I Love My Reatta!!!!!

[Guest r_wright]

I know, that's never been said or poster here before. My plan when I bought my car was to drive it a few times and then put it away for the winter. The problem is we have not had a normal winter where I live so I have been driving it more than I thought I would be able to. Result - I am in love with this car and I can't see me ever putting it away for a period of time!!!! With what should have been the worst month of winter now gone, the weather will only be getting better from here. Nothing but driving pleasure ahead. I will truly have a dilemma next December as I will struggle with the fun of driving my Reatta versus the benefits of storing it through the snowy months. How do you guys do it???

[FlyByNite]

My 90 Coupe is my daily driver year round, It's easy, just hit the switch and go.

[Don B.]

Most people get over it after the first parking lot dent. Or the first time you try to turn in the snow and the car keeps going<BR>straight. Then there is when you stop at a traffic light and some color bind drunken idiot hits you in the rear and says they didn't see the brake lite. Hell its 5 feet long.<BR>Then you go out and get a cheap wreck to drive around. You don't care what happens so long as it runs. It's nice to have an ace up your sleeve when road rage happens, slam on the brakes. I know you could use the money,<BR>rub your neck.

[Guest]

How do we do it? I find that storing the car for the winter actually makes it MORE enjoyable to drive in the summer. The anticipation of driving it makes it seem like the first time all over again! and you can repeat it every year! And since it isn't rusted and beat up all winter it even keeps LOOKING like the first time.

[Rawja]

I primarily drive my Reatta on the weekend, and keep it in a heated garage (a useful side-effect of having steam heat in my apartment building). I don't drive it if the roads have been salted. I wait for a heavy rain (or two) to wash all traces of salt away and then it is back on the road. I feel it is important for the car's longevity to excercise it with a good drive at least once a week to keep everything lubricated and all moving parts err... moving. Living in New York City, we don't have the snow accumulations that other regions have to deal with, which makes it a lot easier to enjoy the car pretty much year-round.

[Guest]

Move to Florida..I rarely go a day when I don't drive one of mine. I use my conv. when weather is not extreme and a coupe on those hot/colder days. On rainy days I use my pickup..did I mention I hate those rainy days? And sometimes I cheat on those days, I'm just real careful.

[ol' yeller]

I found the perfect way to put my Reatta away for the winter and not get tempted to take it out. As I only have a 2 car garage and I own 5 cars....and my neighborhood is almost Nazi-like in their CC&R enforcement, I had to pay to store my collector cars elsewhere. The plus side is that the person I buy storage from is a fellow BCA member and he only charges fellow BCAers $30/month per car. The downside is that he is a snowbird so he goes to Arizona in December and doesn't return until April. For that period of time, my collector cars are unavailable. I agree however that it makes it very enjoyable in the spring to unwrap them like presents and begin driving them like they were meant to be driven. In the interim, all I have is the screensavers of my cars that I installed both at home and work to remember them by.<P>Greg

[Guest]

I live in Baltimore where public funding for road improvment, is, shall we say, lacking. In August I will be moving to Edmonton in Alberta Canada which is the northern most capital of any Canadien province, and I am somewhat nervous about how my 1990 Reatta coup will handle it.<P>So far, my Reatta has exceeded expectations, and I must concure with my fellow Reatta posters in that you shouldn't shy aware from enjoying such a fine vehicle. Drive and drive happy without worries, there isn't a week that doesn't go by that I don't get positive remarks and glares.<P>In Edmonton, they have plug-ins because of the cold. This doesn't mean that I will continue to park it on the street - but for now, while I am here in Baltimore, I'll enjoy what I have.<P>What else is nice car for?<P>Cheers<P><BR>Mike Crispin

[padgett]

Florida is nice for most of the year, what people often do not realize is that we have winter - utility bills go up and you do not go outside unless you must - it just comes in July, August, and September.<P>The trouble with Florida is that there really is not a good car-working-on season, it is either nice for driving or the engine never cools off enough.<P>I have friends in Edmonton - at UofA - but mostly they are not car people, possibly for good reason.<P>As for winter, there is an easy answer (actually there are two but the Smart car is not imported), a Fiero. Engine over the drive wheels, no-dent plastic everything and a car you wear.

[Guest]

I live in Edmonton, Canada and own a '90 Reatta convertible with 30k miles. You'll be pleasantly surprised when you move. Edmonton is a grat place for collectible cars.<BR>The climate is quite dry with lots of clear sunny days. <BR>Typically Edmonton receives very little snow in the winter. (sometimes doesn't look like it because whatever snow falls --tends to stay) but the good news is there is no freeze thaw and muck.<BR>I generally store me cars in the winter but...for the ast two years there has been so little winter that I chose not to park my '89 corvette (25k miles). The streets are dry and I'm having a blast.<BR>Good luck with your move!

[GALIETTA]

Randy,<BR> I live in New York and this winter has been mild. I can not afford a heated garage and I don't think it is a good idea to leave it donmant for months. I have a California CarCover and a portable garage (a canopy with sides) that keeps the elements off. As long as its not wet and or salty I take it out. It is not my daily driver even in the summer. I only drive it a few thousand miles a year to shows etc.