As indicated previously, when I started to put this together, I had no idea how long it would take or the length of the post, because of the amount of content. Therefore, I decided to break into separate posts. This is Part #6, the final post on this topic. If you haven’t seen earlier posts, please click here to find them.
26-1994-BMW-525
Times were good, so I traded-in the 325 for another 525. I got this one on a lease. This was another excellent BMW. When the three-year lease expired, I had to turn it in or buy it. I liked the car, but decided to check out the new models, just in case.
The new ones weren’t any nicer than what I had, so I was thinking that I should just keep this car. Then, as I was talking to the salesman I mentioned always wanting a BMW 850, but that they were just too expensive. As it turned out, somebody had just traded one in. It was not on the lot yet and was being prepped in a nearby shop. We jumped into my car and drove over to see it. When we got there, he asked me if I wanted to go for a test drive. I stood there thinking, should I do this, knowing what the outcome would be. As soon as I started it, a chill went up my spine and my heartbeat increased. How could I not buy the gorgeous car you will see next.
27-1993-BMW-850
This was hands down the best car I have ever owned or even ridden in, except maybe for a friends Ferrari. It was beautifully styled, had a powerful V-12 engine, and made me feel like a king when I drove it. Who cared if it was used. It looked almost identical to the new ones anyway. When driving this car, I no longer complained about my daily hour plus commute.
This car was very fast. I took it up to 150 MPH a few times and it got there very quickly. It was so air tight that when you opened the doors, the windows would move down about ½ inch so that when you closed the door the air pressure wouldn’t hurt your ears. Once the door closed, the window would go back up.
Unfortunately, I crashed this beauty one evening on the way home from a company event. I got lost and tried an unfamiliar route home through the hills of Sunnyvale. The 850 took turns like it was glued to the road, so I was probably going faster than I should have been for the road conditions. How was I to know, however, that the turn I was approaching was slightly moist and had Eucalyptus oil on the road from overhanging trees. I slammed on the breaks when the car didn’t turn left, but to no avail. It continued straight ahead, up an embankment, then fell back right on top of the car.
I wasn’t going that fast so wasn’t hurt, but it sure was hard on the car. As neighbors gathered, I learned that this had happened before to other drivers and they asked the city to put up a warning sign, but they didn’t. The car could be repaired, but it would take over $24k to fix it. I decided it was a sign from above that maybe I shouldn’t keep it, so I sold it to the guy who owned the local BMW body shop in Pleasanton.
About six months later, my wife and I were walking toward the local Best Buy when I saw the son of the body shop owner driving my 850. I could hardly believe what I saw. It looked better than new, with high profile tires and fancy rims just like the ones I had planned to buy for it. I almost cried while watching him drive by.
28-1999-Lexus-GS 300
When we went looking for a replacement car for the Blazer, I told Georgia that since this would be her car, it would be totally her decision. She test drove a Lexus SUV, BMW 525, the mid-size Infinity sedan and also their SUV, plus a Lexus GS 300. She decided on the GS 300. We have had the car ever since. It is a great car and has never given us one bit of trouble. Other than regular maintenance and break pads, we haven’t spent one cent on repairs. The car is getting up there in age and has over 140k miles on it, but Georgia likes it and doesn’t want a new car. So, as longs as it hold up, I guess we will keep it.
29-1995-Lexus-SC 400
So what do you get after owning one of the truly greatest road cars of all times. I wanted something sporty, and nice, but not so fast. I ended up getting this low mileage car from the dealer we bought my wife’s car from. It was a nice car, but I was never really happy with it, because I couldn’t help but compare it to my BMW 850.
30-2000-Nissan-Frontier
When we decided to move to Redding, and get a home in the country, I realized we would need a pickup truck. We sold the SC 400 just before leaving Pleasanton. While the moving van with all our worldly possessions drove North to our new home we each drove one of our two remaining cars. My wife drove her Lexus and I drove my ’55 Olds.
After we settled in, I went looking for a mid-sized truck. I planned to get a Toyota, but they seemed over priced. I was ready to buy and decided to walk next door to the Nissan dealer to see what they had. I lucked out because a loss-leader was advertised that morning in the newspaper, but I hadn’t seen it. The truck was fully loaded, compared to the Toyota, and was a couple of thousand dollars less. This has been a great truck and will probably outlast me. It is four-wheel drive, so easily pulls our boat out of the lake. With over seventy thousand miles on it, the only thing I have ever replaced is the battery.
31-2011-Lexus – ES 350
Well our 1999 Lexus GS 300 passed the 162,000 mile mark and I started to wonder when something would finally break on it. Other than regularly scheduled maintenance, the only thing we ever had to do was replace the front disk brake pads, and that was at 90,000 miles. Anyway, I knew it wouldn’t last until they took our driving privileges away, so gave Georgia a bunch of reasons why we should get what will probably be our last new car.
While she was in Tucson caring for Amber after surgery, I made the rounds of car dealers to narrow the selection down to a few marques and models. The bottom line, however, was that we loved our GS 300 so much, and it was so reliable, staying with Lexus was an easy decision.
So it was a ES 350 vs. a GS 350. The GS has 35 HP more and is rear-wheel drive instead of front-wheel drive. The car size, interior space and trunk space is almost identical, but the GS goes for $10,000 more so the decision was pretty easy. There are no Lexus dealers in Redding, so we bought it while visiting Georgia’s aunt in Newport Beach. South County Lexus, in Mission Viejo offered us the best all around deal, so we went with them.
We drove it back from Newport Beach, with an overnight stop in Monterey, so the car had a little over 800-miles when we got home. You don’t realize how cars change over the years until you drive some distance in a car that is 12-years newer. The steering, ride and power are so much better it is hard to believe. We absolutely love the car!
Fatherly Advice
So, as I said when I started this post, if you can afford it, why not buy what you want. If you work hard, you should spoil yourself once in a while. If you can’t afford a new car don’t get one. It’s kind of like the housing market situation we are now in. We as a nation are facing lots of problems because people bought something they couldn’t afford. Now it is impacting all of us.
