Never give up! Never surrender!

Old bikes were 12-speed - two chainrings in front, 6 sprockets on a freewheel in back. Really old-school were 10-speed - two in front, 5 out back. Really, really old school had three-speed rear hubs. Really, really, really old school had a two-speed kick-back hub with a coaster brake.

If you want to get really pedantic, that would be a 12-speed cassette.

And still running today.

There are only four real vents, one to the left of the steering wheel, and three to the right. The section directly above the glovebox is nothing more than a fancy dust collector.

And this is exactly what I hated about my first Subaru. All those vents and none of them would point lower than my throat. I'm not fond of a cold breeze blowing in my face.

My wife's Explorer has rear sensors AND a rear camera with fancy little green/yellow/red bars that show you how close you are to removing the hood ornament from the car behind you. I discovered that the camera is indispensable for connecting a trailer - no more depending on the incomprehensible hand waving from a…

The picked the wrong song.

It really depends on your tolerance for the cost-of-repair/value-of-car ratio. I am seriously considering (well, my wife is seriously considering for me) scrapping my old truck since it has finally reached the point where the cost of repairs to pass inspection are greater than the value of the truck.

This guy:

Except in the USA you are far more likely to be shot by a cop than anyone else. Triple that if you are black.

In contrast to the WRX (lined with tarp to receive the camping gear):

This one was crazy, but not funny. We were traveling down a two-lane highway one afternoon when a kitten dropped out from under the truck coming the other way. I suspect it was hitching a ride either in the engine bay or on the driver's side front suspension since it slid out from between the front and rear tires. It…

Easy. It was when my uncle turned 16 and my grandmother (who was into cars) let him buy a 1970 Dodge Challenger in Plum Crazy. Then he started dating a girl with a '76 Firebird Formula One. I was a little guy, but I was always around when he was wrenching on the family cars - and that Challenger always needed some…

Nah. She's the one that has to drive it - all day, every day. If it makes her happy, then so be it.

Graphic isn't necessarily accurate or complete though. New Hampshire doesn't require emissions testing if your car is pre-1996.

When we were in the market for a new car for my wife, she really wanted a Buick Enclave. I found one for a fantastic price, so we went for a test drive. It didn't take long to figure out why the price was so low. Although everything looked clean, it was clear from the smell that someone had thrown up in the back and…

Here, let me Google that for you:

My first Subaru was an '83 GL Wagon which my mom graciously provided when I totaled my truck. She put new tires on it just before she gave it to me and that was the beginning of the nightmare. Within a year, every one of those tires failed, requiring multiple trips to the tire chain to get them replaced.

I drove the same truck for 18 years, so what was once "new" (I bought it used) now qualifies for antique plates. The best part about owning the same truck for so long is knowing what happened to it over the years, what repairs have been made (and which ones haven't), and where most of the cosmetic flaws came from. I…