I Love Classic Cars

I had a corvette, a 1980 model that honestly was not a very well made or reliable automobile, I kept it for far too long, about thirty years. When I went to a car show in town in January I looked at the new model and a sales lady asked if I was interested. I told her of my car which was a 25th birthday present to myself and she asked if it was time to buy another one? I smiled and told her I had graduated from Corvettes. I honestly am done with them. I don't have the patience for bad build quality.

I own a 23 year old Mercedes E class in pristine original condition as well as a Cadillac sedan that we inherited that is also a low milage car in excellent condition. Both are stored in inclement weather and off the road all winter long. The Cadillac is a perfect family long distance hauler on the highway, a large car, large trunk with a very soft ride and remarkable fuel economy considering that it has a V 8 engine. It however has limited build quality and is mechanically a bear to work on but as I use it sparingly these issues are minimal. I am returning the very few issues to factory condition slowly and I expect it to be in our family for many years to come. The Mercedes is the Bulletproof W124 with low miles on it and I have performance summer tires fitted to it, it is very much a drivers car in terms of handling and acceleration as well as high speed driving is superlative. The fuel economy is very good and it is a comfortable car as well but what it is renowned for is build quality and durability which no other Mercedes before or since has attained - this is the best built car they ever constructed - and I own one of the finest examples in existence, it makes mechanics cry when they see it.

When my daily driver is done, I hope to purchase a Tesla for every day use. I am a devotee of what they have achieved in terms of engineering and simplicity and I am convinced that this is the sort of car we should ALL be driving for regular use each day.

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pdqsailor1 · 61-69, M

That is too funny about what you said about the Lincoln - we feel the same way about he Cadillac Sedan we have. In terms of the Corvette you must be tall because I found the Corvette to fit me like a glove - I am shorter than average height and I had the seat set almost all the way back in that car. It was not so much that I drove it as I wore it - that is how well I fit inside it. I actually found it to be very comfortable for hauls from Ontario to Florida an 1800 mile jaunt over two days. Even with the motor fresh - I found it blew out a quart of oil past the rings over say six hundred miles and that always aggravated me. I find that new Lincoln's have very high depreciation rates - and it is ideal to get one that is 2-3 years old so someone else takes the hit financially and you still get a good car. It is a lovely day outside and so the Mercedes is going out for a business meeting. Yesterday I took my Mother out in the Cadillac to go grocery shopping and that big trunk was perfect plus the car is very easy for her to get in and out of. I had to get educated on key systems for the Cadillac as I only have one set for it and just ordered a spare remote and the VATs ignition key after measuring the resister built in that key. The Mercedes is my second one - the first was rear ended a year and a half ago. The very next day I looked for a replacement for my 88 and purchased a 93 which was a near barn find car - one owner, not driven at all for nearly ten years in storage with insanely low miles on it. My mechanic called me in from the waiting room as he had the car on the hoist saying that I might want to see what it was that I purchased. I am thinking what is wrong with it? Then he starts smiling and says that it is like it just rolled off the assembly line that day. He asked how I found the car and where it came from - Tacoma WA so it had never seen salt a day in it's life and had been garaged. Then he asked what I paid for it and he told me that I had a great car. It really is in showroom condition and there are no other ones like it in Canada which is why I store it in the winter months in a heated garage with a car cover over it.

The every day car is a mini van which my kids hate - I don't care. When I want to drive one of the nice cars - they are there waiting for me all shiny and clean and ready to go.