[evil_grin]

Is it the first one? The one that set the baseline for all the others? The one that you cannot forget?

Or was the first one a bad choice? One that became a clunker too fast or was too cheap a car to love for long. And it made clear what you wanted from a car. And you then bought the "right" one.

Or have you been upgrading segments every time such that your most recent steed is your favourite. At least until the next one arrives?

For me, it was my first one. Most people's first cars are Ambassadors/Padminis/Maruti 800 if it was in the 90's or WagonR/Swift/Indica if it was in the 00's. I was fortunate to grab a lease transfer on a 2 year old 2010 Honda City as my first car. I absolutely adore it. Even more than the Octavia 1.8 I bought last year. Either it's the "first is special" effect or I need to spend many more years with the newer car.

What about you? Which one of the cars you owned was your favourite?

[itsashishsharma]

My 2015 Ford Fiesta TDCi (remapped). The handling prowess can't be matched by any other car south of the 3er and the remap has provided the much needed power.
Previously I and my father have owned an 800, an Esteem, a Palio, the original Baleno, 1st gen Swift k series 1.2 and a Tata Zest.
The Fiesta is the best car to drive. Though the cars listed above, all of them, hold a special place in my heart, but the Fiesta is the love of my life, if you know what I mean.

[andafunda]

I bought my first car in my early twenties - will never forget the sweet, sweet ride of the Ford Fiesta 1.4 LXi (Sam Seaborn). It gave me a lot of problems at the end, but it was always a pleasure to drive it around town and on impromptu trips to the ghats. It was truly a great handling car. I was an investment banker then so coming back home at 2am every night on empty Mumbai roads was an absolute joy. I wish I owned it after Ford fixed their service issues in India! Drove it for 40K odd KM.

Here's Sam on its last day with me (December 26, 2014)



My second car was a Skoda Rapid 1.5 TDI Elegance (Josh Lyman). Good car, relatively niggle free, far safer than the Fiesta, had more features, but I never connected with it emotionally like I did with the Fiesta. I guess it was the Skoda after-sales service and the ever-hanging sword of expensive repairs and rip-offs by Autobahn Mumbai that let me down. The handling (for my driving style) wasn't as good as that of my Fiesta. But, Josh served me well. Drove it for 25K KM.

Here's Josh on its last day with me (September 21, 2020)



Getting my next car (Toby Ziegler) in 15 days. Let's hope this one excites me even more!

(As you may have figured, I'm a West Wing fan.)

[Researcher]

Voted for the 'First one that I bought'.

I still own my first car since 2017 and it has been quite a good experience, from the frantic search on portals for a car till almost hitting the 6 digit milestone now. I was lucky that it ticked most of my boxes and had been looked after well prior to my ownership. Starting from my (ex)bicycle, then my (ex)scooter and now my car, all have been pre-owned till now.So with every ownership, mistakes were made and things were learnt. The emotional attachment to the first purchase is something I think I will not be able to replicate with subsequent ones, if the ownership history of my phones are anything to go by. Maybe its the repetition or the age catching up with me that teaches me to let go rather than hold on.
Buying pre-owned takes it to a slightly higher level of connect. There will be minor issues and niggles every now and then, which will initiate that chase to resolve them and achieve perfection. Your mechanic becomes a good friend and teaches you a lot of things about cars which you had no idea about. And then you become a preacher in your circle for car-related affairs. It's an experience totally worth it. And probably will not be there in a few years. Ah the pain of letting the first love go.

[ohaak]

The analogy I can think of is a girlfriend. You wouldn't have broken up with your earlier girlfriend or your first girlfriend if everything was fine. Your current girlfriend is a result of your passion and labour.

I voted for the current car as it was an informed choice made based on my criteria and my capability. Sure, I enjoyed my earlier cars, but the current one is the best until I switch to a different one.

[Jeroen]

I have owned more cars than I can remember. My first car was a beat up VW Beetle. Loved that car, but it was a real dog to drive. Did learn a lot of spannering though!

My most beloved car must be my red hot 1986 Alfa Romeo Spider. I bought it when it was only 10-11 years old. So I have had it for well over 25 years now. It has always been my hobby car. Never use it to commute or daily chores. Which means all trips are always for fun. I have been around all of Europe in it. During the first 10-12 years of ownership I easily raked up 8-10000km annually. That has come down and during our years abroad it only got used when we visited our home country the Netherlands. These days I still drive it some 2500 - 4000 km a year.

I have posted on the forum various tours of Europe, always with my best friend and spanner mate Peter, also in his Spider. And of course, in my “fiddling with cars” you can see all the maintenance and repair I have done over the last four years on this car (and some other cars too).

This car always brings a smile to my face, whenever I take it out. We are very fortunate as we moved to rural the Netherlands some three years ago. These days I get into my Spider drive up our dike and start touring in what is one of the prettiest rural areas in the Netherlands. During the summer months, my wife and I often take it out, at the end of a busy day, go for an hour touring, along the rivers, find a cafe to have a drink and a meal.

This car has been the best investment ever. When I bought it, I also became a member of the Dutch Alfa Romeo Spider Register. I have made many very good friends there too. It was how Peter and I met. Even today, whilst hardly active in the Register anymore, we are still meeting our Spider friends and even enjoying joint short holidays, tours etc. So the Spider has been and still is sort of a spider in our social web if you like.

It is not just the car, it is all the memories of the drives and the places it took us. Some amazing adventures, long-lasting friendships. It comes with a very very long list of very enjoyable memories. Even in these Covid times, I can still go out and enjoy a leisurely top down drive.

Jeroen

[Asmt_b]

We currently have two cars at home.A 2017 Audi Q3 & a 2019 Seltos GTX+ AT.

