Squee!! My daughter has asked for a project car!

"Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole" (Dukie) 05/21/2014 at 09:07 • Filed to: Kids, Amphicar, Project

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My daughter will be 8 next week, and I've been taking her to car shows and things like the NW Historics (pictured above) for a while now. Last night we were sitting in the living room flipping through the channels when there was a commercial on Velocity that had an Amphicar on it (no, it wasn't the Wheeler Dealer's episode, but that does come into play). We recently rode the Seattle Duck with my in-laws and she exclaimed, "WHOA! That car was just like the Duck! That's awesome!!"

She's getting better at identifying different cars (I always ask her if she knows cars as we see them on the road, I do the same thing with my 6 year old nephew too). Anyway, I asked her what she thought about the Amphicar, and she started asking questions, "Is it heavy? How does it float? How does it go in the water?", etc. That's when I fired up the XBox and flipped on YouTube.

We pulled up the Wheeler Dealer's Amphicar episode (did I mention she loves watching Mike & Edd?) and started watching. Within minutes she was asking if we could buy an Amphicar that we could work on like Edd and that she could drive. Once I pulled a few up on eBay and some other sites and showed her how much they cost, she was a little disappointed.

But damn the torpedoes! If I find an Amphicar project that's in my price range, she's getting her damn Amphicar! I'll even forgo my want for a 911 in order to get her one.

EL_ULY > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:09

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Ultra radness!!!! Amphicar would be sweeeeet!

Brian Silvestro > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:10

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You win parenting!

fifanatic > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:10

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Yours is a life truly blessed!

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:11

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You sir win at parenting!

Nibby > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:11

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Daughter #1

ptak appreciates old racecars > Brian Silvestro 05/21/2014 at 09:13

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Indeed. POLAND STRIKES BACK!!!

KnowsAboutCars > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:16

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Parenting done right!

Bad Idea Hat > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:16

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This is what I aspire to.

I have a daughter and another on the way.

Brian Silvestro > ptak appreciates old racecars 05/21/2014 at 09:16

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Seeing both of them in unison is just magical.

Sn210 > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:19

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that's awesome! I was eating at a restaurant on a lake one time when an Amphicar drove by.

mr_gofast > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:20

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CalzoneGolem > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:20

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First: You win at parenting.

Second: Why not another air cooled VW while you search?

bill19696 > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:20

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I have two little girls and a project like that would be a wonderful way to strengthen that daddy/daughter bond. Awesome!

Lekker > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:23

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That is super awesome!!! You definitely have to keep those stories coming. I'm smiling like a lunatic because I can imagine how much that means to you too.

I knew the father of this future text would present himself to us:

ncasolowork2 > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:26

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The trick is to find a different project car that she is interested in. I'm sure the amphicar is one of those "phase/fad" type projects. Finding a project car that she could enjoy when she turns 16 is the key. (pun intended)

shop-teacher > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:26

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That's fantastic! I've got a 17 month old daughter, and I hope someday she wants a project car too

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > bill19696 05/21/2014 at 09:29

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We do a lot of "Daddy-Daughter Days". But I always told my wife that I wasn't going to have a helpless daughter when it came to cars. I've basically taught all of my immediate family that lives near me how to do basic maintenance on their cars. But I want my kid to know what to do if something happens instead of relying on AAA. She's helped on Grimace as well as Aces (she is banned from being under the car while it's on jack stands for safety though).

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > shop-teacher 05/21/2014 at 09:30

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don't be afraid to show her cool cars now.

My 16 month old son is obsessed with cars

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > CalzoneGolem 05/21/2014 at 09:31

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I'd do another Bug, but I owe my wife a Bel Air too, so now I'm 2 cars behind my 911.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:31

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that's awesome man, I'm sure it's a little harder with girls (maybe?) to get them into the car world.

My son is 16 months old and simply obsessed with cars already. I had him sit in the drivers seat of the 68 Montego this past weekend and he loved it!

StoneCold > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:32

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I'm not saying you should, but I would not be into cars at all without my Dad's and my project that's going on 25 years now. COUGH inline 6 mustang COUGH easy, cheap, and beautiful COUGH

CalzoneGolem > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:32

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Then the solution is an air cooled 911.

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > CalzoneGolem 05/21/2014 at 09:35

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That's what I wanted anyway.

CalzoneGolem > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:37

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Amphi911

bill19696 > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:37

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At our local Italian Car event in Minneapolis. One of my favorite pictures.

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > CalzoneGolem 05/21/2014 at 09:39

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CalzoneGolem > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:41

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JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:42

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Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > bill19696 05/21/2014 at 09:44

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I see my kid isn't the only one obsessed with temporary tattoos!

AdmiralAkbar > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 09:49

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Your daughter is awesome. My girlfriend actually wants a Factory Five Roadster kit car as a project.

yamahog > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner 05/21/2014 at 09:55

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that's awesome man, I'm sure it's a little harder with girls (maybe?) to get them into the car world.

Kids have malleable little brains, that's how my metalhead gearhead parents ended up with two metalhead gearhead daughters! If you raise 'em to think they should be into (stereotypical boy/girl thing) because they're a boy or girl though, then it's a just self-fulfilling prophecy.

yamahog > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 10:05

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Be careful, that's how it starts! Then you end up with two self-sufficient daughters with motorcycle licenses, daily driving and wrenching their Jeeps and Mustangs... or at least that's how it went for my younger sister and me :) Our dad always had projects of some sort going on, whether it had two or four wheels we were welcome to help out. By the time I was 12 we even had dirt bikes of our own that we were expected to maintain. Not sure if you're a fan of two wheels, but kids love dirt bikes and it's a great way to segue into teaching them how to drive manual and keep their interest while they're still too young to drive.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > yamahog 05/21/2014 at 10:08

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Well. the way I've been thinking about it is, I don't think there's anything I could have really done. He was pointing and yelling CAR at cars from like 11 months.

Having hot wheels around couldn't have had that big of an impact. Kid is a car freak.

Titan-E34 > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 15:20

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respectful to not touch the car

jkm7680 > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 05/21/2014 at 16:04

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You my friend, are raising her right.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 05/21/2014 at 23:20

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hehehehe