I don't want to blow anyone's mind here but the thought of selling my S has been crossing my mind a lot lately

Anyhow, as is normal with my posts, here are my thoughts broken down into a neat outline.

Fun
Don't get me wrong, I love driving the S in the right situation. Back in California, I'd go on big group drives as well as individual drives, either by myself or with a friend riding shotgun. What made it funwas that an hour's travel could take me to any number of fun drive spots.

Head west, and I could do a scenic, oceanfront drive. Head north and I could tear up the canyons. Head southwest and I could caress (at a low, sensual speed) the hills of people-filled San Francisco. Head south and there were the tree-lined country roads. And if I just wanted a speed fix, I could hop on the freeway and do 100 and no one would care.

Here, that's not really the case. I don't know if others who use their S as a daily driver have much fun but my drive to work is definitely not fun. True, it's only 12 miles each way but those dozen miles are on single lane streets where the speed limit rarely exceeds 30 mph and the authorities absolutely enforce it.

I suppose I haven't looked too hard yet, but I can't find too many fun drives so far. I could look at a map to know there's nothing resembling a canyon around here, Austin--the closest big city--doesn't have any real localized cruising spots (nothing like the Filmore or Union Square at least), and I'll keep looking but I haven't found an oceanfront drive yet.

Caring
I can't really care for my car here. Well, I can and do, of course, but it certainly takes a beating. My current apartment doesn't have a parking garage and at work, there's no covered parking so the paint and dash are really taking a beating.

I wear boots all day and try to be as careful as possible but every now and then I'll scrape it on the door panel, on the seat, or on the kick panel. This makes me sad.

What's worse, I fear that later on during my stay here in Texas, I could get dirty at work. And that dirt, could make its way into my car. Oh, also I sweat a lot.

Superficial (e.g. all the wrong reasons)
Yes, I know my car is supposed to be for me but who doesn't enjoy the stares. However, people here seem more confused about my car than impressed. Sexified roadsters definitely play second fiddle to big SUVs and pickups in this town.

So in conclusion, I'm really thinking about selling my S.

 

Well I know how you are feeling, in a sense. I cannot really answer your questions about the drives, but there is a reply to that question in the "Let's do another drive" thread. I am more of a "bumper polisher" so going on drives with other S2K's really isn't my thing. I went on one, and the front end took a minor beating, and it ate me up. I catch myself just wanting to cruise around for the pleasure of having the top down, and enjoying the wind in my hair. I have only used the CD player prolly 3 times, and that was when I first got the car. I just installed SIRIUS, so I maybe listening to that more often, but then again, I may not. Dunno.

As far as only driving 12 miles to work, I only drive 8...and like you said it is still enjoyable. I am not one who really wants to rack a bunch of miles on it. This is my daily driver, and I feel that this is a car that will stay in my garage for years to come. Then I will get another car, that I will use as my daily driver, and use the S2K for the weekends and may eventually go to my kid(s). I don't have any now, but it may be here for awhile.

Your work issue with boots and mud : Take a little extra time when leaving from work to have some shoes in the trunk that are in a shoe box that you can place your boots back in. Or something similar, even a plastic bag would work. Also keep in the trunk a sun visor for your windshield, to help fight the UV's. I don't have one currently, and really haven't noticed any damage to my dash. Luckily the previous owner took very good care of the car and didn't put any "protection" products on the dash, as it still looks brand new. And I have only used leather care for the FULL doors, center console, and roll loop only once, with minimal product. It helps with the finger prints, and "scratches" on the base of door.

For the wrong reason...drive what you like! In my first month of owning the car, I was "looking" for people looking at me. It was nice to see who was and wasn't, but I realized, what cars I was looking at. S2K's, BMW Roadsters, C5's...blah blah blah. I realized that I love A LOT of vehicles on the road, and that not everyone has to "stare" at me. I know my car is nice.

Then again, you must do what you have to do. If it is not in your best interests to keep the car, then don't. It is not worth your time to beat yourself up about owning a car.

 

This isn't California. Never has, never will be. It also doesn't have the EXTREMELY high cost of living that California has, either. Our weather isn't as mild and 'nice' as California, etc... There is a high cost that comes with living in California that you don't have here. Everything is a trade-off.

On the other hand, that doesn't mean there are no phenomenal roads around here... I know of one road within an hour of my house that is almost comparable to the run up Calaveras road just outside of Milpitas, California.

At any rate, what you decide is ultimately up to you -- I just think that it sounds like you miss California more than you desire to sell your car. Perhaps you chose the wrong place to live, instead of the wrong car to drive.

Just some food for thought.

 

Meh. So I went out and bought an old Civic over the weekend to pull daily driver duty.

Problem averted...