We have changed quite a few cars over the last ten years starting with the Santro Xing.
Upgraded to a 2011 i20 sportz and from there to a pre-owned 2007 Civic AT.However the Civic was a lemon and I had to get rid of it after just a year.Replaced it with a Ciaz ZXI manual which became our family car in 2017 after I got myself an Audi Q3 30 TFSI during the preGST rush.
The Ciaz was spacious and practical but safety was an issue and I traded it in for a Preowned Skoda Octavia 1.8 TSI AT in 2018z

The Skoda was a beast to drive but high maintenance costs became an issue and finally decided to replace it last year with a Kia Seltos GTX+ AT.
Out of the above I believe the skoda was easily the most fun car to drive but the i20 was the one i drove the most and had an emotional connect with.Still regret selling it 6 years later.

[vigsom]

Originally Posted by evil_grin

Is it the first one? The one that set the baseline for all the others? The one that you cannot forget?

Posting from another thread

Originally Posted by vigsom

I'd like to take a while to thank the following cars

1. 1993 Premier Padmini - my first car, first flood restoration project

2. 1995 Esteem - my first brush with a modern sedan

3. 2003 Maruti Versa - my first experience with a wheel cylinder leak

4. 2003 Corolla H4 AT - my first automatic car

5. 2005 Corolla H5 - what a trouble free car should be like

6. 2007 Suzuki Grand Vitara AT

The above In the order of most loved to least loved :

1, 3, 5, 6, 2, 4

The Premier Padmini that helped me learn driving and have my first brush with maintenance was the most special.



No.3 and No.6 have been with me the longest. Maybe they're both tall boys. That's why?

No.4 was a nightmare since the earlier owner had used it a bit rough; took all my time in getting it to shape. Didn't hesitate giving the car away when I had to relocate.

[Tapish]

I have to say that my first car was the one that I loved the most. Maybe it was that feeling of finally being able to afford a car, and the age to enjoy it (even recklessly) to the hilt.
The car was bought pre owned from Mahindra First choice and was with me for 5 years. A friend bought it afterwards and the car is still running somewhere in Mhow.

I also learnt driving properly on this car and so did my brother. Over time, we got other cars in the house but none can match the excitement that the Rampyari brought with her. We did innumerable road trips on this across Rajasthan, MP, Himachal and Uttarakhand. There was only one breakdown in the 50k kms it spent with us.

Here it is somewhere in Rajasthan.

[GTO]

Since 2 decades, this Jeep has been the favourite from my garage. The slowest & most impractical, but oozing with character. The car just makes me feel good, there's no other way to explain it. With a heavy heart though, I'll be putting her up for sale in a year or two, to make way for the 2nd-gen Thar.

Had some insane memories with her:

[SoumenD]

Got to be my first car(Estilo) I bought (gifted it to dad) more than a decade ago. A simple no-nonsense machine, but had strong emotional connect with the family since it was our 1st car ever. Both dad and brother(now drives a brio) learnt driving in it around the initial years & just before parting ways my wife as well learnt driving in it.

Was used by dad for 4.5 years and post retirement as he left Jharkhand, it was sent to me. 8.5 years and 40,000kms later, last year had to part ways with it as I needed an automatic.


Current car(Jazz CVT) is just 10.5k kms and 1.5 years old. We are still breaking in. Hopefully will make new memories with this going forward

[lamborghini]

Each & Every car that we've owned has been a memorable journey, and we've been through our fair share of cars as a family.
There have been some to which I have felt more connected (Ikon 1.6, Fiesta 1.4 TDCi, W211 E Class, Etios, S-Cross 1.6, F30 328i, etc.), some who's practicality I admired (Laura, Octavia Combi, Liva, Corolla, etc.), and some which I only began appreciating more over time (A6, etc.).
Heck, I drove my cousin's 6 year old Swift VDi for a few days before we sold it & I could already feel a connect

However, there is that one car who's ownership really stands out, and that is our E60 525D.
9 years, 70K kms of joy! It was a car I loved to oogle at, a car I loved to drive, surprisingly reliable (barring a battery/alternator issue), and one I can truly say I miss the most.

Interestingly, none of the poll choices allow me to vote for that option.

[Rangy62]

It’s definitely my first car the Maruti Suzuki Esteem, a 1995 model which is still with my brother in Bengaluru. A little worried that it might not Fitness certificate. Have driven up to Ahmedabad with in 1996. That was a really comfortable car.

[GTO]

Guys, request. Please share pictures along with the car you love the most. Will add flavour to the thread . Thank you!

[Dr.AD]

For me it is almost impossible to say which of my cars I love the most. It is like asking which family member I love the most. Every car I owned started out as a stranger, but grew on to become a family member. I have such fond memories with every car I owned (well, I have owned only five cars so far, so it is not a large number) that those memories became part of the car. And it is impossible to say I love one more than the other.

Our of my current cars, the BMW 3-series is superior to my 10 year old SX4 in every which way. But that does not mean I do not love my old SX4. I have so many fond memories with that SX4 that I still love it to the core.

However, as I drive the BMW more and more, it is also creating its own memories now. Just in two years of ownership I already had some great drives and some very memorable moments with that car too. It is no longer a stranger now. It has become a part of my family already. And boy, do I love her!

So if I have to hazard an answer here, I would say I love my BMW 3-seriest the best. It is one generation old but still looks beautiful, it is fast enough (for my driving), drives dam well (optimal ride and handling package for my driving), and can take me to places like this:



P.S. The poll should have an option to say "All of them". That would be my real answer. This is why I could not answer the current poll :-)