Cars (And other modes of transportation)

[fantasia]

I don't think we have one of these topics right now so I thought I'd start one. I was inspired by the fact that my husband and I have started rebuildng his 1968 Mercury Cougar.
http://www.seriouswheels.com/pics-1960-1969/1967-Mercury-Cougar-maroon-fa-nf.jpg
He bought the car in high school as his project car, and we're finally at the point where we can work on it.

This weekend we started by completely stripping out the interior of the car. Seats, carpet, the paneling on the sides. Removing all of the hardware like the door handles and stereo. We even took out the gas tank. With everything on the interior of the car emptied, we can definitely see the damage done over the years. The floor of the car (specifically called the floor pans) are so rusted that you can see through to the ground below. Not exactly safe for driving. So that will be the first step, replacing the floor pans.

Now I'm going to hazard a guess that very few people on this site are really into cars the way my husband is and neither am I (I've sort of been sucked in because of how excited he is ). But I love driving. I remember one of the things I was quite surprised to learn about several of the people on this site is that many wait until the last possible moment to get their driver's licenses. Not me, I had my learner's permit at the age of 14 and never looked back. Driving for me is fun and relaxing, especially when I'm on a highway without a lot of traffic. So with that in mind, I'll start off with some simple questions that I think most people can answer....

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?
2. What's your favorite method of transportation?
3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?
4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. )
5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other
6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

This thread is not limited to cars. If you want to talk about something else, feel free! (Bicycles, buses, planes, etc!)

[CharlotteRose]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it? - No I don't (I'm 16 ) But I don't mind traveling by car!

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?- I like to cycle and to fly (in an aeroplane! )

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven? -(I don't drive but my dad had a Jenson interceptor which was beautiful!)

4. American cars vs. Imports. - (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. ) I'm British but I think American cars look really nice! They all seem quite big though! We have a peugot!

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other - Electric as they are 'slightly' more environmentally friendly!

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc. - My mom and I broke down in the middle of a motorway! It was quite scary really!

[Pattertwigs Pal]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?
Yes, I drive. I like it a lot more than I used to. I'm not the get in the car and drive for the sake of driving type but as a means to get from one place to another I like it (as long as there isn't a backseat driver along ). It can be relaxing and a good time to think and pray.
2. What's your favorite method of transportation?
Hmm, either bike or horseback. I haven't been very good about bike riding lately and I only do the later every once and a while.
3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?
I drive a 2009 Prius (color seaside pearl) and I love it. My mom's old subaru wasn't always the most fun to drive (the air conditioning would go out and sometimes it would randomly not start). It was an '88 so by the time I was driving it, it had an excuse not to work.
4. American cars vs. Imports. Um, I don't really know the difference. I think Toyota is a Japanese company.
5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other I really like my hybrid.
6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.
Well, I was rear ended once. The damage was mild. My dad totaled two cars on his birthday one year.

[wolfloversk]

I don't think we have one of these topics

We did but I think it was long ago locked.

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?

Never took my permit test... I need to do that... I should have done it about 4 years ago

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?

Walking? Skipping? But I like cars

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?

I've only ever driven a Dodge Ram, a Dodge Neon, and a Ford Focus... all in my dad's Junk yard... I prefer the Neon cause it's the smallest and the easiest to see around. My least favorite of the three is probably the Focus

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. ) Depends on the car, but I generally prefer American Brands (namely Chevy)

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other

Electric seems cool

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

Well the Neon mentioned above broke down twice on us on, first on our way back from an open House at ESF about 3 hours from home, second time of our way back from Howe Caverns, but we were almost home. Both times of course it started once my dad came and put the key in [/quote]

I'm halfway considering getting my motorcycle licence as well, but I gotta focus on the permit test first. Flying sounds like it'd be fun too, but I'm not sure I'd have the patience to learn it

[stardf29]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?

Yes; got my license on my Lucky Seven-teenth birthday.

I do enjoy it and it is very convenient, but... let's just say Hawaii isn't the safest place to drive, and I fear I'm not helping much. Seriously, though, it's like a real Rat Race here.

Also, you need so much Gas Money...

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?

Ships/boats. Obviously, they can't just go anywhere, but they're lots of fun. Though I guess for someone that gets seasick easily, That's Too Much for them...)

