BETTY
Here is Betty at 18 years young with 149,000 miles on the clock. She has just flown through the NCT (MOT) without any bother whatsoever, in fact she has never failed her road worthiness test in all the years we’ve had her.
Our Betty, named after an old aunt of mine who was a nonagenarian, is a 1998 Toyota Starlet 1330 cc and as lively now as she has always been.
Her driver now is Lady H who passed her driving test last year which is why we have a N plates front and back of the car. They will remain there for two years and indicate that the vehicle is being driven by a newly qualified driver.
Other road users and drivers of more modern cars are often surprised by her acceleration when we over take them, not that we make a habit of driving fast but the power is there when needed. We often have people stopping at the house, especially young men, wanting to know if we will sell her. Our answer is always “No” as Betty is far too useful to us.
When the back seats are folded down she becomes a mobile kennel for Toby our dog who often travels with us. He is carefully attached and restrained by the rear safety belts to prevent any injury to him, or to us, during an emergency stop. He considers himself to be a rear seat guard dog barking at the cars behind when they get too close to us.
On sunny but windy days Betty becomes a reading room for Lady H who is always accompanied by her faithful Toby.
Armed with a mug of tea and a book she has been known to spend an afternoon immersed in a good story surrounded by sunshine and birdsong.
Well now that Betty has clean bill of health we can look forward to sunny days and more adventures for me to tell you about.
I told my show van, Sarah, You take care of me and I'll take care of you. She always got me through, and had 300,000 miles on her when sold to another artist because I retired.
ReplyDeleteCare and attention generally works doesn't it :)
DeleteThank you for your comment Joanne
Nice to hear that somethings are built to last.
ReplyDeleteToyota's are great !
DeleteI love to see old things still getting heavy use!
ReplyDeleteThank you Simon !
DeleteActually her Ladyship and I threw off a lot of personal weight a few years ago, so now old Betty doesn't have to work so hard :)
I love that your car is 18 yrs old! Mine is only 9 and people ask me all the time why not get a new one? Because nothing is wrong with this one. Toyota's will last forever it seems. I am thankful for that. :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the comment Margaret.
DeleteThis is my third Toyota I had Corolla's before that and always wanted a Starlet because I was told that their last model was even better than the Yaris that replaced it, so was able buy this one at the right price :)
Ah, that's terrific! My little Daihatsu is a mere junior at just 17 years old, but I love Toyotas. They are excellent cars. I'd have another (old) one like a shot! I love the fact that Mrs H uses it as a reading room :)
ReplyDeleteAm glad that you are amused by Mrs H's antics :)
DeleteSo thank you for your comment.
Well done Betty, there's nothing quite like a reliable car. We had an old Saab which finally gave up at 150,000 miles when the engine block failed with a hole and oil everywhere. We were very sad to lose that car. Well done Mrs H on passing the driving test.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment Suzie. When an old car gives up it is like losing an old friend. When I first took on the Starlet it was the smallest car I had ever driven. I kept bumping my head when getting in now I'm used to keeping my head down. Mrs H thanks you the congratulations.
DeleteBetty would be hopeless today for a cup of tea and a good book Heron. We have howling gales and blizzards of snow. But I must say she is rather elegant.
ReplyDeleteO thank you Pat very kind of you to leave such a nice comment.
DeleteBetty does have an excellent heater so you would be fairly comfortable :)
What a great idea to use her as a reading room - long may she continue to pass her MOT.
ReplyDeleteThank you very much Susan. When her Ladyship first started to use Betty as a reading room I put it down to her eccentricity as an artist, you know :)
DeleteBetty is clearly in very good shape. I recently had to junk my 16 year old Renault Clio at around 75,000 miles because repairs were getting expensive and finally the head gasket went which would have been costly to replace. But it was wonderfully reliable during those 16 years and hardly ever failed to start, even in the depths of winter. Our other Clio is now 15 years old and still going strong.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the comment Nick. I have always been quite wary of Renaults remembering the mishaps of the Dauphins of 1960's that were prone to over turning.
DeleteWhat a nice team to imagine, Betty, Lady H and Toby, sitting in the sun, sharing a nice story. Love it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your imaginative comment Toni !
DeleteActually I have only ever seen a talking car in a film, Toby our dog almost talks. So I think Lady H would be doing all the talking; which she does anyway... just hope that herself doesn't read this or I'll be in trouble :) :)
When the thermometer drops to the wee numbers but the sun is shining, my husband and I like to take a drive to Whiskeytown Lake. Park in the sun, windows up and read. The sunshine heats the car, the coffee warms the innards and the view and stories warm the heart and soul. The car, whose name is Pup, is a major player in the little symphony!
DeleteToni I have just read your comment to Lady H and she said
Delete"Splendid ,its nice to know that others do the same, all they are missing is a Toby"
Very much like the name of the lake, have you ever tasted the water ?
I love Toyotas and think they're great cars! I'm driving a 2 year old Scion that I've only put 9000 miles on so far, so I plan to have it for many years to come.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear from you Jennifer.
DeleteAll I can say is keep up the maintenance schedules, oil change, filter etc that's the way and they keep on going.
Good Car.!!!
ReplyDeleteAs we say over here: the newness is still there :)
Delete