The year is 2013 and I am in need of a new car. Previously over the summer, my Chevrolet Cavalier sustained tremendous hail damage during a freak storm in July. In the aftermath, my little commuter had been written off by my insurance leaving me with a cheque and a new mission. With the help of my father, we set to work one evening scouring the internet for a suitable replacement. At this point in time, my experience with cars was very novice and this made the selection process fairly cut and dry. Find something within budget and that's roadworthy, simple enough. While surfing the net my father presented me with several candidates. Most seemed to fit my criteria but with the winter season on approach, one thing was missing. Four-wheel drive. Now with that in the search, we continued. My father discovered an advert for a 1981 AMC Eagle Limited in Saskatoon, SK. The 80's station wagon was inside my budget, appeared to be in good shape, and of course, it had four-wheel drive. We contacted the seller and set up a date to look at the car. Several days later we were on the road with a trailer in tow. Arriving in the bridge city, we met with the sellers. The owner of this AMC had recently been placed in a care home and his daughters were selling off his estate, piece by piece. After exchanging some information I hoped inside the wagon for a closer look. I immediately took in the rich leather and plush carpet, Groovy. I received the keys and turned over the ignition. The straight-six roared to life, nice. After a few more minutes, my mind was made. I managed to negotiate a healthy discount off the initial asking price and the car was mine. This is the evening I become the proud owner of my 1981 AMC Eagle Limited. We loaded up my new wagon onto the trailer, made a pit stop at Pizza Hut, and sailed off down the highway. Returning home with what would change my relationship with cars from appliance to passion.
- Morgan
