Have you ever bought a car, only to realize it was the wrong car? It may not be something you realize right away. In my case it crept up on me slowly over a period of months. But after six months and a cross country drive, I knew I had somehow bought the wrong car.
I had returned from being stationed overseas and my beloved Mustang GT had recrossed the Atlantic Ocean. I was temporarily stationed in Virginia before heading to my next assignment in the Pacific Northwest.
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| Sammy Hagar was right |
After the second or third discussion with the local gendarmerie it was clear something had to change. Somehow that something became a new Acura Integra LS. And just how that happened I'm still not sure.
Essentially a fancy, more luxurious Honda Civic, the Integra from the newly launched Acura brand was a darned good car. It had great reviews from all the enthusiast magazines and I think my mistake was deciding to get one based on reviews, rather than on the actual car.
The first few weeks were fine, with Virginia in the grip of a severe winter. The little front driver was actually sort of zippy and surefooted. But in early spring I took a road trip to Pittsburgh to see friends. It was in the mountains of West Virginia that I first sensed I had chosen poorly. Those beautiful mountain roads just were not the same with 118 horsepower and front wheel drive.
Strangely enough, in every quantifiable way the Integra was a superior car to my dearly departed GTI. I came to realize that it was the unquantifiable that the Integra lacked. Simply put, the car had no soul, and I had no emotional connection to it. It was just a good little car, and that is just not enough—not in my book at least.
By the time the Acura and I had crossed the country together I actively hated it. As soon as it was financially feasible (but far from financially intelligent) I traded in the Integra and bought one of my favorite all-time cars - and it wasn't a car.
What car mistakes have you made?
