Talk to the Goat
That is a fine "Ode to my car". So at what point are you going to take it to an open field and shoot it?
Jay,
I say what ever your putting into that car, but a new one. Or new used car. LOL... We started out with a 83 chevy for our first car back in 2001 and have went up every few years since then till now. Now we are paying for 98 Dodge Stratus. Dont give up on the car yet. Give up the old one but dont give up on having a car forever. Those bus passes are nice but they dont get you out of town for a weekend if you want to go or anything. Well take the advice and keep chuggin along with what you think you can do. LOL... Take care tweets.
My first car was an ugly gold Honda with over 150,000 miles on it. It shook when over 35mi/hr, steering wheel was 90 degrees out of alignment, the tape deck played at exactly the speed at which you were driving -- ie at 0 didn't play, at 10 sounded like a slow weird version of a song, at 20 about right, at 30 still sortof OK, a little high, 40 too fast.
The car lasted about 6 months, then I got tired of pushing to start it, and got another cheepie that actually lasted a long time.
Tires have to be rotated? Aren't they always rotating?
Sounds like my first car, a '62 Corvair, has been reincarnated as a Buick.
This is serious! I think I detect a value system about to change. Never pleasant.
Not sure who said this, but seems applicable here:
You can't polish a turd.
My addition: Even if it is a sentimental turd.
I'm driving one around myself. Sigh...
Well now you sound like Brian. He is always telling me how I don't deserve a new car because I can't even take care of the one I have. But, if the one I had was new and pretty, I would probably take care of it. Probably.
Cars always seem like a waste of money until you try to get someplace without one (without living in a metropolis with reliable public transportaion of course)
I have a carefully constructed piece of shit car prayer/ceremony I perform every morning before stepping into my VW Golf. It involves sacrificing a chicken for the bad gasket, an offering of fresh bat balls for the brakes, and plenty of duck ass for the starter.
There should be some sort of pill for me to take to cure my car anxiety. Lord knows the sixer of Pabst tall boys was frowned upon by the local cops. They just don't understand us.
I have an '87 volvo. Which may or may not have headlights, depending on its mood, and does indeed have a variety of other ills. So I can totally relate.
As someone who has put a lot of money into her car, to the point where the volvo guy last time told me "this will cost $3000 at least to fix. DO NOT FIX IT" I can safely tell you, do not fix it. find another car. you deserve it.
Everyone needs a shitbox car at some point. My first one was. Austin Kimberley 72. *sigh*
Last week we were in Minneapolis where we borrowed an old Jeep from the beloved's cousin's boyfriend. He said "the driver's door is a bit hard to close. You have to lift it." Sure enough after driving it for a few days, the beloved ends up on the interstate driving the car with one hand and holding on to the door with the other. It was about 10 degrees outside. The hinges had frozen open.
When we got rid of my old car I did the math and figured I had spent more money fixing it than I did to buy it in the first place!
we had a similar POS car. Ours was an 87 buick electra station wagon - long as an F-350 with fake wood grain stickers. We tortured that thing until it gave it's last shudder
You'll never own another car like it
sometimes that will make you sad, but mostly you'll like not being mistaken for a 90 yr old
There's a reason Buick's are old people cars. As you've discovered.
The reason you have no heat is that the anti-freeze is going IN the car and on the windshield instead of though the heater in the dash that makes the car warm. I suggest you get the best thing you can afford and put that poor beast out of its misery.
I've had 15 cars just like her---after theyère gone, they just take on a new personality---they are the carriers to dream locations, the backseat of your dreams, the inspiration for amazing posts----ah, you have one.
(I'll make a short one - my first vanished in cyberspace).
Lovely tribute to a car that keeps so many great memories (and some less) to you. Understand it's hard to get rid of such an ikon.
Rent car for vacations or long weekend trips. Else take the bus, or whatever.
Love your blog. It's great reading, says a guy in Norway.
We had to made a decision in the spring of 2004 ... do we fix Gord's old car (the Senorita) or do we buy a new one?
We bought a new one ... it was so nice to have air conditioning and power windows!
1st - i read you through google reader and i didn't know you were all new and fancy. but i love new and fancy and the goat. love it.
second, dude, i live in vancouver and *I* can hear you guys drive around. fuck, you wake me up all the damn time! 
you can hear me coming in my ride from miles away too. but it's usually because I play the tunes REALLY LOUD.
Mate, Target's been in Australia for 2 decades..before that it was called Venture...Cheers...
i got a new car last spring (a civic) and i love it, treat is like a baby so it will last cuz i can't afford to buy another one. my sister is getting rid of her car cuz she moved close to a subway line and finds she's not using it, if she really absolutely needs a car for something, she'll rent cuz she's will be saving a bundle. maybe that's an option for you two as well?
Oh the poor old girl! Yes I'd say it's time to do the humane thing and just let her rest in peace now with her memories. *sniff*
LMAO!!Oh how can I relate to a few POS cars I've had! 
