Howdy Harrell: A Car History

"Howdy Harrell" (hseason91) 08/05/2015 at 20:07 • Filed to: None

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I thought it might be interesting if all of the OPPOS posted their car history.... Because its humpday, and I’m bored because I already listened to the TST and Hooniverse Podcasts.

Here is a list of cars I have owned/ or drove for a significant period of time while loaning from my parents back in school. I’m only 24 but the list is kind of long.

I may go in to more depth on each car in a future post but.... Here we go.

My first Car: 1997 Volvo 850 Wagon. MANUAL. (2 Years)

Then my senior year I used the money I saved up since I was 8 and bought a..

2) 2004 Land Rover Discovery. #TBT to 2009 (3 Years)

Back before I even lifted, BRO. The only picture I can still find of it (My dad may have more). Bonus if you guess the orange car!

As you might have guessed.... It broke, and got so expensive to fix... I needed to sell it.

So I moved on to borrow my parents.....

3) 1998 z3 MANUAL. (1 Year)

(Not my car) I loved this thing.... Until and F250 T-boned me and almost killed me.

I felt so bad for my parents... they planned on keeping it forever, and I was in the car when that asshole hit me. That day I promised them I would get them another one some day.

So... With the insurance money, and some money I had saved up through college, I got a...

4) 2008 Mercedes CLK 350 Auto :( (1.5 Years)

I fucked up bad on this one guys. I have to admit... I totaled it, but that is a story for another time.

So with the money that the insurance gave me, I ponied up and bought a..

5) 2007 Volvo XC90 (2 Years)

I bought the nicest thing I could get used on 4 wheels that wasn’t fast or exciting.

I bought it my senior year in college and took it with me when I moved to San Antonio for my first post-grad job. Long story short, I had it for 2 years and I work in a traveling sales route that I am unreimbursed for... and the gas mileage sucked. Soooo with the money I saved up over the last year, I traded it in for.....

6) 2015 Mustang Ecoboost Paddle Shift Auto

I went with the auto only because of HOW MUCH I DRIVE, and so far i am happy i did so. I’ve got’ big plans for this car and I cant wait to share it with all of you!!!!!!!!

So, what is your car History?

TFSIVTEC drivesavolvo > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 20:26

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2003 Acura CL Type S (Manual) -really totaled

1999 Saab 9-3 (Manual) -sold for $450 lol

2000 VW Jetta VR6 GLX (Manual) -regretfully traded in

2013 Ford Focus (manual) -current

2002 Saab 9-3 Convertible (Auto) :( -current, $400 summer beater

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 20:38

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1. 1994 GMC Safari EXT (11 months)

First hunk of ju...erm, car. Still miserably sitting in front of the house over a puddle of its own fluids.

2. 1998 BMW M3 Sedan, auto (Current, 7 months)

Been nothing short of a learning experience from day one replacing parts and slowly bringing it back to its former glory. I was trying to sell it for a while but decided against it because I like the stupid thing too much.

I guess I should add this is so short because I’m only 17.

MLGCarGuy > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 20:43

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This is my current car.

Notice how I don’t have one.

I believe that this will end up being my first car, courtesy of my dad:

The Accord, that is.

Steve in Manhattan > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 20:51

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OK - from my (admittedly diminished) memory:

‘72 Volvo 142E 4M

‘69 Mercedes 250

‘81 Buick Skylark

1/2 a ‘76 Lancia Beta Scorpion 5M

‘84 Jetta Turbodiesel 5M

‘84 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser (with fake wood)

‘87 Toyota 4x4 longbed 5M

‘87 Mercedes 300D

‘88 Toyota wagon 5M

‘91 Honda CRX Si 5M

‘97 Taurus SHO

There are probably a couple more, but they’ve faded from memory.

Master Cylinder > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 20:55

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From oldest (first car) to most recent (current ride):

1991 Geo Tracker 4x4 (1.6L 5-speed manual)

1994 Ford Thunderbird LX (4.8L 4-speed auto) - I wish this MN12 back now. Make mine a 6-speed Coyote-engined luxo-stormer, please. Actually quite a nice-handling car for weighing as much as a small house, though the early mod motor was a little overwhelmed. I autocrossed it a few times, and even have a 1st place trophy (for an event where I was the only entrant in the “big-ass heavy RWD V8 car” category)

2000 Ford Escort ZX2 (2.0L 5-speed manual) - This is by far the worst car I ever owned. It was basically bad at everything.

1996 Suzuki Sidekick 4x4 (1.6L 5-speed manual)

1999 Ford Contour SVT (2.5L 5-speed manual) - The SVT was the first quick car I had, and after installing a cheap NO2 setup, it was legitimately fast. I sprayed the hell out of this poor car, I once spent $200 in a week on nitrous oxide just from driving around and spraying for funsies- I never actually took this car to a drag strip. I have no idea how that engine didn’t explode, it was still running fine when I sold it.

