Ride of a Lifetime
SAVED A BUNCH of money so you could retire and buy that sporty car you always wanted? My advice: Do it.
In almost 50 years of owning vehicles, I have bought just one car that was almost fully impractical. It had a shallow shelf of a trunk. My wife couldn���t drive it because it had a stick shift. More than a few times, I had to start it by pushing it down a hill, jumping in and popping the clutch. It was frequently at the mechanic���s shop.
But it was all worth it when the thing was running. My 1984 Volkswagen Rabbit convertible, also called a Cabriolet, had a peppy five-speed transmission with a 1.8-liter engine. It was a cool car���one you might see a young person drive.
I turned age 39 the year I bought it, but I wasn���t in the midst of a midlife crisis. I was a year into a new job and a new city. My wife was expecting our second child. It was an exciting and fulfilling time in my life.
We needed a second car after spending a year managing with just one vehicle, a fairly new Honda Accord. We had paid off the Accord with proceeds from the sale of our previous house. I wanted to continue to avoid car payments, so I had just $2,500 to spend.
I don���t recall how I found it, but I soon owned the German-built Cabriolet Wolfsburg edition. The seats were cloth and leather. The steering wheel and the gear shift were wrapped in black leather.
During the five years I owned it, the car often had engine problems. A mechanic told me it was because my Cabriolet was among the first to have fuel-injection instead of a diesel engine. I don���t know if that was true, but I know it was a lot of fun to drive���when there were no problems.
Being relatively light and with good horsepower, the car could accelerate quickly with the help of the five speeds. This was my fifth car with a standard transmission, so I knew how to get it to perform.
Five years after I purchased the Cabriolet, we bought a slightly used Dodge minivan, and we didn���t need three vehicles. It was time to let go of my sporty ride. I sold it for $2,500, what I had paid five years prior. Of course, over those five years, there were lots of repair bills. Still, I have no regrets. We should all own at least one vehicle in our life that���s more fun than practical.
In almost 50 years of owning vehicles, I have bought just one car that was almost fully impractical. It had a shallow shelf of a trunk. My wife couldn���t drive it because it had a stick shift. More than a few times, I had to start it by pushing it down a hill, jumping in and popping the clutch. It was frequently at the mechanic���s shop.
But it was all worth it when the thing was running. My 1984 Volkswagen Rabbit convertible, also called a Cabriolet, had a peppy five-speed transmission with a 1.8-liter engine. It was a cool car���one you might see a young person drive.
I turned age 39 the year I bought it, but I wasn���t in the midst of a midlife crisis. I was a year into a new job and a new city. My wife was expecting our second child. It was an exciting and fulfilling time in my life.
We needed a second car after spending a year managing with just one vehicle, a fairly new Honda Accord. We had paid off the Accord with proceeds from the sale of our previous house. I wanted to continue to avoid car payments, so I had just $2,500 to spend.
I don���t recall how I found it, but I soon owned the German-built Cabriolet Wolfsburg edition. The seats were cloth and leather. The steering wheel and the gear shift were wrapped in black leather.
During the five years I owned it, the car often had engine problems. A mechanic told me it was because my Cabriolet was among the first to have fuel-injection instead of a diesel engine. I don���t know if that was true, but I know it was a lot of fun to drive���when there were no problems.
Being relatively light and with good horsepower, the car could accelerate quickly with the help of the five speeds. This was my fifth car with a standard transmission, so I knew how to get it to perform.
Five years after I purchased the Cabriolet, we bought a slightly used Dodge minivan, and we didn���t need three vehicles. It was time to let go of my sporty ride. I sold it for $2,500, what I had paid five years prior. Of course, over those five years, there were lots of repair bills. Still, I have no regrets. We should all own at least one vehicle in our life that���s more fun than practical.
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