The Cars You've Driven and How They've Changed Over Time.

[Caliga]

We have a 2018 Lexus RX 350 and a 2008 Civic Hybrid.  I drive the Civic.

I don't really care though, since my commute is 3 miles long and it's so fuel efficient I fill it up like once every six weeks.

[viper37]

What sort of cars have you driven and how has that changed over time?

I'm asking because not having bothered to drive for 20 odd years, I'm out of touch as to what people typically drive, how big they are, what power and performance is like. Front wheel vs Rear vs 4 wheel drive.  Petrol or Diesel?

My outsider's impression is that all cars now weigh close to a couple of tonnes have 200+ hp and are full of useless gadgets.

For comparison, excluding work's vehicles I've only ever driven petrol, non-automatic cars, with it split 60/40% front vs rear wheel drive.
A rough estimate shows all the cars I've owned have been in the 800-1200kg,curb weight range, ignoring a couple of outliers, like a 505 estate.

I have my license at 16 and 3 months.  I managed to go behind my mother's back and have my father sign some paper for school that I couldn't attend some outdoor activity because he needed me to work with him, so I could go and get my license with one of my friend.
I bought my first cast at 17 years old.  In between that, I drove my parent's car, a Oldsmobile Regency and some pickup trucks, diesel and gaz.


Pontiac Sunbird 1990
Nice little red car, 4 cylinders.  Totally trashed the car by colliding with a snowplower on the highway during a snowstorm.  I only had 6 more months left to finally pay that damn car  There was a huge problem on these models in that one of the engine gasket was defective and it was leaking oil.  I kept telling the dealer there was a burnt smell after riding for a while, but of course, anytime I'd go to the dealer, their mechanic would try it for 5 minutes and declare there was no smell.  I think it took them 2 years to finally find the problem.
Automatic car, as my mother was theoritically 1st driver and she didn't drive manual.


Chevrolet Cavalier 1993
Good, reliable car, 4 cylinders.  No major problem on this one.  Manual transmission. There was a weird problem I kept having in that my ABS light kept flashing and I would lose the ABS breaks.  Finally discovered that the place I worked at, the dog was chewing some cables underneath the car 

Chevrolet Camaro 1998 Manual car, no major problem, except I drove over a railroad crossing a little too fast and broke the oil pan.  Cost me 800$ to repair dammit.
Not much room in the back seat, not very comfy on the passenger side, most people complained it was too low, but I loved it that way.6 cylinders, 200hp, gave it some ooompf for the start.

Mercedes C-230 2008
First used car I bought, hybrid auto/manual transmission, 6 cylinders.  What a piece of shit.  Constantly had to find some place to repair it, I think I went to the dealer 3-4 times while it was still under warranty, and then, of course, living in a small town, no one here really knew how to repair problems.  And problems there were.  Too many to list, but I tilted in the end and made an almost compulsive buy after I got the same problem for the 2nd time.  Finally sold it for 5000$ to some African dude from Montreal who tried to hussle me out of some money.  Didn't really work, but at some point, I really felt like I was in some gangster movie
I parked it at my friend's garage and publish an online ad.  I got a hit from some foreigner from Montreal.  I was asking 6000$, we settled for 5500$ and I wouldn't have to make any repairs on it he would take care of it.  That piece of shit (the car) had again a problem when I showed it to the guy and I promised him I'd pay the repairs (400$, in the end).
Anyway.  He came with his wife, his cousin and a friend. 3 black dudes looking like gangsta rappers.  Guy tried to haggle for the convened price saying he had no more money to pay for his licence plate.  Didn't work.  But I had 5500$ cash on me.  And we had to go the license registration office together for the transfer.  I asked to stop at the bank first to deposit the money.  Fine.  But so we go.  And I'm being followed.  Who's that guy following me? I asked.  "Oh it's only my cousin coming with me, making sure everything is ok".  Wait.  I'm the one carrying the cash, he has the car keys, what is it he's risking?  Are they trying to rob me and leave with the car?  He's in my new car with his wife and there's two strange dudes following me.

Anyhow.  I was suspicious.  So I stopped at the bank, asked a teller to check the bills to make sure they were legit.  She showed me some hack to check for fakes in the future and told me the ATM should detect fake bills from real ones.  But really, I wasn't in any mood to trust a machine...
Everything turned out allright, the bills were legit, so up to the vehicle office.  There, he tried again telling me he had no money to pay.  In Quebec you have to pay provincial sales tax when you register a used car, plus, obviously, the costs of licensing the vehicle.  Nope, ain't paying for you, even if you promise me a refund "very soon".  I'll drive you to the nearest ATM.  "Oh, no, it's ok, I'll ask my cousin".  So cousin has no money.   Wife decides to pay, but she only has Visa and they don't take credit card.  He tries to haggle with the clerk, saying he'll pay the full amount once he's in Montreal.  I could feel she was two steps away from calling the police...

His cousin comes and ask me to lend him money.  Nope, I'll drive you the nearest ATM.  We go to the ATM, he gets the money, comes back, pays everything, we go back the the mechanic's shop, and I leave him there.

I later learn they both tried haggling for some of the used cars on sale there.  But I have my money, dammit!

So, that stupid car was problematic from day 1 to the bitter end of its life with me.
Acura TLX 2016 Elite Tech A-Spec
I got a really, really good offer in Montreal (yes Grey Fox, Brossard is not Montreal, but it's close enough for me ).

