Life after Q.

[NolimitZ32]

Last 11 years (since I was 16)
01 protege 5 < bought new, cosigned by parents, t-boned after 5 months of ownership, totaled, awesome first car, would still buy another one as a DD
98 ek hatch < loved this car, my first RICERIFICATION, this car was responsible for getting me from "standing out side looking in" to "upto my elbows in grease and loving it"
93 300zx (still own it, bought it NA, now TT w/ ~500whp) <dream car, baby, will NEVER get rid of it, NEVER!!!
97 4.3L blazer < only autotragic I have ever owned, BIGGEST POS I've ever owned, completely turned me off American cars, bought for $250 dollars, traded straight up for next car (Audi 90)
92 Audi 90 <one of the most fun cars I've ever owned, had it for just under a year, never had any problems, would definitely own again (this time in the 5cyl quattro version)
91 4Runner v6 4x4 3.0 < bought with 312k miles, sold with 418k miles, MONSTER, did everything I asked, long road trips, offroad, hauling, never asked for a damn thing either
02 WRX wagon < owned 1 month, rolled it into a ditch
01 WRX sedan < owned for 3 years went from completely stock to ~400chp STI swapped beast, will own one again as designated rally/gravel car
11 Tacoma V6 4x4 crewcab < owned for exactly 2 months until on a very foggy night on a unnamed beach I drove it off a sandbar into the Gulf of Mexico (totaled) Loved it, really loved it. (still owned the WRX & Z32 at this time)
95 4Runner 4x4 V6 < still own it, my dad currently drives it while I am her in OZ
95 4Runner 4x4 V6 < bought one here in Oz, I guess it's plain to see that WRXs and 2nd gen 4Runners are a weakness of mine.

[Jesda]

I kind of want a 4Runner. They're solid trucks but the high resale value (which seems -mostly- justified) turns me off.

[NolimitZ32]

With 4runners you just have to hold out, if you really want one you've got to cruise CL for months, I found my first one by chance, picked it up 15 minutes after it was traded to a dealer (I was at the lot looking at cash/auction cars) for $1800, that's with 312k miles on it. The second one took me near 4 months to find, I scooped it up for $2200 2 hours after it was posted. Lots of people know the value of these trucks so good deals don't hang around for long.

[MinisterofDOOM]

UGH, as if I didn't miss my Q enough already.

There was actually a black ~95 in the parking lot outside my apartment a couple weeks ago. Blacked out grille. Looked a lot like my old one, but this one wasn't a T.

My LS is a brilliantly agile "big" car, but I seriously miss the Q's sledgehammer nature.

[Jesda]

It's a bit sad how rare they've become. Unlike Lexus, the LS badge has successors. The Q as we know it (Q50 doesnt count) is long dead. As fewer and fewer examples are seen on the road, the legacy of the car becomes a distant memory.

[elwesso]

Yeah, and even 2nd gen's are becoming more scarce... It's kind of unfortunate how most of the time you either see 1st gens that are super mint, or super trashed. There's very few "decent" ones, actually my car is probably one of the few "decent" ones where the exterior is a little beat up but still presentable when clean, with a clean interior.

[WDRacing]

I have never owned a Q45, but I can remember my first experience in one very clearly. It was 1993 and I had just graduated HS. A close friend of mine was borrowing his fathers brand new 93 Q45 while his Camry was in the shop. I remember thinking that it wasn't very attractive when I saw him pull into my driveway.

We went for a drive, not really having a destination. I miss those days...

Anyway, we ran across another friend who was driving his late 80's Mustang GT, auto. Like all teenagers do, we raced him down the highway and thoroughly thrashed him. I couldn't believe how fast the Q45 was. The part that stuck in my mind was how quiet and comfortable it was at speed. I had been in some fast cars before, but never something like this. They were always old, loud and far more violent. The Q45 was just more refined in every way. I was too young and stupid to realize much else at the time.

[frapjap]

Check out this month's Road and Track for a story by Sam Smith about how much he misses his old M3:
http://www.roadandtrack.com/smithology- ... -1-roa0813



So, what kinds of cars and trucks have you guys experienced in the last 7-8 years?

