Journey of the car guy

"Ike" (untitledcarshow) 04/12/2015 at 13:57 • Filed to: Life story time

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How turning in two muscle cars and a hot hatchback for a station wagon, ended up making me more of a gearhead than ever before.

So a quick primer in 2010 ( I was 24) I had been employed for a few years making good money and have been spending said money on booze (yum long islands) and my car mods (what do you mean you've never seen a saturn ion rolling on cobalt SS suspension bits?).

So because I was young and dumb, I went out and bought a Dodge Challenger;

I loved that car to bits, then because I'm equally crazy I found out I could sell it for what I bought it for, and maybe get a manual transmission at the same time! So I got another Dodge Challenger with a automatic! ( I was young and dumb).

Around this time I started dating my future wife, she has always been in to car guys, so my lovely challenger was maybe what attracted her; lord knows it wasn't my charming personality.

So my challenger started having issues day one, air bag light came on day 2 of owning it. I had bought it to take cross country DC to Chicago, to Vegas, to San Francisco (which I highly recommend at night in a challenger blasting up and down the hilly roads, I got air born a few times.). So the air bag light came on again and again 27 trips to the shop in total. In under a year. Which started to effect my sanity and I was tired of having to drive the dodge line up of 2009 at the local rental car lot.(Oh boy! A Dodge Avenger with the worlds worst engine and the worlds worst transmission!?)

So needless to say I wish I knew Steve Lehto back then, but I was able to get dodge to buy back the car on my lonesome, after many many attempts.

This left me in a quandary; what to get? I was living to far out in the country to really justify another muscle car; I didn't really trust any of the major brands because I had been so abused by dodge, and I alway liked the idea of a Hot Hatch. What better brand than Volvo to treat me well, and since there was no focus RS or ST out at the time (ford dealer called me the moment I was driving home in my new car no joke; saying they had just got the truck in and could process my z-plan shenanigans).

I digress though, I got myself a 2011 Volvo C30 R-Design; if you like your spine I would not recommend buying one with the R-Design package any where with rough roads. Most importantly this was my first daily driver to have a manual transmission! I learned all over again to drive stick and blasted the hot hatch all over the back roads of Southern Anne Arundel county Maryland. During my time of owning the C30 I got engaged, married and knocked up my wife. Oh no what to do!? I can't really put a child seat in the back of the c30!?

So began the search for my next car; my wife hates mini vans, and I hate SUVs so what to do?

STATION WAGON!!!

Yep!

What brand I hear you asking. VOLVO!

During my time with the C30 I really got a appreciation for Volvo and there weird Swedish-ness; and I rely wanted a higher horse power, great handling and comfy car.

ENTER THE V70R

Yep I know of their faults and there quibbles, but I did it any way. I found a good example of the car to appear, I drove to Connecticut that one was no good, I drove to Ohio, and after a bit of a fixing and haggling drove home with a new to me 2005 V70R yes with an automatic sadly, but because it is a bad version of the auto in a sought after car I was able to get a good deal.

ENTER THE CHILD!

My little girl Mia loves the car and car rides! She likes sport mode best. This is something I love about the car, the variable suspension setting and drive line settings turn the car from family hauler to sports car and back again depending on how your feeling. There is a great feeling one gets knowing he can beat most cars in a race and he can fit his 2 dogs and a baby and wife in the same car.

But wait is this all your cars? I hear you asking again!

Nope. I had bought a beat up '98 v70 XC to tinker and play with shortly after I got the C30,

then I traded it straight up for a '91 740 cause RWD that's why!

So I was able to tinker and play and autocross. Try my hands at plasti-dipping a car, strip out an interior, etc. It's a blast, and I get more looks in the play cars, and more knowing car guy nods in the V70r; and I even get to still blast around in great handling FWD car fun in my Ford Fiesta that is the wife's and I's daily driver( Sedan because the wife hates hatchbacks.)

