52 Weeks of Personal Genealogy & History - Week #3: Cars

This is the third challenge in a weekly series from GeneaBloggers called 52 weeks of personal genealogy history.

Week 3: Cars. What was your first car? Describe the make, model and color, but also any memories you have of the vehicle. You can also expand on this topic and describe the car(s) your parents drove and any childhood memories attached to it.

My first car was a blue two-door 1971 Chevy Malibu. I was in college at FSU, but often traveled home to Central Florida. I talked my Dad into letting me buy a car with the money I'd made over the summer in 1977. and he agreed on the condition that he got to approve the car. We headed off to a used car lot and came home with the '71 Malibu for a grand total of around $700!

The previous owners had lived up north and while the V8 engine was still great, it had a lot of rust on the body from snow and ice. No problem according to my Dad! We'll take the vinyl roof off, patch the rust and repaint it. This became a family project as my Mom, Dad, sister, and I all worked on the car. The result?

Well.... Not so great! The patching wasn't smooth and lumps of bondo could still be seen on the sides. I tried to match its original blue color, but when the color went on it was a bright neon blue. It was certainly unique!!  It got me through the last 2 years of college and the first 2 years after I started working. Finally, the body was leaking so bad, I decided it was time to trade it in. The last winter I had the Malibu, I had to scrape ice off of the inside of the windows!! I traded it in for a shiny new Toyota Corolla. The dealer had someone interested in the V8 engine, so I've often wondered if the Malibu is still on the road in some form.

I regret that I don't have any pictures of my cars over the years. Here's a photo of a similar Malibu for sale right now. Just picture it a much brighter blue with lumps on the side!

1971 Chevy Malibu