Sadly, I haven't owned very many other cars since 2005. In that period I've had:
- a 2000 Protégé ES which would be the newest thing I would own for years to come. I sold that sack of s*** (actually, it was a great car) to buy my Trans Am and never looked back.
- The T/A is the car I always wanted to own. I consider selling it from time to time (much like the author because I don't drive it much anymore) but can't really fathom the thought of the sound of the exhaust leaving my driveway and being throttled down the road. It just means something different to me now. It used to be a daily driver that went through rain, snow, muck, on long trips, on short trips, etc and couldn't care too, too much if someone were to hit it. Since restoring a good portion of it, its now a pleasure vehicle that I am wary of driving in traffic and in rush hour; afraid that someone will take it away from me in an accident. I'm slowly getting over this and have been driving it much more often this year. Its a fantastic highway and around town cruiser.
- The Miata was an idea. Never really desired one until I drove one. Then I was hooked. Its a hard car to get rid of, especially since its much faster and handles much better than when I bought it. Its a true pleasure to drive, I honestly don't know what could replace the simple, raw, mechanical feeling that driving this car provides. Every day on the road in it leaves an ear to ear smile in that little tub.
- The 1991 Corolla. f*** if I cared what anyone did to this car. Most folks probably assumed I didn't even have insurance and no one dared cut me off or test me by driving into my lane from a parking lot in this rust bucket. It was awesome to be feared. That being said, it burned oil, coolant, and leaked PS fluid. It was a fantastic car for the year I spent driving it. Slow, cheap to own (like, really cheap), and you could beat the ever living piss out of the car pulling the e-brake, driving over lawns, jumping medians, following my Jeep friends through the woods, and it would just turn on the next day, eager to please again.
- The Legacy is treated much like the Trans Am used to be. Wanna merge into me? GO AHEAD! I HAVE 1,274 AIRBAGS! I'M NOT AFRAID OF YOU! It gets maintained well, but I couldn't care if it was gone tomorrow (though hopefully in an accident that wasn't my fault). I'd probably get a Mazda CX-something or a newer version of the same car.


Nolimit- do you drive that Z car like you do those aforementioned WRX's?

[NolimitZ32]

NO, I only drove the 02 WRX like a dumb s*** because I was . . . well a dumb s***. Since that wreck my road behavior has greatly improved. Having said that, I did put the 01 WRX through some sweet gravel road & beach adventures and the Z has seen some highspeed runs on open highways away from the city and most importantly traffic. No longer do I do retarded things that could get me and most importantly others hurt. The most "irresponsible" thing I've done with the Z since I got it running the last time (August 2012) is kick the tail out when making turns from one street to another, 95% of the time it spends on the road is on spirited cruises to the beach, t-tops off, speedo at ~80mph with the occasional 4th gear pull for the hell of a massive smile.

[skydragoness]

I like my Subie, it's comfy, grippy, torquey and I always wanted to own a 2.5RS; but I miss my S13 when the weather is nice like it is right now. Late night highway and back road driving was therapeutic. The car fit me really well interior/height wise unlike any car I've ever owned. I'll get another some day but holy hell are they pretty much all trashed to crap now.

[nissangirl74]

Wes, you should buy this when you come out to CA for JCCS.

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... ex=2&Log=0

or this....

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... ex=6&Log=0

[Jesda]

Wes, you should buy this when you come out to CA for JCCS.

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... ex=2&Log=0

WHOA. I need this. Hopefully it's still on the market in late September when I go to CA for JCCS. Doubt it will be.

[Rex]

Oh, I miss my Q days as well. I owned 3, my first, Da Beast & an IPQ one. Da Beast was my favorite hands down.

Since replacing my 1991 Honda Civic Hatchback with a 1994 Q45, I've also had ...
1995 Q45t
1978 Yamaha Maxim 650
1995 Q45
2004 Kawasaki Meanstreak 1500
1993 240sx convertible
1992 M30 convertible
1994 Maxima 5 speed
1995 Miata 5 speed
1995 Lexus SC400 (soon to be for sale)
2004 Audi allroad 4.2
2002 VW Jetta Wagon VR6

I'm sure I'm missing a few and I know there were a few that were never titled in my name, so they don't count. Still have the last 3 on the list, though the Lexus will be on the market soon.

[driverdriver]

Nightmare Audi ownership drove me to an Infiniti.

I did briefly consider one earlier this year, but memories of my last one breaking down constantly(it's specially infuriating when its parts that will last on other cars trouble free for many years) and awful dealership service (first 3 years where good, but then after the new car warranty went it, was pretty bad) set me straight.