TheCochese's Project Con Queso

There are so many shades/levels of tint. I think I like the FX Pro tint better, but I'll legitimately have to see it in person. I've got an email in to my local dealer to see if they have any on hand and what their return policy is.

 

Old car story 5: (2001-2004)

I got rid of the Jeep for the wrong reasons, but I bought into something special. In order to appease the GF I went vehicle shopping. I found what became my favorite vehicle I've ever owned (to this point) at a sorta shady used dealer.


A 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse GS. I loved this car. Still do. Would buy the same one back in fixable condition.

Monarch Green Pearl over tan with black accents. Bite the back of my hand beautiful. Wasn't a GSX, so it was another FWD, but god it was so fun to drive. Best looking sunroof style, the pop and slide. The only mods I can remember doing to this were painting the calipers red, doing a selectable fog light mod, and another radio. I would sell all the tools in my workshop to get a great condition 97-99 Eclipse in this color again. Too bad they are all just about clapped out or suffered from crank walk. I could write pages on how great this car was, and I know to most it's a hunk of crap. That's what makes cars special, you make them your own and you form a bond.

Anyway, I trashed third gear on this one too, and now I had gotten married (to someone else, thankfully). With the thought we could have kids at any time, we traded this in for a 04 Jetta lease. Not one of my finer moments. She got it to drive, and I borrowed a 1993 del Sol. That was fun in a different way, but it wasn't truly mine and isn't covered here.

Without a doubt though, my favorite paint color on a vehicle and it isn't particularly close.


Here it is in the same cul-de-sac as the Probe. Perhaps I should take the truck back here for a tribute.

 

You and third gear are a thing.

 

Me and short shifting were a thing.

 

Meh. We had a “clutch-optional” (3rd through 5th) 1990 Accord when rolling through Riyadh.

I’m sure our replacement crew was unhappy with it. Worked great for us!

 

The reason I’m writing these is that I like to write but have trouble finding subjects I can latch onto. That and when I get to present day I can share what drew me to the Tacoma and my inspirations.

It’s hard to find a lot of communication outlets right now that are healthy, so this is my self-help.

 

Old car story 6: (2006(?)-2009)

Skipping over the borrowed del Sol, we move to a gifted car.


This 1997 Accord Coupe had seen better days after being driven by my younger sister. My mom bought it new in 1996. Five speed, leather, sunroof. It was a cool Accord, but lost a bit of luster as the newer ones came out with some sportier body styles. The roof clear eventually started to go, and my sister backed it into a parking pole at one point. It was still very mechanically solid when we sold it, it's a shame about the dent and the clear. It also suffered from the 90's Honda flat dash syndrome, where even their sporty models had this utilitarian flat dash that was not driver oriented like my Eclipse was. That was a fighter cockpit, this was an airline cockpit.

After 13 years combined use in our family, it was sold on after I bought a newer vehicle to celebrate both my new career and the need to fit three car seats in the back.

 

Took the truck on it's first road trip (overnight and over 100 miles) this weekend to let my kids see some great-grandparents. Told me some things about it that I hadn't fully realized before.

You start running out of room real quick with four passengers. I had enough room to store my tech backpack behind the center console ahead of the back seat, and after that things would start getting cramped. The driver's seat is sorely missing a pocket on the back, dumb to not include. The back seat needs some USB power points, and I might have to figure out a solution there. I can get two in the center console but those really aren't for them.

We traveled light, put a bin of air mattresses in the back with two suitcases. Thankfully everything in the bed stayed relatively cool under the tonneau. I might eventually start considering a cap, but then I also need somewhere to store it and get it off easily if I need to transport something tall.

Didn't break 20mpg even on the interstate, I think my truck is always going to be on the low end of the EPA estimates. Certainly saw a measurable difference when I took the chinstrap off. Getting more used to radar cruise, you really have to be proactive when you come up on slower traffic.

The Joying unit acted up a few times, and MLB does not know how to make a CarPlay-compatible app to save their lives. This is the third year in a row at least where you have to handle your phone to get audio streaming to work properly. Sorta against the idea of CarPlay.

 

Lived for 20 years with a cap and four with a tonneau. Things seem to stay cooler under the cover, I assume at least partly due to a lack of windows and because tonneaus have more insulation. I thought I'd miss having a cap but really, I prefer the cover. That might change if I had a dog to put back there.

 

This. Love love LOVE my tonneau (Extang Solid-Fold 2.0). I can take it off in 60 seconds and get it back on in 5 mins, all by myself. Secure, tough, waterproof (where it meets the truck) - can’t go wrong with it.

 

The tonneau will be fine for now, but I wonder down the road when I’ll need to bring more stuff. A cross- country is on my bucket list, and I’d love to bring camping and cooking gear and spend some days exploring mountains.

