Long-lasting Bonds
Aside from the ability to play with it so extensively, David has kept the car because it's the car of his youth. "It's come to mean something like Wilde's 'Picture of Dorian Gray': As long as I have this car that I bought as a young man, I'll never become an old man. There were times I considered selling it, but it's such a fun and challenging car to drive. Every time I sit in it, I'm flooded with memories of the great times we've had together.

"At some indefinite point in time, it became a member of the family and was no longer just an automobile," David said of Molly. "By this time, it has become the car that defines who I am automotively, and it brings a smile to my face very time I drive it. If this all sounds irrational, it is."

Along with youth, the 2002 symbolizes other things. Kathy said she kept her 2002 because "it symbolized my freedom and an opportunity to leave the city; I felt I could never afford a new car anywhere as good or fun as the 2002."

Kris values the ease with which he could fix the car. "I love the simplicity. What you see is what you get."

William Laray's Bristol Gray '69 2002

And William said his family played a part. "My family loved the car as much as I did. Several of my children learned to drive in the 2002 and eventually purchased their own 2002s. One of them has a 2800CS. The 2002 just seemed like a member of the family and, more than any other car I have ever owned, seemed to have a soul of its own."

Similar factors influenced Dan's decision to keep The Bee. "The Bee has given my wife and me some wonderful memories, and I didn't want to get rid of the car just because the paint had faded. Also, I needed a car, and I couldn't see trading it in for peanuts and then turning around and buying an over-priced new car."

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