You Always Remember Your First Car
April 6, 2009 by Dave Andriesen
Whenever I’m in one of those conversations where people get to reminiscing about their first car, I sometimes will say my first car was a Mustang. Thing is, that’s not really true. I wanted a Mustang, just like any teenage boy of my generation, but what my Burger King salary could actually afford was a 1979 Mercury Capri, the bare bones “twin” of the Mustang.
The Capri had an eight-track player in it, and I managed to acquire an adaptor that would allow me to play cassettes — the height of technology at the time. “Rust” could be used to describe the color of the car as well as the makeup of much of the exterior by the time I got it. Mechanically, it had seen far better days.
Still, for the year or so I managed to keep it running, I loved that car in the way you can only love your first. I washed it more often than was necessary or practical and cruised through the parking lot of my high school certain that everyone was impressed. They weren’t.
I think every teenager should start with a clunker. It’s a rite of passage, and it gives you great stories about the door you had to hold shut with bungee cords or the time your muffler fell off during your homecoming date. I had a friend whose first car wouldn’t go in reverse, and when we went places we were always hunting for places to park that wouldn’t require backing out later — otherwise as the passenger I was stuck having to push it.
I think I’ve owned nine cars since the Capri, cars of all shapes and sizes. There was the Honda Accord I drove until it had almost a quarter of a million miles, and the Jeep Wrangler I rolled in a snowstorm at Snoqualmie Pass while trying to get to a football game. There was the Datsun 510 hatchback that kept going despite all my abuse, and the Nissan Pathfinder everyone said stunk of wet dog — probably because it had a wet dog in the back seat most of the time.
For 17 years, up until the closure of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in March, I was a sportswriter. I covered baseball for the P-I, which meant a lot of time on the road and a often driving a different rental car every three days. More than a few times, I arrived in a city late at night, drove to the hotel, then the next morning walked out of the hotel and couldn’t remember which car was mine.
I got to drive a lot of different cars, and there were often surprises. I’d get into a car that had an impressive reputation and find that I didn’t like it at all. Or discover a car that was a joy to drive even though it was a make or model I would previously never have even considered buying. Sometimes I’d get a model I’d never even heard of before.
Those experiences have given me a good idea what I like and don’t like in a car, and the little things that make a car the right fit for me. In the end, that’s what matters — having a car that just feels right.
Speaking of which, does anyone know where I can find a 1979 Mercury Capri?
Dave Andriesen is a former Seattle P-I sports reporter. His stories can been seen on SeattleAuto.net as a contributing writer.
I missed out on the clunker for my first car, bought it new before I knew about the importance of budgeting. About a year later I bought a 1983 Chrysler New Yorker with red velor interior that talked to me for $300. Grandma wasn’t allowed to drive anymore and the shocks were shot. I loved that car. Car: “A door is ajar” JAK: “No it’s not! It’s a f***ing door”.
I shared my first car with my twin brother — a Nissan Sentra Station Wagon. (The car was a station wagon, not my brother.) The car was entirely boring, except for one feature. You could make it back-fire anytime you wanted. All you would have to do is give it a lot of gas when you had the clutch depressed. Great for surprising people as you drove by.
I definitely fell into the category of the beater car as well. As a senior year present, my Dad gave me his 18 year old Accord hatchback with close to 280k miles on it. Engine would overheat, my tires looked more like slicks and the clutch would shift into first gear about half the time I wanted to. The “fun” features was that the call would idle and die below 40 degrees and stall while going downhill. Makes for endless stories and memories, but damn was that a deathtrap on wheels.
Love the Mercury Capri…when I sold it that is! But true, many memories. especially of it breaking down when on a date or something. That car had the best timing.
I have a 1983 Mecury Capri (I am the second owner it needs a transmission , and a tune up, but its for sale and it looks exactly like the one in the picture same color and all.
3.8 liter , v-6, automatic hatchback.
email me if you want to inquire.
steven