Some insurance broker just got a promotion and wanted to buy some almost discontinued BMW sports car.  The dude, really, really, really wanted to sell the car instead of returning it to the dealer (it was a rent) and pestered Honda Financial and the credit manager at the dealer for an entire week to expedite things.  It was very obvious she was pissed off to see us on a Friday pm, and I don't think she even tried to hide her disdain of me and him.  Or just me because I didn't look like the kind of guy who could afford an Acura.  Totally snobb, as expected for any above middle class Montrealer
Anyhow.  It took the major part of day.  Our appointment was for 12:30, I got out at 16:45.Just in time for Montreal's traffick.
But what a wonderful car it is.   Way too many gadgets, lots of stuff I could live without, but I like the shape and the acceleration.  BB will be happy to know that no police radar have been hurt in the process of retrieving my car.
There is no way I will be able to afford buying the car next year, at the end of it's renting period.  There is no way I will be able to afford buying this exact same model for fall 2020.  But I'll do my best to look for any options that let me have something very similar albeit not "Elite" so I could save a few bucks and afford it.  It's not like the Elite brings anything useful anyway.  And it's very similar to a Honda Civic, except the Civic is only front wheel drive while this one is AWD.  Maybe if there's an AWD Civic I'll buy this instead.This one has 6 cylinders and a turbo.  The transmission has 4 different modes, Economy, Standard, Sport and Sport Plus.  I usually drive in economy mode, I get around 8L/100km.  Sports Plus is insane, it's like Turbo Boost on K-2000

Not a recommended mode if you want to keep your driver's license.

[Barrister]

Maybe if there's an AWD Civic I'll buy this instead.

Honda CR-V is the Civic platform with a crossover bodystyle, and you can get it with AWD.

[viper37]

Maybe if there's an AWD Civic I'll buy this instead.

Honda CR-V is the Civic platform with a crossover bodystyle, and you can get it with AWD.

My cousin has this.  But it's closer to a SUV and I don't really like that, I find this too big for my tastes.

[Barrister]

Maybe if there's an AWD Civic I'll buy this instead.

Honda CR-V is the Civic platform with a crossover bodystyle, and you can get it with AWD.

My cousin has this.  But it's closer to a SUV and I don't really like that, I find this too big for my tastes.

It absolutely is closer to a SUV - that's why it's called a crossover - a cross between a car and a truck-based SUV.  It's no longer than a Civic, since it's the same car underneath.  It's just taller.

But if you want a Civic with AWD, the only option is the CR-V.

[frunk]

It absolutely is closer to a SUV - that's why it's called a crossover - a cross between a car and a truck-based SUV.  It's no longer than a Civic, since it's the same car underneath.  It's just taller.

But if you want a Civic with AWD, the only option is the CR-V.

There's also the HR-V, which is between a Civic and a CR-V and can come with AWD.

[Barrister]

It absolutely is closer to a SUV - that's why it's called a crossover - a cross between a car and a truck-based SUV.  It's no longer than a Civic, since it's the same car underneath.  It's just taller.

But if you want a Civic with AWD, the only option is the CR-V.

There's also the HR-V, which is between a Civic and a CR-V and can come with AWD.

Huh - not familiar with it.  You're right, it might be what Viper would like.  It's more like a 4 door hatch.

[mongers]

Out of curiosity I looked up the most powerful car I ever owned, drum-roll ..... according to wiki it had all of 109 bhp. 

[Malthus]

Out of curiosity I looked up the most powerful car I ever owned, drum-roll ..... according to wiki it had all of 109 bhp. 

Tell me it wasn't the same type of car Mr. Bean owned. 

[mongers]

Out of curiosity I looked up the most powerful car I ever owned, drum-roll ..... according to wiki it had all of 109 bhp. 

Tell me it wasn't the same type of car Mr. Bean owned. 

It was a Lancia Beta, which on the plus side was a light 1000 kg and got noticeably lighter as it aged, what with it being made out of Italian 2nd hand washing machine 'steel'   

[Admiral Yi]

is that the car Ali G ends up with?

[mongers]

is that the car Ali G ends up with?

No idea, I seriously doubt any have lasted that long.

[Richard Hakluyt]

They were quite nippy were the Lancia Betas, but they decomposed into a pile of rust with incredible rapidity, so you didn't press the pedals too hard in case your foot went through the floor 

How on Earth do I know this  ?

[Duque de Bragança]

That's a rather neat, useful first vehicle to have. 

I was not too thrilled back then, but if one manages to get a hold of that kind of cars, nowadays cars seem like toys. Even big German sedans/saloons. 

[Tamas]

They were quite nippy were the Lancia Betas, but they decomposed into a pile of rust with incredible rapidity, so you didn't press the pedals too hard in case your foot went through the floor 

How on Earth do I know this  ?

You could clearly see the fall of communism in my Dad's Ladas. The first he got at the end of the 70s survived well into the late 80s before he would start seeing the road from the rust holes. The second Lada we didn't keep long enough for rust becoming a problem, but the third one (early 90s already), a Lada Samara lasted around 3 years before it started having all kinds of problem including extensive rusting. 

The first one we kept seeing on the road (as a local guy bought it) for about a decade after he sold it.