Freelance Writer, Reporter, and Author

It has been awhile since I updated this website. I suppose I should now that summer is just about over, and I’m back in the “real world”.

So what have I been up to since the road trip came to an end? Aside from plotting the next excursion, I’ve been working. A lot.

I went and saw the county, and now I am again tethered to my computer, sitting in the same little room all day staring at a bright computer screen. It’s enough to make a man go crazy.

Still, I am one of the lucky ones. I am gainfully employed, I don’t have to commute to work, and I am basically in charge of how much money I do (or don’t) make. My gig is pretty sweet.

Other than working, I’ve managed to get my engine all but complete. That just leaves…the rest of my car to finish fixing.

Oil pan is almost back on the truck (though I’ve had nothing to do with that) and my Jeep blew its clutch line again. Fixed that with the help of my boy Adam in an abandoned parking lot.

Hopefully I can get into the groove of updating this regularly. I’m still gonna try posting pictures over at Three Months In A Mustang too (amazingly it still gets a regular traffic stream). I’ve got a few other schemes in the works too, so stay tuned.

As much as I love cars, lately, I am sick of them.

It doesn’t have anything to do with the major auto manufacturers. If anything, I am elated to see so many great cars are the horizon. Ford and GM have really kicked it up a notch, and the Camaro and Mustang are in the midst of a muscle car war unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It is beautiful, and nearly brings a tear to my eye.

Actually, a lot of things have almost brought a tear to my eye. Lately I have been trying to find a new daily driver. I love my Jeep-Jeep. It starts every time I ask it to, it never breaks down, maintainence is easy, and the few problems it has I am well aware of. Alas, I bought my Wrangler for two reasons. A) To impress a girl (who I have now been dating for several years…so I guess it worked) and B) Penance for destroying a beautiful 1995 Pontiac Trans Am.

Jeep-Jeep is slow. I can get it up to 70 mph on the highway, but every time I hit the slightest bump and the whole truck shakes from front to back like a dog drying itself off after a bath. But not nearly as cute.  It also takes a LONG time to get to 70 mph. I’m talking like 15 seconds or more. It is not a fast vehicle. Nor is it comfortable. I feel every bump, every pebble, every gum wrapper discarded on the road. It has power nothing, no air conditioning, two working speakers, a leaky slave cylinder, a broken gas gauge, scratches, dings, dents, rust…

I feel bad speaking ill about my Jeep. Because I love it, despite all of its problems. But I can’t live with it anymore, not as a daily driver. It rattles my bones, gets shitty gas mileage, and has the aerodynamics of a brick. So I need a new car. The question is, what do I need?

Need versus want is such an ancient argument, and it is always easier to know what one wants, rather than needs. I wanted a brand new, 2011 Mustang V6. 305 horsepower, 31 mpg, and its a Mustang. I’ve always wanted a Mustang, but my mom always said no. Now I am a grown man, I can buy what I want…but the Mustang just doesn’t make sense on a daily driver level, at least not right now. As cool as it is, it is also rear-wheel drive. Which means in the winter time, I’ll be boned. It also doesn’t have a ton of room to store stuff, and I tend to be the go-to guy for moving people. In a few years I can hopefully pick one up for a song and a dance. Until then, I need to consider other options.

I need either a front-wheel, or all-wheel drive vehicle. I also want an American car. Not that I wouldn’t consider a foreign brand, but right now I feel it is important for Americans to support American jobs and American cars. My money, my opinion.

So what are my options then? Ford Fiesta? Nice, but small. Maybe too small. Chevy HHR? They make a turbocharged SS version, and it gets great gas mileage, but I’m ambivalent about the looks. Ford Ranger? I love pickup trucks, but the Ranger is on its way out and it doesn’t come with a whole lot of bells and whistles (air conditioning still isn’t a standard feature? really?). I don’t really care for many Dodge vehicles, like the Caliber, but I do like the Dodge Magnum. It can get decent mileage, lots of cargo space, available with a V8 and all-wheel drive…but it is HUGE. And it doesn’t look like it has great visibility either.

So I am stuck. I want something big but not too big, fuel efficient yet powerful, and American and affordable. Is that really too much to ask?

It is almost April, but it feels like April. It has been raining rather constantly for about two weeks now, and I’m starting to get a bit of the cabin fever. I suppose it isn’t all bad…I am getting a lot of writing done. And luckily a break in the weather allowed me to travel up to Dover, New York, and meet some crazy old hot rodders. They told me stories about the old Dover Drag Strip, and how even though it closed 35 years ago, these guys (and a few girls) still get together every year.

Which makes me realize that there doesn’t seem to be that kind of camaraderie among car enthusiasts anymore. Within individual brands…absolutely. I wrote a piece about two men who met on a Mustang forum, one of whom needed a kidney. Their shared interest in Mustangs probably saved a life. People are very devoted to their brands, perhaps moreso now than ever.

But now there is this show, The Forum Wars, which basically pits two shit talkers against each other. I love talking trash, especially in Modern Warfare 2, but should a television show really be rewarding a bunch of shit spewers? Why do I want to see two loudmouths with admittedly nice cars trying to out-penis each other on TV? I’ve defiantly talked shit regarding cars, but this show is driving a wedge between brands, rather than bringing people together. The first episode features two cars, a NISMO 350z, and  Shelby Mustang GT. They are going to compete against each other, first in a drag race, and then on a road course.

Both cars have a strong following, but it is less about the “car”, and more about the “brand”. My Ford is better than your Nissan, or vice versa. While both cars have a lot in common…rear-wheel drive, sporty handling, similar prices, determining which car is better, and settling an online grudge match via a television show…it just seems forced. Put either guy in the other’s car, and they’ll both still have smiles on their face at the end of the day. Both are great cars, but they are complicated to the point that you almost need an engineering degree just to change the spark plugs…so I can’t really blame them if they don’t know the ins-and-outs of their own cars.

The hot rodders, they laugh about their old grudges and grievances against other brands. They were all diehard one-brand enthusiasts back in the day, but now they just accept a car for what it is, instead of griping and complaining about what it isn’t. And these guys know their cars better than the people that built them. These guys are true car enthusiasts, who take pride in their cars but nod with respect whenever someone pulls up in a mean-sounding Bowtie, Blue Oval, or Mopar.

But most people don’t seem to want cars anymore anyways…they want personal transportation with all the latest media and entertainment doodads. 70% of people rely on someone else to change their oil, and only 10% of America can drive a manual transmission-equipped car. The art of driving is dying, and it seems as though people care less and less about their cars, and more and more about their brands.

If Apple really wants to make bank, they’ll come up with an iCar.

I love shit talking, and I love rivalry between brands. But I think there just isn’t that much to be all that competitive about these days. With enough time and money, you can make any car beat any other car. I’ve seen Civics beat Vipers. It wasn’t like that back in the day. These guys, they came up with their own parts if no one made what they need. This 350Z and Mustang guy…chances are, they probably don’t even change their own oil. But they probably know where the nearest certified lubrication expert is.

What kind of enthusiast is that?