Cars that make you fall in love with motoring

[PetrolAppraiser]

Below is my first experience with a Spider (today!) and it got me thinking about a question which I'd like to open up for discussion here.

What is the car, experience, or moment(s) that made you fall in love with motoring?


Today's story; So I saw my first 124 Spider today! Haha surprising that I've been so invested into a particular model car without ever having seen it in person before.

Today on the way home from the Palm Springs Airport I caught a glimpse of a red beauty that made me damn near crash the car trying to get a better look. "Was that a Spider?!" Yup. Those bumps on the bonnet are real eye catchers! After I parked and walked over to the car I spent a healthy 10 minutes daydreaming about it in the garage, driving a fun mountain stretch with the missus, an evening romp with the dog in the back, cruising the thoroughfare for an ice cream It's a 77' with about 56k miles, looks clean with a recent spray of paint and interesting upholstery and skull face plate speaker covers . There wasn't a sales person in sight and the asking price was one higher that I'd shell out for - so I dismissed the notion of asking to sit inside of it. Although I got a little better idea now how I'd size up in it (I'm 6'2 with 34'' inseam).

Nonetheless, I'm just as jazzed up about it now as I was when I first came across the Spider online a couple of months ago. I'm not a fan of the big bumpers or factory covered wheels, however. I'll wait reserving judgement until I see them in person with and without. Otherwise really neat looking cars. The best part is I couldn't quite put my finger on it - it isn't sexy, nor is it cute, it isn't butch, it isn't sleek, it isn't quirky, it isn't aggressive, etc.

It flows but doesn't hypnotize, it has intention but doesn't commit, it's familiar but distinct. Simply looking at the car is a real interesting experience!

And that got me thinking on the drive home... What was it that I personally experienced that solidified my affinity for motoring and how did I get to where I am today. I'm sure a lot of folks here grew up with cars in the family, and I'm no different: from grand-father and pops doing rally events in Europe, to my older brother tracking cars, to me following suit. But I recalled some pinpoint definitive moments and I thought that'd make a fun discussion. I'll start and with that most obvious one:

1) Nostalgia - Sitting on my fathers shoulders with ear-cups on watching what felt like hours for the Indy cars to pass by in Long Beach, with my grandfather in the living and through the haze of Marlboro smoke watching Damon Hill and Michael Schumacher go at it on the TV, playing endless hours upon hours of Out-Run, Virtua Racing, Gran Turismo 1. Even today I'll go a few rounds on Gran Turismo 6 or iRacing.

2) Sound - The sound of VW's VR6 was my first aural enlightenment. My brother had a 1994 Volkswagen Corrado SLC with several go-faster goodies. I fondly recall the sound of that engine screaming to 7,000 rpms. That car taught me sound can really make a driving experience. I still snap my neck for mean sounding VR engine.

3) Feel - My first drive in an air-cooled 911. I am still amazed at how planted a 35+ year old car can feel at 80 mph with the windows down. It rivals any modern full-size sedan, no joke. And the rest of the drive is so unique. Even a modern 911 (my father had an 04' for several years) carries that unique DNA to separate it from any of its peers. I completely understand the Porsche fever.

4) Joy - A rusted-thru, fuel-leaking, gearbox-shot, completely distraught fat-chick bug. To this day, it is the most fun I've ever had in a car. Coaxing it to work, not killing myself or my buddy, and attempting to keep up with traffic was an absolute blast. 0-60 in... yes. Way more fun than running any race track (Nurburgring included!).

5) Therapy - I was a bone head and drove a Miata throughout my undergrad. It sure as hell wasn't comfortable on 100F+ days without A/C and walking to class with a completely sweated through shirt but I confidently say that car got me through my education with efficiency and sanity intact. I would drive 2-3 times a week from my research studio to a near mountain, spend 1 hour driving up, top-down staring at the starts at the vista point, then drive back down and head back to work in the studio. All this typically between the hours of midnight and 3 am, between naps, classes, research, family and dates. Just to clear my head and get lost in that zone while driving.

And that's where I'm at today. Waxing philosophically about man and machine, scouring classifieds because I believe the Spider is going to cover those 5 points handsomely.

Your experiences?

[baltobernie]

My defining moment was the purchase of my first >$500 car, a (very) used 1967 BMW 1600-2. Over 90k on the clock, but the greenhouse, seating position, lightness of controls and incredible roominess got me hooked on quality imports. (New 128 and 131 Fiats only confirmed my decision )



We had F1 back then, too. Real Formula 1 racing, not this DRS, two-tire freak show being foisted upon us nowadays. I can still remember the thrill of hearing a phlegmatic Cossie waking up the early morning meadows surrounding Watkins Glen.



Watching, hearing and smelling those cars up close "sealed the deal" for me becoming a gear-head.

