Your First Car

[ursus arctos]

Here, the Maverick was Ford's initial attempt at countering "sporty imports".

[Hot Pepsi]

Any USian who recalls any of his or her (non-personalised) license plate numbers would be considered quite strange.

I can't even remember the one on the car I have now.

[ursus arctos]

If people active on the old board want to see their start date there, you can locate posts by user name on this search page.

Ah, when "member numbers" were a thing.

[WOM]

I can't even remember the one on the car I have now.

U still Jeepin' it?

[Ray de Galles]

Here, the Maverick was Ford's initial attempt at countering "sporty imports".

Yeah, I've never quite been sure why they decided to recycle the name in Europe for what was their standard SoccerMomMobile. It's even more incongruous than the usual car name.

[Hot Pepsi]

Wait, you mean the whole entire license plate number? I have never heard of that. Not how we do it in California.

I can never remember my license plate number, but that's just because I'm bad with memorizing things like that. I do remember that my first car's plate was 3FKR something...I just remember the letter combo for obvious reasons. My car now (bought in 2016) starts with 7...not sure how often California moves on to new numbers, or what the logic is.

Who gets new plates every few years? I've never heard of that. Not in any state I've lived in.

We do/did have to get a new registration sticker every year and new inspection stickers every two years. PA is getting rid of the registration stickers on the license plates because apparently it's not worth the cost because cops are not out looking for expired stickers. If they pull you over for something else, they can instantly check their computer to see if the registration is current and fine you accordingly. I'm not sure what the fine is for not having a current registration - the cost of keeping it current is like $40 a year - but it can't be more than a few hundred bucks so not a big money-maker for the state and since the inspection is separate, it's not a safety issue.

Having an expired or suspended driver's license is a much bigger deal.

In Delaware, they have some of the old black plates that were assigned in numerical order (the current ones are blue and gold and printed flat, not stamped). They're transferable and I've heard tell that some people with classic cars who really want a classic license plate (and way more money than sense) will pay five and maybe even low six digits for a low-number black plate.

[Hot Pepsi]

U still Jeepin' it?

Yes, 2005 Jeep Liberty Renegade. I want to keep it as long as possible.

[WOM]

A few years ago, Ontario went from the metal and paint plates to some kind of revolutionary film overlay. Within about three years, the film was all peeled off and a lot of people are driving around with utterly illegible plates. The Ministry was charging people $100 to replace the plates, but after a deluge of bitching, they just started swapping 'em out for free.

[Toby Gymshorts]

I think everyone defaulted to 2008 regardless. It was probably when we switched boards. I was 2005 on the old board.

I actually did join in August 2008, IIRC.

[WOM]

I actually did join in August 2008, IIRC.

You don't forget that sort of thing.

[sw2borshch]

That's the old old board though, isn't it?

[ursus arctos]

Hmm.

Seems that New York replaces plates more often than other states. Or perhaps it is related to the fact that most car owners I know lease their cars.

Though when I was a kid, New York replaced plates every year or two. Sometimes the number stayed the same and sometimes it didn't.



I distinctly recall the advent of the longer-term blue and orange* plate, as I was disappointed to have lost the change of colours.

* the reference to deep yellow is right for the mid-50s, but the colour was orange by the late 50s.

[Sporting]

On number plates: one way to make car journeys in Germany more interesting is to tick off how many of these one spots while travelling in the country (or, less often, outside it).

I regret/I'm proud to say that our family is either very sad or very obsessed with this so we have a master list to check them all off. I'm still waiting to see one starting with an O, X or Y:

https://www.europeanplates.com/infor...ity-codes.html

[caja-dglh]

Ursus - it must be leasing based that creates the turnover you see. You still see a fair number on the old Empire State plates around (typically commercial vehicles) which makes sense. But (for UK folk), if you sell the car you are obliged to return the plates to the DMV in the US. It is basically a way the DMV generates money, similar to licenses expiring every 5 years.

[Wouter D]

On number plates: one way to make car journeys in Germany more interesting is to tick off how many of these one spots while travelling in the country (or, less often, outside it).

