How many cars have you owned?

[Gary Swartzlander]

I'm not sure I can count the number of cars I've owned, because I simply can't remember them all.

My first was a 1974 Mustang II, that I bought after I graduated from High School.

I had that about 2 years or so. On a trip to Florida with an uncle we were sitting at a Dodge dealership someplace in Florida waiting for his car to get fixed when an auto hauler loaded with the brand new Dodge Charger Daytonas pulled in and unloaded. I fell in love with that car while it was still on the truck and later back in Michigan I bought one. I loved that car and had it when I moved to Florida. It was a great cruising car with it's V-8, 360 Engine. I often wish I still had that car just to look at. It fell victim to marriage, children and rising gas prices.

Our first car after we were married was a new Chevy Citation one of the new bread of X Cars. It was a good car and the gas milage was certainly better than the Charger. Along with getting married It seemed I had determined that I could only work at jobs that required 35 or 40 mile trips one way to work, so gas milage became important.

We have had a number of different automobiles, and currently have a Ford Windstar Minivan, that has over 150,000 miles on it. It has been a very good vehicle and we love it. We expect to be looking for something else before the end of this year.

The picture is a blue version of the Daytona Charger. The Dodge Charger has been around for a long time, this was their attempt to make it a large car. My Charger had a sun roof rather than the T-Top and had a regular exhaust system as opposed to the headers in this picture. My Charger was Burgundy rather than this blue.

[David Ward]

10.

#1 - 1974 Chevrolet Vega - my first car. Perhaps one of the few Vega's with a trailer hitch on it.

#2 - 1978 or 79 Mercury Zephyr (cannot remember the year).

#3 - 1977 Honda Civic. This was Sharon's first car, and it too married into the family.

#4 - 1984 Chevrolet Cavalier Sedan (traded Zephyr on this one)

#5 - 1986 Chevrolet Cavalier Wagon (replaced Civic)

#6 - 1991 Chevrolet Blazer (replaced 84 Cavalier)

#7 - 1993 Dodge Grand Caravan. First major trip was to Indianapolis for General Assembly. Replaced 86 Cavalier Wagon.

#8 - 1994 Chevrolet Blazer (replaced 91 Blazer as I was doing a lot of driving then). Still have.

#9 - 2002 Daewoo Nubira Wagon. Still have ... no comment. Replaced the Caravan when it hit 192,000 miles.

#10 - 2004 Saturn Vue.

[Anne and Dwayne Hood]

when we were dating, Dwayne had a 1948-49 Buick.
We bought a 1953 Chevy.
1958 Ford
1963 Corvair
1968 Chevy station wagon
1969 Plymouth wagon
1970 Sportsman Van
1973 Van
1977 Sportsman Van
Then I start forgetting the kind and years.
Van and little Volks for second car
from heee on, I forget the order. Dwayne quit buy new cars, after a while-and quit trading every 18 months -2 years for new cars.
We have had two toyotas-nice, Datsun wagon, Nissan Van, 1967 Chevy in 1967, Several more along the way.

[Anne and Dwayne Hood]

when we were dating, Dwayne had a 1948-49 Buick.
We bought a 1953 Chevy.
1958 Ford
1963 Corvair
1968 Chevy station wagon
1969 Plymouth wagon
1970 Sportsman Van
1973 Van
1977 Sportsman Van
Then I start forgetting the kind and years.
Van and little Volks for second car
from heee on, I forget the order. Dwayne quit buy new cars, after a while-and quit trading every 18 months -2 years for new cars.
We have had two toyotas-nice, Datsun wagon, Nissan Van, 1967 Chevy in 1967, Several more along the way...traded that for a 1968 chevy--Finally he started buying the Mini Chrysler product Vans, and at present we're driving a 2002 Dodge Van--have had it several years. We put it on a 2.9 interest charge card, that we got in the mail, and paid it off faster. I think that cost an extra $100.We got rid of the second car, a Buick, since I seldom go anywhere unless I am with someone else.
There is no way to count, the cars, that man has bought.

[Kevin Rector]

1- 1986 Mazda B2000 extended cab pickup truck. This was my first car (technically it was my parents until I turned 18 and bought it off them for one dollar) and loved it. I drove it throughout high school, all the way through college and into my first year in the Army. I drove it on Spring Break from Olivet my senior year out to Colorado with two friends. We went snow skiing and on the way down the mountain the clutch went out. We had to coast all the way down the mountain and we pulled into the first parking lot we saw. The tow truck operator had us all ride in the truck on top of the flatbed tow truck.

2. 1994 GMC Sonoma 4x4 extended cab pickup truck. This was a cool truck and I wished many times later that I would have kept it instead of buying car number 3.

3. 1995 Chevy Cavalier. Much lower payment and operating costs than my truck, but way less cool. It also was basically a piece of junk, it got me through then end of my time in the Army and it got me to Nashville where it kept breaking down.

