Car Wars Episode IV - A New Scope‏

That's probably the best blog post title I will EVER have. I regret that this post is NOT going to live up to it. But, since this is the bonus episode of the trilogy, I must say, "May the FOURTH be with you!"

The tan Taurus was the first car I bought on my own. (Technically, the Dasher was in my Mom's name). It was the best car I could get for $150 a month. It was only a couple of years old, and had been in a rental fleet. The car had plenty of interior room, a roomy trunk, and a sluggish 4 cylinder engine that made me scream at it every day for handling like a drunken hog. But it made up for its poor performance by having crappy gas mileage. Ah, Detroit steel.

But, it was the first car to have my SCOPE 65 plates.

My stint with the Taurus didn't last long, about 3 years before its life as a rental came back to haunt it. The transmission went to hell, and the national transmission repair shop wanted an arm and a leg to fix it. Not a chance. The owner said that he would fix it for a third the cost, but it would only have a 90 day warranty good at his shop only. My choice was him or Victory Auto Wreckers, so I spent the money to get the car fixed up enough to drive, and I drove it to my Accura dealer and traded it in on a NEW '91 Integra. (I had some extra cash laying around for the down payment. It was going to go toward an engagement ring, but my girlfriend decided to become my eX-GirlFriend, rendering that issue was moot). Yes, that car was supposed to be a modern take on the Dasher in my mind.

And it lasted 10 years, and I still miss it. The XGF? Not so much.