Am I the only one who catches this line of BS from the wife? She absolutely HATES my Fiero. When questioned specifically as to why she says "it's from the 80s", implying anything of that vintage is inherently crap. When I reminded her that she is also from the 80s, and an earlier portion than the Fiero I was presented with the opportunity to retire to the shop to work on the aforementioned Fiero before my health took a sudden turn for the worse.
She seems to think that just because the car is pushing 30 it is somehow worn out or otherwise bad. This woman wouldn't know a well maintained car if she got run over by one!
My wife "tolerates" the Fieros, but doesn't really care for them. She has a 2011 Murano, so she is a fan of newer cars and their heated seats and steering wheels.
She couldn't believe it when replacing the front turn signal bulb required pulling the front fascia. She asked if there were lifetime bulbs and I just had to laugh... She is starting to realize that all those bells and whistles just create more things to break... which is one of the many reasons I like Fieros... they are simple and very basic
My wife tolerates my Fiero hobby. Unfortunately I ave a 99 Mercury Cougar sitting in the driveway that needs a new transmission putting in it (spare car for the kid in winter) so I am now getting some pressure to get mine outa the garage and start on the Cougar. Trouble is, i REALLY' don't want to work in the Cougar, pulling that motor is hell on earth compared to the Fiero but I'm going to have to make a start soon.
------------------ Anything I might say is probably worth what you paid for it, so treat it accordingly!
I've never really had this problem. My wife isn't exactly a "car girl" but she knows I like cars and car stereos. I'm not exactly a "crafts and animals guy" but I know she likes them. I go with her to the craft store and help her out when she needs help. I go with her to the pet store and wait patiently while she looks at animals and gets the things we need to care for all of our reptiles, 2 cats and bird. She goes with me to the junkyard and lends a hand when I need it working on a car. She doesn't have a problem with me installing amps, upgrading speakers, installing a sub or 4 and changing out he head unit. We've had some cars over the years that were creature feature filled and stripped down. My wife is really only concerned with 2 main feature when it comes to cars and that is AC and automatic (although she has expressed a interest the last couple of years in learning to drive a stick). Otherwise, age doesn't matter so long as it works and I can fix it when it doesn't.
Same boat. She's not particular so long as it works. That's good, because our relationship would not have worked out if she'd been intolerant of my '80s car habit. Heck, my car habit - I've got every decade from the '60s on represented.
In 1982, my wife said I should get a Fiat X19. I wasn't interested in any Fiat, but I showed her a little picture in Wards Auto World magazine of a 2 seater commuter car that GM was working on. She thought that would be great, so in Sep1983 I ordered an SE. It arrived in May1984. She left in 2005; I got a Formula in 2008 and an '86 coupe in 2011 (and am still driving the '84 SE). Sometimes, Fieros are easier to look after and cheaper to keep than Females...
My wife has a 2001 Lumina. She is happy that at least it is from this century. The last 3 cars for we bought them. Before that I put cars together for her. She hated them. Funny, the ones I put together lasted longer and were cheaper to keep on the road. But there were always old car issues. Oh well. The longest lasting one was an 85 Camaro that I put in a 4.3 Astro van engine after someone locked up the boat anchor 305. She loved that car except for the hard start cold and heavy doors. That and we had 3 kids at home then. I've had to use money that I had gotten from somebody totaling a Blazer I had to put my 85 GT together. (Hit hard enough in the front left to pull the drive shaft out of the transmission). And she kept me on that budget. Seemed that I ended getting shorted on the deal. Then again when someone ran a stop sign and totaled the 85. She cringed every time I had to pull money out to put in to it, but still kept it under budget. She had no problem a few months ago when I spent the extra funds on a Moog hub bearing on her car instead of a cheap China brand. And she buggs the crap out of me to keep up on her car. She won't drive the Fiero. She complains about not having power steering. But loves to ride in it. But always get "the look" when I have to spend time and money on it. I spent a week during a forced unpaid vacation putting the 3800sc that I had in the 85 into the 87. Owner decided to take time off and close down. Don't work there anymore. Though she knew it had to be done due to me needing it for transportation so I wouldn't have to use her car, she every effort to make me feel guilty that I didn't spend more time with her. She did get to spend a lot of time with the grand kids. I did it at my daughter's house. She "gets" it. She smiles every time she drives it. " Man that gas pedal is touchy". Son in law pouting around because he has to put around in a "family car". "Your dad's car is cooler than mine". He had to use it while we worked on his car. Asked him to keep it easy a little. I needed to replace the nose/snout bearings. He is an ex cop. him "Is your speedometer right?" me "Within 2%." him "Between those 2 lights I was at 100." less than a 1/4 mile. me "prick" Him and my wife kind of see it as a very cheap mid/late life crisis. My daughter and me see it as something I can at least afford and enjoy while I can still work on it.
[This message has been edited by cmechmann (edited 10-06-2015).]
I've never really had this problem. My wife isn't exactly a "car girl" but she knows I like cars and car stereos. I'm not exactly a "crafts and animals guy" but I know she likes them. I go with her to the craft store and help her out when she needs help. I go with her to the pet store and wait patiently while she looks at animals and gets the things we need to care for all of our reptiles, 2 cats and bird. She goes with me to the junkyard and lends a hand when I need it working on a car. She doesn't have a problem with me installing amps, upgrading speakers, installing a sub or 4 and changing out he head unit. We've had some cars over the years that were creature feature filled and stripped down. My wife is really only concerned with 2 main feature when it comes to cars and that is AC and automatic (although she has expressed a interest the last couple of years in learning to drive a stick). Otherwise, age doesn't matter so long as it works and I can fix it when it doesn't.
