Everybody Needs a Terrible Car…
If you’re reading this right now, it’s most likely because you want to, not because you have to. That’s great news for me because it means I’m doing something you like, but it’s probably also because you have some kind of interest in what I have to say about cars. As much as I would like to think that my own writing about cars is top notch, I also think that if you read my articles, you also read things like Car and Driver and Motor Trend, and you probably also have a handful of YouTube car channels that you visit. It’s because you like what the automotive industry has to offer. Cars are your hobby. You may even be looking to get a new car because you have to. Whatever the case, I’m sure that all of you have some kind of appreciation for the automobile.
A car gets you from place to place. It makes your life more convenient. For all you enthusiasts, it gives you the fun weekend that you need every once in a while. Most of you, I would venture to say, also probably appreciate a good, clean, running car that gives you a minimum number of issues and looks halfway decent. I do too! Everyone likes to have nice things. Car enthusiasts tend to take that to a whole new level. For those that aren’t, if you know a car enthusiast you’ve probably seen the extent to which someone will go to keep their “baby” clean.
I’m a bit like that. I love to keep my car clean and free of issues. I get regular maintenance done, and I wash my car usually at least once a week if not more. I also clean my interior from top to bottom at least once every two weeks. My wife is different. She leaves paper, cups, and even clothing in her car on a daily basis. I go through her 2010 Sonata about once a week to dispose of any trash or take in any items that she left in the backseat that are better kept in the house. Not only that, but the car itself has had a rough life. It’s seen 5 owners, including myself, has more stains on the seat than a baby’s bib after a bowl of spaghetti, and dings on the outside to rival the number of stains. Three of the door handles have been replaced, the paint is peeling off in some spots, and the steel wheels are doing what steel wheels do after almost 8 years of sitting outside every single day on a car with 135,000 miles. I could also go on about the transmission not wanting to shift sometimes, the rattles that come from the back end of the car, and the discolored plastic interior with little more than a radio that would put my $1 pair of headphones to shame… on a good day. Handling is not to be heard of as it wallows down the road and the brakes are a little slow and mushy… It’s kind of a terrible car.
For as much as I hate all of those things, it’s also pretty awesome. Let me explain. I have always tried to keep every single car that I have owned in mint condition. At the very least, I’ve tried to keep the cars I’ve owned as nice as they can be. I understand that “outside” happens. Because of that, I can only do so much. Quite frankly I’ve been quite successful with most of my cars! For not having a garage to this day, the cars that I’ve owned, have seen the best that a car can without a roof to protect them from the elements. Anyway… back to my point:
I’ve learned that it’s just easier to live with a “not-as-nice-car” and not have to worry about, well… anything, than it is to live a with a really nice car, drive it every day, and constantly worry about what’s going to happen to it. Now, I still incessantly clean my Genesis when I can, and I don’t think I’ll ever grow out of that. But I have to say that there’s something incredibly satisfying about driving my wife’s beat up Sonata to work every once in a while and parking where I want to.
I always joke with Beth that I could run her car into a building, and it would still be good. I really believe that! I don’t really think that would make it much worse than it is now! That’s why I don’t care as much, and that’s why having a car like that is awesome. For as little as the car is worth and for as hard as it’s been driven, everything on it works really well. We haven’t had any major issues with any of the components, and it hasn’t cost us any extra money. Terrible… yes! Practical and affordable… Even more so!
So imagine that… by all accounts, our 2010 Hyundai Sonata is kind of a bad car. It doesn’t drive that great, it looks terrible, and it’s worth hardly more than a new big screen TV. But it works and we just don’t really worry about what’s going to happen to it. Having at least one car that does the job is a great thing, and for most people, that’s really all they want. I’ve certainly learned to appreciate it even though it would never be my first choice.
For you car enthusiasts, and for all you aspiring car enthusiasts, before you go get that Corvette to daily drive or that BMW M3 to take back and forth from work, you might want to consider picking up that $1000 Honda Accord sitting on the side of the road for sale. It might be terrible, but it might also be just what you need… in addition to your Porsche 911 of course.
–SWF
