<html><head><style type="text/css"><!-- DIV {margin:0px;} --></style></head><body><div style="font-family:garamond,new york,times,serif;font-size:12pt">I loved the "20 years" post...it's been 18 years this month since my SE-R was built...17 years 2 months and 1 day since I bought my Ruby Pearl SE-R. "Ruby" was the last '93 on the lot when I bought her with 29 miles on the clock. I still drive her regularly, not the daily driver anymore but I still love getting behind the wheel. She actually feels stronger since I replaced the fuel pump last year. Lots of good memories associated with Ruby. All the college road trips with friends, Friday Night Drags at Firebird Raceway, the 2002 SERCA convention here in Phoenix, hanging out with guys like Terry Vincent & Kyle Gilliland and exchanging emails with guys like Larry Weeks, CAG, Mike Kojima, Searl Tate and others. I always looked forward to the SE-R digests to see what
was up in the SE-R community. I was excited to get the next issue of Sport Compact Car or Turbo magazine and I remember when we lost fellow SE-R pilot Matt Kempe.<br><br>With the economy lately I've considered selling her a few times but just can't imagine life without an SE-R in my garage. I don't think I could ever find another car that's as much fun for as little $$ though I have some hope for the new Toyota FT86...we'll see. A buddy of mine had an S14 240sx that he loved and to this day still kicks himself for selling it. I don't want to be in that situation.<br><br>Just glad to hear I'm not the only one with the unhealthy attachment to an (almost) 20 year old car! :-)<br><br><br><br><br><div style="font-family: garamond,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><div style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">------------------------------<br><br>Message: 7<br>Date: Tue, 29 Mar 2011 16:03:37
-1000<br>From: "Darren Calbero" <<a ymailto="mailto:DarrenC@AMPartners.com" href="mailto:DarrenC@AMPartners.com">DarrenC@AMPartners.com</a>><br>Subject: 20 Years<br>To: <<a ymailto="mailto:se-r@se-r-list.org" href="mailto:se-r@se-r-list.org">se-r@se-r-list.org</a>><br>Message-ID: <F5F1C3723A014384AA0A415D01B7656C@HonoluluBuilder><br>Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"<br><br>20 years ago I drove off the lot of a Nissan dealer with my brand new Aztec<br>Red SE-R. So it didn't have the leather steering wheel or shifter boot,<br>floor mats, a radio, or even a/c . . . hey I had a sun roof and I drive in<br>Hawaii so no problem. I was happy as can be in my new little rocket that<br>could perform better than just about any car out there under $20k, and I got<br>it at a reasonable $12.5k. "Enjoy the ride" I did with my new girlfriend, a<br>nice college life, and a decent job at a proffesional office.<br> <br>Fast
forward to today. I'm married to that same girl from 20 years ago, we<br>have a 4 and 6 year-old riding in Recaro car seats and boosters, and I'm<br>still content with my little Red SE-R. Granted a lot of bolt-ons helps to<br>keep the car up to speed with some of the newer vehicles on the road, but it<br>sure still feels like this 238,000 mile car can take on most challengers<br>down the 1320.<br> <br>I do all my maintenance on the car with parts sent from Greg Vogel over an<br>G-Spec. It's run 99% of it's life either with AMSOil or Mobil1 fully<br>synthetic. And one of the most important things, I always put good sticky<br>and hydroplane resistant tires on, not primarily for spirited driving, but<br>rather safety. I currently have Bridgestone Potenza RE-11s and it's all<br>good.<br> <br>Don't get me wrong, the car has a lot of signs of old age: hidden rust in<br>the trunk water channel and front fenders; sunroof that
currently can't<br>slide back; squeaking driver door hinge; cheap but still shiny coat of red<br>paint; trunk spoiler that is only fully secured at 1 of 3 spots; and a leak<br>presumably at the gas tank vent hose. The engine still feels as perky as<br>ever though the suspension needs some work. I can't complain. It's<br>reliable as can be and has decent gas milage, and in Hawai where fuel has<br>been more the $4/gallon for a few weeks, that's important.<br> <br>It's funny looking back at when my car was new and I would look at those<br>older guys in their 70s 510s, and Corollas, and wonder what they saw in that<br>old car? Why do they still own something so old with old tech? Yeah they<br>were modded and fast, but really? A 20-year-old import? I guess it took me<br>20 years to figure it out. I may be one of the few original owners left<br>compared to the grand ol days of SERCA, but I do know that those
that still<br>own their B13s today are just as die-hard as myself. I know if I sell the<br>car, I would miss it dearly. I've seen it happen to too many people. So<br>I'll keep driving my Sentra until I'm old and grey . . . oh hell, grey<br>already kicked in and old is a relative term for me now, and sure I could<br>stretch the limits of my finances, lose my wife in the process, and get me a<br>GT-R that has brake changes that cost more than my car is worth a few times<br>over, but in the end, my SE-R that my son and I enjoy daily is all I need in<br>my "Dream Garage."<br> <br>DC<br>1991 Red SE-R<br></div></div>
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