I’ve never been much of a “car guy.” I’m not someone who gives much thought or passion to whatever I’m driving. To me, my car is just my car. It’s my way of getting around. Given where I live, it’s painfully necessary. Public transportation is present, but woefully inadequate.
Simply put, I need to have a car. And I’ve never cared much for style or features. I only care that it runs.
As a result, I’ve only ever owned two cars in my adult life. Both were bought used and with a fair amount of miles on them. My first car was a used Buick. It wasn’t pretty and it had few features, aside from air conditioning. But the previous owner hadn’t driven it much and it was fairly reliable. So, I drove that for years.
My second car was actually my parents’ old car. It was a Honda sedan and had far better features than my Buick, such as seat warmers, a GPS navigation system, and an AC that actually worked on hot days. After putting well over 60,000 miles on it, they sought to sell it and trade up for a new one. When I expressed interest, they gladly accommodated me. They even gave me a nice discount.
I’ve been driving that car ever since. And it has definitely shown its age. It’s so old that it still has a 6-CD changer. It’s also had increasingly expensive repair bills in recent years. It’s at a point where keeping it for much longer is going to be costlier than buying a new car.
And that’s why I’m genuinely excited about my next car. Because for once, I’m not just looking for something that runs. I’m looking to purchase a new car off the lot for the first time in my life.
That may not sound like such a novel concept. But since I’m not being a car guy, it’s going to be a new experience for me. I’ve been saving up money for quite some time now. I may not be able to afford anything luxurious, but I should be able to buy something that’s decent, up-to-date, and has features appropriate for this decade.
In addition, I hope that buying a new car will help change another perspective I’ve developed over the years. In general, I do not like long drives. If any trip means driving for more than two hours at most, I look for alternatives. It’s not that I can’t endure those drives. I just prefer not to.
I don’t know if it’s because of the cars I drive or if it’s just how I’m wired. But if I’m driving for more than a couple hours, my back starts hurting and so does my right shoulder. It becomes so painful and strenuous that I have to pull over at times, just to stretch. I also get very anxious when stuck in traffic, more so than most people.
Perhaps a new car with better seats and better features will change that. Maybe a car that has adaptive cruise control will make longer drives less strenuous and more enjoyable. Maybe I would be more inclined to go on more trips and visit more loved ones. In my area, I don’t live too far from major train stations. But the schedule is limited and the service isn’t always reliable. If a new car can change that, then maybe that’ll change how I approach other things in my life.
That’s my primary hope for this car. A part of me also hopes this is the last car I’ll ever buy. Because by the time I’m ready to let it go, self-driving cars will have advanced enough to make that unnecessary. But those hopes are remote. Unless I move somewhere with vastly better public transportation, I’ll likely need a car for many years to come.
I don’t need it to be fancy, futuristic, or big. I just need it to be reliable and comfortable. That way, I can see driving as less of a strain and more of a simple chore. If that opens up other opportunities along the way, then that’s just a nice bonus.
Jack Fisher's Official Publishing Blog 