Still, I’ve put less than 85,000 miles on it, mostly because my commute has shrunk from across state lines to down the hall.
It’s the classic story of a gently used car owned by a little old lady who only drives it around town.
Now it’s time to part ways, as I take ownership of a 2011 VW GTI on Friday. The old Bimmer has a lot of life left in her, so I uploaded a page to the Web to tout her qualities. Now I'm responding to inquiries.
The only sticking point so far has been the stick. Yes, it’s a manual transmission. A stick shift. Four on the floor. (Actually, it’s a five speed.)
And that’s an issue.
So not only am I selling a car, I’m coaching people about learning to drive stick. Imagine that. Where are all the hard-core driving enthusiasts? The feel-of-the-road guys? The performance drivers? How have so many been lulled into automatics?
Used or not, my car remains one of the “ultimate driving machines,” according to BMW branding. It's a stick; my previous car was a stick; and my new car is...a stick.
Hard to believe so many people are missing out on the fun of real hands-on driving.
