Motoring for 40 Years

It was 1969 when I bought my first car. Over forty years have passed. And almost that many cars I have owned. I always stuck with the premise that it's better to replace an old cheap car, than to spend a lot on repairs. So, it was either that, or could not afford car insurance, or they left me stranded, where I would junk them on the spot rather than pay for towing. It was a long line of cars, so many It's tough to remember them all.

Here follows a timeline of every car I have owned, which may not be complete. Make, year, and model, plus a brief comment on each.

• 1969, Looking for my first cheap car, found a 1957 Ford 2door sedan. This faded blue was great for $100. A 6cyl Automatic with front seat worn, back seat almost like new. An economical car, crazy teenager I was, sold it 2 months later for $80 to a Colombian family. Should have kept it.
• 1969, Later that same year, a 1960 Chevy 4door Automatic 6cyl for $175. Big light blue too big for it's motor. Not much power, worn interior with plenty of room. Bro pushed me to buy it from his buddy.
• 1970, 1961 Plymouth Valiant wagon. Slant 6 automatic. Paid about 250. Light blue, good shape overall. Driven by me and dad, who bulldozed me into buying it. Threw a rod on a family outing.
• 1971, 1965 Dodge Dart 4 door sedan with slant 6 automatic. Paid over 600 for this green car that was a step up. Kept it for about 3 years while I attended college. Sold to a neighbor who I was told had it over 10 years.
• 1973, 1964 Chevy Corvair Monza 4door sedan. Bright lemon yellow with top of the line black interior. Automatic. Great handling, fast cornering in this low car. The famous oil leaks on it's air cooled engine became a daily quart. Comfortable seats. Shifting with little flip handle on dashboard was different. Quit running and sold it to a Cuban family for a pittance.
• 1974. 1971 Ford Pinto 2 door 1600cc 4. Four on the floor. Dark blue.Not sure how much I paid to a dealer. bottom of the line basic trim. Underpowered for 70mph freeway. Tiny trunk. Kept for 2 and a half years. Should have kept it.
• 1975. 1962 Rambler American 2door 6cyl. White. Minimalist interior. Think it was the flathead motor. For $175 it was a good deal. Had soft big car suspension, with the body rolling with every corner. Was taking a correspondence course in auto mechanics, and got the bright idea of buying a car to practice on. It was running when I bought it and parked it on the front yard. Then I disassemble the carburetor, which I would put back together, I tried, failed, lost interest, It sat there under the trees for a while, til my ex-bro-in-law towed it away to some junkyard.
• 1976. 1961 VolkswagenBeetle. Light brown. Did not learn from the previous one. Hastily bought it without even looking under the rear hood, where the little engine with an oil leak was. Drove it a few months, bumped into someone's bumper, no damage. Don't remember what I paid or how I got rid of it.
• 1977. Sold Pinto and moved to Kansas City by bus. Bad idea which I still regret.
• 1977. 1966 Chevy Corvair Monza Spyder 2 door coupe. 4-on-the-floor. Was supposed to have the supercharged 180hp engine, but unsuspecting be, the previous owner had an ordinary corvair engine, which was 140hp. Gears closely spaced in long stick shift was uncomfortable. Maroon color with comfortable seats and good looking interior. It was gone a few months later, after breaking down.
• 1977. 1971 Plymouth Satellite 4door sedan,318 V8, Gold. Good shape. The low, low $300 was fishy, but bought anyway. After paying, find out I could not get title, because one of the two listed on the title was out of country, and would never come back. The ex-wife that was on the title would not return the money. sold to a junkyard after a few weeks.Money down the drain.
• 1979. 1974 Opel Manta 2door Coupe. Lemon yellow German car with black interior and 4-on-the-floor, 4cyl motor with unimpressive gas mileage. Drove to Colorado and back without a problem, that was a good trip to visit where I had lived as a pre-teen. The battery was on a shelf directly over the wiring, dropping acid, until the car needed rewiring. Sold it to the mechanic for less than $100. Had it over two years. One of the best.
• 1982. 1974 Plymouth Valiant 4door sedan, 318 V8, automatic. More motor than it needed. Comfortable roomy seats, nice interior. High mileage, former taxi. Drove to St. Louis and back with no problem. First time I got lost at night, second went with girlfriend and visited botanical garden. Had a good time. She lived 60 miles away from KC and drove there several times. Had it for about 2 years. Don't remember why, how, when I got rid of it.
