Oh, I'm still waiting for the day that I find something that comes close or surpasses my 1990 Probe as my benchmark to compare for my next car ...
I'm hoping that the RX-8 (Ive been planning on getting it, since I saw the Mazda RX-Evolve concept car back in 1999) will do it for me and I can move on ...
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Anyway, what I truly miss is the tilt dash (the truly neat things about those early Ford Probes was that they used the RX-7 switchgear like the moving dash and the turn signal lever seemingly strangely mounted to the dash that was in fact in exactly the right place when you went to use it - it was the closest I ever got to driving a Gen II RX-7 --- without actually doing so...) with intermittent wiper/washer and headlight controls + real gages - not warning lights (looking at the new G35 coupe's dash, comes close- but just isn't the same) and that huge trunk hatch space (the largest I've had to date) and the pop-up headlights and the wonderful driver/window visibility (it had no blind-spots) ... and the fact that it was a fastback/hatchback and the rear light design ... and the way it felt behind the wheel as I drove and ...
Would you believe ... I know it was no 911 or RX-7 or even RX-8, but being "Mazda built" it turned out to be pretty reliable Detroit car. Remember, I'm originally from Detroit and had my share or Detroit built cars, that at the most lasted me 3- 5 years and it wasn't until I bought my 1980 Toyota Corolla sport coupe fastback/hatchback that lasted me 10 years (that might wave been more reliable in it's first 9 years, but it's last year it fell apart.
My 1990 Probe lasted me very close to 13 years with over 228,000 miles on it (until the accident that totaled it) and the engine was still going strong (It did get minor oil leaks at least once a year in it's last 3 years of life, that I'd always repair). Still ... I was hoping it would last at least me another year ...
This was a car that when I was dating my wife before we got married and after, that when we'd take road trips - I'd take more pictures of the car then her!
But I truly miss the little attention to details that the car had! Like the automated shoulder belt retractor, again that great dashboard and all the true engine performance gages ...
It was a great car to drive (a little heavy) but still it felt fun! Every time I meet someone who use to own a Probe in theyre past -feels the same way as I do - it was a special car to us!
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Well, Ive been driving for over 30 years. So far that adds up to eight cars. All are fondly remembered. But only 2 have (in their own way) been fulfilling a fantasy my 1990 Ford Probe and 1976 AMC Pacer. For me its really about the feeling and view from the driver seat (ok, and yes, when I was younger, from the back seat always needed that back seat).
As a little kid, growing up in Detroit, Ive always loved cars Theyre always in my dreams, from playing with Matchbox and Hotwheels and whishing I could own a Ford GT-40, 1968 Shelby Cobra Mustang or James Bonds wonderfully loaded Aston Martin DB5 and later the Batmobile from the 1966 BATMAN TV show!
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My first car was my Grandfathers 1957 Buick Special (it was 2 years younger than I was). I had it for about 6 months until it blew a rod But Ill skip all of the other used cars that came after and were simply used as transportation and focus on my affordable obsessions.
The first new car that I bought was the AMC Pacer when it came out in 1975. I had to have a red one! Im probably one of the few that really loved driving that car - It sort of reminded me of the shuttle craft from the movie 2001 (and I especially use to fantasize at night when driving over suspended freeway clover-leaf junctions that I was flying in outer-space! I also drove it cross-country (from Detroit to New York City, then to L.A., CA), it certainly had great visibility as a touring vehicle. I also loved the hatch/storage space it had. With the back seats folded down, I considered it a 2-seated hatchback coupe. I use to play in a band and haul my old Fender Bandmaster 200 watt amp and Wurlitzer electric piano around. All in all, good times within that car. I had a lot of fun driving it for four years.
When the Pacer was totaled (by a major pot-hole at a rail road track [which is a story in its self] at 3 am) I bought my uncles used 1973 Grand Prix with a 400 four-barrel V8. To date, this was the fastest car I have ever owned or drove.
Next, I wanted to buy a new red 1980 Celica, but could only afford a used 4-month-old 1980 red Corolla Sport coupe fastback/hatchback --- First car I kept for 10 years. It was a great little fun car that was sporty and had a lot of space to haul large stuff!
Than I bought (after researching and test-driving for 1 1/2 years) a new black 1990 Ford Probe (yeah, Mazda built in Detroit) that fulfilled a Batmobile fantasy every time I popped up the headlights at night.
Well, thats about it. Back in 2000, we got a new Passat for my wife to drive. We have 2 young kids and certainly can use a back seat to hold child car seat so having 4 doors are also nice.
Unfortunately, back in January 2003, my Probe was #4 in a 6 car accident and mine was the only car that had to be towed away... and the RX-8 wouldnt be out till later this year
So now I drive a black 2003 Protege5 I went for it over an Acura RSX or Toyota Celica because it has four doors plus hatch (helpful for a family of four) and its economical price tag (which I hope will help me save my money toward an RX-8), plus Consumers Reports and Edmunds.com both rated as their top picks and after driving the RSX, Celica and MP5 I agree with them that its an exciting little hauler of a sport wagon thats very fun to drive with its first-rate handling and braking.
... Than with that all said and done, I still plan on trading up to the Mazda RX-8 in 3-5 years (hopefully)!
