It was the year 2004. I was a commuting college girl. My parents decided to sell me their car for $1000 and they were going to buy a new one. So I did. A 1997 Ford Taurus. She drove like a boat! Little me drove around in (what felt like to me) a huge vehicle. It was great! I looked after her as much as I could afford (being in college and all). She was so preeeetty -- to me anyways.
She (yes, I refer to the car and "she")-- was good to me. She began to rust pretty much everywhere in about 2006. I patched up a few holes with special putty and sealed up the holes and painted over them with anti rust paint. When her battery died, I borrowed my parents car to go to Canadian Tire to buy a brand new one. Yes, all by myself! Man oh man those things weigh a friggin ton! My dad helped me install the new battery. When I had to fill her up with break fluid, I researched how to do it in the "Ford Taurus manual", and I DID IT! I took her to get 'Rust Checked' 2 years in a row (where they spray a protective coat over the bottom of the vehicle to prevent rusting). She chipped, I painted her, she'd get sick, I would take her to the mechanic and proceed to practically hand over my paycheque. I bought her 2 new tires.
When I started to date my husband, he started to spoil her! He arranged for her to get a new antenna installed so I could listen to the radio! Hot summer days, we would wash her inside and out. We took her out on date nights and even a camping trip. During the winters, the driver door would freeze up and sometimes I couldn't open it or close it. W-D 40 and a call to Daddy to the rescue!
In late summer 2009, her brakes began leaking and her engine would fail at stop lights. The mechanic told me it would cost almost $2000 to fix her. At that time, I was a starving University student who couldn't afford the necessary repairs. So, she sat parked in our driveway.
Unfortunately, in the winter of 2009 we had to say good-bye to her. I tried and tried to sell her, but no one wanted my poor girl. A few offers fell through so I decided to sell her to a scrap yard.
R.I.P. my dear Ford Taurus.
What was your first car?
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