Here Are The Cars You Learned To Drive In

That car is now dead. Engine shaking terribly. Died the exact moment it pulled into the dealership parking lot to get a new civic. That car was something- I remember it plowing through the snow with ease, passing lifted trucks that were stuck. Had a lot of great memories with it.

Too much money to fix that car at the time. It was an engine overhaul and was about 3k to fix. Didn’t have that kind of money. If I had today’s money that car would still be with me.

...with broken radio and nonfunctioning AC. It WAS maroon but more of a faded pink/salmon by the time I got it. That thing ripped, I wish I had one now.

A very beat up one of these. A 1956 Ford F100 with a transplanted Oldsmobile V8 and a four-speed manual. It was not a hot rod. It was my grandfather’s farm truck and my dad did the engine swap when he was a teen. It was this color except for the rusty patches here and there.

Nothing like a gutless four banger with a slush box to inspire confidence the first time I got on a highway.

I had hoped to learn on my dad’s 1976 F100 with 3 on the tree but it got totaled by an MG before I came of age.

My dad made me turn off the car at the bottom of a hill with cars behind. I had to restart it and not stall out trying to get up that hill.

Enjoy driving manuals to this day!

Loved that car it was nearly indestructible. The AWD in it was amazing. I took that car places I’d be afraid to in a Jeep or Subaru. Unfortunately these Pacifica rotted into the ground. I’d gladly buy one if I could find a clean one.

Made a whopping 125hp from an inline 4. Was great for carrying all my dumb high school friends around and doing hooligan stuff. Only 2 problems: 1) the steering was broken and basically couldn’t make right turns. 2) it would stall out if you tried to turn left. Fun times! It also had a radiator leak that I couldn’t figure out so I would carry large water jugs and tell my friends the car was steam-powered.

It was a boat to learn parallel parking in but looking back I now appreciate the size and how comfortable is was. Was reliable except something with the steering would go out constantly.

1977 Ford Granada 4-door. Saddle brown, with the V8. Plastic bench seats (my father was big on deleting standard features for cheaper options). AM-only radio. It felt like the cheapest thing ever, until my dad got a 78 Fairmont the following year, wherein he deleted the cigarette lighter.

This is how we find out how old everyone is.

Me? 1987 Plymouth Reliant. I’m kinda surprised there were 60+ comments here and none were a K car.

Yes, this isn’t the Plymouth, but they all kinda looked the same.

It’s weird…they’re boxier than I remember them being.

1990 Chevy Cavalier Z24 with the Hydramatic THM-125 3-speed automatic. I only had my dad’s AE82 Corolla sedan to compare it to. The Chevy had more power, better ergonomics and handling, and a thicker, sportier steering wheel. But beyond that, the transmission was poor, and there were a lot of parts inside and out that I identified as 1970s in origin.

And it did the job. It even had a car speakerphone so my instructor could call her hubby. This was May 1990, and I remember being taught correctly in the small towns between Brockton and Scituate, Massachusetts, as well as a couple of billboards promoting a new summer movie called Total Recall. Movie billboards seemed novel that summer in the East.

1983 Datsun Vanette in white. It was a work vehicle for my Dad but since I was 9yrs old I used to practice driving it in the yard. Column stick-shift and 1.5ltr. Many fun memories with friends and I rolling around in the back as he drove through the twisty roads and over potholes. Doesn’t sound safe but we made it out alive :)

When I was 14 I started taking my dads 1992 Mercury Capri XR turbo out to teach myself how to drive when I would get home from school and nobody was home. We lived in the country so I justified it because nobody else was on the road. Loved that thing! Tried to talk him into a Viper but he came home with the XR2, oh well. Godo times.

A 1984 Subaru GL 4x4 Wagon. Also the car I learned to drive manual on. The car also came with me to college. Darn thing got me into a bit of trouble for taking it in a couple unpaved trails roads in and around campus. Lost my on campus parking privilege’s for the remainder of the semester. Hoofing it between buildings wasn’t so fun for a while.