How Cars Intertwine Into Our Lives

I have been wayy too busy looking up cars, as I have decided that I am in the market for a new car. My 2004 Dodge Neon SRT-4 has been great to me for almost 3 years. I love it, but have started falling out of love ever since I entertained the idea of something different.

Being from Australia, I am beyond obsessed with Holden's. I want a Pontiac GTO or G8, but cannot justify their high resale values so early in my professional career. With the new Chevy SS being released this past weekend, it takes a lot of temptation not to move into a cardboard box down by the river and just buy all 3! Here is a picture of the new Chevy SS to dream about:

I needed to look for a car that would still fit my car guy needs. Something with all-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive to make things fun. I have always loved Subaru WRX/STI's, but they are ridiculously expensive for how old they are (Not even counting the many miles they have been "hooned" by some lucky bastard). Being under the miraculous age of 25 for car insurance discounts, these Subaru's are not even an option.

My roommate has a sweet 99 Subaru Outback. It gets the job done when you need to get somewhere. I was invited on a Ski/Snowboarding trip up to Snowshoe, WV. I got the opportunity to take a ride in the Outback and see what it was made of.  From Charlottesville, it should take a little under 3 hours. Driving at night after a snowstorm takes closer to 5 hours to get there. Entering the Monongahela National Forest was all and well until our washer nozzles froze over. Not good when there is a ton of road salt everywhere to make looking out of the windshield hard. All of the gas stations along the way did not have those handy windshield cleaners available. There were paper towels available, so we had to scrub the windshield with a lone water bottle rolling on the floorboards. We could not use too much water because there was a limited supply, and if we left any extra water on the windshield it would freeze in a matter of seconds. The roads where super windy: an automotive dream if it wasn't night time, snowing, windy, and foggy.

A shot of where we arrived the following morning

Entering the West Virginia border made things exciting. There was a clear-cut line where there was absolutely no road salt or plowing. I had never been on a road that bad. The Subaru made it the whole way without a hiccup. When climbing up the final mountain to the resort, the visibility got cut down to 2 feet at most. We were in a cloud essentially. Without having to worry about our traction, we were able to focus our efforts on being safe and seeing our way up.

At the end of it all I had a great weekend with awesome views, thanks to that Subaru Outback for getting me there.

Nathan and the snow beast

View from the top of the slopes, looking down at a frozen lake

Long story short, I want a Subaru. I had completely overlooked the Legacy GT's. An STI with a more mature shell is a good description of one. I am hooked and want one bad. I still want a G8 badly, but some more things are going to have to change in my life. Playing the lottery more should do the trick.

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