Farewell, Rosie

I was going to make the first post about the name of the blog, because "Florian and Guliko" probably needs some explaining. But my 1989 Toyota Cressida, nicknamed both "The Red Wonder" and "Rosie" blew a head gasket a few weeks ago. In a newer car, perhaps this would just be a minor inconvenience. Okay, a major inconvenience, if you're not a mechanic, because the fix for a head gasket is a $1500-$2000 repair that requires taking the top of the engine off and some work in the machine shop to make sure everything works okay and then resealing the stupid thing. And that's if the overheating of the engine and the mixing of the oil and engine coolant that happens when the head gasket blows didn't cause any damage.

But the Red Wonder is a 1989 and I just put $2000 dollars into the car in September. So it's tough to justify putting that much money in again, in the hopes of getting another 8 or 10 months out before another major fail. So there she sat at the mechanic's. And, of course, good luck selling a car that doesn't have an operational engine. Finally, I decided that I probably should just junk her, much as it pained me, and get what I could, which turned out to be about $140. When I called the mechanic to tell them my decision, one of the guys at the shop told me he would buy it off me, for $100 plus the diagnostic (about $87). So that's more than the junker would have given me and he clearly was interested in fixing it up.

Then I discovered that I had no idea where the title was, which required some negotiation with my mother to acquire. Anyway, we (the "we" will require explanation later, as well) went over yesterday morning with the title to get the stuff out of the car and sign over the title. Which took less than 10 minutes. Kind of a disappointing end for a vehicle I've owned for 10 years.

I bought the car for $6000 in July of 2000, from a white-haired woman who had driven it only to the store and back. The Cressida was Toyota's luxury car in 1989 (think Lexus before there was Lexus) and its somewhat faded leather interior and 6-cylinder engine quickly endeared her to me. Plus, I've always been a sucker for boxy old-school Toyotas.

We had a rocky relationship from the start. There was an overheating incident and the one where the cruise control got stuck accelerating,but overall she got me where I needed to for 10 years. So tonight, I'm drinking Redbreast whiskey to you, Rosie. Happy trails.