When did you realize you were a car lover?

"Joshua Rollins" (joshuarollins)
12/02/2015 at 11:54 • Filed to: None

It’s funny how you remember defining moments in your life. My Dad was/still is a Master Toyota tech, and typical dealership fashion he would have to work Saturdays. We lived in a very rural part of Vermont, and his average commute to work was about 60 miles, so him working on Saturday’s completely ruined our availability to spend time together.

Sometimes I would get lucky and he would wake me up at 5:00 a.m. and bring me into the dealership with him. As a young man, nothing could be more interesting and boring at the same time. I vividly recall the waiting room, the chairs had a blue confetti cloth, and the typical cheap hard plastic bottoms. The carpet was stained with grease from the techs walking through, and the place had an odd aroma of grease and stale coffee. The TV was quite possibly the funniest thing, it had to be a 1990 version Zenith 20 inch that had more channels than I had ever seen (our cable only had 13 channels growing up).

The most amazing part is that the waiting area was just a stone’s throw away from the Showroom. I would usually go in and sit in the new cars and see new and emerging technological features as they were rolled into the show room. I would and still do consider myself a pretty simple person. When I was growing up it was never Ferrari and Lamborghini posters hanging on my wall, it was always a MR2, RX7, or Supras.

I distinctly recall one morning being awoken by my dad’s truck starting up. If anybody has heard a Toyota truck start it’s a very distinctive sound only to Toyota. It was very early, 5:00 a.m. again, and typically he would start the truck, get everything together, then leave 10 minutes later. He came into my room shortly after I had fallen back to sleep and woke me up. Me being the typical 11 year old, I hated getting up early and told him no I was sleeping in. Typically he would leave me alone but today it was different. He wouldn’t let me go back to sleep!

He said that I had to get up, of course I threw a hissy fit because I didn’t want to. Begrudgingly I got out of my nice warm bed and put on what felt like 16 layers of cloths. Even though it was April, April in Vermont is like winter to most anywhere else, as I walked outside I could see the steam from the heat of my breath. The bitter cold frosted touched against my skin as I opened the door. The truck seats were cold and stiff, and what seemed like only a moment later, my father let the clutch out and away we went. It couldn’t have taken more than 5 minutes before I had dozed off into a slumber.

I was awaken by the sound and stutter of the engine shutting down. A 70 minute drive felt like only 5 minutes. My dad had an excitement about him this morning and I wasn’t quite sure why. As we walked towards the store everything seemed normal, we walked through the dimly lit shop and into the waiting room area. But instead of walking into the waiting room he walked me into the showroom and there was his surprise. I had never seen one! My favorite car for the time!

It was a brand new, 1994 Toyota MR2 Turbo in Super red. The contrast of the Super red off the pearl white floor just made it look so much better. But as I moved closer to the car and pulled the door handle, the doors were locked. :-( I asked to sit in it but my dad informed me that they keep the doors locked until someone is interested in it. Sadly I retired to the waiting room for my dad to get done work.

Not long after he went back to the shop I couldn’t resist the beautiful red temptress in the other room. I walked back in and took the brochure, and kept staring at the car. As anybody could have noticed I was obsessed! One of the salesman grabbed the keys without my acknowledgment and quickly opened the car. He opened the door in front of me, I caught a waft of new leather as I saw just a short flash of the creamy black leather. He turned around, looked at me, and asked me if I wanted to sit in it?

After jumping in excitedly, I played with every button, he also switched it to accessory to show me the flip up headlights. He showed me how the top comes off and Toyota’s ingenuity by having a case built into the engine bay that fits the top. I was amazed! It was at this point that I realized that it’s no doubt I was going to grow up to be a car guy, I didn’t know at that defining moment, how influential it would be, and how it would drive every decision I have made since.

What is your guys/gals first moment you knew you were hooked?

DISCUSSION (6)

The Crazy Kanuck; RIP Oppositelock > Joshua Rollins
12/02/2015 at 15:37

My dad was showing me pictures cars & motorcycles he use to own. His cars where a 1971 Monte Carlo w/ 350 and a 4spd, a 1986 Camaro IROC-Z28, 1990 Taurus SHO 5spd he got after he got married. His bikes he had where a 1975 Honda XL350, 1979 Honda CB750 Super Sport, 1983 Honda VF750F Interceptor, 1986 Yamaha FJR1200. Now he was a 2009 Honda Goldwing.

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > Joshua Rollins
12/02/2015 at 15:56

I bet you remember that day like it was yesterday. Great story and an amazing car for its time.

I spent much of my childhood in Hong Kong, one of the best car spotting cities outside of Dubai. My parents would help me name the mainstream car brands and models on the road. My cousin would help me with the sports cars. Seeing my first Ferrari 348 and Lamborghini Diablo was probably the moment I became a car guy.

I also remember one evening in HK when a family friend had bought an MR2 (the first gen) in the early 90s. He zoomed away from our car and my dad chuckled. It looked so low to the road. I was impressed!

gear5 > Joshua Rollins
12/02/2015 at 17:53

That was awesome! lucky you!
Well I spent my childhood in the US, and I think I was influenced by my dad and older brother. Born in the 90s, I didn’t have those posters that everyone talks about on my room (Diablo, testarrosa, 911, etc), but my brother did, in our shared room. He was quite a car fan, and my dad spent long nights fixing the vans that broke down in his buisiness (he’s a handyman).

And somehow I started learning stuff.

I remember teaching my mom what brand that car that was in front of us was, while sitting in the back seat when she toke me with her (she was clueless about cars). I remember when we went to the shopping I would go straight to the toy section and try to take(buy) some cool toy I found. Most of the times It was rejected, and rejected, until I picked the cheapest and still cool thing avalable, Hot wheels (99c)!

I also remember my much older cousin had a toyota supra mk3 twin turbo, and his brother a trans am. I barely remember them, and didn’t even know what they where at the time. My older brother was a lucky guy at that time. I also remember seeing a black 3000GT, from a friend of my brother, etc...

I also have a brief memory of my familiy talking about some marrige and this guy had an F40! I remember the picture of it!

Well that’s it. I think this exposure to car seeing and hearing about, made my like cars as well...

PS: Ohh god I remember teaching random customers that stopped where my mom worked, what all the buttons on their cars did! (~5/6 yr old) I also remember getting in some car of someone known, and released the park/hand brake, and since it was an incline, ended in the middle of the freaking road! Not sure if I hit something tho...

hike > Joshua Rollins
12/02/2015 at 19:07

I’ve got a picture around somewhere of myself sitting with my grandfather reading a car magazine...when I was less than 2 years old. So short answer, longer than I can remember.

touring the brook - now with ZHP! > Joshua Rollins
12/02/2015 at 19:52

WELL... I loved cars as a young little child, and I was obsessed. I used to cut ads for cars out of the classifieds and glue them into a notebook. Then my interest faded, and I transcended into what I like to call the “era of thy lego”. After that era, round about 11 years old, I found interest in cars again. After that I was casually interested, and I kept it to myself (I was lonely in elementary school) until I got to 7th grade where I found fellow car lovers just like me. Since then I have built up my love and knowledge for all things automotive.

Vicente Esteve > Joshua Rollins
12/02/2015 at 22:34

Since I was a foetus most probably.