I finally got my drivers licence on April 30, 1997 (at the age of 19!) in Bedford, VA. A couple of weeks later, I got my very first car, The BLACK BOMB. She was an '86 Plymouth Caravelle SE sedan, formerly owned by a family friend.
The car was well-known to most people because of all the bumper stickers I put on her. Hey, it was all I could do to hide the rust, dents and flaking paint! Then, in the summer of '98, I removed the stickers, and my dad painted her in a shiny coat of black.
A week or two later, the engine BOMBED! I busted the piston wristpin on my #3 cylinder. I was carless for my first six weeks of college that year.
However, the Bomb was showing her age. In the summer of '99, my parents helped me buy her replacement, and put her up for sale. She was sold for $300.00, or $299.99 too much!!
The replacement was a '90 Mercury Topaz GS Sedan, which I named, BLUEBIRD. She was loaded: power windows, power locks, full instrumentation, (working) ice-cold air, power seats, almost EVERYTHING!
One thing she lacked was a decent radio. I was stuck with an AM/FM stereo non-cassette unit. It couldn't pick up AM, and BARELY received FM! I had the car from June 1, 1999, until I sold it on April 8, 2000. The only reason I sold her was because I needed money for college.
For 18 months, I was without motor-vation. Then, my brother gave me his '90 Ford Tempo GL sedan, which seemed like Blubird's twin. Over time, I gave her a name fitting her true nature: The BLUE BOMBER.
The name is a combination of my fond memories of Bluebird, and my mechanical struggles with the Black Bomb. I got her in October, 2001. She was okay until my trip back to college after Spring Break (March, 2002).
First, the car would overheat. That was solved by replacing a 4-inch hose with a miniscule hole.
Next, the brakes faled. Another trip to Auto Zone, and lots of help from my friends (Daniel & Paul Williams), and the new front brake pads fixed that.
Then, she wouldn't start on a regular basis. THIS was the problem that took the greatest ammount of money, time, frustration, trial-and-error. My friends and I tried everything. I put in new spark plugs, and had TWO different ignition modules installed.
I had a pesky front driver's side door handle that broke on me. I had to either enter the car from the passenger side, or leave the window partially open.
Also, I accidentally pulled my key out of ignition and made an interesting discovery. I could now leave the ignition cylinder just a hair past "Lock," so it would look like the car "needed" the key to turn it on. All I had to do was turn the cylinder to "Start," and drive away! When I had freinds in the car, I would drive with the key in ignition, then suddenly pull it out and shout, "OH, NO!!"
Later, I saw a Lexus commercial, where a guy started his LS430 without a key. Of course, I had that feature for a fraction of the fraction of the price! ;-)
When I came home from college in October, 2002, my dad noticed my back brakes weren't functioning. He spent time, money and aggrevation to fix that. Thanks, Dad!
Finally, on January 11, 2003, I was halfway to work when the transaxle died. I hit the gas off the green light, only to feel the front end lift, hear the engine rev loudly, then hear a BOOM!, and the car just stopped.
She wouldn't go in any direction, or any gear. So, I shut her down, put her in Neutral and proceeded to push her to a nearby convenience store parking lot. I got a push from a customer of said store, and let her sit there.
After work, my dad tried to revive her with some fresh ATF, but she was a lost cause. The next day, I junked her.
I was without a car for 9 months, when opportunity struck. My brother sold me his '93 Subaru Impreza L sedan, which he christened, SCOOBY The SUBIE.
Scooby was no ordinary car. She was my first import. Also, she had some custome touches, done by my brother. From the catalytic converter back, she had a free-flowing exhaust, with a Flowmaster muffler and a 3" exhaust tip. Mark cut down the shifter, painted the dashboard white, installed a Sony Xplode CD stereo, and bolted a bi-level aluminum touring wing. Yes, she was ricey, and when my brother had her, he received a "rice ticket."
I took good care of Scooby. I bought her a new Exedy clutch (I learned how to drive stick on this car!), put in new HID headlight bulbs, and kept her clean inside and out. That's right. I actually took her to the car wash on a regular basis!!
Sadly, good things do come to an end. On Friday, April 2, 2004, I was on my way home from work when trajedy struck.
It was a rainy evening, and the roads were very slick. I was about a mile away from home. Some guy in an Explorer was stopped ahead of me, about to make a left into a liquor store. Some fool in a Pontiac Sunfire behind himwaited until I was almost beside him, until my front bumper was even with his rear bumper. He pulled out without using his blinkers. I slammed on the brakes, causing my car to hydroplane, and hit a telephone pole. I was okay, but the transformer blew (knocking out the power in Pine Hill, NJ), and Scooby was totalled.
Yet, I wouldn't be without wheels for long. In September, 2004, my girlfriend's dad gave me his late son-in-law's car: a rusty 1992 Nissan Sentra E coupe, that I later named ZIPPY. Zippy is a basic car: Manual steering, window cranks, no tachometer, and (Gasp!) NO AIR CONDITIONING!
I picked her up in Maine and drove her home. She ran just fine the whole trip down to Jersey. I parked her for a week until I had NJ tags and insurance.
Just a couple of days into owning this car, I was on the side of the road. Not even three miles away from work, and the drivers' side front axle shaft snapped in half. After that was fixed, I still had to get her inspected.
When I took her to get inspected, she failed for THREE bald tires and (as the nincompoop at the state inspection center called it), "Nitrous Oxide!" Actually, he meant Oxides of Nitrogen, which (unlike the former) is NOT a good thing.
So, I bought three new tires, new spark plugs, new air filter, new O2 sensor, ad nauseum! I took it to a local shop to have the timing re-adjusted, and get the car inspected. It co$t me a lot, but she passed.
I should also mention that, even with my driver's side door closed, the "Door Ajar" light stayed on, and I had to turn off my dome light manually. You see, Zippy was in a wreck before I got her, and the driver's side upper hinge was badly tweaked. I bought a replacement hinge at Woodbury Nissan, and my friend, Bro. Bob Crease painted it and installed it. Another friend, Bro. Jaime Greer, welded the crack on my driver's side doorjam. Now, I can be sure the door is closed.
Around Thanksgiving of 2004, I noticed the four-speed was getting hard to shift. After coming home from spending the holiday with my girlfriend, I dropped the car off at my mechanic's shop.
Two days later I learned two things (in this order): 1.) I was downsized, and 2.) I need a new cluch and starter. Thankfully, I was able to make payments on the repair bill as funds would allow, and Zippy hasn't qiven me a problem since...
...For now!