I could not wait to get into the driver's seat. In Illinois in my day you could get a "learner's permit" when you were 15 1/2 years old. That let you drive with an adult. if you took a driver's education course, you could take the test and get a license at age 16.
The car was my Mom's GM Chevy Caprice. I was armed with my learner's permit and accompanied by my father, who surprised me with his patience in this role as patience was never one of his long suits! But he was an excellant instructor as he put me through my paces in a little used parking lot at 47th Street and the lake in Chicago's Hyde Park.
My Mom was generous with that car, especially as I began to see girls in a new light and discovered that a boy with wheels had a lot more options available when it came to navigating the high school social scene. A few years later, when she was ready to trade the Caprice in she gave it to me and I took it to college for my senior year where it proved equally as effective.
After I graduated college and was about to begin my first full time job I bought my first new car. The choice was a Chevy Camaro. I couldn't afford a Corvette and the Camaro looked a little like one. But, and this is indicative of GM's troubles through the years, the Camaro was never a satifying ride in terms of comfort or service.
For the next car I not only abandoned GM but American automakers as well. The Audi I bought was a better ride than any car I had ridden before. I drove it east when I moved to New York, but found it spent most of its time in a very expensive garage while I used public transportation. After a few months I sold it and went carless.
My wife Amy does like to drive, I always saw it as a necessity, not a pleasure. Amy is sold on Toyota and since we were married we've had a Corolla and now a Camry. These are great cars, and have required little or no service. I don't have any guilt associated with those purchases since our Toyotas were most likely built on American soil by American workers and parts in this global economy come from all over no matter what country the manufacturer calls home.
GM has a long way to go to get us back into its showrooms, in spite of my fond memories of those first cars, and those first dates in them. That is its challenge for the years ahead.
Comments
Love your comments, please keep them coming.
Devoted NBR watcher.
Helena Freeman
My dad owned several Oldsmobiles as I was growing up, and then I personally owned several Cutlasses and a 442 in years 1966-72. Thus, I have already gone through an adjustment of sorts to my memories. GM dropped the Oldsmobile brand in 2004. Nevertheless it is a sad day for "car guys" to see the company collapse that created so many iconic marques--GTO, Camaro, Firebird, Corvette to name a few--that would make any young man's heart race when seen driving down the road. How envious you would feel of those behind the wheel.
You also recall the days gone by when Ford and Chevy dominated NASCAR, Dale Earnhardt in the black Goodwrench Monte Carlo.
The passing of GM as we've known it was inevitable, but on a purely emotional basis it is hard to grasp that it came to this. Back in its heyday when cars like the Goat were being made who could have thought that one day GM itself (let alone some of its brands) would go the way of the dinosaur.
I wish them success with the reconstituted company, but for those of us that remember all those great cars it will never be the same. It will never be the GM of our youth.
My first car was also a Chevy Camaro, 1974. It wasn't in bad shape when I bought it in 1987, but I invested a lot more money in it over the next few years. Looking back, that Camaro was special to me and I wish I'd kept it.
I agree with Scott though, GM has a long way to go to earn back us one-time GM owners' business. Just "buying American" isn't good enough when the investment is that large.
My first car was a graduation present (1969). It was Ralph Nader's favorite car- a burgundy 1965 Corvair Monza. It was great. It never got stuck in the snow, but it did burn oil like crazy. Now my daily driver is a 2000 Corvette convertible. Hopefully, it won't be my last! Rock on, GM!