Cars? Yes, Yes I Do.
Well, for my second on scheduled post I thought I would give you a breakdown of my car history. Currently, I’m only on four, so it’s going to be short… but that suits me just fine, so it’s all good!
First up is my learning wagon, a very unique (as in less than 500 made) Alfa Romeo 155 Silverstone (1995). Pictured here in awesome racing livery, this was a successful touring car, winning several events around 93/94. I never had the Q4 version, but I would love one in my dream garage, they seem like great fun. Unfortunately mine was the front drive, which meant understeer, although I didn’t really get to push the limits of grip with ‘L’ plates on 
Next up was my faithful Rover 214SLi (1996) (yes, that was the top spec model… although, that’s like saying it’s a top spec toilet, it’s still not exactly a nice place to be) which my parents got for me because the Alfa was too fast… Damn. This wasn’t exactly a speed racer, although it would still move with that bullet proof 1.4l K-Series engine, and we had sooo many good times in that car it was worth it anyway.
Once the Rover started feeling a little slow I moved up (on my eighteenth birthday) to a BMW 520i 24V SE (1992). Incidentally, this was just after a little snafu at school, where the Headmaster’s letter home stated that my parents should reconsider the responsibility of me driving my own car to school…….. Mmmm, yeh, that went down well. Anyway, I loved the BMW, the rear wheel drive, the refinement, the size, the comfort, the fact that you could cruise at 80 all day long and it felt like rolling around town at 25. But it annoyed me everyday, with it’s complete lack of punch lower down the rev range, and the lack of an LSD. It was also monumentally wallow-y in the bends, and really didn’t feel sporty enough.
So after two years, I eventually ditched that and bought my latest toy, an Alfa Romeo 166 2.5 V6 Sportronic Lusso (2000). Yes, it’s my favorite so far, and yes, the names do keep getting longer and longer, but I absolutely love it. The Sportronic is basically a semi-automatic, so this thing is still fun to drive, but then can become an effortless cruiser around town or on the motorway. The exhaust note is bliss, the V6 purrs all the way up to 7000rpm and the shifts are just sporty enough to show this car means business. And the trim? Well it’s the highest spec car I’ve ever been in, let alone owned, what with built in Sat Nav, CD Autochanger, Climate, Cruise, Electric Pack (including windows, mirrors, seats), Heated Seats, Heated Screen, Heated Mirrors, Folding Mirrors, Remote Locking, Alarm etc. etc. etc. I love it! But, I’m probably going to be selling it soon, and then… hmm, not sure. Maybe I’ll get another one…. I like all the buttons.
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