One of the great things about getting a new car is showing it off to all your friends. One of the interesting things about the Daewoo Lanos I got is that it's the only time I've ever had a model year to coincide with what year it really was. It was a 1999 model and this was 1999. I hadn't even owned a car that was made in the same decade since my first car in 1979. (The Pontiac LeMans Sport was a 1972 model).
With my previous car, I spent a lot of time at the mechanic's. There was an auto shop called Miguel's in the Golden Hill area of San Diego. Any time I needed some simple repairs, I would go there because they were a lot less expensive than most other shops in town. A friend of mine named Gleez lived nearby and she would often see me waiting for the bus after I'd dropped off the car there.
After getting the new car, I went to a party that she happened to be at. She saw me and asked, "So, Fayd, have you been to Miguel's lately?" She added a little laugh. I said, "Well..." Then she said, "OH, MY GOD! YOU GOT A NEW CAR!" "Why, yes, I did!" "OH, MY GOD! LET ME SEE IT!"
I was parked just outside the house and took her to it. She gasped when she saw it. She swooned over how nice the interior looked. I swear that she was more excited about the car than I was, almost like she had won it on a game show.
I also drove to Downtown San Diego, where Promotee had a regular weekly gig at a restaurant/club. She and Promoter came out to see it. They were also excited about it. (I should add that they once gave me a ride home after one of the shows a few weeks prior.)
I also called up Thoz. I hadn't talked to her in about six months, since my car started acting up. At the time I last had contact with her, she had just met some guy and was starting a relationship. When I called, she sounded excited to hear from me. I asked her if I could come see her. I had something to show her.
I showed up at her apartment. She was surprised to see me with my new haircut. I asked her to come outside because I wanted to show her my new car. While we walked to where I parked, she told me that she was still seeing the same guy from six months prior and she thought it was going to lead to marriage. I was happy for her.
She was impressed with the car. I asked her if she wanted to go for a ride. She said no, she was cooking something and her boyfriend probably wouldn't like that, which was fine. I didn't realize it, but that would be the last time I would see Thoz. But we still remain in contact through Facebook.
One night, Abed and I went to see one of Ferd's music projects playing at Java Joe's in Ocean Beach. Somehow, I had managed to snag one of the two parking spots right out in front. After the performance, I showed Ferd the car. He said he had been outside and seen it earlier. He thought at the time it was a really nice-looking car, but he had NO IDEA it was mine. He was impressed!
In yesterday's post, I mentioned how I was going to drive to New Mexico and surprise my parents with the car. I didn't get to do that. About a month after I bought the car, Mom called me up and ask if I'd gotten a new car. I confirmed it, but asked her how she found out about that. She said Dad learned about it from the credit union. I wondered why the credit union told him. Mom later complained to the credit union about it and was initially told that Dad had to co-sign the loan. Then, the credit union president said it was a mistake and that he hadn't co-signed it. It turned out that Dad happened to be at the credit union the day everything was going through and he saw the paperwork. This means when I called him to see if he would be home a particular weekend and he asked me about my car, he already knew I'd purchased a new one. When I talked to him, he said he was proud that I was able to do that without any assistance from him.
I now need to address the fact that I bought a Daewoo. Yes, it has a reputation as being a terrible car, but I found that was not the case with mine. It appears that the 1999 models were very well-built. I drove mine for 9 1/2 years before I had to sell it. I had very few problems during that time. The worst things that happened (aside from accidents) were that the water pump went out, I had to replace the catalytic converter when it didn't pass the smog test and the "Check Engine" light would start flashing if I went over 70 mph. I was able to get all of those fixed.
People I know who bought the 2000 and later models were the ones who suffered the majority of the issues associated with Daewoos. I was very glad that I got on the ground floor. I also got to use all of the warranty-based service while the dealership was in operation. After I hit 36,000 miles, the dealership closed and the service center got sent out to two different locations in San Diego before permanently closing. When I moved to San Jose, that service center remained open until 2008. The last time I got my oil changed there, I was told I would have to buy and bring in the filter myself.
It was very hard for me to give up my car, but I have to admit it was slowly falling apart. The paneling that covered the window on the rear driver's side door started breaking off, which meant that you could hear the wind coming in the window whenever you drove on the highway. I also did an emissions test before I sold it and it barely passed. Another couple of months, I would have had to get the catalytic converter replaced again, and that almost didn't happen the last time because the shop had to find the parts through junkyards.
The good thing about the bad reputation Daewoos received was that I never feared that someone would steal my car.
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