1998 Lincoln Mark VIII (4.6L 4-speed auto) - The engine that my beloved old T-bird needed so badly. Too bad about the air suspension and blend door, though.

1998 Suzuki Sidekick 4x4 (1.6L 5-speed manual) - notice a pattern here? I love these little shitcans despite their objective badness. If I could keep them from rusting to pieces here in Michigan, I’d probably still have one. This one was a 4-door hardtop that I built out of two wrecked Sidekicks - one terminally rusted with a blown engine and the other a rollover victim with a crushed roof but good drivetrain and solid floorpans. A couple weekends with a Sawzall and a MIG welder and I had a green-on-top-and-red-on-bottom trucklet that I cruelly abused for 3 years before it finally rusted into uselessness.

1984 Porsche 944 (2.5L 5-speed manual) - This thing was a piece of crap but it gave me a year and a half of lightweight RWD fun before it finally died due to flood-induced electrical problems. I parted it for over twice what I paid, and put the proceeds into my current car:

1987 Porsche 944S (2.5L 5-speed manual) - Everything I loved about the ‘84 944, plus 30-some additional horsepowers, and in much better condition. The A/C even still works! I’m doing a rolling restoration on this one, fixing/cleaning/upgrading it on the weekends and commuting during the week. It’s got over 200,000 miles and still treats me right.

Plus a handful of motorcycles along the way as well.

Amoore100 > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 21:01

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First car.

Got it two months ago...

Alfalfa > Master Cylinder 08/05/2015 at 21:31

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I had a 96 Thunderbird with the 4.6 for a while. I miss it very much, I never should have sold it.

Master Cylinder > Alfalfa 08/05/2015 at 21:45

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There was a NPOCP not long ago featuring a 4.6L DOHC + 5-speed swapped T-bird. IIRC the seller was asking like $15K for it, which seems like a lot at first but I probably could justify the price tag to myself.

The MN12 was a pretty solid platform as I recall. Strip some weight out of it, beef up the suspension a bit, and put a more willing drivetrain into it and you could have a really nice grand tourer for relatively small money.

I always thought it had a nice driver-oriented dash layout, too.

Steve in Manhattan > MLGCarGuy 08/05/2015 at 22:01

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My current car looks exactly like yours - I go Hertz at this point. Too expensive to have a car here.

Steve in Manhattan > Amoore100 08/05/2015 at 22:02

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Very nice.

Ike > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 22:33

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Perhaps throw the untitled car show in to the podcast mix?

Untitledcarshow.podomatic.com

ranwhenparked > Howdy Harrell 08/05/2015 at 23:24

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Since I can see Kinja’s being weird with pictures again,

1. 1971 VW Super Beetle

2. 1991 Volvo 940 Turbo

3. 1996 Cadillac Fleetwood

3 1/2. 1983 Honda CM450A

4. 2009 Mercury Grand Marquis

5. 2013 Ford Mustang

Howdy Harrell > Ike 08/05/2015 at 23:37

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I'll check it out. Are you guys on iTunes?

Amoore100 > Steve in Manhattan 08/05/2015 at 23:52

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Thank you :)

m-b-w loves his SUBAROO > Howdy Harrell 08/06/2015 at 01:40

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First Car-2012 Kia Soul- Owned it for 10 months until some guy rear ended me when I stopped for a school bus. It was fixed, but never drove right, so I sold it.

Sorta Second car- 2013 Volvo XC60 T6- 5 months, After the Kia was wrecked, my mom basically gave me her insanely nice Volvo to drive until I could find a new car. I am amazed that I never got a speeding ticket, as that thing was fast as hell.

Third car- 2014 Hyundai Elantra- 9 months, I bought this thing new with the intentions of driving it until the 10 year/100,000 mile warranty ran out. The car begged to differ, as it went through several transmission. The company made good, and repurchased the car. The picture is from the day I turned it in.

Forth car- 1994 Volvo 850 Turbo- 6 months, I was given this car by a close family friend who was planning on sending it off to the junkyard. I offered her money, but she declined the offer, instead just giving it to me. It survived a lot of abuse in my hands, including taking it through a mud pit, however brake failure made me decide to take it off the road.

Fifth car- 2015 Subaru Outback- 7 months, and still going strong, I bought this car back in December to replace the Hyundai. It has been nothing short of fantastic.

BTW, at for a period of about 3 weeks, I owned the Volvo, Subaru, and Hyundai all at the same time. I’m pretty sure I’ve been through more cars than most 18 year olds.

Ike > Howdy Harrell 08/06/2015 at 09:27

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Yep, https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/unt…