I’ve owned many cars since I started driving in 1986. Two of those cars could possibly qualify as my favorites. The first was my 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee and the second is my 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee was red with a camel interior and was fully loaded. It even had a CD player which was just starting to be an option at the time. The gas mileage was pretty good for an SUV. I averaged around 20 miles per gallon. What made this car so special was it was the only SUV that I have ever driven that handled like a sports car. I love sports cars. The Jeep could handle turns with ease and stop on a dime. It also had a lot more room than my previous car. That was a mixed blessing. I tend to leave a lot of things in my cars and with all the extra room it could be a pain to clean out. But I did love the freedom of being able to pretty much go anywhere. Sometimes I would take odd shortcuts just because I was in a vehicle that could handle it. Like the time I needed to get across a rather rough patch of terrain, a lane divider and some construction work to get to where I wanted to be; I think I got there a good 20 minutes earlier than I would have if I’d taken the actual road.
Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and that was true of the Jeep as well. It met an early demise after only 3 years. I was hit by a drunk driver on black ice. I rolled down an embankment and into a tree. The Jeep was totaled but I walked away. The emergency crew said at the time that had I been driving any other type of car that I probably wouldn’t have survived; I definitely wouldn’t have walked away.
The other car that makes my list in my current vehicle; the one I intend to upgrade soon. It’s a 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse. It’s dark grey with a light grey interior. It’s also fully loaded and even has a moon roof. For those who don’t know the difference between a sun roof and a moon roof, the sun roof is operated manually while the moon roof is electric. My gas mileage is good and certainly better than the Jeep at around 25 miles per gallon. With gas prices being what they currently are, every little bit helps. The Eclipse has also been easy on repairs. Over the course of its life I have had to put in less than $500 in repairs. One odd issue is that it seems to go through a lot of thermostats. It’s not a problem because I can easily replace them myself for around $10. It goes through brake pads pretty quick too but that’s my fault. I’m rough on brakes. I also can’t store as much in the car so it stays cleaner.
The Mitsubishi Eclipse wins the day by a nose. I favor sports cars and that is why it inches out the Jeep. I actually like the Eclipse so much that I invited the man who sold it to me into my family. $ years after I purchased the car my oldest married his son.