4. 2000 Dodge Durango 4x4. One day I was watching tv and a commercial came on for the Dodge Durango. I fell in love. I got in my piece of junk Cavalier drove to the Dodge dealership and bought the Durango (0% interest). This was the only new car I ever bought. I loved that car but the gas was really expensive. My wife still tells me when we see a royal blue Durango in the old body style that she regrets talking me into selling it (but it was the right thing to do so I don't resent her).

6. 1995 Mazda Protege. This was my wife's first car so it became mine by marriage. We still have it.

5. 1994 Ford Ranger. This was a decision based entirely on economics. I lost my absurdly good paying job so the payments on the Durango were a bit of a stretch. I also got married. I bought this truck for really cheap after I sold the Durango. I sold this truck to my father-in-law when I moved to Wisconsin to pastor.

6. 1994 Chrysler Town & Country minivan. This was my parents van and they were getting a new one, so they gave it to us. It had a lot of miles and some rust but it was a good van and we were happy to have it (we sold it for $1400 after driving it for like 2 years).

7. 2004 Chrysler Town & Country minivan. This is a top of the line van with all the goodies except the built in DVD player. It was my parents van and when they retired they sold it to us at a substantial loss to themselves. It was a kind thing that they did. We'll drive it until it is dead because we'll never be able to afford a van this nice ever again.

[Gina Stevenson]

Neither do I, Joel! I just searched the internet for cars of the same model and year. I presume most of you wouldn't be too familiar with a Fiat or a Peugeot.

Yes, we have European cars here, Hans ... all sorts of them. Actually, my one big bad lemon was a Fiat station wagon back in the 70's. 'Got it b/c someone was on their 2nd one, after their first one had gone "forever." Mine was an electrical nightmare, tho' new. Ended up selling at a loss, after taking it back & back to the dealer (pre-stricter "lemon laws"), & got a used '78 Volare' that was good.

13 ........................

1999 Dodge Mini Van
2004 Dodge Mini Van
2001 Plymouth Neon

OK, Bob, since I don't see a Durango as one of your Chrysler products listed here, now I'm curious [was thinking it was yours & Nan's] re whose Durango was at the old small group awhile back. 'Guess I just notice those ... was thinking I'd like one, until I found they come with 8- not 6-cylinder.

[Bob Evans]

It belongs to Kendells

[Walter Thompson]

49 Ford pick-up (with Dump)
60 Chrysler
58 Cadillac
1961 Cadillac
1969 Olds 442
1972 Olds Cutlass 'S'
1974 Olds Cutlass Supreme

The two Cadillacs are first, then the 1969 Olds 442, then the 1972 Cutlass "S", then the 60 Chrysler Valiant and next to it the 1974 Olds.

I'll try to find pictures of the Ford Pick-up, and then the 65 Mustang fast back. Other vehicles: 74 Dodge extended cab pick up, 76 Chevy Station wagon, 76 Ford Pick-up, 79 Chevy Nova, 88 Ford van, 92 Ford Van, 96 Ford Hi-top van (RV), 2000 Olds Sonoma pickup, 2003 Ford Expedition, and finally 2006 Toyota Matrix XR.
I still have the 72, 76, 92, 96, 03 and the 06. The 72 is going to be fixed up, still runs and nearly all original equipment. The 76, 92 and the 96 are all for sale. Beckie drives the Expedition and Donna and I drive the Toyota.

All of my last five vehicles have over 200,000 miles on them except the 03 and the 06. The 03 has about 150,000 miles on it and the 06 had over 50,000 on it.
The 72 has 92,000 miles on it.

[Walter Thompson]

This is the vehicle I learned to drive on. It was a floor shift. It also had dump controls. The battery was in the floor inside of the cab. I was broadsided and had two passengers. The only serious injury was battery acid on one of the guys but it was minor. We flipped and landed upside down. We had the back built up with plywood to hold the grass clippings. That probably saved us from serious injury.

I bought this when I had just got out of the Navy in 1969. I wrecked it and sold it for $50 to a scrap yard. It had about $500 worth of damage. Which didn't make it worth repairing. This was in 1970. Mine was black and it could beat a corvette off of the line for the first 1/8 of a mile. Loved this car.

I almost forgot about this one. I bought this while I was in the Navy. It is a 1961 Chevy Biscayne. I had to put deck plating in it before I got out. The floorboards had rusted out. I had an accident right after I got out of the Navy. A lady ran a stop sign and totaled the car, thats when I bought the Mustang.

[Hans Deventer]

Yes, we have European cars here, Hans ... all sorts of them.

Well, I've never heard anyone in the US driving a Peugeot. I know about VW's, Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, Saab, Volvo, Jaguar, about the expensive Italian cars. But I never heard much about French cars like the Peugeot, Renault, Citroen.