I just ran across this post that I put on the Brickboard Forum ten years ago. It occurred to me that it the Car Talk gang might enjoy it. BTW - for those unfamiliar, a 245 is a Volvo 200 series wagon.
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Today at 4 AM we got up, loaded the wagon with suitcases, and took her to the airport to fly away to her first job as a college graduate.
Eighteen years ago, the white 245 still had the new car smell when it took her to her first day of preschool.
Then there were all the field trips with excited classmates in the jump seat, headed for the museum or the state park. On weekends, it was loaded with gear and changes of clothing for family trips to the mountains or to the beach. Several times we loaded it to the roof and added a roof rack for trips to visit family in the midwest.
It picked up the wooden swingset/fort at Costco, and when the girls outgrew the swingset and decided to dismantle it and give it to a young family, it hauled the swingset to its new home.
It took her to grade school every day, and in high school, she took the keys and drove herself to school, as well as loads of cheerleaders and swimmers and choir singers to extracurricular events.
This morning, on the way to the airport, we mused about all the other early morning trips the 245 had made this trip to the airport, and how it waited in the economy parking for us to return from our European adventures or our latin american mission trips, and how it took our tired bodies safely back home after each trip.
College was about 250 miles, and she called when the clutch mysteriously failed - when her room mate was driving the car… A Volvo 240 5-speed transmission is REALLY heavy.
Good story. And well phrased. I have a friend who got into bit of a depressed mental-state when she had to take her old car to the junkyard at the end of its service life. She said she remembered all the enjoyable times in her life w/that car, and getting rid of it seemed like purposely putting an end to all those remembrances.
Yeah well at least yours doesn’t live 800 miles away. Really though I don’t think your family was sufficiently materialistic. When I retired our Cutlass to 2nd car duty, my son used to hide so no one would see him when he was being driven home from school. I think it was only seven years old and ran like a top.
lol … Kids are funny what they think about. I recall from my young-tyke days I’d get a ride in the neighbor’s car to school or church, and their kids would always make sure to point out the benefits of their car’s armrests
I have a similar story about my van. Bright yellow. Visible from atop a mountain. Used it to tow to many racetracks, trip to Lowes for fertilizer, delivered kids to dorms, family vacations.
But 6 months ago it wouldn’t even power up. The usual tricks didn’t work, so it was something in the wiring - and I hate wiring! So I called the junkyard and it was towed away. I can still see it from the road as it is 3 feet taller than anything around it.
