I have a problem, and it involves buying lots of vehicles all the time. I've been a car guy since I was a kid, I remember vividly the moment when I was watching some PBS science show on a Sunday morning getting my church clothes on when the host said "when we come back we're going to talk about how car engines work... With EXPLOSIONS!". At that point my mother dragged me out of the living room to get to church and I could NOT stop wondering about what it was the guy was going to say next.
Fast forward a lot of decades, I still love cars. Thankfully my wife understood my addiction when we first starting dating, because she has not once batted an eye when I walked into the room and said "I found the M3 I've always wanted, it's only $13k", or "I found the yellow Mercury just like my grandad's, it's only $8k", or "I saw a sweet '81 Suzuki that's really rad.". She'd just kind of roll her eyes and understand that I have to do it, then leave me alone for the work that came next. I once came home with 5 crates filled with parts from 3 different Goldwings and had to rearrange all her stuff in the garage to make room for the project. To my credit they come and go, I usually end up selling them for a little more than I put into them, but sometimes not. One time an old BMW 6 series burned to the ground.
At one point at our house in Fl I had 7 vehicles, 3 bikes, 2 trailers, and a boat. It was all good though.
It all changed with the TJ. When we got to UT a few years back I decided we had to get into 4-wheeling and started looking at UTVs. I found the prices to be nuts however, and decided to instead look for something that could be used as a real vehicle in addition to getting the family out on some trails. I know the 4.0 very well from my mechanic days but didn't know a lot about Jeeps, so I found this nice '99 Sahara with a 4" lift and 33s.
The wife has since fallen in love with it and basically took it over. From April to Sept it's hers with no top nor doors and she uses it to shuttle the kids around and run her daily errands. The kids practically demand to be dropped at school in the Jeep because their friends think it's cool, and now any TJ breakdown becomes a priority. My wife's 4 year old Lexus GX460 with all the bells & whistles has become a last resort (despite the rear DVD entertainment screens). My 7 year old son has helped me chase wires, replace steering arms, & mount tires because he knew it had to be done if we wanted to take the TJ for a ride.
Point is, the TJ has given my vehicle habit a lot of family credit, more so than the dozens that have come and gone since their existence. The wife & kids seem to "get it" a little more than they used to, and when I talk about getting another vehicle to mess around in they actually get excited. I guess it's the TJ effect.
Fast forward a lot of decades, I still love cars. Thankfully my wife understood my addiction when we first starting dating, because she has not once batted an eye when I walked into the room and said "I found the M3 I've always wanted, it's only $13k", or "I found the yellow Mercury just like my grandad's, it's only $8k", or "I saw a sweet '81 Suzuki that's really rad.". She'd just kind of roll her eyes and understand that I have to do it, then leave me alone for the work that came next. I once came home with 5 crates filled with parts from 3 different Goldwings and had to rearrange all her stuff in the garage to make room for the project. To my credit they come and go, I usually end up selling them for a little more than I put into them, but sometimes not. One time an old BMW 6 series burned to the ground.
At one point at our house in Fl I had 7 vehicles, 3 bikes, 2 trailers, and a boat. It was all good though.
It all changed with the TJ. When we got to UT a few years back I decided we had to get into 4-wheeling and started looking at UTVs. I found the prices to be nuts however, and decided to instead look for something that could be used as a real vehicle in addition to getting the family out on some trails. I know the 4.0 very well from my mechanic days but didn't know a lot about Jeeps, so I found this nice '99 Sahara with a 4" lift and 33s.
The wife has since fallen in love with it and basically took it over. From April to Sept it's hers with no top nor doors and she uses it to shuttle the kids around and run her daily errands. The kids practically demand to be dropped at school in the Jeep because their friends think it's cool, and now any TJ breakdown becomes a priority. My wife's 4 year old Lexus GX460 with all the bells & whistles has become a last resort (despite the rear DVD entertainment screens). My 7 year old son has helped me chase wires, replace steering arms, & mount tires because he knew it had to be done if we wanted to take the TJ for a ride.
Point is, the TJ has given my vehicle habit a lot of family credit, more so than the dozens that have come and gone since their existence. The wife & kids seem to "get it" a little more than they used to, and when I talk about getting another vehicle to mess around in they actually get excited. I guess it's the TJ effect.