Although your story of POS car woes is a classic!
Sometimes, being a responsible adult means knowing when to put our beloved POS car out of it's misery, and into the retirement of the junkyard.
Thanks for sharing her story with us, Jay!
3T
I think the piece of shit car is a rite of passage. I've had a number of them - a couple doing just what yours is only I think we fixed it both times. Since you live where there is excellent public transit, and you can always rent or take a cab when necessary, or even rely on friends now and then, I think I would opt to put the poor old dear down, and save for something newer or maybe even new - is't there like a $20 cash prize for winning the bloggie? You can dream...
This sounds like most of the cars I"ve owned in my life. I can't decide if the worst one was the Dodge Dart that blew up at an intersection in Boston, or the Chevy wagon that had its back window smashed in Vermont the winter the heater core died. Breathing was hazardous because it fogged the windshield, and the one time I was so cold that I cried, my eyelashes froze instantly.
Your story brought back so many memories. Good luck in your quest for a New Car, Jay.
sounds like it's time to put ol' bessie out to pasture. i hate buying a "new" car (by that i mean used car that's new to me). i don't envy you.
I think I'm quite ready to commit to being car-free for the rest of my life.
Hey, totally know what you mean. I loved our first car. And now my daughter loves the car we have.
I love that Adam Sandler song, so I agree, it's hard to know what to do. And sad.
Hope you decide soon before your carless.
My bro finally got rid of his old dying car, bought a new one using a loan, ran it into the neighbour's wall, started using the old one again and now its dead. He REALLY does deserves to be a pedestrian for the rest of his life! More so than you and Jason. Good luck with your car troubles.
You'd definitely win for our childhood game, "that's your car!", which consisted entirely of picking out the junkiest heap on the side of the road and giving ownership to my brother or cousins.
Your car would "win" hands down.
I've owned several of those in my lifetime!!!
Hope you find something reliable and inexpensive soon.
This sounds exactly like my 1st car. I was afraid to call it names or criticize it, lest it leave me stranded somewhere.
Lol, very funny.
I'm so glad not to have a car.
And I'm so glad you've followed your dream and kept writing.
I laughed as I read your post. I drive an old landrover defender and you can treat them as badly as you like......which I do. My honeys even jump up and down on the bonnet and it doesn't even leave a dent. Some cars are meant to be abused, dont beat yourself with that hickory stick too much.
No telling how long cars would last if we all drove them 26km/hr. I am sure a lot more people would be walking if that were the case though...but hey, that could fix the global warming issues.
Don't buy a convertible. You will still have wet ass when it rains because the windows leak, but you will be making a car payment for the wet ass.
My favorite car of all time was much like yours. I had to kick the headlights to make them come on, climb in through the hatchback because the doors didn't open and pray that it didn't rain because those windshield wipers weren't coming on.
I loved that car, but I really appreciate being able to open and close my door.
I SO hate when a car gets to that point. It's almost always best to "blow it in place" but who can afford a replacement?!?!? I shall do a naked moonlight ritual in the woods for your car's healing. Then again, it's stinking cold out. Maybe I'll put on my jammies and hold a candle-light vigil by the fire. :-P
Is it wrong to be sad about the car finally dying? And that it's purpose is no longer necessary?
*sentimental gal*
My car isn't dying but it is a rolling wardrobe. I have several changes of clothing in the back seat and trunk, my friends have accused me several times of being homeless.
I used to have a car like that... I called it the "DEATH TRAP." It's time to let her go girl. Before she takes you down with her.
Your car sounds like our old family car we had. It was an old K-car. The power windows died, the back locks were broken, the windshield was cracked, the power steering was intermittent. The final straw came when my dad spilled an entire bottle of paint thinner on the back seat of the floor, and because we had no windows, the fumes were intoxicating. I'm sure I lost several brain cells riding in it.
Just remember: Any car is better than no car, unlesss that car is making you car poor.
I think you need to seriously answer a question here: have you learnt your lesson?
There's absolutely no point in scrounging up enough money for a replacement car if you treat it the same way you treated this poor powder blue monstrosity. Really, wasn't the powder blue enough punishment?
You're exactly right.
If it was just about the money, we would have replaced the car at least 6 months ago.
The truth is, I don't like the responsibility, and I don't like such obvious proof of my irresponsibility.
Definetly sounds like one of my old cars...
Poor car. May she rest in peace... after you get a new one.
Well, the reason your heater isn't working is that your heater core went out. The sign that that went out was the antifreeze pooling through the vents and the flooring. I had a p.o.s. car that did that. Fortunately it was under lifetime factory warranty and the dealership fixed it for the cost of two fasteners. Which is a good thing because I was a poor single mom and would have lost my job and had to find one close to home that I could walk to.
I live in the Western hemisphere. So that was YOU huh?