Most women start off loving my Fiero....then they realize I love the car more than them.... then they get jealous and start hating the Fiero. Then they get to drive it - and they love it all over again. Its a vicious cycle in my life lol. Ive had mixed feelings when it comes to women and my fieros - some want nothing to do with them, others I have to wrestle to the ground while protecting my keys haha. My car collection is pretty off-the-wall anyhow, so I tend to attract off-the-wall women...
Sky and Fiero, my wife appreciates them because I do. I'm lucky or married smart I suppose. It also helps that I gave her an Austin Healey Sprite that she does love. But she never once complained when I ordered the Sky (in fact she told me to go for it), and never flinched over the last couple years as I dumped a large pile of money into bringing the Fiero back from the brink. Good woman. Happy man.
We married each other because we enjoy each other. Most things we do together. She goes out with friends or one of our kids sometimes without me and I do the same but most times we are together.
Kind of a amusing story. When we first got married I started playing a MMORPG called Everquest with some old pen and paper gaming buddies of mine that she knew. I got real into the game and she started getting upset that I spent so much time playing it. I made the comment that she should try the game... She figured what the heck and tried it expecting not to like it. She ended up liking it and decided "Well if you can't beat em join em", so I had to get a second computer for her to use and a second game account. By the time all was said and done 8 years later when we quit playing Everquest, I had 2 accounts and she had 3. I had 2 level 75 characters and she had 8. Yeah my 2 characters were max level and one had over 800 AA's (Alternate Advancement points that you put your earned XP towards instead of levels) and the other had a little over 400 while the most one of her characters had was about 250 for her main, but she spent more time playing the game than I did. I spent 40+ hours a week playing myself and we were in a top tier raiding guild that raided 6 days a week before we stopped. We always joked that it was cheap entertainment costing only $30.00 a month for 24/7 entertainment which was less than 1 movie for the both of us that only gave us a couple of hours of entertainment.
Honestly though, in my late teens I remember seeing from the back seat my parents holding hands while driving some where and thinking "That's what I want". It took 2 tries but second time was a charm and I found it.
Am I the only one who catches this line of BS from the wife? She absolutely HATES my Fiero. When questioned specifically as to why she says "it's from the 80s", implying anything of that vintage is inherently crap. When I reminded her that she is also from the 80s, and an earlier portion than the Fiero I was presented with the opportunity to retire to the shop to work on the aforementioned Fiero before my health took a sudden turn for the worse.
She seems to think that just because the car is pushing 30 it is somehow worn out or otherwise bad. This woman wouldn't know a well maintained car if she got run over by one!
If you are spending too much time with your car she could be a bit jealous......
I purchased my wife her own Fiero...so she could be actively involved. My wife likes sports cars and she can drive with the best of us without issue. Normally she prefers a brand new car with all the bells and whistles and flips her daily driver always in a 36 month window, but "Barbie" has found a special place in her heart and has told me that I am never aloud to sell her!
Same here. My wife once said to me, "I was talking to Cliff (our mutual friend with a 92 corvette) and he said you should just get rid of all these old cars and just get a new one". (meaning all your Fiero car problems would go away) And I said, "you two don't get it".
Some friendly advice to minimize the flak: do not mention or complain about your Fiero problems in front of your wife. Just go and fix the issues but don't even bring it up. If she hates the car, any problems with it you mention will be fuel for her fire. Kit
My wife could care less about cars. All she wants are cupholders and guts on the highway. (But I did buy her a nice new Mercedes GLK that she won't let anyone else drive).
As far as the Fiero is concerned, I've figured a way to get her to ride in it. If we are going somewhere I threaten to take my 73 MGB, which she absolutely hates (doesn't like convertibles). To compromise, she'll agree to go in the Fiero (which by the way is an 88 CJB so I take the roofs off anyway).
Fiero problems = easy to fix, costs little money, pisses you off sell it get money back, have PFF to back you up. Women problems = hard to fix, costs alot of money, pisses you off they take half of what you have, and no forum in the world helps.
Honestly though, in my late teens I remember seeing from the back seat my parents holding hands while driving some where and thinking "That's what I want".
Always nice to hear a parental success story for a change!
Oh yes she drives a new car every 3 years and cant understand why the Fiero needs to be repaired.
If someone can do math then they can see how the Fiero saves money, as opposed to buying new cars. If they can appreciate the guys hobby that they enjoy thats a bonus too. But if all they really want is a new car every 3 years thenI guess thats their choice.
Fiero before marriage = Thats a nice hobby Fiero after marriage = Future backsplash for kitchen, and wood floors...
Pretty valuable Fiero. What can help with that is have her meet some of the other Fiero folks, the wives. Go to club shows and activities, etc. Everyones different so hard to say. Are you in NIFE?
[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 10-09-2015).]
When I had my Fiero my girl wasn't a fan until I let her drive it. After that she fell in love with it. Now that all I have left is my 79 Cutlass she likes it but doesn't like how big it is. Yet she drives a Chevy Equinox... Whatever lady. lol
My Fiero is the only car I usually drive when I pick up my girlfriend (were 17, younger perspective I suppose). She really doesn't like it though. It's too "flashy" for her. She preferred when I had my 98 Ford Taurus. I'm hoping after the paint job she may come around a little, black is a little more understated than purple I think!
.
