Cars, I Have Owned the Good, the Bad, and The Ugly

I have loved cars since I was a little kid with my matchbox and Hot Wheels toys. However, this was not something that ran in the family. The best car my grandfather ever owned was a $300 VW bug, although, on the plus side, he could make or fix anything. Meanwhile, my father drove a used Volvo and was proud that he did not waste his money on cars as other people did. Em!

One of his buddies, though, had a Triumph Spitfire, which seemed exotic as a kid, and John Marsh and I drove to London to a car show. I was 11, but I remember vividly drooled over e-Type Jags, Ferrari Daytona’s, Bentley’s, and the astonishingly beautiful Lamborghini Muria at the 1973 motor show in Earls Court, London.

I knew I’d drive them all one day and have now owned most except for the Lamborghini, which is too impractical for golf clubs. So, as I drove 16,000 miles this year around Europe at speed, I made a mental list of those I have owned along with basic notes on their relative value, which I will now share with you in chronological order.

• Renault 5 Free from my mother, thanks — I crashed it twice, but it didn’t make it the second time. Bright yellow, quicker than a…