That’s the Ganeshan family you see in these photos, and the little four-year-old is Sagar. I know him because, a while back, he cold-emailed me to ask how he could become an automotive engineer. I gave him my phone number, and we chatted about things he (someone who was a little self-conscious about his grades, though I told him they were fine) could do to get that dream job in the auto industry. I knew he’d pull it off, because I could hear the passion in his voice, and he was clearly a smart dude; I’m pleased to hear that he has scored a job at a major OEM, and he did it all on his own by just being resourceful and by communicating his love for cars! Anyway, that’s not the point of the story. The point of this story is: Look at these photos!
The first one is from 2004, and shows Sagar and his parents, who traded in a 1993 Geo Prizm for that minivan, as they were expecting a second son. As you can see, that second son came, and sprouted up big and tall, just like Sagar, whom his father probably would not enjoy holding up like he did back in 2004. As for the Honda Odyssey: The thing looks fantastic after all these years!
“Bought brand new in sept 2004. I was crying when parents bought it because I wanted the EX trim with the power doors,” Sagar told me over Facebook Messenger. “Been reliable all these years. One time it stranded us was when starter broke,” he continued, saying his family has put over 150,000 miles on it with only that single significant issue. I asked how it felt to finally let it go. “Bittersweet,” he said. “But the car wasn’t being driven at all these days and we had too many cars in the driveway. So a bit of relief.” He went on: “Def some fun memories in that thing. But it did its duty for 18 years. Only person it ever stranded was me .” Here’s a picture of that incident: Side note: being something of a superannuated flatus, I remember when the Honda Odyssey was a go-kart type of thing like we see in this brochure: https://www.ebay.com/itm/362653173754 I see a beige people mover, that family saw a long time vehicle with special meaning. It is not the vehicle but the passion behind it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJ_euljNc38 Over the years we put 300k on it, driving all over the US west on family trips. The Honda was super reliable, only ever needing a radiator, alternator, starter, and brakes (all stuff I could replace myself) outside of normal maintenance. My son learned to drive in the car, and is still driving it today. We’ll finally retire the Pilot this spring, and get something more fuel efficient for college next year. It’s often said that a car is the second biggest financial purchase after a home (that’s always debatable), but even for a layman who uses their car to go from A to B and even C, that’s exactly what makes cars special: the ability to give you freedom. Quick escapes. Efficiency in movement. And then add every other emotional element such as design and performance/handling which just adds another level for any enthusiast. There are reasons I salivate over Alfas and dream of a GTV6, and not over Camrys and Corollas. But for hypothetical Linda, any reliable car gives her more freedom of movement and an ability to earn a (better) paycheck and carry her kids and all that. And what is worth more than freedom? My family thinks I’m strange for so meticulously keeping up my 17 year old car, but I’d like to think it’ll be a future classic :p Hell, I have more photos of cars I owned briefly than I do photos of our first home we lived in for a decade! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK_XWH7Ryd4 https://youtu.be/pxhzz4wkKeU Not saying that any of those other hobbies are bad, not saying that you need to jump into cars with both feet (although if you’re reading this, you probably already have,) just saying that its a beautiful thing to be able to see someone in the weirdness that the world has become and be able to instantly connect with them on some level. I was not taught mechanical skills growing up and smile and nod politely at many of the more technical discussions here. I definitely feel like an imposter sometimes, and not a worthy gearhead. That’s probably why I landed here, because of in particular Jason’s approach- cars as art, the tactile feel of chewing on various rubber or vinyl bits, etc. There are so many ways to be an enthusiast. I keep reminding myself I don’t need to be able to rebuild an engine to appreciate things. Gearheads come in all shapes and sizes, interests, knowledge levels, and personalities. I view the gatekeeping as insecurity-based jackassery from people who should shut their word holes. You are worthy as anyone else of being a gearhead. Go for it. 🙂 There’s already enough in this world that divides us. Knowledge isn’t linked to interest. I’d rather chat to someone who loves a car they know nothing about than someone with technical knowledge no enthusiasm. The thing that makes me an enthusiast is that I love cars, and I loved them way before I could give boring lectures on camshaft heat treatments. Also no one wants to hear about camshaft heat treatments.
