First cars are like first loves. Many are good. A few are bad. Most just happen, and their meaning fades over time. Some connect with your soul and never leave. Often, they’re how we measure our subsequent experiences. Let’s do a little deep exploration into our own psyches and decide if we’d buy our first cars back.
I wish my first car was the Studebaker Avanti I’m posing next to above, but I can’t currently locate a photo of the creamy beige diesel 1978 Mercedes 300D sedan I actually owned.
The MB was owned by a woman who would swim with my German grandmother at the local pool. There was a small amount of rust under the car but, aesthetically, it was in pretty decent shape and had that delightful orange MB Tex interior. It looked a little something like this one from Mercedes Motoring:
I loved automobiles at 16 so it wasn’t lost on me that this was actually quite the cool first car. It was slow, of course, but I question the logic of giving a 16-year-old a fast car anyway. I delighted in cruising around in it through my boring suburban town and I wish I’d learned to work on it before we ended up selling it to a Lufthansa mechanic who had three W123s.
Would I have it back? Of course! Not only are these cars actually worth money, it’s only aged better in the years since I graduated from high school. What about you? Would you have your first car back? Why? Why not?
[Editor’s Note: I just want to say my first car was a 1968 VW Beetle the color of Wrigley’s gum, with those JC Whitney Navajo-pattern seat covers. I bought it with my own money saved from my job selling Apple IIs at the Byte Shop when I was 15, before I could drive. No one in my family could drive stick, so I got the guy my parents were accused of trying to murder later to drive to our house. That’s true, by the way. I learned how to drive stick on my way to work, and it was harrowing. A few months later some dummy didn’t yield for a turn at a light and crashed into me, and I pulled the engine and used it in the ’71 Super Beetle I got next. I’d buy it back, no question! – JT]
A few ground rules to this question:
- We’ll assume the car is basically in running shape and in a condition that is indicative of how you owned it (i.e., if it was wrecked you can still buy the non-wrecked version of your car).
- If you still own your first car or have purchased it back please tell us why.
- “first” means the first car that was your car and not the family car.
Fire away.
Yes! A 1985 Toyota Tercel 4wd Wagon, SR5. It was so quirky and fun. Definitely would love another if I had the space and the time to work on keeping it alive.
First car was a Tesla Model 3 (didn’t get around to buying a car until 31) that I sold last year. Considering the resale value’s gone down like ten grand since then…. maybe….
If I wouldn’t have just had a kid and if I would have had a garage at the time I would have bought the exact twin of the 1976 242 that came up on BaT a few years back. Actually it wasn’t an exact twin because it was in much better shape than mine ever was.
I would not buy the first car I was given by my parents (1994 Grand Prix). It was a fine car for what it was, but was on its last legs by the time my brothers were done with it.
I would buy back the first car I bought with my own money (1998 Grand Prix GTP) and/or the first new car I bought with my own money (2008 G8 GT). In fact, I once saw the latter (years after I had sold it) at someone’s house while picking up something for my wife off FB Marketplace. It looked as if it had been neglected, which made me angry, and I wanted to buy it back on the spot but didn’t say anything, which I now regret.
No, no, no effin’ way. Dad was tired of me driving his Cordoba around while he worked downtown second-shift. So we went shopping at a local lot, and there was a lovely 1968 Dart convertible with a 318. Dad said, “no, you have to earn a V8”, and I ended up with a 1976 Mercury Bobcat.
So, yeah, NO.
Absolutely. It was a 1997 Ranger with no options, and that level of simplicity just doesn’t exist anymore. No power steering pump to fail, no A/C to recharge, no power windows or door locks to break, and you just wiped down the vinyl bench and floor to clean it. It was an honest little pickup, nothing more.
I still have mine. My parents loaned me money as long as I got a newer, reliable car. They pushed for a jetta or ranger. My stepdad found a 01 Camaro SS- looking back, wish i could have! But i ended up with a 02 mustanf V6. I drove it through high school and college. Then it became a weekend car, and its in the garage now. Its far from how I got it- the auto was swapped for a manual, I put a supercharger on it, converted it to run on E85, added a mach 1 shaker hood and other parts. But I am known for that car more than anything else.
But i still have it- i grew up hearing how “I wish i had my first car” from my parents, my uncles, friends dads. So I did.
Mint green Datsun 521 pickup in good shape, ascended to Valhalla when someone rear-ended me. OF COURSE I want it back, what kind of question is that? 🙂
Looked like this, though mine didn’t have the ladder rack.
Luckily still have mine, but I still keep an eye out for a twin of my dad’s car that I learned to drive on – a 1990 Integra 5-speed – what a great car that was!
I still have my first car- 1971 Triumph spitfire BRG (not the one in my profile picture).
However, a few years ago I had signed a contract to get it fully restored IIRC for about 18k, which would have been effectively buying the car back. Unfortunately, the fellow I trusted is no longer healthy enough to do the work and other shops gave me the runaround for years until I gave up and am going to restore it myself in the next few years.
First car I owned? 100% and twice on the weekends. It’s nothing special – 1996 RAV4 – but such a charismatic car with a lot of great memories. Mine was a 5 speed manual with the optional (and Im sure EXTREMELY rare) factory Torsen LSD rear diff. It was the right color of metallic green and it was a blast to drive. I would buy one in a heartbeat if if came up.
First car was a navy blue 1970 VW Type III Squareback (hand-me-down from Dad, who bought a 1984 Corolla). I think Stef and Torch would pillory me if I said no (plus, it was a good little car until someone in *another* Corolla doing 50MPH rear-ended me while I was stopped to turn left and totaled the shit out of it.
