ressModern cars.....What happened to the thrill?

[wildcat45]

It is the summer of 1979, I am 8, and my father gets a bright orange Chrysler Hrizon GLS. Bright orange outside, brown velour inside. It has mirrors that can be ajusted from the inside, LED lights that come on when you press buttons, a stereo tape player, digital clock, 2 banks of warning lights.

It is the most thrilling, almost sci-fi thing in the world. Even neighbours come to pass comment on it. It is the talk of the Marina Cortina and Maxi populated cul-de-sac.

Its 2013 - I am 42, and I get a black latest model Land Rover Freelander 2 SD4 HSE. Its got a drivers seat that moves when you start it up, a TV screen that gets info from outer space to tell you where you are. The mirrors are elctric, there is a kind of sonar system that stops you hitting things, 2 sun roofs, lights that tell you how the transmission works, a secondary TV screen which shows you pictures of the car and computer functions.

Is it the talk of the BMW 3 and 5 series, Audi, Lexus owning neighbours. Not really. A fellow Freelander owner down the road gave me the thumbs up, and the guy over the road who likes his Merceses' had a brief chat with me about it.

All I can say it is very nice car indeed. But there is no real thrill. I like it very much and at 40K I damn well should.

Have I - or collectively we - become spoilt? If my late Dad or late uncle were around to see my new car, they would be full of awe. It is a pretty impressive collection of technology, but I like it like I like my Ipad, or my camera or my new winter coat. Very nice - but there is no wonder there.

Quite a sad state. Yet I am feeling that childlike sense of anticipation an excitement, about a 10 year old £1K car I am thinking about buying as a toy. The thought of perhaps having this other car, and looking foward to viewing it on Saturday, fills my spare moments.

I suppose ten years ago it was something worth anticipating. But now? I can't help the way I feel. I will be gutted if it turns out to be a dog, its the colour and spec I have wanted for ages. I can see myself claying it, burnishing it to bring it up to scratch, while my new Freelander might get a hose down by the local Kosovan hand wash if it is lucky.

Its a decade old MG ZT 190

Edited by wildcat45 on Wednesday 6th February 08:42

[GreatGranny]

Not spoilt you're just not a child anymore!

If I bought a nice new Freelander with all the bits on my 6 year old son would no doubt be as excited and thrilled as you were all those years ago.

Rose tinted glasses and all that, most cars in the 70's were crap!

[LuS1fer]

I used to get thrilled by any new car, mainly when i couldn't afford them. Now they are largely white goods with safety at their heart, not enjoyment. That is why I like my Fiesta ST and Mustang - both somewhat old school before they ruined them.

[ILoveMondeo]

Perhaps an element of the in car technology in older cars really being quite cutting edge stuff, it's not like we all had computers at home with mega 3d TVs and the Internet available everywhere.

These days stuff moves at such a pace in car gizmos are almost out of date when the car is launched!

My 3 and a bit year old A8 electro-trickery computer stuff is looking all a bit dated. I mean, 20GB hard drive? Satnav that doesn't do full postcodes? Where's the Internet connection?