I regret/I'm proud to say that our family is either very sad or very obsessed with this so we have a master list to check them all off. I'm still waiting to see one starting with an O, X or Y:

https://www.europeanplates.com/infor...ity-codes.html

I used to be completely obsessed with this as a kid. Knew a load of those by heart.

As a regular visitor to Dortmund from the Netherlands, I quite regularly see OB cars driving around. I've also seen Bundeswehr (Y), but never an X.

[treibeis]

On number plates: one way to make car journeys in Germany more interesting is to tick off how many of these one spots while travelling in the country (or, less often, outside it).

I regret/I'm proud to say that our family is either very sad or very obsessed with this so we have a master list to check them all off. I'm still waiting to see one starting with an O, X or Y:

https://www.europeanplates.com/infor...ity-codes.html

You've never seen an O? You've got OH in Schleswig-Holstein, which is a 30-minute ferry ride from Denmark, and you've got OA, which is basically Austria, and all the rest of the country in between, yet you've never seen an O? They must see you coming and then pull over into a service station or something.

[ursus arctos]

Offenbach, Oldenburg (both of them), Osnabrück . . .

I think Sporting was referring to a "pure" O, which is diplomatic (and therefore limited in geographic range)

[treibeis]

Offenbach, Oldenburg (both of them), Osnabrück . . .

I think Sporting was referring to a "pure" O, which is diplomatic (and therefore limited in geographic range)

No, he said, "starting with O".

I've always disliked "OLD" for Oldenburg in Schleswig-Holstein. It should be part of OH. Like every settlement in Schleswig-Holstein, it has an inflated sense of its own importance (see G-Man's squawkings about Lübeck. "Natürlich sind wir eine Weltstadt, Mann. Wir hamm doch KOCHLÖFFEL, Mann!")

[Incandenza]

We do/did have to get a new registration sticker every year and new inspection stickers every two years. PA is getting rid of the registration stickers on the license plates because apparently it's not worth the cost because cops are not out looking for expired stickers. If they pull you over for something else, they can instantly check their computer to see if the registration is current and fine you accordingly. I'm not sure what the fine is for not having a current registration - the cost of keeping it current is like $40 a year - but it can't be more than a few hundred bucks so not a big money-maker for the state and since the inspection is separate, it's not a safety issue.

What's an inspection sticker? Smog check? California just has the registration sticker (well, two registration stickers--the month the car was first registered on the left side, then the current annual sticker on the right). There's a belief (which may be more urban legend for all I know) that people try to steal the registration stickers, so the thing to do is to put your sticker on, then to cross hatch it with an x-acto knife so if someone tries to steal it, it won't come off in one piece and therefore wouldn't be worth stealing.

[ursus arctos]

In the Northeast, we have annual inspections that go beyond emission tests, for stuff like lights and breaks.

The sticker goes on the bottom corner of the windshield on the driver’s side.

[caja-dglh]

Hmm. I think I only have emissions in CT. I remember pissing the Trumper off at the garage, expressing my opinion that it was a waste of time as I rolled up in the Prius. He was insistent that the lawnmower engine in the Prius might be a massive polluter.

[ursus arctos]

Given the number of hedgies and rednecks you have up there, it’s remarkable that you even have that.

[Third rate Leszno]

So, in addition to the 1979 Ford Fiesta 1.1S mentioned in the first thread, my motoring history is...

Mk.1 Astra 1200 (the one with old Kadett engine and round headlights). Very fondly remembered, three years and 71,000 miles, seized the engine but freed it by dropping the clutch whilst on tow at 40mph, although that broke the camshaft and left it with a death rattle. Sold it for £1100 at Carlisle auction mart after adjusting the throttle so that it couldn't rev over 1500, chucked some thicker oil in and broke the manifold with a hammer to drown out any residual death rattle. Dodgy used car dealer in a sheepie bought it so I didn't feel an ounce of guilt.