Maybe you should just yank out the steering wheel and walk down the street holding it in front of you, steering left and right. At least you'd make less noise that way.
Sorry that she's dying...but at least you can now spend your car money on beer without guilt.
You know....maybe it's time to give up and look into getting a NEW one....?
You drive what we call a "Hoopty."
LOL! Looks like something else I'll have to get used to again. In Switzerland, you wouldn't be allowed to take a car in that condition out of your own driveway!
BTW: Have you thought of the crime scene to put the ol' Buick down?
Does it smell like a shit of a car ??
LMAOOOOOOOOO, nicely presented.
LMFAO Yeah, bu t at least it's got character, right?
Mind you, when the heater goes tits up and you have to scrape the inside every morning it gets tooooo much don't it? LOL
You can borrow my '88GTE, aint been on the road for 4 years but it's got a heater
Giving up a car that has such personality (and they all do) is like putting a pet to sleep. They become members of the family, so hard to let them go. Don't worry about abusing it though, I'm sure the old girl had a lot more fun with you.
Oh that's so funny. I hope you take better care of your next car.
I recommend a Viking send-off. Set it adrift on a raft on the St.Lawrence with a burning brand in the boot and watch it light up the neighbourhood as it sails serenely downstream.
And think what an interesting project building the raft and making the burning brand would be...or not.
awwww u gave me tears in my eyes...with that lovely ode. Rest in peace car...rest in peace
I love that song.
It's a Buick so it's a miracle it has lasted this long. If it was an animal you'd put it out of its misery.
just passing through to wish you and your beloved jason a happy love day!
So... you got a new one yet?
Oh sweet jesus, you guys are driving Christine!!! We, too, bought our Buick from a dealership, used with only one owner: a little old lady who drove it to church and the grocery store. When we bought it it was 5 years old and only had 50,000 miles on it. It's not quite squirting me with the equivalent of automotive bodily fluids but I'm sure that's next on the list.
Our first car was an 83 Chevy. I cant remember the other part of it. But we had it for about two years and then sold it and then the claimed he lost the title and we ended up with it back and the guy lost three hundred dollars. He never came back after us for the money. Well anyway by time we got the old girl back she had leaky gaskets and all sorts of problems. The only place she got taken was to the laundry mat around the corner and to the next apt we had gotten and then to the junk yard not long after we moved in. It was horrible. Poor car. Then we have had like four other cars since. Cant remember exactly what they are. But you get the point. For hubby its all about credit right now so we try to keep it coming in. Esp with the house. Well enough. Stop by sometime when you have a minute. Tweets.
Sounds like it's time to buy a new (used - b/c new cars drop in value almost immediately after purchasing them) car. Thanks for stopping by my blog.
What did the thieves take that I didn't list? My sense of security? Perhaps, but only temporarily.
I had an '83 Buick Electra. It had 100,000 plus miles on it I bought for $300 during some tough times.
Like yours, it was a big boat. But I could turn her in circles with my pinkie. She had a big v-8 and had an insatiable thirst for gasoline.
She finally died after I had put another 87,000 miles on her. Transmission - head gasket - very expensive repairs were needed.
To this day, I remember fondly my old Buick.
I realized it was time to get a new car when my tail pipe fell off and the sides started to rust out. I don't have money though, so I am waiting until the driver's seat literally falls through the floor of the car.
I'm so terrified about my car breaking down that I'm kinda like the old folks you describe, minus the driving at 26km/hr thingy. I drive like 35km/hr btw. Unless if i'm pms-ing then that's a totally differnt me.
Oh and i absolutely hate to wash my car. It's 1-yr plus but looks like it was used in a war or something.
Years ago I was staying at a friend's place in Etobicoke. His Step-dad had 'fixed' his mother's aged Buick (also powder blue). One of the 'fixes' was have the steering column replaced, which, as my friend and I found out, resulted in spontaneous horn honking, while we drove around town in a vehicle made 2 years before our birth. En route towards home, and in a residential area, we slowed noticing a woman with a pram. Being kind souls, we smiled and waved her across. She smiled back and crossed the street, pushing her little bundle of joy that was no doubt deep in sleep. At the exact moment that she was at the centre point of the car (and all of one foot in front of the hoot), the Buick (which we had named the Blue Bomber) let out an earth shattering honk that would have rivaled a fog horn. The look on her face has no doubt reduced my life by 20 years, and it was all my friend and I could do to shrink away from view of our now pedestrian adversary. We waited till this poor woman, who's next stop was no doubt to take a contract out on both of our lives, to get safely to the opposite sidewalk. Once she was out of the way, we slowly proceeded to our own driveway, horn honking all the way, realizing that the only saving grace of the incident was the realization that an old Buick has ample room for two teenagers to hide from the fire-like gaze of an upset mother, underneath the dashboard.
G.
Commenting by HaloScan