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?

A somewhat worn 2005 Nissan Sentra. It's the only car I've ever owned, and it does come with Any Number of problems (such as getting a Hole in One of the tires; a quick Switcheroo on that tire solved that, though), but it works. Although I've driven other, much nicer cars before (an Acura MDX comes to mind; that thing probably needs, like, 5 Price Tags or something).

4. American cars vs. Imports.

I'm partial to Japanese cars, myself. Hence, the Nissan (who makes other models like the Versa and the Pathfinder). No real significant reasoning on it, either; I'll Pass the Buck on the debate.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other

Somewhere down the line, I might look into a hybrid or electric car... they really are quite the Temptation. I probably just need to scrounge up enough Pocket Change.

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

The time was the evening One Away (More or Less) after officially getting the title to my car, I went to get food from the drive-thru... and after getting my food, since I was busy messing around with the food, for my car's tires I just decided to Let 'em Roll... and the car immediately and slowly ran into a guardrail-pole beside the building. Yeah... I didn't even get 10 Chances to drive it before it suffered damage. They really did Stack the Deck against me.

The damage has since had a quick fix and Cover Up, but still... that taught me to be careful of how my wheels are positioned at a drive-thru and to Line 'em Up with the road more carefully!

...and if anyone knows what I did with this post, they get a Master Key to the Spelling Bee.

[stargazer]

Now I'm going to hazard a guess that very few people on this site are really into cars the way my husband is...

He ought to meet my older brother. Way back when he was working on restoring a '57 Chevy (if I recall correctly, but that could be wrong given how valuable they are now). After moving to California he also had a Corvette he liked to drive and work on.

But he's approaching 60 now, and less interested in that kind of work.

On to the questions...

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?

Affirmative! I look forward to driving places as a fun part of trips to other places (like northern Minnesota or Kansas ). Give me a highway, a reliable car, some good music, and some Mountain Dew, and away I go!

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?

Flying? (And boy, are my wings tired ). Space ships?

Driving is fun but rather impractical for cross-country trips.

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?

I'm on my second (used) Honda Accord. I traded the previous one in back in August; it was 19 years old with almost 250,000 miles. Very little trouble with it too, at least until the last few months I owned it.

Worst car? Ford Tempo, back in 1980s I think. There were actually 3 Tempos owned by members of my family at the time, and they were all trouble, with frequent computer part failures. Not good on the highway in rush hour.

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread.)

My family's experience with those Tempos (and other US cars) convinced even my father to try imports. I prefer imports now, but I know American cars have improved significantly in quality of late.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other

The Toyota Prius has a cool dashboard display of engine and power functions.

I like the idea of Electric or hybrid cars but right now I'm waiting for the technology to mature a little more.

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

First crash...there's a sharp 35-mph curve on Interstate 35W near downtown Minneapolis. I was driving a '69 Chevy (this was back in the '80s; that car had lots of rust). I had a blowout going into that curve and the car spun around so I was facing traffic. It slammed into the side guardrail, and I jumped out just before another car hit it. Whew! It was a Saturday but the result was a long backup of traffic.

First deer impact: Hard to believe I've been driving close to 38 years in Minnesota and (until this month) had never hit a deer! I've had several close calls, though.

Most of my family members have hit them, however. Just last week, my brother was driving his family and me down a dark country road in the north woods when a deer popped out. He hit the brakes as the deer ran out in front of us...and just stood still. He managed to stop the truck but still bumped the deer. It was a gentle hit; the deer ran off and the truck had virtually no damage. Still, kind of exciting for my first car-deer meeting.

[De_De]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it? No, I don't drive. I am scared to drive, though I really want to...I'll wait till I'm 18, and then we'll see.

2. What's your favorite method of transportation? Hmmmm...well Car and Train tie! I have wonderful memories of traveling to Crimea by car, but I love trains!!!

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven? I have never driven a car, but I can say that the worst car I have driven in was a 10 year-old GAZelle which didn't have a muffler, and the shock absorbers were a thing of the past!!! That was quite a ride! We were soooo loud and we sure felt every bump ! But it was tons of fun!

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. ) Well, I've never ridden in an American car... . Now our family had a Peugeot and it's pretty good! The only problem was that it wouldn't start up if it was below zero, but my dad bought a new car battery and now it works fine.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other I really have no idea...

