1986 Ford Mustang
My first car—given to me on my 19th birthday, July 1989—a 1986 Ford Mustang. Nah, it wasn't a hot rod. Just a 4-banger sedan. Although, it had some wicked aluminum wheels, courtesy of my dad's then-boss.
1993 GMC Sonoma
My second vehicle—which I purchased in 1994—a 1993 GMC Sonoma. This was the first vehicle I ever completely paid off and owned for a couple years afterward. This shot was in Tennessee where I had met up with my friend, Andy. The pickup truck was sporting my new MAC-USER license plate which I still own. Andy's plates back then read MACTYPE.
1993 GMC Sonoma
A better angle of the Sonoma that shows more than just its butt!
1996 Saturn SL2
In 1998, after my brother's wedding in Washington state, I went down to San Francisco for a brief touristy visit. I'd rented a Plymouth Breeze and loved it—enough that I was ready to get rid of the gas-guzzling, 6-cylinder, 4.3-liter truck and trade it for a car. Well, in October of that same year, I did it, but could not afford something like the Breeze (or, actually, the Stratus, of which I liked the exterior styling better). Instead, I got this 1996 Saturn SL2. I enjoyed the enormous difference in fuel efficiency and it really was a decent little car, but I emphasize the word "little." I only kept it a year.
1999 Dodge Stratus
In late 1999, I'd had enough of the little Saturn and found what I thought, at the time, was a good deal on a 1999 Dodge Stratus—the car I wanted in the first place. It was purchased brand new by someone in late 1998 who apparently did a year's worth of highway driving (better on a car than city driving) so it was pretty high in mileage, making its purchase price to me rather attractive. Too attractive, as it turned out…
1999 Dodge Stratus
…By the next year, I realized I was kind of paying more for it than I should've been. Plus, there was a weird little clicking sound at higher speeds that was obviously not something the dealer would be able to get rid of, but it still annoyed me. Also, the 2000 model Stratus was out and I really liked the new styling. More on that in a moment.
1999 Dodge Stratus
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1999 Dodge Stratus
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Slick JVC radio, off
While I owned this first Stratus, I put in this JVC radio. I don't have it any more (sold to a co-worker). At the time, I thought it was cool enough to take pictures of it. Here, it's off and not blatantly obvious that it's a radio.
Slick JVC radio, on
The bottom panel flips down with the buttons when it's turned on, and the rest of it lights up.
Slick JVC radio, CD
To insert or remove CDs, the button panel folds up and the upper display slides down to reveal the CD slot.
2001 Dodge Stratus
So, in late-2000 (yep, the gold Stratus was my second car to have only owned one year), I got into my first brand-new car—a 2001 Dodge Stratus. To afford it, I chose to lease it instead of buy it. That probably wouldn't have been so bad except that, before two years was up, I noticed I averaged more miles than I should've been doing with a lease and it was turning into an icky negative equity situation. I only kept this car one more year after that.
2001 Dodge Stratus
By the way, this car's color is probably still my favorite of any car I've owned.
2001 Dodge Stratus
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2001 Dodge Stratus
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2001 Dodge Stratus
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
Thus, in November 2003, I cut my losses with the Stratus lease and picked up this 2004 Pontiac Vibe. I really fell in love with this vehicle. Makes sense, considering my friend Jeff told me it's the first car he's seen me with that "suits" me. You know, some people and certain cars just seem to be a good match.
It had great gas mileage, was able to seat 5 if necessary, and the rear seats folded flat to create extremely versatile cargo space. It was pretty well loaded. Sunroof (er, technically called a moonroof), aluminum wheels, etc.
This picture was taken shortly after I purchased it and before I had the windows tinted.
Sadly, just before New Year 2016, it developed a knock that turned out to have originated from a failing oil pump which later did some damage to the drivetrain and an engine rod. Circumstances came about that I was able to replace the engine fairly inexpensively, and the car ran well again for several months before a similar issue happened once again the weekend of Labor Day 2016. In the end, the car finally was destined to the scrap yard.
2004 Pontiac Vibe
About four years after I purchased the Vibe, I finally managed to take some updated photos that showed the window tinting.
2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
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2004 Pontiac Vibe
As mentioned above, the rear seats fold flat, providing great cargo space.
2004 Pontiac Vibe
Cargo space viewed from opposite angle.
1996 Ford Windstar
At this point in my owned-vehicles album, I begin chronicling vehicles that I still technically owned but weren't necessarily vehicles I used primarily (which basically means it was either my wife's vehicle, or a loaner).
This minivan was purchased used in September 2010 as a second vehicle to allow my newlywed-at-the-time wife to have transportation.
The van developed some issues that made my wife fearful to drive it very much. I briefly used it during the time my Vibe was getting its second engine installed before eventually unloading it permanently.
