Those aren’t the motorized mouse belts, at least. They’re just the connected-to-the-door kind. If you want, you can unbuckle them from the door every time you get in and out, but then you have to fasten the shoulder belt and the lap belt separately. Annoying, but nowhere near the caliber of stupidity and frustration…

Was literally just about to post this. Avalon or high-end Camry, and get your excitement somewhere else.

“If the women don’t find ya handsome, they should at least find ya handy...”

It’s my experience that there’s only one reason a single guy suddenly starts cleaning up his act. So what’s her name?

Fun fact: my dad’s ‘92 SHO was the car I have driven the fastest in: 135mph. Steady as a rock. Should have bought that car from him when he offered it to me...

No thanks. I’d rather go buy an imported Honda Beat for half (or less).

Taking away the clutch pedal makes it even less interesting to me. I’d sooner drive an old Mustang II with a four-speed. I’d have a lot more fun with that. Big horsepower is absolutely meaningless to me. But hey, different strokes for different folks...

Pretty much any German car made after the late ‘80s. Once they started getting complicated and blobby, I stopped caring.

Hell, they probably got it thrown in with some other deal for free, from some estate auction.

I actually love seeing these time-capsule sort of cars, and I’d consider buying one to acually drive, and there are worse choices than a stickshift Escort, but... eleven grand? You outta your mind?

Asn an American, I only know this car from Midsomer Murders, but I always thought it was a great-looking car.

This is an SC, not an Ion. I owned one for a couple of years. It was... OK, I guess. Handling was awful for such a small car, very nose-heavy and vague. Shift linkage felt like a punishment. And it never did get the kind of gas mileage everyone said it would. But it was reliable, at least.

A PT Cruiser is just a Neon station wagon. Get one with a stick and it’s just fine. The only issue is that dumb hood/fender design must make service/repair a pain in the ass. They should have made the whole thing open like a clamshell, like the Minis.

I already did my “get off my lawn” post about this, so I’ll just link to it here...

We had one of these for eight years. Bought it with 136k, sold it for next to nothing with 193k when it wouldn’t pass emissions. In between, it was a nice vehicle, but it always seemed to have something wrong.

Good for you! My grandpa had a pilot’s license, and his own Cessna 170 (like a 172, but a tail-dragger). My dad was working on his license, but life happened, and now I doubt he’ll ever get back to it. But being around their “airplane friends” has gotten me a few rides over the years, most memorably in a Stearman…

Great, thanks for THAT earworm... I don’t even have to click on the video.

This is exactly what I was going to say. An automaker deciding that a certain number of deaths from accidents are “acceptable” because the lawsuits are cheaper than fixing the problem is absolutely sociopathic behavior. And a manufacturer cheating on emissions tests is reprehensible. Both Ford and VW probably should…

Notice I said nothing about power or torque handling capabilities; only longevity and durability. On average, not counting anecdotes or outliers, manual gearboxes still last more miles before needing an overhaul than automatics, and cost a whole lot less to overhaul when it is needed, and if you’re buying an old truck…

It’s a chore, no doubt, but there are definitely some advantages. Control, for one; you get a lot better engine-braking going downhill with a load with a manual. And a low-speed “granny” gear is a wonderful thing to have for inching around. Durability is also a factor; automatics are getting better, but they still…