Ford Sucks

[cd34]

There is a quaint charm to tinkering around on cars. When I was in college it was out of necessity that I learned how to repair Datsun's, VWs, Porsches -- yeah, I was young and insane at 17, MG/MGB, Triumphs. My first real motor experience was an old Ford tractor that a guy had dumped in a farmhouse -- he paid me $200 to get it running again. Then I fixed a neighbor's Triumph motorcycle, the week before he turned down being the guitarist in the band Kix. It evolved into a computer project when I would go to the drag strips and tune cars for $50 before a race with my feeler gauges and my computer generated atmospheric pressure/temp charts. I always loved tinkering around on cars - it must appeal to my meticulous and calculating nature.

Then I got a job that was 65.5 miles door-to-door in the worst traffic hell imaginable. Up at 5:30, home at 9:30 -- and blew the engine in my Porsche on Thanksgiving weekend -- try and find rare porsche parts on a holiday weekend. Got it fixed and then had low-end engine problems in late December and bought a car that lasted 6 years and 225k miles without any major repairs (replaced the engine at 180k for $700 -- easier than a tuneup).

Since then, I lack even the time to build computers -- not that I loved that as much as working on cars. I just buy a laptop that has about the right specs and is in the right price range and maybe add ram.

If it hadn't been for the movie '50 First Dates', I'm sure I would have had a VW Thing with a reasonably powered motor that I would get to work with. Rhino line the interior (hey Jim), drill some drain holes, get the seats replaced with marine vinyl, slam some nice seat covers on, a bikini top and have a sporty fun car. Sort of like Simon and his Jeep.

Realistically, I'll just buy some convertable that I can enjoy 5 minutes a week and park it next to my boat that I haven't used in almost 4 years.