Forever car — Blog

The forever car?

Sometimes, the flow of life gives you outcomes that you didn’t think would be it, but is nevertheless the way it’s going to be. You just have to accept it. My Porsche 911 GT3 was going to be the forever car, but life circumstances forced me to sell it. Its replacement, the decidedly cheaper BMW M2 Competition, is meant to be a stop-gap until I’m in the position to buy another GT3. However, it’s looking more and more likely the M2 will be that forever car. At least one with an internal-combustion engine.

Spending six-figures on a sports car was a YOLO play, one that I don’t think I’ll repeat again. I miss my departed GT3 dearly, that sweet naturally-aspirated engine that revs to 9,000 RPM. Unless I hit some big financial windfall in the future, it’ll be a bad idea to spend that much on a car again. It’s a box I’ve already ticked on the list, so the solace and satisfaction of having owned a 911 for a time will have to suffice.

The headwinds in the automotive sector are blowing heavily towards full electrification. The next new car I buy will probably have an electric motor, rather than something that burns gasoline. Sports cars like the BMW M2 are going to be relics of a prior petrol age, when driving fun also involves a sonically-pleasing howl from exhaust pipes. An age when the driver has direct connection to the mechanicals, rather than a bunch of wires and bits. The changing world of cars might force the M2 Competition as the one I keep for a long time to come, the last of its ilk.

That’s not really something to complain about, however. The little BMW coupe is a fantastic car, and super fun to drive. If it is to be the last internal-combustion car I will ever buy and own, then that’s quite okay. Even if it really should’ve been a 911 GT3. The flow of life is what it is, and I’m choosing to go along with it.

The Forever Car

Since selling my ND Miata I've naturally been having some thoughts about what to get next - a few years down the line. Whatever the selection, I think it will have to be what car enthusiasts call a 'forever car': the one to keep until death (or at this point until manned vehicles are no longer a thing). A 'forever car' is one I wouldn't sell under any circumstances, for any price. It's one that will live with me even if I do decide to buy another car.

Obviously, it's got to be super special. A car that in the old Top Gear show would belong on the 'Cool Wall' in the Sub-Zero section.

Though that doesn't necessarily mean expensive. I honestly thought my 2013 Subaru WRX STI - the first car I bought with my own money - was going to be a forever car (I even spent overboard for protection film and ceramic coating on the paint), but the notoriously fragile EJ257 engine ultimately derailed that plan. It's great shame because the rest of the drivetrain is famously bulletproof and a mechanical joy, but I simply can't be constantly worried about engine failure in a 'forever car'.

The ND Miata was never a candidate chiefly due to the lack of power, and the spec I bought did not have the limited-slip differential. Yes it's got enough motivation to be fun and nimble for its size but personally in a 'forever car' I need something much more substantial. These days a poverty-spec Mustang GT can be had for mid 30 thousands and it's got 460 horsepower, so 155 in the ND was never going to suffice.

So the search is on, and these days I've got my eyes towards Germany.