That was an interesting video to watch. I have been having a lot of thoughts and both internal, and external, debates about keeping my Lamborghini Jalpa.
I have always owned sport cars. My daily driver always switched from one sport car to the next. Usually it was cheap fun stuff. 300ZX Twin Turbo, Mitsubishi Eclipse, Toyota 86, etc. Reliable cars that were pretty cheap to maintain, but sporty and fun to drive. With 1 exception, they were all manuals. My most recent was the Toyota 86. I always buy these cars thinking I am going to do autosports with them, but I never do. I had the Toyota for 5 years and realized 99% of the driving I did with it was sitting in traffic commuting to work. It was loud, uncomfortable, and the manual was a tiring hassle in stop and go traffic. Most recently I decided to switch to a Bentley Continental GT. Oh the wasteed years... I could go on for ages listing all of the things I love about that car.
-Reasons I think about selling: I have had the Lamborghini Jalpa for almost 20 years now. I am tired of the maintenance. There are several costly updates due. It smells like gas and exhaust when driving. It doesn't like to idle when hot. The car is probably worth less than what I have put into it. My wife doesn't like to ride in it that much anymore. We don't trust it on a long trip. Insurance rates have been going up like crazy on all of the cars. Every few years one of the systems needs an overhaul, and it is down as much for months at a time. I love the Bentley, and my wife has her own fun car, so we have other car options. There are a lot of things I could do with the extra cash if I sold it.
-Reasons to keep it: The car feels like a part of my identity. It is really fun to drive. It was a childjood dream come true to own a Lamborghini. I have put so much into the car, in terms of work and resotration, that it feels like something I helped make. There are a ton of good memories connected to the car. It is in good shape and ready to be enjoyed. I think my Jalpa is the best looking Jalpa in existence.
As far as feeling like just a car, I actually like that. The Bentley was in the shop and I drove the Jalpa as a daily for a little while. Really fun. I also used it on a couple trips. Using the wipers on a rainy day, getting the climate control just right in the winter, and using all of the basic car functions feels oddly satifying. It is like the car is telling me, if you want to use me all the time, I am fully equiped and good to go. I like that it is just a car, until you downshift and smash the gas pedal. At that point, it is like notyhing else in the world.
