A new car: or how I will spend this coming weekend.

I drive a big old 1995 Ford Thunderbird (that's before they changed the body to that tiny little retro sports car.) I love it but it's too old and it's falling apart. Repairing it is still cheaper than buying a new car but I want something reliable that I don't have to fix all the time. It's also getting all these weird little problems that mechanics can't even figure out so it's really time for a new car. The problem is I don't like any new cars.

Is it too much to ask for a car that is exactly like the one I have now except that it be new, affordable, Japanese, and painted bright orange? I don't think that's too much to expect!

Why do cars only come in silver now? I just want to be able to find my car in a parking lot! How about Tiffany blue? too gay? OK, how about olive green? That's butch, right? Well, the affordable cars don't come in any interesting colors so I'm stuck. I don't want silver, black, or white and I don't really like red or most blues either. I think I could handle champaign (gold). That's a more common color in many models.

I wanted a Daewoo but I guess I was a little slow on the draw there; they don't exist any more. So I'm looking at the Hyundais in addition to the Scions and a few other makes. There are a couple of tiny cars that come in fun colors but I think they are just too small for me. We'll be test driving tomorrow. I'll let you know what I find!