RE S

Reviewed a 1988 Chevrolet Wagon FWD on Jan 6, 2013

“Robert” was a 1988 Cavalier wagon that my family acquired when I was 3 years old. According to my parents, I gave him that name myself. It figures then that I have always felt a strong connection to this car. We were born in the same year, and we grew up together. Robert was a part of many of the formative experiences of my life. My family drove Robert across the country from East to West when we moved to Oregon from Virginia, and I experienced my first foray into a foreign country (Canada) from his back seat. When I got my driver’s license at 19, I finally had the chance to drive the car that had meant so much to me during my childhood. By then, Robert was beginning to show his age. But I saw him through rose-colored glasses. Instead of being frustrated by the slow response of the pedals, I loved how it made the car accelerate and brake so smoothly. You just couldn’t rush the car to do anything, which made for a laid-back driving experience. The steering was loose and off-center, but I appreciated how light the wheel felt in my hands. Robert soon became a symbol of my independence. My parents let me drive him wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted, as long as I told them where I was going. Driving Robert to work during the first summer after college only strengthened our bond. Every moment we spent together taught me new lessons in car control. I found the limits of his lateral grip and braking force (which didn’t take much effort to reach). I practiced braking so smoothly that I couldn’t feel the car rock back as I came to a halt. I learned to parallel park and back into parking spaces—Robert was the perfect car for this because of his big square windows and thin pillars. When he finally died of a clogged exhaust system last year, I was sad to see him go. But he left me with a valuable gift—a passion for driving that has stuck with me my whole life.