Your faithful COAL writer, with a well-deserved award
This is my last COAL entry for you, the Curbside Classic reader. You’ve joined me on this journey looking back on 32 years of driving and 40 (!) cars. I sincerely appreciate having all of you following along as I describe my good decisions, my bad decisions, and my really bad decisions.
First, I want to thank Paul for his dedicated work in keeping the memories of regular, everyday cars of the past alive and for attracting a very dedicated audience. He has created a website that, to me, serves as a reference for those interested in learning more about the cars that once populated our nation’s streets so thickly that they blended into the scenery (looking at you, Cutlass Ciera!) and attracting a dedicated group of great contributors. I greatly appreciate Paul giving me the opportunity to take a spot every Saturday to tell you, the CC reader, about the highs and lows of my car-buying career.
Secondly, I want to thank all of you, the dedicated CC readers and commenters, for engaging in some very lively dialogue about all of my car purchases. Although I didn’t get a chance to respond to every thread, I did greatly enjoy all of the comments and discussion that my car buying habits have encouraged. It’s a testament to the dedication of CC readers that even the most boring of cars from my past (i.e., that white Malibu, for instance) spurred on some interesting discussions. I definitely feel at home among the CC crowd who’d probably be more likely to stop on the street to take photos of a Ford Tempo than a Bentley Continental. (Well, maybe not!)
Finally, a special thanks goes to my long-suffering wife who has been with me for a quarter of a century and three dozen cars. She’s gotten stuck with some of the cars I disliked almost immediately after buying them. I might observe, though, that even the worst of the cars I bought was a step up from her first car, a 1979 Mercury Zephyr (in orange!) with the 80 hp straight six and an AM radio. If that isn’t prime CC territory I don’t know what is. I wonder how many CC readers would stop if they saw an orange Zephyr on the street!
I have greatly appreciated the opportunity to share some stories of my cars with all of you. It has been very enjoyable for me to spend some time with all of you every week exploring cars both interesting and mundane, both loved and hated, all of which are a part of my car history. Given my habits at age 3 of making my parents stop on the city street where we lived to look inside of every single car parked along the curb, it’s not surprising that a) I found a website called Curbside Classic and b) I have spent so much of my life immersed in the world of cars. I look forward to hearing about the car experiences of the next crop of COAL writers.
Here’s a listing of all the COAL entries I made for those who want to take a look back over my exploits. Thank you again, and we’ll see you along the curb.
COAL: 2018 Ford Escape SE Sport – Not the Mustang I Wanted
COAL: 1992 Lincoln Mark VII LSC – Completing the Collection (For Now)
COAL: 2017 Chevrolet Cruze Premier – Lost in a Sea of SUVs
COAL: 1989 Mercury Cougar XR7 – The Right Car at the Right Time
COAL: 1987 Ford Mustang GT Convertible – Fox Body Fling
COAL: 2015 Chevrolet Equinox LT – Another from the Rental Car Aisle
COAL: 2016 Lincoln MKZ – A Fusion by Any Other Name
COAL: 1989 Lincoln Town Car Cartier – Now, That’s More Like It
COAL: 1991 Mercury Grand Marquis LS – A Lesson Learned the Hard Way
COAL: 2013 Ford Focus Electric – Good Intentions, But There Are Some Quirks
COAL: 2013 Chevrolet Malibu LT: Generic, Inoffensive Car
COAL: 2012 Chevrolet Volt: An Enjoyable Time, Cut Short
COAL: 1989 Ford Thunderbird LX – The Collection Grows
COAL: 2012 Lexus IS250 AWD – It’s the Last One, I Promise
COAL: 1989 Ford Thunderbird SC Part 2 – This Time for Keeps
COAL: 2011 Kia Optima EX-T – Branching Out
COAL: 2009 Mazda6 – Outside the Comfort Zone (But Not By Much)
COAL: 2006 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited – All-Purpose
COAL: 2010 Lexus HS250h – You Really Bought That?
COAL: 2008 Lexus ES350 – Another One, Part 2
COAL: 2007 Toyota Camry CE – Another One?
COAL: 2003 Acura 3.2 CL Type S – My First “Collector” Car
COAL: 2005 Lexus ES330 – A Toyota By Any Other Name
COAL: 2000 Ford Taurus SE – I Don’t Need It, But…
COAL: 2004 Nissan Maxima SE – Not a Toyota?
COAL: 2004 Toyota Prius – An Engineer’s Car
COAL: 2003 Toyota Matrix XR – Much Better
COAL: 2002 Toyota Camry SE – Not Always The Safe Choice
COAL: 2002 Toyota Sienna XLE – A Van? Really?
COAL: 2000 Toyota Avalon XL – Graying and Widening
COAL: 2000 Toyota Tundra SR5 – Where Did That Come From?
