Sunday, October 4, 2015

Paddle Shifters, Baby!


Bought myself a new car. Never figured I buy a foreign car, unless it was the Jaguar of my dreams, but I've got a Hyundai Veloster. I took the Clown Car into the Ford dealer again for another software update for the transmission and when it came back it still wasn't what I'd call good. I usually buy a car and then keep them for at least ten years. I wasn't going to put up with the shuddering transmission for another 8-1/2. Just wasn't feeling the love anymore. 


I got the turbo version for a few more horses. I've been looking for something a little sportier than the Ford but I didn't want a bigger car like the Mustang. I was waiting on a phone call to test drive a Miata but after taking the Ford in again I threw in the towel and decided it was time to buy something else. I didn't want to spend too much money and have a car payment influencing my decision to keep working or not. This thing is kind of the middle path on sporty/inexpensive. What I would have liked to buy was a small pick-up like my old Dakota. Four cylinder, five speed and an eight foot bed. I drove it to Daytona a couple of times with a bike and tools in the back. You had to hit the big hills down south with a head of steam but around here on the flat, it was the perfect vehicle for me. Since no-one makes anything like that anymore, I bought a little toy sports-car instead.

It's got all the bells and whistles - electronic everything, sunroof, and cool-ass paddle shifters. If I can keep my foot out of the throttle, it should get around 30 mpg. Best warranty of any car in America - so I've got that going for me. I had a couple of uncles that fought in Korea. I figure if they went to war for South Korea, won't hurt for me to buy a car from there. Time will tell, however.


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