It's been a crazy journey from thinking I was a car guy, to becoming a true Jalop / Oppo car guy. Some say life gets in the way in regards to being a true enthusiast. I have been lucky in that my life has steered me in the direction it has.

Thanks for reading!

Ike is co-host of the Untitled Car Show ( untitledcarshow.podomatic.com ) he has owned 2 dodge challengers, a Volvo C30 / V70XC/ V70R / 740 and a Saturn Ion. He is a new father and loves driving and autocrossing. He can jerry rig with the best of them, and he wrote his bio in third person. He also has 2 dogs, 2 cats and is a crazy person some say!

jkm7680 > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:01

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OCD JUST KICKED IN YO.

Ike > jkm7680 04/12/2015 at 14:03

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yeah... Back of the c30...

LongbowMkII > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:06

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I want a V70R, but buying and installing the needed 3rd row jump seats just puts it past my comfort zone.

jkm7680 > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:06

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o.o haha. The Oppo sticker on the R seemed a bit crooked from the picture lol.

Ike > LongbowMkII 04/12/2015 at 14:06

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pretty easy install from what I've looked up. Parts are hard to come by cheap tho

Ike > jkm7680 04/12/2015 at 14:08

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it maybe, I threw it on there in a hurry, cause Ya know I needed the extra HP. I don't have a good eye for level

anon-sxmcyecofnu1eocpqsk9iq > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:11

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Always the stripes.

Ike > anon-sxmcyecofnu1eocpqsk9iq 04/12/2015 at 14:12

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Stripes make it go fast! Also stickers do to! Or have I been lied to?

LongbowMkII > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:14

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yeah, looked into the install and it wasn't scary, but xteen hundred dollars on a car that I'll likely need to travel hundreds of miles to inspect/buy really hurts the budget. So far I could only afford V70R's I probably won't want.

anon-sxmcyecofnu1eocpqsk9iq > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:14

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Race cars have lots of stickers/stripes and they go fast, so it must be true!

Ike > LongbowMkII 04/12/2015 at 14:16

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I called all the local volvo dealers and told them if any pasted though them to call me! I know there are still some notes up to call because I get calls every now and again.

Might be worth the effort, some show up in auctions and if a dealer knows it's got a sale built in they tend to like that

thebigbossyboss > jkm7680 04/12/2015 at 14:16

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I really like how Maryland License plates celebrate the war of 1812. :D

That would be the war where we British and a bunch of Natives came down and burned down the whitehouse.

Ike > anon-sxmcyecofnu1eocpqsk9iq 04/12/2015 at 14:17

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now it only needs a gaint gaudy wing and it will be set ( the 740, the V70R already has a Spolier)

LongbowMkII > Ike 04/12/2015 at 14:24

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Good idea. I'll keep that in mind.

wunderwagen wants a longer roof > Ike 04/12/2015 at 15:00

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I like your style. Wagon all the times!

Ike > wunderwagen wants a longer roof 04/12/2015 at 15:01

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Thanks! Yes hatch/wagon for the win!

Long Live the Longdoor > Ike 04/12/2015 at 16:12

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Um, ya, so, tell me EVERYTHING about the C30! I've been eyeballing some lately and am considering getting one as my next car. Did you have any issues with it? What was your mileage like? How was the manual? Where did you get the prancing moose stickers? I'm so excited someone on oppo had one!

Ike > Long Live the Longdoor 04/12/2015 at 17:07

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I think a few people have had one; but I can tell you you should get the engine torque mount upgrade from elevate, it makes the shifter great.

Uh mixed driving was around 27 mpg on the high end and 25 on the low end.

I didn't have pole star I hear it's amazing. And like I said I loved the handling of the R-design package, but man, it would kill Ya if you hit a bump.

The hatch is a little to small to be really useful. But still prefer it to a trunk IMHO

FromCanadaWithLove > Ike 04/14/2015 at 17:31

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You went from a Saturn Ion (the car I hate the most in the world, sorry about that), to a C30 and a V70R (two of the cars I love most in the world). You have all of my respect.