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc. Ha, well I remember once, when we were traveling to Crimea on that GAZelle I talked about above (only it was around 8 years old and still had the muffler ). I don't really know what was wrong, but sometimes the car would just spot in the middle of the raod, and the only thing that would make it start was when my dad would take a hammer, open the car hood and bag the engine with it! I remember when once a Jap saw my dad do that, he was speechless . Well that's the way Russian cars are

[starkat]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?

Yup and only when not on one or two major roads in the area where people tend to drive like they've lost their minds.

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?

Equine, but that's a bit too slow unless you are deliberately out on a trail ride. Wheels tend to work well whether on bike, skates, or cars.

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?

I drive a Honda Civic. It's a manual which makes life fun because there's only a limited amount of people who can ever borrow/drive my car. It was one of my requests when I was doing driver's ed, that my parents teach me how to drive a manual.

Mazda. I loved driving my Mazda protoge and my cousin's Mazda 3. They have a tight turning radius and handle roads well. The downside is the gas mileage isn't quite as good as my Honda Civic. Close, but about 6 mpg below where my Civic is and 6 mpg makes a BIG difference in cost when you drive like I do. (almost 20,000 miles last year)

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. )

Entirely depends on the make/model/year of the car. Classic American cars are fabulous! Stuff from the last 15 years prior to 2011... BLECH. Ford seems to be turning out some pretty good product again though.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other

Gas at the moment. The cost of repairing a model like the Civic or a Mazda 3 is far less than if something goes wrong with newer technology. We'll see what happens with hybrid tech as it gets older. Not a fan of electric due to the limited range and living in a city where it's not uncommon to drive over 100 miles in a single day.

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

This one could take a while...

I have LOTS of car stories. Primarily because my uncle and my dad have several as well. My uncle and my dad were big into cars when they were younger and they still are.

My uncle's in the process of rebuilding his first car. I think it's a 71 Chevelle if I remember correctly. He started with the frame and powder coating. Then he is going up and out. He found a factory original hood still in the box for his restoration project.

My first car was a 91 Ford Taurus. My parents gave it to me because it still had the metal body instead of the more modern fiberglass body. It definitely served me well during college. It developed an issue in the cooling system that we could never track down. The last couple of semesters I drove it, I was putting water in it daily as well as running the heater during traffic to keep it from overheating. And in the summer heat... ugh.

Oh and to all those who think 100,000 miles on an odometer is a lot, my taurus was given to someone else at 240,000 miles and they were still driving it quite awhile later. My dad's first Mazda had 280,000 on it before it gave up and that was after a transmission and engine rebuild. His second Mazda had 240K on it when he gave it to my uncle (a different uncle then the aforementioned one) who took it up north and drove it all around the U.S.. Then it was given to the uncle mentioned above who is still driving it. My Mazda had 180K on it when we sold it. So yeah...There's a LOT to be said for regular maintenance and how it helps keep a car going.

More car stories later... this post is long enough.

[narnianerd]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it? No. I'm 14 but I love it.

2. What's your favorite method of transportation? Car or Pickup truck

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven? None, but I've got a GMC Z71 short bed step side waiting on my 16th birthday. / Favorite car? Well my dad and I are planning to restore his 1970 AMC AMX for me to drive. - when we are done it will look something like this.

- One of the most awesome things man has ever created.

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. ) American of course, my brand ranking goes Chevy/GMC, Dodge, Ford beyond that most everything is just plain yuck

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other. I prefer gas or diesel, because the reason behind electric is to not pump crap into the atmosphere, but if you think about it. Some power plant in far away is doing is for you. So it think it's kinda pointless.

[MoonlightDancer]

Yay! I love cars!

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?
Yes and yes!

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?
Driving is the most convenient, but I love flying!

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?
Currently I drive a silver 2004 Mitsubishi Lancer, it is my favorite car for sure. I've had it for three years now and I've never had a single problem with it, it runs great, is reliable, and goes fast! Plus it's super cute. The worst car I've driven would be the chevy I had before I got my lancer. It was a good car but it was so old, and it wouldn't go over 70 mph and would stall out sometimes.