It would be good for hauling stuff (if not the greenest solution).
82 Toyota celica st. Base model with 5 speed, 22r carb engine. White with blue vinyl half roof. The only upgrade it had was the auto reverse cassette with equalizer usually only found in top end. Loved it then, but nah. I’d buy the bigger brother 2nd Gen supra I lusted after for a redwood cruiser and some creature comforts. Still want the 5 spd though
Buy? Why not use the key I used to carry around in my wallet for years?
My first car was a brand-new 1998 Golf. I was spoiled. I wanted a Golf, but we weren’t finding any on the used lots so I was resolved to get something else, but my dad scored a deal and I ended up with a shiny new VW. I wish they’d let me take it to college, ended up selling it while I was away because my parents were moving countries.
1976 Cobra II. Black with gold skunk stripes. It tried to kill me multiple times. In 2020 I decided to find another one. It hated me just as much, but this time, instead of trading it for a K car, I sold it through Mecum for, well, a lot more!
That’s a solid YES. I actually almost did it last year. My first car was a 1984 Subaru GL 4×4. A very similar one popped up on CL and I was really closing to going for it, but wasn’t quite ready to change cars yet. Also didn’t have room for a fourth car so it wasn’t going to be extra. They are getting harder and harder to find as so many GL’s either rusted away or got cannibalized to keep BRATs on the road that I may not get another chance.
Also, I did have to remind myself that while I miss my GL, I really didn’t love it when I had it. Partly because I was a high school brat, partly because it was slow and had some issues. Still, it looked way cooler than it had any right to and the 4 wheel drive was useful.
The first car was the same car essentially – a red 1994 Subaru Loyale wagon with 4WD and a stick. It was wrecked, but I would consider buying another one in preserved condition if one turned up. They are almost all gone from my area now due to rust.
I’d be more interested than just considering if it hadn’t been wrecked and was in good condition. I’m still all in old stick-shift Subaru wagons, just in the second and third gen Legacy line. I’ve also never sold a car, so I would like to think I’d still be rolling around in the Loyale, scraping for parts and having rust repaired.
Nope. I’ve been very fortunate, and I’m still young and only recently sold my first car, an ’18 Golf Wagon 4motion with a 6 speed. It was excellent, gave me 4.5 years and 56k miles without a single problem. I bought a cheap Miata, and it ruined the Golf for me enough that I decided I wanted a CX-30 Turbo for a daily. Less than a day before trading in my golf for the new Mazda, it threw a low coolant warning light at me (dang EA888 gen3 water pumps). Topped up the reservoir, cleared the code, and haven’t looked back, and likely will not for a long while. It was a great car, absolutely, but long term would have been far too much of a PITA to justify over a Mazda I intend to dump 6-figure mileage onto without worry.
1976 Mazda Cosmo. 5-speed rotary that blew up at 45,000 miles with a 50,000 mile warranty. Brand new Mazda engine free. It wasn’t fast but had lots of style. Rear roll down opera windows-what more could you want? Only sold for three years. Would buy one in a second if I could find a decent one.
Yes, Chevrolet Monza Spyder with the 3.8. It was an objectively terrible vehicle, but it was the first one I purchased with my own money ($300). Black, rear window louvers, spoiler (that had partially melted in the sun). I loved that car and washed and waxed it so often, I probably damaged the paint more than it already was. I traded it for a 200SX that I promptly totaled.
First was an 85 Pontiac 6000 I had in 2003. It was transportation, but being 17 it was freedom! Before it was totaled by a red light runner while I was on the way to buy spinner hub caps (simply as a joke), I wanted to lift it and make it my snowboarding rig. Would I want it back – right now no. If I won the lottery (that I never play) I think I would try to get a version of all the cars I’ve owned and actually do with them what I planned at the time of ownership.
Yes, without hesitation. I’ve already spilled my guts on what my family’s 1993 Camry sedan (which was also my first car) meant to me in these comments before, so I won’t l rehash that. But very much yes.
1990 Plymouth Sundance. Nope. From my parents’ perspective, it was a great first car for 16 year old me, partially because it was so slow, it was hard work to get into trouble. It had a 2.2L four cylinder engine (producing a whopping 93 hp) and a 3-speed automatic transmission. It was sloooooooooow. Still, it was mine, so I put in an obnoxiously loud sound system and enjoyed it as much as possible. It was also a tough little car. I got rear ended twice and ended up with only a scratch on the bumper cover, whereas the other cars had much more damage. Still, I have no desire to ever drive it again.
Would I buy my first car back? No, it’s been parted out and crushed.
Would I buy the same year and model if I could find one? Yes, in a heartbeat. You think it would be some world class amazing car, but NO. It’s an 87 Cavalier Z-24 5 speed. God I loved that car.
’97 Ford Econoline-150 conversion van. Yes, but only at the right price. Thing had had so many mechanical problems over the time I owned it–the final straw, in fact, was one of the catalytic converters going bad….the same one that had been replaced 3 years prior, with a 2-year warranty.
In spite of all that, my friends and I loved it. I’ve even tried looking up the VIN to see if I can find the current owner, but it seems there’s pesky privacy laws preventing DMVs from disclosing that stuff. (What do you mean, it’s impossible to tell if someone is well-meaning or not when they’re asking for contact information to make an offer on a car?)
Regardless, at this point I’m keeping my eyes out for one to succeed it, hopefully this time a high-roof model.
1973 Dodge Dart Swinger. I learned to wrench on that car and loved it. I would buy it back in a heartbeat.