Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/103451
Bloody Knuckles By Peter D. DuPre 25 YEARS OF DRIVNG CHANGING LANES in one Jeep There are people out there who trade their vehicle in every two or three years. Maybe the lease is up or they are tired of the vehicle. Perhaps it is no longer fashionable or their dog vomited on the back seat. What ever the reasons, there are a lot of folks out there who are always looking to get into a new set of wheels. I am not one of them. Driving the latest "image" car does not interest me in the slightest, nor do I tire quickly of perfectly operating machinery. As the saying goes, "if it ain't broke don't fix it," and if it's reliable and running fine, don't get rid of it. Ok, I'll also admit to being frugal (my wife says "cheap") and I hate having to 22 bloody knuckles 0213 cl.indd 1 make car payments. The result is that I tend to keep my vehicles for a long time. After all it is cheaper to keep a well-maintained vehicle running and reliable than it is to replace it every few years. It is also somewhat comforting. When you've owned the same vehicle for a number of years, you become attuned to every tappet click, squeak, thump, grown and rattle that the vehicle has developed and should any one of these sounds change – even minutely – you are immediately aware and respond to it instantly. (I can tell when Ol' Red is a quart low on engine oil just by the slight difference in valve noise.) Likewise, the vehicle responds to your every dab on the FEBRUARY 2013 // WWW.CHANGINGLANESDIGITAL.COM 1/4/13 10:30 AM