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. )

I love chevy's but I have to be honest, I'm not a big ford fan. I don't regret buying an import, myself.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other
Ehh, no real opinion. Sure I'd like a hybrid but they're unrealistically expensive and, let's be honest, kinda ugly looking. (so far.)

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

I slipped on black ice while on the highway in my first car (chevy) took out both headlights on the guard rail after sliding across three lanes of traffic. Definitely scary and taught me to drive slow when the roads are icy. Once a car hit me from behind while at a red light, I pulled over so I could get their info but they just kept driving away---made me SO mad. And then one time I was driving behind a truck on the highway, and a ladder fell off the back so I swerved into the other lane (left lane) to miss it, only I was going so fast that I did a full turn and ended up facing the opposite direction on the highway. Luckily all the cars stopped so I could turn around, and everything was fine, but I was really shaken up for awhile.

[Aslans_Jewel]

My friend has a 1971 Oldsmobile 442, black, fully restored. His Brother got it for him for Christmas. The guy didn't know what he was selling and sold it for $17,000. Its a beautiful muscle car. He can't drive yet but his brother takes us around in it, blasting Classic rock B)
His license plate on it is hot pink and says I <3 Poop. Naturally.

[Shadowlander]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it? I enjoy driving, generally speaking. I'd enjoy it more if I didn't have to do it for utilitarian, mundane reasons (work, grocery shopping, etc)

2. What's your favorite method of transportation? Airplane

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven? I drive a red 2000 Ford Ranger, and if you want endless requests to help people move stuff, then by all means purchase a pickup truck . My favorite car I've driven was my first car, which I still have. 1968 Ford Mustang hardtop. Beat up but still beautiful. Worst car I ever drove was a 1989 Ford Festiva. Overgrown lawnmower.

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. ) I tend to prefer American, although I cannot deny that the Japanese make a really good car.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other Gas

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc In 2000 I was driving my Dad's old Festiva (see above). The thing was just horrible and drank oil despite all attempts to fix the stupid thing, and it wasn't as fuel efficient as I was expecting. And a go-kart could outrun it. So one day I'm on my way to work and I stop at a traffic light and up next to me pulls an old, beat up looking Yugo. So I look at the Yugo driver and he looks at me and we both nod and silently agree to see which of our wimp-mobiles can outrun the other. When the light turned green he putted off into the lead and left me in the dust...a rusted hulk of Yugoslav engineering defeated my Mexican VW Rabbit clone and I was choked with shame. As a direct result I bought my truck (which I still drive) the very next day.

[Fire Fairy]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?
Yes and yes.
2. What's your favorite method of transportation?
Hmm, that's a toughie. I like cars and trains and planes and buses. But I just like traveling, as weird as that sounds...
3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?
'92 Chevy Cavalier. It's old and beat up, but it's got character. No air conditioning, however, so summer is torture. I like driving it, though, because I love stick-shifts. I hate driving my parent's Suburban. It's way too big for me.
4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. )
Umm, haven't been driving long enough to form an opinion.
5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other
Whatever's least expensive.
6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.
Once, my family was driving to our cousins' house in another state when our Suburban broke down in the middle of nowhere. We had to call a tow truck to tow us the rest of the way, and my parents ended up having to buy a new truck in the city where our relatives live. We ended up driving home in a different truck than the one we drove up in.

[Lady Arwen]

* brushes the dust off the topic *

1. Do you drive? Do you like it? Yes, I do drive. I didn't like it for the longest time, but I've grown to enjoy it very much, and I'm looking into getting a long-distance worthy vehicle sometime soon so I can drive more.

2. What's your favorite method of transportation? Currently a wee bit obsessed with getting a motorcycle, mainly a Kawasaki Ninja. Too bad it is so expensive.

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven? I currently drive a Buick Century, which is now a discontinued model. It also has custom plates that I am quite fond of, but in case any of you are too stalkerish, I'm not giving it out. Suffice to say that it stands for "driving with lights and siren." My favorite car is the Ford Mustang Shelby GT, as well as the Dodge Charger. The Charger has great response, as well as a smooth ride, and I quite appreciate that. The Charger is also supposed to be getting up to 31 mpg, which is about 10 mpg better than my current vehicle.

