Cars are utilitarian objects - they're no more special than your washing machine or your toothbrush. I find it very strange that people lavish such attention on them, spending a fortune on personalised number plates, changing their vehicle when a newer model appears and washing them on a regular basis - I washed mine last year; It still works.So what's with the car fetish? All you need the things to do is get you where you want to be at a speed that matches your needs, in a level of comfort that suits your body and with a reliability that cossets your nervous system. All else is vanity, pure vanity.
My CR/V does that. OK, I changed it last year because I wanted a diesel but I'll not be changing it again in a hurry. It has the number plates it was issued with (though I did avoid buying one with a Birmingham registration - there are some things that are beyond the pale). It's high off the road because my knees have gone and it's easier to get in and out of. I don't wash it because that doesn't make it go faster, use less fuel or make it look prettier; who wants a pretty car? I'm not worried about residual value because I've driven every car I've owned until it's dropped - I wouldn't sell one of my cars to a friend or a nearby enemy who could come and find me.
I admit I'm not whiter than white; I won't drive just anything. I wouldn't buy a Ford because I'm a snob, anything French because they're just too French, anything Italian because the one I owned fell apart, a BMW because it's not VFM (Value For Money), a Rover (no excuse needed) or anything built by slaves in the Far East. That still leaves a lot to choose from.
Now, what was the point of all this rabbiting on?
Ah, yes, the badge of an old Alvis. It's very nice but it's a car. A tin of beans would be just as exciting.
8 comments:
Same here Dave. I bought a 7 seater Toyota Tarago and it suits me, I can pick my kids up and all their friends and we get from A to Z. My hubby got the more reliable newer car but also nothing flash, just reliable good on fuel comfortable FORD!! :) It's duel fuel (petrol and LPG gas) so we can go faaaar on holidays, it's a station wagon and we love it's comfort and can load our dog in the back if we take him to the dog beach, splash/gargo guard up for if he shakes.
Now that's a very cool badge and er... rabbit/hare (i forget the word I'm looking for... hood ornament? pedstrian impaler?)
Oooh, duel fuel, fighting petrol & LPG :) And diesels. Wow, missing out here.
I have to admit to being a car lover... there's an '88 Opel Manta V8 coupé in the drive - not driven in 3/4 years but a fun old classic, and a '94 Subaru Legacy wagon - turbo 4x4, totally practical for lugging tons of gear around and cheaper, as quick/fast and less ego-inflating than an Imprezza
But then you probably didn't want to know that ;)
My father moaned that I hadn't cleaned the Legacy the other week when he got lots of filth on his hands whilst clambering out of the car - it's a utilitarian 4x4 that lived on a farm in Glastonbury for years, so why clean it this year, 2005 was good enough, right?
Funnily enough I bought an Opel Manta once from Pershore... a little place called Godshill on the way in from the east, from what I remember...
A car, to me, is basically transportation. Many consider them a "symbol" of their status in life, blah, blah, blah. I've learned you can own the most expensive, gadget-filled, car around and it may be that car owns you because it's all you can afford.
Give me a car that has A/C and is not falling apart and I am happy. Although, I must admit I prefer the new car over used. Purple flame detailing on the side and hood is good too...
Good attitude, Dave! I drive a very reliable little Toyota, they seem to last forever (mine is 12 years old, 270,000 miles on it... still going strong) --I say that knowing that the engine will probably blow up tomorrow.
However, last year at this time, we had a beautiful little BMW Roadster convertable, and we LOVED that car. Sure, it was cool having people look at us and say "nice car!" everywhere we went, but that's not why we had it. It was the convertable, there is nothing like putting the top down and taking it out in the country for a long drive down winding roads on the first warm spring day after a long cold winter... the warm sun shining down on you, the wind blowing your hair... freedom, that's what it feels like. Then the baby came along and we quickly realized, you can't fit a baby carseat in a two seater convertable. So it was bye-bye to the car. :-( The "high performance sports car" part didn't matter to me, I'd have been just as happy with an old beater "Thelma and Louise" style aircraft carrier size landyacht--as long as it was a convertable. That's what my next car will be, one that I can put the top down, turn on the road-trippin' tunes, load up the whole family, or four of my best girlfriends and hit the road just for the fun of it. :-)
If only you could fit an empty bean tin with wheels and an engine and tool down the road - I'm not much for status symbols. I like a car that starts when you turn the key and stops when you step on the brakes. I've often threatened, when things go wrong, to make my next car a mule.
Station wagons are an exception, Hannelie - I quite fancy one myself but they're not common in the UK except with farmers.
Impaler, I think, Lever, and probably a hare. And my comments are a bit tongue-in-cheek - each to his/her own.
But, hey, I agree. 2005 was a great year for washing a car
Ah, Gypsysavage, bring on the purple! A/C is also good but with the price of fuel in the UK, I can't afford to run it. My car has a consumption meter on the dash and it drops like a stone when I turn the A/C on - a source of constant dissent with my beloved when she's sat next to me.
Doesn't your hair get messed up, Susan?
Ah, Pauline, great idea but can you start a mule?
Dave, station wagons are again very very popular with families here.
Lever, we had Opel in SA but here it's called Holden in Aust.
Susan, I had a little Suzuki 4X4 convertable...ahhh, but sold it too when bub came along :(
Hell yes, Dave, but worth every tangled knot! :-)
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