I’m Gen X.  I have a long list of cars I’d like to have dating back to the early 1900s but I’m tiring of  the same muscle cars everyone else has and now at the top of my list are several Japanese sports/gt cars that I couldn’t afford new as a young man.  I think people buy further down their list after they satisfy their youthful desires or when they realize like I have that the top of the list is already getting unaffordable.   I don’t mind bidding but the current systems are incredibly frustrating.  It’s always a seven day auction, the seller “never” replies until there’s only three or four days left making it impossible to take off work to travel or arrange a 3rd party inspection in time.  I don’t mind paying top dollar but I’m not a high-stakes gambler.  I bought a 68 Mustang through an online auction but it was local and the seller replied quickly.  I wish they’d all do at least two weeks or month but that’s long enough to discover the hidden flaws.  Most that I’ve managed to actually inspect or have inspected has needed expensive work that wasn’t obvious in the photos and videos. ... View more

McPherson College.  When I was in high school, I thought fixing up old cars was just something guys did on the weekend for a hobby.  I had no idea there was any real money in it.  I too was brainwashed into believing that the only way to get ahead was to get advanced degree and work in an office.  I've made a little money and have bought and restored a few cars, but otherwise have been miserable five days a week for 30+ years.  You get so far in and its hard to go back and start all over again, especially if it means sweeping the shop floors.  I wish I had known when I was young.  Lucas is lucky that today there's an internet and professional video programs of Pebble Beach on satellite tv.  We had magazines back then but as I recall the articles were about the cars and not about the careers and businesses built to take advantage of a rich man's hobby.  ... View more

What to impress upon Lucas' mom is that far, far safer than any airbag is a car that the kid buys with his own money and spends time working on every day for a year or two to get it on the road. She buys him a typical late model first car and he'll assume there's another one where that came from if he wrecks it or puts off doing the timing belt. He makes 20,000 submarine sandwiches and then rebuilds an old car himself and he's not going to take ANY chances with it. ... View more

If you are strong enough to keep from falling out of your chair, search for a Tyson Toyota TV commercial titled "Musk Oil and Long Pants".   It's got to be one of his best.  Bonus, it features a 1984 Supra.  ... View more

I bought an 07, the oridgelinal, brand new and still have it.  I wasn't going to consider them but my cousin was a Honda Technician.  He bought one of the early 06's and convinced me to check it out.  It pulls my Corvette on a trailer no problem with the electric trailer brakes.  Of course Texas is pretty flat.  Don't think I'd want to haul it over the Rockies with the Ridgeline.  I loaded a full 1,100 lbs of floor tile and grout in back and thought the "trunk lid" was going to break as the forklift kept going down and down and down, but it handled it just fine.   I'd previously bought new Ford and GMC half tons, but then I went to an SUV, a Toyota Landcruiser which I loved except the most frustrating thing about it was having to so carefully package and wrap every greasy car part I wanted to bring home from the swap meet to avoid soiling the luxury interior.  That's where the Ridgeline shines.  And I love the side swing tailgate which makes loading heavy items much easier by not having to lift them past the tailgate.   I haven't driven the new Ridgeline, but I sat in one at the new car show and immediately realized they'd ruined it in at least one way.  The back seat on the new one is straight vertical and absolutely miserable.  The original has a slight bit of recline to the back seat and is reasonably comfortable.  Styling is subjective, but the new one doesn't look bad.  They just sacrificed the bulky, boxy, more masculine appearance for traditional side loading capability.   But with only 75K miles on mine, I guess I won't be shopping the new ones anytime soon.  My cousin's is now at 270K trouble free miles so I got almost 200K to go. ... View more