4. American cars vs. Imports. Meh, I'm not really inclined one way or the other.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other I, personally, am very devoted to the theory of hydrogen power. This is one of the greenest and most efficient systems, and is actually successful within places that have fueling stations (I could feasibly have a hydrogen powered car; there are fueling stations within an hour of me in several directions). Also, these tend to be safer, and do more than just give you the feel-good that other "green" options do (hydrogen's only off-gas is water; no carbon footprint!). However, Hydrogen isn't the government blessed alternative fuel source, so it struggles to become widespread.

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc. Hmmm....well, a rather embarrassing one involves me "chasing" a couple highway patrol officers. I was late for work, and I saw a CHP (California Highway Patrol) vehicle coming up rather quickly behind me on the interstate. As it passed, I thought I recognized the driver and passenger as two of the men I would be working with that day. Thus, I got over behind them, stepped on the gas, and followed them through the parting traffic for about ten or fifteen miles...when they suddenly exited, about five miles before *my* exit, I realized that it wasn't my cops, but rather two detectives on their way to the jail.

I slowed down, just in case they were getting off to get right back on behind me.

"But Officer, you look JUST like Brian! I could have sworn that was him, and I was following him to X school!"

Yeah....

[King_Erlian]

1. Do you drive? Do you like it?

I've been driving for over 30 years, since I turned 17 (the minimum legal age to drive on the roads in the UK).

I hate it. I didn't like it all that much when I was young, and I've grown to hate it more and more as I've got older. It's the most stress-inducing thing in my life. I drive 40 miles every weekday commuting to and from work, in heavy traffic around the Manchester ring road. If only public transport weren't so useless.

2. What's your favorite method of transportation?

Train. I've never been a trainspotter, but I've always enjoyed riding on trains.

3. What kind of car do you drive? What's your favorite car you've ever driven? What's the worst car you've ever driven?

I drive a Mini Cooper. I would say it's my favourite car of all those I've owned, as it's very responsive and it fits in the car-port without the back end of it sticking out. I haven't owned a car that I thought was especially bad, though the worst car I've ever driven was probably my ex-fiancee's Yugo (cheap Eastern European hatchback). Would've gone faster if I'd pushed it.

4. American cars vs. Imports. (This should be interesting if any non-American people want to comment in this thread. )

Don't really care where a car comes from - I still hate driving.

5. Gas vs. Electric vs. Other

Electric sounds cool, but they are still extremely expensive. If the Government were serious about caring for the environment, why don't they encourage car manufacturers to bring the prices of electric cars down?

6. Got any good car stories? First car, first crash, etc.

In just over 30 years of driving, I've been in two serious crashes where I was lucky to escape unhurt (or if you prefer, God graciously prevented me from being injured). The memory of those incidents is still pretty terrifying, so no, there are no "good" car stories. How I wish I could live in Narnia - no roads, no cars, no traffic!

This thread is not limited to cars. If you want to talk about something else, feel free! (Bicycles, buses, planes, etc!)

I'm a pretty novice horse-rider, but instructors have said to me that I have a natural ability in the saddle. Reminds me of one of the Archenland lords' comment to King Lune about Shasta, "He has a true horseman's seat, Sire. I'll warrant there's noble blood in him."

[Shadowlander]

I, personally, am very devoted to the theory of hydrogen power. This is one of the greenest and most efficient systems, and is actually successful within places that have fueling stations (I could feasibly have a hydrogen powered car; there are fueling stations within an hour of me in several directions). Also, these tend to be safer, and do more than just give you the feel-good that other "green" options do (hydrogen's only off-gas is water; no carbon footprint!). However, Hydrogen isn't the government blessed alternative fuel source, so it struggles to become widespread.

I've read about hydrogen power and like what I've read. I'm not a greenie at all, but it makes feasible sense that if it's cost effective and generally speaking doesn't smog things up and it runs as effectively as gas, run with it. The problem with so much of today's green cars (and power generation in general) is that they tend to be based on what are essentially backup power systems (solar, batteries, etc.). To top that off these tend to be pricey systems, hence the elevated costs of owning one.

Personally I think we ought to go back several years and revisit the old Turbine-powered car, which doesn't need gas to run but could operate on almost any combustible liquid (vegetable oil, kerosene, and in one report tequila). The drawback is it sounds like a Hoover vacuum when it's going full bore.



Here's video of one running. Sign me up!