Had a new one this weekend: seeing a car I used to own again, being driven by someone else. Or in my case, parked.
I’ve often wondered how I’d feel when this day came. Excited, probably, for that’s how it felt when I saw my mate’s old 52-plate black Renault Clio parked in the staff car park at Lotus the other week.
So I’ve always kept a keen eye out for any Mk4 Ford Fiestas in dark green, bright yellow Seat Miis with missing hubcaps, or Seat Leons in British Gas blue in the hope they might be the car I used to call my own, and feel content they were still being run and well looked after.
No joy though with spotting an ex, until this weekend in the car park of the Goodwood Members’ Meeting when I saw it: the McLaren 650S I used to have. I say have, I mean borrowed for an extended period of time, of course, but you get the idea.
Or, at least, I think it was. It had a private plate, as did mine, but on that plate read ‘McLaren Ascot’, the dealer I know recently put the car up as sold on its website. The rear tyres looked brand new, which was the giveaway for me, knowing that they needed replacing when it went back. And, of course, every single part of the trim inside and out was identical.
But the excitement wasn’t there. No, it was jealousy and sadness. Jealousy is a horrible trait, but I was jealous someone had driven the McLaren to Goodwood this year after I had last year. I was sad that I wouldn’t get to drive it home again.
Still, at least, it’s gone to a good home, or whatever it is you’re supposed to say when being grateful.
So then readers, the real point of this blog: have you ever spotted an old flame out on the road again, and how did it make you feel? Over to you…
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In a moment of madness
So, I guess my feeling was relief that I'd got rid of it before it tried to get rid of me.
Leon No. 2
seen in hong kong
Years later in HK I bought a Volvo V70 which I took an instant dislike to and after 10 months swapped it for an X5. I think I paid HK$390k for the V70 and BMW HK gave me HK$300k as a PX allowance. I wasn't too happy with that, but about a year later I was wasting time at a used car supermarket in Kowloon - I'd probably fallen out of love with the X5, and came across 'my' V70! The dealer had bought it from BMW HK - no idea what he had paid, reregistered the vehicle and put it up for sale. It was still for sale a year later when I came across it, but the price had been reduced to about a quarter of what i had paid for the car two years earlier... Obviously a 'good buy', and I would have been the first and third owner....
Not exactly a car that I owned, but my then brother in law bought one of the first BMW850s in the UK - an odd and unusual colour with a front bumper that was a slightly different shade... One morning he went to the car to find it jacked up and with the wheels missing. I can't think why but he replaced the wheels with non BMW items, so what with the nasty colour and the odd front bumper, it was a pretty unique looking 850. One night it was stolen and disappeared off the face of the earth. Months later I was standing in the lobby of a hotel in Kuala Lumpur waiting for a driver to collect me, and what should draw up on the hotel forecourt but my brother in laws ex 850! Same wheels, same mis-matched front bumper....