2002 Honda Accord
After about two months of my wife and I juggling time on the Ford Windstar as our only working vehicle, in February 2016 I acquired this Accord under insanely generous terms that I'm not at liberty to expound upon.
Initially, when it seemed that the Vibe was beyond repair, I was planning to use this as my primary car, and my wife would continue with the Windstar until such time we could replace it as well. However, right about the time we began working out the details to acquire the Accord, I discovered that the Vibe was likely going to be salvageable (only temporarily, as it turned out).
So the Windstar remained my temporary primary vehicle until I got the Vibe back, at which point we got rid of the Windstar since it was having some issues. The Accord became my wife's vehicle immediately upon acquisition. But not for very long.
Basically, the time between late 2016 and early 2017 will forever be known to me as the era of vehicular plague. The Vibe died a second time in September 2016 and I was done spending money to repair it.
September-October 2016, I borrowed an ailing Silverado pickup truck (next photo in this album) from my father-in-law until I purchased a used Town & Country minivan (photo after the Silverado) for my wife, and I started using the Accord as my primary vehicle.
The Accord had mechanical issues from day one and ultimately blew a head gasket in February 2017. So, after only owning it one year, it was sent to the graveyard and, for the second time, I borrowed my father-in-law's Silverado.
2002 Chevrolet Silverado
Technically, this truck was never mine—rather, it was a two-time loaner from my father-in-law. I'm including it in this album because the title was actually in my name for a short period of time.
It had been in storage for more than a year. It never did drive quite right, but it got me to work and back for several weeks in September and October 2016 after the Vibe died for the second time (permanently) until I purchased a Town & Country minivan for my wife, and I took over the Accord.
Then, when the Accord died in February 2017, I had to use this truck again while I sought a permanent vehicle for myself. I ultimately bought a new Versa (later in this album) in April 2017, and my father-in-law finally sold the Silverado to one of his neighbors.
2006 Chrysler Town & Country
During the first period in late 2016 that I drove the borrowed Silverado, my wife and I searched for a second vehicle for long-term. Upon realizing that it would really be advantageous to be able to transport more than 4-5 people on occasion, we found this minivan in really decent condition at a good price in October 2016. Upon acquisition, it became my wife's primary vehicle and I started driving the Honda Accord until it died. The T&C is showing a few signs of its own issues, but I'm praying it's something I can easily remedy soon so my wife can drive this for a good while longer.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
After having lost both the Pontiac Vibe and the Honda Accord to mechanical issues, I finally bit the bullet and, with my wife's blessing, purchased a 2017 Nissan Versa SV in April 2017.
I didn't initially set out to buy something brand new. In the process of seeking a car for me to replace the Accord and the borrowed Silverado, a number of used options as private sales came to my attention, but none quite seemed right. I eventually chose to talk to a childhood friend of mine who is co-owner of an Orlando-area Nissan dealership. Upon looking at a couple used vehicles in my price range, I was nearly ready to buy a brick red 2013 Versa. I slept on the decision and, the next morning, readjusted some budget numbers which resulted in my ability to increase what I could afford monthly. In doing so, the dealer came up with this brand-new 2017 Versa that was much better equipped than the used model. So, this makes my third-ever brand-new car (or only two that I've purchased—one of them was a lease).
Interesting footnote, it *technically* was not sold as a new car. From what I understand, it was previously sold, but never delivered. I'm not sure if that means the buyer didn't pick it up and reneged on the sale, or some other circumstance. Whatever the case, it had literally been "sold" once prior, thus had to be sold to me as a used vehicle, in spite of never truly having a previous owner and only 8 miles showing on the odometer!
2017 Nissan Versa SV
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2017 Nissan Versa SV
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2017 Nissan Versa SV
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2017 Nissan Versa SV
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2017 Nissan Versa SV
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2017 Nissan Versa SV
Ignore that temporary tag. My regular MAC-USER plate will go on there as soon as the registration arrives in the mail.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
Very cool-looking accents in the form of chrome door handles.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
It's a relatively basic model, but includes a driver-side armrest (a requirement for my long-ago shoulder injury), USB and 3.5mm jacks which both carry audio, Bluetooth for phone calls and voice control (but not audio streaming), and two conveniently placed power ports—one under the dash and one between the seats which can be reached by the rear passengers.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
Apologies for the somewhat blurry picture here. Didn't realize it wasn't sharp until after I set up this album.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
The trunk is rather cavernous for such a small vehicle, and the rear seats fold down to allow even longer items to fit.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
The trunk is rather cavernous for such a small vehicle, and the rear seats fold down to allow even longer items to fit.
2017 Nissan Versa SV
It feels like I've attained a certain official-ness by finally being able to ditch the temporary tag and install my custom license plate.
Happiness is a freshly washed car
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Today, on the occasion of my 54th birthday, I rolled over 100,000 miles on my 2017 Nissan!
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