Ask Lemmy

I had a 1993 Toyota Corolla 1.3 Hatchback 12 years ago. Very light and surprisingly fast. Also fuel consumption was pretty good. Everybody called it an ugly shitbox, but I liked and still like the design. Sadly it was so rusty I had to give it up eventually. Would have it completely restored and tuned if I had the money back then.

I've had about 20 cars in the last 16 years, from an '88 Plymouth Reliant to an '82 Datsun King Cab pickup to an '08 Subaru Outback. But my favorite is my '20 4runner because I don't have to think about bringing my tools and extra fluids/belts along on a road trip.

That said, man I had some great memories driving around in my '91 Honda Prelude with a 5 speed and a loud stereo. Always felt cool driving that car, even though the speedometer didn't work, the transmission grinded on every shift due to worn out synchros (if you didn't double-clutch), and the engine burned a quart of oil every 400 miles!

My Lexus IS F. Sold it about 6 months ago because it wasn't practical enough but by far the best car I've ever owned.

My BMW E36 convertible 1995. I really love driving it. I can't believe it is almost 30yrs old.

I have only owned one car, my current 2021 Seat Leon hatchback PHEV.

Out of all the cars I have driven (four, a 2014 VW Golf, a 2020 VW Golf, a 2016 Volvo V90 PHEV and my Seat) the Seat is my favourite.

The Golf's I've driven were either loaned from my driving school or used at my first driving test and my dad has the Volvo, but I have the Seat.

I really like the styling of my Seat, it looks cool, and a bit agressive without being overbaering.

The performance is good enough for me, if a bit lacking in power above 100kmh, it is very quick between 10 and 50, launches are fun with the electrical system engaged.

As a first car, it is fantastic, though I am 35 and bought it this year.

Mitsubishi Lancer around early 2000s

My Saab 05 92x it is a rust bucket. But she is my rust bucket and I'm going to keep her going as long as I can

My first car, a 1973 Dodge Charger. This is a representative picture, not my actual car.

I bought it for $750 with no engine or transmission (but it came with a bunch of tools). It was a stock automatic but I converted it to a 4-speed manual in the process of building it back up.

I probably spent twice as much time working on it than I did driving it before I totalled it. That was very sad.

The one I won't need to buy once my local council has decided to create a really walkable and cyclable city

I miss my geo metro. Bought it for $350, it was super easy to work on, and the 3 cylinder engine was so pathetic it was amusing. The person I bought it from had painted flames up the front and back. You couldn't help laughing at yourself when you drove it.

The first car I owned is by far my favorite. It was a ‘91 Miata (NA). It was very easy to learn how to work on it and fix things. It really made me love driving. I want to buy another Miata at some point.

1996 Chevrolet Impala SS.

Due to some poor decisions, I had my license suspended for 6 months and a friend of mine ended up driving my 2000 Expedition since I couldn't, and she started treating it like it was hers. I couldn't stand this, so when I was able to drive again and she still hadn't gotten her own vehicle, I wanted to get something she wouldn't want to drive since she liked my Expy so much. This led me to trading the Expy straight up for a 96 Impala with a broken odometer. She HATED that car but I fuckin loved it. And it was MINE. I installed the 9C1 (Cop car) suspension including front and rear springs, added Edelbrock headers and installed an Infinity sound system complete with dual subs in the trunk. Even added rear door speakers since there were none and it was the cleanest install I'd ever done. I loved that car, but we were moving to Colorado, we needed a truck, and the transmission valve body needed rebuilt which I didn't have time to do so I traded it. I'm still very sad about it but it will always be my favorite vehicle that I'd owned.

My 2002 Subaru Outback.

Thing's a beast of the bog.

2006 Acura RSX type S, amazing car.

2004 Ford Focus station wagon.
It was the most sold car model of that year, worldwide.
Small and economical enough for every day use, large enough to put a mattress in the back and sleep in it, or transport lots of stuff.
Cheap to buy, run, maintain and fix.
Decently reliable.
Not yet filled to the brim with electronic gizmos and computer chips.
Otherwise not remarkable in any way.
In my opinion, it was the Model T of that era.

Saab 9-3 Viggen because it's also a dorito fighter plane

I've had my 2004 Honda Element for 20 years now. Favorite car ever! I'll drive it until it disintegrates.

Favorite so far was probably a 2003 Mazdaspeed Protégé. They were kinda anemic for a 2.0t car out of the box, but I had built the engine a bit and goosed it to around 225whp. It wasn't the fastest thing around, but it had a raw mechanical feel that was a hoot to drive and toss around corners, especially after adding some stickier rubber.

I've got a NB Miata in the garage right now, but man it's just missing about 75whp to match the smiles per hour factor.

1990 Ford Thunderbird Super Coupe.

2002 SIAPA Saba GTX

An actual death wagon shitbox that I absolutely adored and will always hate selling it off

I straight up hate that I have to own a car, I hate driving, and my favorite car is a car I don't have to drive or pay for.

2008 Mitsubishi Eclipse! Pearlescent Sunset, SE spoiler, pedals, and SE stripe. Decent sound system, handled great in the snow, and was fast enough to get me in trouble! I had it for 11 years, solid car.

This one. 2014 Honda Accord with manual transmission. I love this car, and want it to last forever.

Second favorite was a Chevy Geo Prism, also manual (I kinda hate automatic transmission) that got the best gas mileage of any car I have owned before or since. Overhead cam, perfect engine design. Body fell apart, but that engine would not stop and was so efficient.