This video (of my favorite Queen song…yeah, really) belongs in this thread:
Thank you, Robert. I was waiting for someone to bring that up.
I love my BMW Z4 convertible, it still brings an easy smile, especially with the top down, which is anytime above 55 F. It wasn’t intended to be my daily driver but since the Acura died it’s filled that role nicely. I know the styling is polarizing but I think it looks great and it has a good amount of power (it’s the SI) which is fun on the back roads.
But I also sometimes miss my first car, a hand-me-down 1980 Mercedes 300D. It didn’t handle particularly well but it did handle predictably–after a year of driving it I could get out of a skid or fishtail without thinking or stressing about it. Not real fast. Also, it was mustard yellow, and looked pretty identical to this:
Much as I love my Mazdaspeed 3, it’s nowhere near my affection for my 1986 Volvo 240.
The car was utterly reliable and simple enough that I could perform any work short of rebuilding the engine myself. So simple, in fact, that replacing the timing belt took 15 minutes and nothing more than a few wrenches. I would drive one every day for the rest of my life if I could.
Yeah, most people I know who’ve owned Volvo’s have an everlasting love for them.
They just won’t die!
You can kill all their features and accessories and the engine keeps on going. They can rust all over and still be solid as a rock.
Just a raccoon :(
My 2002 Lexus IS200. OK the mileage is pretty poor (32 MPG UK gallons) but it is a fun car when roads are twisty, a good motorway cruiser, and has bells & whistles. I’ve got a good indy mechanic for reasonable maintenance costs. Plus it is now at the age and value where I don’t particularly care about bumps and scrapes and keeping it pristine, just the mechanical side is kept in top condition.
I love my XC90 but I will never love another car like I loved my old 164. 
Mine was an ancient green, though, like an old penny.
I love my 1998 Mazda Protege 'cause it’s been paid off for over a decade. Should be able to get another 2-3 years out of it, even.
My baby that I bought back in 2005 and still have to this day. It does around 6000 kilometres a year, so it is still essentially brand new.
Why do I like it? Well, it is perfect for long highway driving mostly with the ample leg room, though the 6 stacker CD player and the cruise control help immensely. Add to that the fact I can just throw stuff in the back. It is also very quiet inside, at highway speed I don’t hear much in terms of road noise.
That photo was taken at the end of the first big road trip. The idea of driving part way up the most boring bits of Australia didn’t excite me, so I put it onto the back of a train and I relaxed by the bar in the train.
That’s pretty sweet Strato, what is it exactly?
It’s a freight train. They’re pretty nifty…
Do you bring the crocs when you go to test drive new vehicles?
“Mind if I test the trunk space on this one? I need to be able to fit two golf bags and a 5 foot croc. I brought them with me, hang on…”
I’m in love with my Audi S5. I recently got into a fender bender with it and had to go a few weeks without it. (Apparently a 5 mile an hour accident with an SUV nets you a 3 week repair time and a fucking expensive repair bill for insurance.) That 5 minute drive back from the shop was euphoric for me. I felt like Sweeny Todd “My hand is complete again!” Also like Brian, I don’t mind LA traffic in it. (Most of the time)
Hah! Yeah, there are still times when LA traffic gets to any of us. :)
Anyone else in a local/national car club or active in a car forum(s) for your respective car?
I was active in an a/s5 forum but they got mad at me for saying fuck once and I realized it was better that that point for me to just not post anymore since there is no way I could refrain from cussing.
Hey, I had a Volvo 164 too. “Oxblood” with a tan interior. I loved it because it tried so hard to look like a Rover P6 front end had been stuck on the front of an otherwise completely square Volvo 144 and because it had a ridiculous toggle switch for overdrive instead of nice, normal 5th gear.
That Volvo and its great torque probably explain why I love my 2010 diesel Jetta wagon. Unless I adopt getting speeding tickets as a hobby, torque is much more fun in modern traffic conditions than horsepower.
Yeah, screw all those fancy luxury cars, all you need is a simple, basic Audi S5.