[ronarthur]

Two things sealed the deal with me. The first was attending a sprint car race in the late 60's with my grandfather at Port Royal Speedway. The second was in the late 70's driving a friend's 1970 Dodge Challenger RT with a 383 magnum and pistol grip 4 speed.

[steve8462]

for me it was the day i scored a 1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass 442 convertible with the 455 high output engine. it was the old story, i saw it sitting in a driveway next to one of the houses i used to cut grass at. i went over and asked and come to find out it was an old lady whose husband had died a couple of years back. at first she didnt think she could part with it until i told her that my dad owned a repair garage and i wanted to restore it to its original condition and i would promise to bring it by after i was done and take her to lunch in it with the top down. (the car's, not hers)

that led to me acquiring a Cutlass Hurst/olds 442 H/O which i only found out how stupid i was for selling it after watching the Barrett Jackson auction. this car was like new, with the original white and gold paint, every option, it even still had the original tires on it.

that led to a 1958 Impala two door with a factory 409 with a factory aluminum duel quad intake.

there have been many in between since then. i used to work at a garage where the owner bought his wife a 1981 red fiat spider. she didn't like it because it was a stick shift. so he brought to the garage and we drove it to chase parts or lunch. i fell in love with it starting that day

[azruss]

My interest in cars go so far back its hard for me to pick a defining point. I would have to say mid 50's, taking swimming lessons at the local pool just after school let out. One of my fellow shiverers' mom would, on occasion, pick him up in a white Jag XK150 with wire wheels and white sidewalls. Listening to that gorgeous exhaust when she took off down the street was orgasmic.

[70spider]

My love affiar with cars started so long ago its hard to pinpoint when. As with most people it was a passing of the torch from my father. Old photos of my dad when he was in the AIr Force included some amazing autos, a '59 MGA, '62 Austin Healy, and a '64 MGB. When I was about 5 we started playing a game of "ID the Car", we played this everytime we were in the car, it would drive my mother nuts.
When I was 18 I bought my fisrt car, a 1969 Chevy Impala, a good car but huge and my friends gave her the name "Tuna Boat" well it got repo'd. My next car was the car that impressed upon me the thrill of the drive. It was a 1968 Ford Custom 500, and no its not a truck, the PO had replaced the motor with a "Boss 302" but put a 3 speed on the floor, it was originally a column shift, with a 9" posi track rearend. I think the kid was trying to make a hot rod out of it. The car was really rough, bad brakes, clutch, and ignition switch, but for $350 (what I had in my pocket at the time) I got it . Over the next 4 years (125,000 miles) me and that car went to hell and back again. No matter how bad things got she always got me there. When looking back it was the little things that make me smile, like using a bungie cord to hold it in third gear while on the highway.
Over the years I have driven newer cars with little personality and never did one of those give me that feeling of being part of the car and more over, being a part of the journey. While looking for a 1964 MGB like my dad had I ran into the fact they were to much money. On a whim I test drove a 71 Spider, it gave me those old feelings of when I was younger, the car wasn't quit right and I didn't think it would make the journey home. So over the next few weeks I kept loooking for a Spider and found a 1970 in Wichita, it was a good price and with a new set of tires I drove it home (240 miles). What a trip . In short, I love this little car for several reasons but most of all the ethereal feeling you get cruising into the sunset .

[PetrolAppraiser]

Awesome, I love these stories. And Bal, those pictures are priceless - really transports one there.

[70spider]

azruss's opening line

My interest in cars go so far back its hard for me to pick a defining point.

My opening line

My love affiar with cars started so long ago its hard to pinpoint when.

Sorry azruss no intention to plagiarize

[johndemar]

Mine started in high school along time ago. My friends at that time drove a '63 Corvette roadster, '68 (?) AMX, '68 Mustang fastback. I was the poor kid in the bunch and was the tag along in the group. After HS, like a lot of kids then, I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do so I went to work in a rubber and plastic factory making carpet underlay and tennis balls. That allowed me to buy a '69 Z/28 with a 302 4spd. Fastest car I ever drove and did it ever attract the ladies

Came to my senses after a year or so working in toxic air and decided I needed to find a career that would not cause lung cancer. Unfortunately the cost of college even then required me to sell the Z to cover it. Regret it to this day

Wanted a ragtop after graduation and in 76 there wasn't much available and stumbled on to the Fiat.

Still have it.

[spidernut]

Mine was when my dad restored a 1939 Ford Deluxe Coupe. He rebuilt the flathead motor to the same specs that he built them when he was a stock car driver on the dirt track circuit. Gloss black body, white tuck and roll interior, original flathead with three deuces, headers, finned heads, high output generator and the coolest dual radiator hoses coming from the heads to the radiator! It was a work of art and started my real love for cars.

Now that I think of it, there were two other cars that preceded the 39 Ford that really got me into cars....that and "Odd Rods" trading cards.

[PetrolAppraiser]

Wanted a ragtop after graduation and in 76 there wasn't much available and stumbled on to the Fiat.

Still have it.