I hate buying cars. I recently bought a new (to me) car. It's a used Toyota. Toyotas are said to be dependable. Good. Because that should mean I won't have to buy another car for a long, long time.
The problem, of course, is money. I'm a cheap guy, I admit. A friend tells me I need to open my wallet occasionally, just to let the moths out.
But there is an even bigger hurdle that makes shelling out for a car so painful for me.
It's this: motorcycles are so much cheaper.
Especially Royal Enfield motorcycles. Especially the new ones.
And, if you live in Florida, as I do, you can get anywhere you want to go on a motorcycle, all year 'round. I don't even remember what it is like to turn on the "heat" in a car.
Sure, it rains it rains in Florida. (I enjoy riding in the rain, as long as it's not a hurricane.)
I can't bring home a Christmas tree on my Royal Enfield motorcycle. But Christmas only comes once a year.
You know what I notice most about my "new" car? It's full of "features." Safety features, sure, I love those.
Having a back-up camera will be nice. (Has anyone else noticed that the back-up camera, being on the dashboard, can't be seen when you turn your head to look out the back window, as you still must do? I think the back-up camera screen ought to be on the rear package shelf, where its wider field of vision might be a help.)
In context, my Royal Enfield motorcycle, of course, doesn't even have a reverse gear. If it's going to back up it's because I'm (slowly) pushing it backwards. No back-up camera needed.
Most of the features of my "new" car are fundamentally entertainment features. How many speakers are there? Six? All to keep me amused because driving a car is, basically, a bore.
In fact, some of the safety features are there to keep the car in its lane if I get so bored I stop paying attention.
Riding a motorcycle is never boring. You'd better pay attention.
The new automotive technology is amazing (and amazingly expensive, of course).
My "new" Toyota has an eight-speed gearbox. This car replaces my previous Toyota, which had six speeds (and I thought that was a lot). The goal of having more gears is saving gas.
For miles per gallon, my "new" car still won't touch my vintage Royal Enfield motorcycle.
Someday, late model cars may catch up with all the advantages of my 25-year-old Royal Enfield.
But, my gosh, what will they cost then?
My Toyota Yaris Verso, 4 speed auto gearbox, is 18 years old. Still going strong. I'm 84 and hope it will last me out. Finding motorcycles getting increasingly heavy (yes, even Enfield Bullets) I am now onto the lightest one I can find - a 2020 Honda 125cc Super Cub (108 kgs). my 60th bike and not to be compared with the BMW R100 I rode and loved for 27 years - but it keeps me on two wheels.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually a car guy first, over motorcycles. I have no interest in new cars though. My 2006 Mustang will hopefully be the newest car I own for my remaining years. My current car project is a 1966 Ford Falcon, a car very similar in intent to a original Bullet. No frills. Easy to work on. Cheap parts. Also, meager power with it's six cylinder. It's dependable and fun. And cost about as much as a new Meteor.
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