a beautiful Charcoal Gray Camaro.  Luckily it was just under $5,000.  Unfortunately, it blew a heater hose that flooded the on-board computer.  After that was replaced, the transmission went.  My parents helped with the rather large bill.  However, I had missed too much school due to running around trying to get the car fixed and was expelled.  I came home and ended up selling the expensive sports car.
• 1983 Dodge Aries K – A pretty blue 4-door sedan.  Luckily it was a 5-speed, I hate automatics, especially after the Camaro incident.  This car was great, however it suffered from my stupidity and carelessness.  It eventually died of severe rust and neglect.
• 1984 Ford Escort GT – A shiny gold sporty escort.  It was cheap, and needed work.  With a friends help, and parents $$$ it got a new gas tank, alternator, rims & tires, brakes, and other needed work.  Due to a wiring issue, it had an electrical fire.  Me and my friend re-wired the entire engine compartment and interior with Radio Shack supplies.  Hit a deer with it later on that took out much of the front.  We fixed it again, but the computer was damaged.  Went to another friend, a mechanic, who told me it was an ultra-rare prototype car and the computer would cost about $1,500 to replace.  I couldn’t afford it so we wired in a regular computer and bypassed quite a few systems.  I sold it to a young man for $500.  And no, I didn’t lie to him, I told him what we did.
• 1981 Chevrolet Chevette (2) – Traded the motorcycle for these 2.  One ran well, the other was parts.  Had to swap a transmission out, and got used to changing the timing belt as one gear was worn.  Could do it in 15 minutes flat!
• 1981 Yamaha SR-500 – Traded a car stereo from Escort GT for it.  Ran like a bat out of hell!  Bad swing-arm bearings were too costly to replace, so I sold it to a guy who raced one.
• 1965 Triumph Spitfire – I found this green little gem on the roadside for $1,200.  I bought it and fell in love!  It needed a lot of work.  I replaced all the suspension components, rebuilt the engine, purchased new top for it, put in a radio, changed the old 12-volt positive ground generator to a 12-volt negative ground alternator from one of my old Chevettes.  Many stories around this car.  Eventually I sold it to a neighbor for $1,500 as I needed a good all-weather car.
• 1981 AMC Spirit – Technically dad’s car, but I drove it after the Spitfire.  It was gray, and had an invincible little 4-cylinder in it.  Eventually died of rust.  Used for the infamous “Christopher Rescue Mission”.
• 1981 Toyota Corolla 2-door – A little gray beater I bought for $40 from a friend up the street.  Had been hit hard in the driver’s side.  Door was smashed in as was the side of the car.  Using a jack and some wood blocks, I pressed the side back out and replaced the glass.  Drove it for quite a while until it blew an oil pump.
• 1985 Nissan 4wd Pickup – A dark blue little 4×4 with a 5-speed.  Great little truck.  After getting stuck for the first time, I upgraded to BF Goodrich A/T’s.  Added a front brush-guard (homemade) and a rollbar with lights (thanks Kelly!).  Eventually the frame broke.
• 1979 Triumph Spitfire 1500 – Traded in the Nissan pickup for it.  Had been in an accident.  Bought replacement parts for the suspension, but never did fix it.  I did have a custom driveshaft made though, the original was unrepairable.  Sold it and the parts to fix it for $2,500.
• 1970, 1971, 1972 Honda CB/CL350 – Bought 3 wrecked bikes for $75 and built one running one.  I loved this thing, probably because I built it.  SOld it due to it kept dying on me.  Turned out to be an easy fix, and am pissed at myself for not keeping it (them).
• 1981 Mercury Zephyr – A blue 2-door that I picked up for $400.  Drove it for about 2 years and sold it to a friend for $400.
• 1981 Yamaha Maxim 400 – “Purplish” according to my oldest daughter.  Got it free from my brother.  It was in bad shape.  It was in bad shape when he got it.  Forks leaked, engine leaked, carbs needed work, tank was smashed in, handlebars where bent, sprockets and chain were worn.  Ran like a top!  Sold it due to title destroyed.  NY State thought the bike had been totalled.  Would have cost too much to re-title it.  The guy bought it for parts so he was happy.
• 1991 Ford Escort 4-door – Got it from my then wife when she bought a new car (1997 Ford Escort Wagon).  Had 150,000 miles on it.  Drove it past 200,000 and sold it for $500 to buy the van.
• 1985 Chevrolet G20 Conversion Van – A well spent $800.  Took it on many trips.  Eventually died of transmission trouble (damn automatics!).
• 1990 Chevy S10 Pickup – Red, white, black, and gray.  Always started.  Even after it blew 2 cylinders.  Good and reliable.  I miss it.
• 1992 Mercury Sable – Paid $30 for this car.  Bad wiring, doors wouldn’t latch right, sunroof was stuck open.  4 hours in my garage fixing the wiring and lubricating latches, etc. got it working perfectly.  Died of rust after being given to the wife after we seperated.
• 1991 Pontiac Bonneville – Nice big 4-door sedan.  Paid $1,000 for it and drove it quite a while.  Hit a guardrail at 60 MPH during an ice storm.  I bolted on a pair of plow-truck headlights and drove it until the damage caught up with it.
• 1981 Yamaha 900 – With a nice full fairing and fiberglass saddle-bags.  Never rode it, ended up selling it on ebay due to financial crisis before I had ever even paid for it in full.
• 1988 Yamaha Riva 200 Scooter – Blue, badly wrecked, and FREE.  Previous owner had flipped it at 40 MPH.  Lots of duct tape, zip-ties, and jury-rigging.  Has Kawasaki Ninja mirrors, a headlight from a 1981 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, a milk crate on the back, and cheap vinyl seat cover.  Truck running light replacing the front turn signals.  Quite a bit of caution tape too.  Still have it.  Runs like a champ.  Too bad it’s been in storage for 3 years with a full tank.  Gonna take some work to get running again.  Only 2,000 miles on it.
• 2001 Saturn SL1 – A little gold 4-door.  Bad transmission (manual this time) had to be replaced for $1,100.  Went again while on business in Baltimore, MD.
• 2005 Honda Civic Si – My first new car!  Traded in the Saturn and got a great discount as my brother worked for Honda at the time, about $6,000 off sticker!  Got hit in a parking lot (made me sad).  Was fixed up nicely though.  Had to sell after I could no longer afford it (more sadness).
• 2002 Saturn SL1 – A little charcoal gray 4-door.  My current car.

Well, I think that sums it up!  There are some stories buried in there that I think I just may have to go into more detail on in the future.