Lada 2105 (Riva). Went through two engine changes, including one that me and a mate levered out of a scrapper in Cleator Moor with a scaffold pole. Chassis was shorter on one side than the other after a shunt before I bought it.

Fiat 128. Bought for £400 from a garage in Treforest. Lasted a year or two with only a couple of minor scrapes before I sold it on.

Honda Civic (first generation) - bought with a broken subframe from a mate for £50. Scrapped it without getting it roadworthy.

Rally prepped Toyota Celica (RA22) - bought as a project, never got round to doing anything with it - moved house three times while I owned it and ended up scrapping it. NAT311M, would give anything to have kept it and been able to build it into a proper classic rally car when I settled down and had the money to do it in later life.

Fiat 127 - Handed down by my cousin, didn't have it long after the electrics shat themselves in the middle lane of a busy M6 and I had to aim it for the hard shoulder with no power and trucks swerving round me at all angles.

Mk.1 Vauxhall Astra 1300. Same colour as my old 1200.

Rally prepped Mk.1 Vauxhall Astra 1300. Bought as a project, lesson not learnt from the Celica - got some work done on it but ran out of money and ended up scrapping it when my mother wanted her garage back - about 10 years after I'd left home (and the car).

Fiat Punto 1200 - After a long hiatus where I couldn't afford my own car and borrowed Mrs TrLs (for completeness, a Peugeot 205Cti, two Renault 19s and a Vauxhall Cavalier), I finally scraped together the pennies for Percy the Punto. Handling was... unpredictable, some scrotes had the badges and radio off it but I had a great time buzzing around the UK on my own wheels for the first time in years.

Fiat Punto 1200 - Straight swap for Percy after 3 years. This one in black.

Seat Ibiza 'Salsa' - Basically a dirt cheap VW, handled way better than the Puntos and felt more solid too.

Renault Megane 1400 Coupe. Bought from a car supermarket in Burnley for £10k. First brand new car I'd ever owned. Not very practical but great fun.

Jeep Cherokee 2.5d (KJ). Most luxury car I've ever (part) owned, but too thirsty by half.

Vauxhall Vectra 1.9d. Think this cost about £27k when Mrs TrL bought it new with all the add-ons. Worth a tiny fraction of that when I took it on with 70k on the clock and proceeded to stick another 50k on it in under 3 years. Heavy as fuck but was surprisingly good on twisty A roads.

Honda CR-V 2.2Td (2nd gen facelift). Great off-road, shedloads of space and a good drive, but let down by repeated visits to the dealership to get the warped brake discs and knackered pads replaced. Gave up the unequal struggle in the end.

Skoda Fabia Mk.1 VRS. Fastest car I've ever owned. Most fun car I've ever owned. Put 60k on it but it was getting rattly so reluctantly decided to sell it before it began to cost serious money to maintain. Probably the only time I've kissed a car before I walked away after part-exing it.

Citroen DS 3. Looked great, handled like a roller skate, felt tinny as fuck. Kept scraping the floor on stuff - couldn't get on with it so it only lasted 7 months.

Skoda Fabia Mk.2 Monte Carlo 1.6d. Looked mint. Handled better than the VRS but didn't have the grunt. Low profile tyres, diamond cut alloys and Merseyside potholes meant a ridiculous number of punctures though, so after 3 years it went and was replaced by the current motor....

… Skoda Yeti Monte Carlo 2.0TDi. Again, I love the looks, it's a bit nose heavy but much more practical and better for long motorway runs. And, as MrsTrL has observed, I drive like less of a twat in it than when I had the Fabias, so that's got to be a good thing.

[Kevin S]

You've never gone back to the blue oval TrL? Surely a Fiesta ST would suit you down to the ground...

[Third rate Leszno]

No, surprisingly I haven't - I did look at the Fiesta before I bought my second Fabia but it didn't feel as solid. I think my hot hatch days are behind me now, unlike my recently retired mate who's eyeing up his second Focus ST - having already had his mid-life crisis when he bought a Porsche Cayman (his menoporsche, as the women in the office dubbed it).