The Great Things About My New '05
So what do I like best about my new '05 LTD Coupe? Geez,where do I start. A little automotive history first. Way back when in the "Golden Age" of auto's, if you wanted something really unique, you would order a chassis from one maker and custom coach work from another. Think, "show car". Many of those chassis were Rolls Royce or MBZ. In the more modern era you had Ghia, Bertone, Zagato, Lowery, etc. These cars where very expensive, and very unique. I've daydreamed over many of them shown in coffee table books, thinking I would never have anything like them.
When I started to look for a play car for my gal and I, the first thing I wanted was unique. You know, something like a Testarossa. Not! my budget just wasn't anywhere near it. By the time reality sunk in I was going for a 2003 T-Bird made by Fix Or Repair Daily. Well at least it was unique. I stopped by a dealer who had one, and sitting on his lot was a cherry 2003 SLK 320. I fell in love, the dealer let me take it over night to show my babe. When I told her the price, she hit the floor and sent me packing. Despondent and alone I hit the internet to daydream over cars I would never have. Sometime past midnight dreading having to return the SLK in the morning, I hit a site that said the Crossfire was an SLK in disguise! I couldn't believe my blurry eye's. Here was a MBZ chassis with what was basically custom coachwork. Visions of those coffee table books started flashing across my mind. By the time the sun came up I was speeding back to the dealer in the SLK ready for the hunt. Well I found my Sapphire Silver '05 LTD with very low mileage at a "you gotta be kidding" 1/2 the SLK price in somewhere Utah. The dealer met me halfway there on the hwy and signed it over with two ball caps to hang on the umbrella hooks?, to boot.
So what do I like best:
1. It's unique.
2. Awesome styling. (a concept car that actually made it to production).
3. MBZ at 1/2 the price.
4. Great handling.
5. Good mileage.
6. It's mine!
Oh, and about the cupholder thing. Stop your whining!
Hang on to these cars, it's the closest you'll get to owning a modern classic. Years ago I let go of a '67 GT350 Mustang for a few thousand dollars. Saw one for sale at a show a month ago for 165K and it was a deal. I don't have a crystal ball, but I'm sure these cars will have their day.