The old jalopy
It's an old, decrepit white 1984 Proton Saga 1.3 (M).
I remember my dad selling off the old Mazda 323 hatchback to buy the Proton when it was first launched. Malaysia's first 'national car'. Woweee.
I was six at that time, and I remember walking into the showroom, jumping into one of the cars on display, breathing in the plastic fumes that new cars always smell of.
When dad finally chose to buy one, I remember my mom saying, choose white. "Cleaner. Not so hot."
So he did.
I grew up with that car.
My dad went to work in it. Took the family out in it. Drove me about it. Heck, I even learnt how to drive in it. After its first decade my dad sent it for a total overhaul and it was as good as new again. Of course, little bits like the plastic lock buttons would break off (low quality plastic) and the paint was chipping here and there.
I remember when my brother and I were kids, we'd be at the backseat fighting or inventing our own little stories on our way home from a mall (our favourites were Yaohan the Mall, Lot 10 & Sg Wang, Jaya Section 14 or the Jusco supermarket in Taman Tun Dr Ismail (MidValley and One Utama didn't exist back then, of course).
When I first got my driving license, the car being the only one we had meant I could only use it very occasionally, and with someone next to me. Later, I drove the car to college whenever my dad went away on business. I remember how stressful it was to drive out of my sub-urb for the first time.
It was the car that sent me off to Australia for my studies, and picked me up when I came home a year later. The car my dad would drive to pick me up from work when I got my first job (I couldn't afford a car yet). And the car I drove to work when my dad got too weak to drive us around.
When I bought my own car a few years ago, I hardly drove the old jalopy anymore. It became unofficially my brother's car, and we'd take turns to ferry my parents around.
Over the past few months, the car was giving more trouble than ever. So my brother put in a booking for a new car and found a buyer for the old Proton, at such a steal too. Sure it breaks down every now and then, and yeah, the steering wheel is falling apart and oh, the upholstery smells a little, but hey, over 20 years of memories gotta be worth more than 2000 bucks!
Anyway, my brother got his new car yesterday, a Perodua MyVi.
I told him I wanted to take some pictures of the old junk before he gives it to its new owner. When I got home last night, the car was gone! He didn't wait for me to snap some pictures first! Boy, did I kick up a fuss.
He's meeting the new owner again on Monday to settle a few things, so he said he'll take some pictures for me then. Hmmmph!
Sigh. I'm so glad I got to drive it one last time when I got back from Thailand (I drove it to send LY home). Am I a sentimental freak or what?
I remember my dad selling off the old Mazda 323 hatchback to buy the Proton when it was first launched. Malaysia's first 'national car'. Woweee.
I was six at that time, and I remember walking into the showroom, jumping into one of the cars on display, breathing in the plastic fumes that new cars always smell of.
When dad finally chose to buy one, I remember my mom saying, choose white. "Cleaner. Not so hot."
So he did.
I grew up with that car.
My dad went to work in it. Took the family out in it. Drove me about it. Heck, I even learnt how to drive in it. After its first decade my dad sent it for a total overhaul and it was as good as new again. Of course, little bits like the plastic lock buttons would break off (low quality plastic) and the paint was chipping here and there.
I remember when my brother and I were kids, we'd be at the backseat fighting or inventing our own little stories on our way home from a mall (our favourites were Yaohan the Mall, Lot 10 & Sg Wang, Jaya Section 14 or the Jusco supermarket in Taman Tun Dr Ismail (MidValley and One Utama didn't exist back then, of course).
When I first got my driving license, the car being the only one we had meant I could only use it very occasionally, and with someone next to me. Later, I drove the car to college whenever my dad went away on business. I remember how stressful it was to drive out of my sub-urb for the first time.
It was the car that sent me off to Australia for my studies, and picked me up when I came home a year later. The car my dad would drive to pick me up from work when I got my first job (I couldn't afford a car yet). And the car I drove to work when my dad got too weak to drive us around.
When I bought my own car a few years ago, I hardly drove the old jalopy anymore. It became unofficially my brother's car, and we'd take turns to ferry my parents around.
Over the past few months, the car was giving more trouble than ever. So my brother put in a booking for a new car and found a buyer for the old Proton, at such a steal too. Sure it breaks down every now and then, and yeah, the steering wheel is falling apart and oh, the upholstery smells a little, but hey, over 20 years of memories gotta be worth more than 2000 bucks!
Anyway, my brother got his new car yesterday, a Perodua MyVi.
I told him I wanted to take some pictures of the old junk before he gives it to its new owner. When I got home last night, the car was gone! He didn't wait for me to snap some pictures first! Boy, did I kick up a fuss.
He's meeting the new owner again on Monday to settle a few things, so he said he'll take some pictures for me then. Hmmmph!
Sigh. I'm so glad I got to drive it one last time when I got back from Thailand (I drove it to send LY home). Am I a sentimental freak or what?
says Wandernut on Thursday, May 25, 2006
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