A Significant time in my life:

A Significant time in my life:
My first car
I was eighteen when I got my license, and my mother bought me my first car. She had a client who had a 1991 Geo Storm that was reasonable in price. She told my mother that all services were up to date, and it was well taken care of. The only down side we could see was that it was a stick shift, and I didn’t know how to drive one yet. I learned very fast how to drive it, and had many struggles on the hills in Ventura. I also learned not everything people say is true, even if it is a client.
I was very excited to have my own car. There would be no more walking everywhere, or waiting for the bus. First thing was first, I went to Circuit City and bought a bundle stereo deal. It came with mids, tweeters, subs, the head unit, and even installation. For a cheap stereo system, it actually bumped pretty nice. I drove the car for about a month, and one day my car began to overheat. Being a new car owner I wasn’t sure why the steam was piling out of the sides of my hood. I waited for it to die down and then opened the hood. At the time I was pretty ticked off, late for work, and stuck on the side of the road. When I opened the hood the first thing I saw was water was leaking from the bottom of the car. I checked the radiator and called my boyfriend. All the water was gone, and I didn’t have AAA. I filled up a gallon of water, and put it in the radiator. I talked to a mechanic and decided to try to drive it to his shop. About every block I was pulling over to fill up the radiator. When I got to the mechanic’s, he checked to see what the problem was. He told me the water pump blew and told me the price to fix it. I later called my mother and learned that the reason her client was getting rid of the car was because she was moving out of the country. While the mechanic was fixing the pump problem, he did an overall inspection of the car. When I went back to pick up my car I found out that the water pump was not the only work needed on the car. The spark plug wires were corroded, and needed to be replaced. The entire suspension system needed to be replaced, and braking system needed replacing. I basically found out in one swift shot that my mother’s client had ripped her off. The mechanic let me know that next time I want to buy a car to bring it to his shop first and he would gladly look it over. I had the most important things fixed and continued to drive the car.
The car was not in the best of shape but it ran. With my exhaust leaking and stereo bumping I drove it for the next month. Then one day on my way home from work, I exited the freeway in Goleta. With a loud explosion my rpm’s went up and the car didn’t accelerate. I pulled off the freeway, turned it off. I turned it back on and tried to go in first gear. The car wouldn’t move, but was revving up. I changed it to second gear, and let the clutch out and it still wouldn’t move. The engine just kept revving up, but wouldn’t move. This was the time before everyone had cell phones, so I walked to the nearest business. Ironically the nearest business was a used car dealership. I called my boyfriend, and he called a tow truck. The car was towed to my boyfriend’s parent’s house. While I was waiting for the tow truck I looked at the used cars on the lot. I ended up test driving a 1999 Honda Accord, and fell in love with it. The Honda Accord was a stick shift a well, but it shifted so much easier then my Geo Storm. I could tell the 8 year difference as I drove the car more and more. I wanted it, and would have it. The tow truck appeared, and there was my boyfriend. We went home, and I kicked my stupid car. I vowed not to put any more money into that stupid car. I named that car “stupid car”.
The next day I returned to that used car dealership. My Honda sat there, waiting for me to return. I test drove it one more time, and went inside to sign the papers. My boyfriend put the down payment on his Discover card, and I drove out of there with my new car. My father couldn’t believe that I had already blew up my first car, and bought a new one. New to me, but it was used to the world. The car drove like a dream. The hoses were all new, the belts were tight, and the car growled when you hit the gas pedal. Shortly after I learned the closer you are to red lining the faster it goes. Again, first thing was first I needed a stereo system. I took my car to Audio Experts, and had a real stereo put in. I had the 6 disk CD player, Mb quart mids and tweeters, and two 12inch JL W6 subs in my trunk. I got my cold air intake and the growl from my acceleration got louder. My nephew used to say “make it sound like a motorcycle”.
After the whole situation blew over I ended up selling my Geo Storm for 100.00 to a friend who knew all the problems I had with it. I walked away broke, with a car payment, and a really cool new car. The experience I have had with this situation has taught me some well lived lesions in life. Never trust when someone’s trying to sell you something. Always have a mechanic look over your car, especially when you’re buying it from a private seller. AAA rocks and you should always have it! I can take care of myself if a situation occurs and I’m stuck. Financing a car isn’t the best idea, and I didn’t know about the price of insurance. Since full coverage is required for a financed car, it’s a lot more expensive than I thought. I kept my Honda for many years to come, till I got divorced. My ex-husband ended up getting it in the settlement, and sold it in Santa Barbara. I still to this day look at every grey Honda Accord to see if it is my old one. It was the most durable car I have ever had, and I would buy another one in a hot minute if I had the money.