• 1982. 1971 Plymouth Duster 2door Coupe. Sporty Valiant with coupe body. The slant-6 motor again, automatic. Fading red with black interior. Economical. Needed body work, thought I would fix and resell, make some money. Burned or leaked oil, or both. Had it for a few months, and sold to co-worker for little. Another bad idea.
• 1984. 1977 Plymouth Satellite wagon 318 V8. Big car with soft suspension. Was going to be a taxi, and never was. Moved to apartment and had to park a block away. Interior needed work, plus other problems. Not much use over a few months, sold it to a reseller.
• 1985 1980 Chevy Malibu 4door automatic. Small V8, basic trim, used as taxi. Left at cab company after a year or so.
• 1986 1979 Oldsmobile Delta 88 4door automatic V8. Dark blue, used as cab and for airport transportation for about 2 years. Classy interior with plush seats. Very Comfortable. Started burning oil bad, left me stranded at least once. Had it over a year. Don't remember what it's demise was.
• 1988 1979 Mercury Grand Marquis 4door 302 V8. Burgundy Color Plush interior, used for airport transportation for about 2 years. Good car, got my money's worth.Can't remember what became of it.
• 1989 1984 Ford Escort GL 4cyl. Closest to a new car. Low mileage. Bought on a loan for around 2 grand. Light blue 4door hatchback. 4-on-the-floor. Top of the line trim, comfortable seats, economical. Best car yet. Had it for two years. Regrettably never took on a long trip. Don't know why I got rid of it, never should have.
• 1991. 1982 Chevy Impala 4door. V8, big car for airport transportation. Had it for about two years. Scraped a post while trying to get out of my icy inclined driveway. Not sure what it's departure was.
• 1993. 1986 Mercury Grand Marquis 4door 302 V8. Light blue, with dark vinyl rear half of roof. Classy plush Merc with fabric electric seats. Used for airport transportation, had it for about 3 years as my only vehicle. Needed engine work, so sold it for $400. Got my money's worth and could have kept with a new engine. Another good one that got away.
• 1995 1978 Nissan 200SX 2door coupe. Dark blue with black interior 4cyl 4-on-the-floor. This is the fuzziest memory for some reason. Date may be inaccurate. Did not use it much. Driver's door was so rusted, It could be thrown away, Was not motivated to hunt through the junkyards for one. Had a small bash-in on right rear quarter, which was difficult to repair as it was curved. Electric rear view mirror was cool. Can't remember why I bought it, how it sold. Classy small car.
• 1998. 1980 Plymouth Horizon 4door hatchback. 4cyl red with black interior, just a tad above basic. Boxy design with thin vertical doors gave plenty of space for small car. Needed engine work, motor was rare one that was offered for a couple of years, parts nearly non-existent. Paid little, and junked after a few months. Not much use, or regret.
• 1998. 1984 Ford Escort 4door hatchback. Deja vu. Red over red. Not much use, was retired after a few months with transmission problems. Probably junked.
• 1999. 1990 Ford Tempo GL 4door sedan. Red outside. Comfortable interior with neat trim. Drove round trip Kansas City-Miami to visit family for Christmas, with a stop at Fort Myers to visit a cousin. Drove round trip Kansas City Tampa in April 2001. Moved to Tampa, stopping in Atlantic City for a week, in August. No problems with this dependable car. After moving, was used for deliveries. Transmission problems, peeling paint. Sold to Transmission man over 2 years later. Car that provided memories I cherish.
• 2002. 1988 Plymouth Voyager Minivan. 6cyl. Fake wood exterior. For doing deliveries. Engine died about a year later while doing deliveries in Tampa. Was junked on the spot.
• 2003. 1990 Dodge Caravan Minivan. Same as it's predecessor, Slightly plusher seat and interior trim. Lots of space for the money. Great travel vehicle. Threw a rod as I was driving through west Fort Lauderdale, returning from Miami to Tampa Bay after visiting family. A nephew hauled it off and junked it for me.
• 2005. 1990 Dodge Dynasty 4door sedan. Cloth seats comfortable. Bought at Salvation Army auction for about $600. Sold after a few months with tranny problems. Had no money to fix, sold to a scrap man. Bad investment.
• 2007 1993 Ford Escort Wagon. Top of the line model with nice interior and comfy seats. Driven on three round trips to Miami with no problems. Economical car, Light blue exterior. Received little maintenance for over eighteen months. Motor mounts shot, beginning tranny problems, nearly bald tires, over 200K miles. Sold to scrap man in 2009. Still miss it.
• 2010. Riding around in a bicycle. That does not break down or use gas.