I suspect most people who remember their parents’ cars don’t think of them with any particular fondness beyond nostalgia for happy times spent in them (or vivid memories of the time the dog threw up halfway through the four-hour trip to Nana’s, that sort of thing), and may not even recall what the cars were, even if the memories of sitting in the wagon’s way-back are otherwise indelible. And while encountering a car from childhood might earn a wistful “My Mom had one of those,” an ordinary person probably isn’t hot to acquire the blast from the past.
However, we are not ordinary people, and I suspect many of you would love to own cars that were once your parents’ daily drivers. I know I sure would, and I’m not even talking about Dad’s Volkswagens squareback and Beetle, MG Midget, or Datsun 280Z – or Mom’s Jeep J10 Thriftside, for that matter, though I loved all those cars.
Spacer
No, the one car I would most like to have from my days as a passenger would be my Dad’s 1986 Nissan Maxima, which was exactly like the one Doug dives into here:
I have fond memories of this car seeming like the peak of luxury and technology for 1986, but nostalgia aside, I just plain love it. I really miss the crisply-folded era of 1980s styling, and this generation’s straight lines and slab sides really do it for me, not to mention those wheels.
In a very close second, there’s Dad’s 1982 Celica notchback, seen here in a brochure pic:
I actually prefer the look of the “regular” Celica as above over the puffed-up GT, and I like the notchback better than the hatch bodystyle. You may disagree!
Mark Tucker piped in with his own reply to today’s Ask, replying, “Oh, I have a great answer for that AA: my dad’s Fiat 128 sedan. I’ve written about it on Opposite Lock.”
Yeah, that’s hot.
Your turn:
What Car Did A Parent Have When You Were A Kid That You’d Love To Have Now?
Top graphic image: Nissan
One is the ’89 Grand Wagoneer my mom bought, that I’m now restoring and should be driving sometime this year. The other is the ’90 Isuzu Trooper my parents bought new. It wasn’t fast or super fuel efficient, but something about that vehicle was just fun. I miss the “Izzy” 🙁
I’ve already inherited my Mom’s ’75 Bronco (she traded her ’68 Camaro in for it) so I guess even though it’s not a car, I wish I had my Dad’s long lost ’74 Kawasaki H2 750 .
Oh, we had many interesting cars parked in our garage. 1985 Honda CRX, the 1983 Volvo 240 DL, the 1992 Mazda B2600i (though technically I was a college age adult when that joined the fleet). But the one I’d probably want the most right now was the 1971 Toyota Land Cruiser (FJ40).
2000 Honda Civic Si. I don’t think combustion cars got much better than this. I had one much later in much worse condition but I remember my father’s when it was new for just how easy it was to drive.
I’d take the manual ’06 Rubicon LJ and maybe a 1984 Cavalier Hatchback.
My mom had a 90s Cherokee in white that I got locked in as a toddler and had to have the fire department cut me out. That would definitely be a nice car to have, especially for winter. Though if I could have the choice of any, it would be her 66 drop-top Mustang she restored with her dad sometime in the 80s for her first car. That would be real nice as well.
My mom had a 60 series land cruiser with the round headlights. It had been my uncle’s, who had painted it a very tasteful pearlescent light blue. The rear door hydraulic strut failed so we had a trusty hardwood stick that kept it open. Sadly it got stolen when i was like 10. She also had a Citroen 2CV when i was a toddler. It was painted two tone Wine red and black. That didn’t last long and was more of a curiosity. The brakes failed a couple times lol.
My dad had a Mini in the 70s. I don’t know if it was a Mini cooper but i like to imagine it was the full mr bean spec. He also had a VW Bus at some point.
Frankly i like all those options, but none of them is a dedicated sports car, which i feel i would need in an ideal three car garage.