I don’t know if this will happen while my body is still willing for adventure, but I’m hopeful.

 

Old car story 7: (2009-2017)

With a new career started (40 mi one way) and a third child, the Accord Coupe wasn't fit for our needs anymore. I did some research over a few months looking at different models. One I had liked the most was the G35 coupe, but again a coupe wasn't great for three car seats. The sedan model wasn't my favorite. This, though, was beautiful.


A 2004 Acura TL. 3.5L with six manual gears. The third gen TL really is good looking even today, and this particular one was just what I wanted. I have a rule not to buy anyone else's projects, but this one had everything done that I wanted to anyway at the price and mileage I was looking for. It had Type-S wheels, taillights and side mirrors, A-spec body kit. The only thing it didn't have that I wanted to do was lower foglights, and I never got around to that.

This thing could scream for a FWD sedan, and was so fun to drive. It had DVD-Audio, which was so underutilized but so very crisp and clean sound. As I got into 2017 though, I decided I was about ready for a change. I had gotten a taste of Android Auto/CarPlay, and that wasn't something you could easily or cheaply add. Take a look at that center stack.


The value of the car was continuously dropping, and I saw an opportunity to sell it and pay off some debt. We had a third vehicle going mostly unused for the past two years, so it was sold. Probably the only vehicle I owned that I took great care of until the end. Some of the other cars would have still been perfect if I had taken care of one or two issues, but this those issues never even came up. I treated third gear better, and the only problem I ever had with this car is that I had to replace the starter. Shame the redesign was so ugly and bloated.

 

Old car story 8: (2017-2019)

I bought our minivan in 2015, which meant for two years we had three vehicles for two drivers. This was bought for a deep discount again from my mom at some point in the late 00s. I honestly don’t remember the year. It was our main family car until the van, something like seven years or so.


Mom bought this 02 CRV new, and it was a great car. Held up to some abuse by kids being messy, stuff being spilled inside. Drove it regularly for just under two years as my main vehicle, the first time I drove a slushbox since 1996. It did fine work hauling building materials for theatre sets and it built my workshop.

Sadly it had a slow oil leak that we just dealt with for several years. One day in 2019 the leak just exploded. By this point I had known since I sold the Acura that a truck would be my next, so we decided just to sell it as-is. It ran when parked at 199838 miles. I had hoped I’d see 200k. I borrowed an Altima for nine months until I purchased my truck.

It was fun revisiting my former rides. Hope others enjoyed it.

 

Tell us about the del slo

 

Not a whole lot to say there. It was a 93 in Captiva Blue Pearl. Took the top off whenever practical. Fun little rollerskate. Didn’t do anything but drive it because it wasn’t mine.

I’ll see if I can find a picture, but it was bone stock.

 

Ironically, these are the only two pics I have.

 

I mentioned earlier that I knew for awhile I would be getting a truck. I kept an open mind, and figured I'd be going with an older model due to price. I researched just about every model made in the last twenty years, and formed a few opinions. I didn't care for any Ram trucks really, outside of the 94+ redesign. But those were almost all rusted out heaps at this point. I liked the same generation F-150s, but not much until you got to the C-clamp headlight versions. Chevy/GMC models were hit and miss - the first gen pre-redesign were good, the MMR was awful. 2G was better, 3G was nice. 4G was a mixed bag. All of the reliability on these were everywhere from lasting forever to clapping out in the dealer lot.

Then one day the Tacoma Pro was announced. It was this photoshoot that made me fall in love.


I couldn't afford a new Pro, so I started looking what was in my price range. Having latched onto Toyota, I waffled a few times between the Tacoma and Tundra and seeing what was in my price range. I had settled on a Tundra, but then realized I wouldn't need the extra cab space after a few years when my kids starting moving out.

Then I saw Spruce Mica.



Such a beautiful color, reminded me of my Eclipse. Wasn't a huge fan of the interior, though. Same thing for those model year Tundras. So my focus shifted to a 3G Taco as a dream, but couldn't afford it, and it didn't come in Spruce Mica. So a couple years pass while I'm occasionally seeing what is available, and I stumble upon this picture last November.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/cavalry-blue-thread-post-them-up.528969/page-49#post-22096058

About five weeks pass, and a Cav Blue shows up for sale sorta locally with super low miles. A touch out of my new price range, but I thought back to the pic @joesrcool posted and we drove 200 miles on a whim. Walked out of the dealer six hours later with the newest and lowest mile vehicle I've ever had. I'm finding my own way, but that pic (it's a great one) and truck continue to inspire.

 

No update on the wheels after a week, other than the order went through.