COAL: 1996 Honda Accord EX – Used but Not Abused
COAL: 1997 Toyota Camry LE – The Safe Choice
COAL: 1997 Ford Contour SE – Replacement Ride
COAL: 1996 Ford Taurus GL – A Happy Ending, Eventually
COAL: 1994 Acura Integra RS – A Good Choice
COAL: 1994 Honda Civic EX – Best and Worst of Times
COAL: 1991 Honda Accord LX – A Game Changer
Bravo, This is an epic COAL series. And as a bonus, I see you still have that 240 volt EVSE charger in your garage, so you’re ready for whatever the future holds.
Thank you for these stories.
I really enjoyed reading your COAL series. I appreciate your taking the time to share your life experiences with us. I looked forward to reading about your next car every Saturday morning. Please keep us updated on your future automotive acquisitions! Thanks again!
Enjoyed reading your stories, thanks for sharing with us!
You are a true Curbside Classic man!
Thanks for taking us on your automotive journey.
Bill
I thoroughly enjoyed your entire series of outstanding entries. I’ll reuse “Bravo”.
Your lineup was definately heavy on the af-FORD-able products. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for all your hours of writing! I really, really enjoyed seeing a new article from you.
As others have commented, it was a very enjoyable series. Your writing style is perfect for the weekend when we could all use a well written and relaxing read. I hope we keep hearing from you when a “new” CC joins your fleet!
This has been a very enjoyable series. While I didn’t comment very often, I’ve read and enjoyed every one.
Don’t be a stranger; nobody has tapped into the finds in your part of the U.S. (hint, hint).
I grew up 25 miles South of you in Canton, Ohio 20 years earlier. The salt was brutal, and i remember Western Auto selling slip on rocker panels for 3 year old cars. My Father bought a new convertible every two years and kept them four. Yes, two droptops at a time in Northeastern Ohio.
My Grandfather offered me his low milage 1956 2 door Chevy with a six and powerglide.Before the event, the neighbor borrowed and totalled it.
I have also had 40 plus cars from a 2 cyl Honda to a 12 cyl Jaguar.
Thank you for sharing your automotive odyssey with us. Don’t be a stranger !
For more than half of a year, my Saturday morning routine before cleaning up the house was refreshing the CC site until I would see a new COAL article. First weeks with a front-end bra on the photo 🙂
I appreciate what you have done. Writing up such an amount of cars. Thank you, Michael.
Thanks!
No need to say goodbye! I’m sure you’ll find other things to write about. Looking forward to reading your future material.
Thanks for sharing your COAL series. I enjoyed reading about your many cars new and old. As others have said it was top notch material.
Excellent series; many thanks for all your hard work and shared memories.
I really enjoyed your COAL series.
The Lincoln Mark VII LSC is now going to be costing me money.
My brother told me that a friend of his has a father that is no longer able to drive. They are selling his 1992 Lincoln Mark VII LSC which is in great condition. My brother’s price is $1000 for the car. If it is still there then it will be mine. The only issues it has is a leaky shock system on the rear left. I plan on just converting over to coil overs(like I did with the Deville) and the power antenna does not come up.
These are small problems that will not take long to fix(I need to use my tool collection anyway to keep it dust free)
I wish you many more years of motoring.
I enjoy your stories too so thanks
You can still do more when you want
40 cars in 32 years of driving is quite the fleet of vehicles; shame you didn’t keep your wife’s Mercury, however! How could one possibly go wrong owning an orange Zephyr?!?! → I know I’d have stopped to give said Zephyr a good look-over. (My Dad had two Zephyr’s, btw — tho neither were orange).
For the record I’ve owned 3 cars in 28½ years of being a licensed driver.
Happy future motoring, MDLaughlin. Cheers.
Thank you for the automotive journey!
Wow that a lot of COAL when you add it all up. Thanks for all the series!
The mark of a good COAL series is when it covers modern cars in a way that makes us enjoy reading about them, and yours certainly did. I have enjoyed this long ride through your succession of cars. Don’t be afraid to photograph and write up the occasional car you might find that resonates with you in some way – we would all enjoy reading about it.
I agree completely with the comment about modern cars. The primary reason I stopped my COAL series was because it had progressed to the point where every car I purchased was either new or very lightly used, and they didn’t have the drama that the older cars possessed. It is fortunate for me that my cars of the past 30 years have been (mostly) reliable and trouble free, but that doesn’t really make for very interesting reading. If I’m being honest with myself I am no longer willing to put up with the minor inconveniences that were a standard part of driving 50 years ago. When my 1961 Ford or my 1963 Plymouth failed to start it was usually something readily apparent, and was something I could deal with. Now, if the car won’t start, I call AAA and have it towed to the shop. I have the utmost admiration for those willing to work on their own cars but that ship has long since sailed for me.
Agreed. I got to know a lot of new/newer cars more intately through your experiences.
Your turnover is certainly a lot faster then mine! I keep them 15 year; you keep them 15 months. 🙂
Thanks!