JerryB

Hi Gals & Guys,

It was one year ago today that I bought my '02 SC430, white w/white-ecru interior. I bought it in Laguna Beach, CA after emailing/etc with the owner for over five months. He finally agreed to 'maybe' come down & I agreed to 'maybe' come up in price.

I was down in Southern California for some personal reasons and I contacted him and did a test drive. We reached an agreement, I paid him, did all of the paperwork & I drove it home. It had 26,400 miles on it & it now has 34,800 miles. The very first thing that I did was get new Michelin Sport + A/S tires ( and, yes they make an amazing difference ). I have removed the TPS sending units & they sit in a box in my garage. I also pulled the TPS connectors under the center console ( very easy job if 'I' can do it ). I bought '06 SC430 5-spoke wheels from another CL-er and am very happy with them. The only maintenance, other than oil/filter changes has been a new Timing Belt ( I got nervous due to the age not the mileage ). Oh, I did have a new windshield put in due to some chips I picked up while driving last Winter.

I like the car, it is the quietest car that I have ever owned. I wish that the cockpit was larger ( I am 6 ft & 185 lbs ) since I am a 'real' old guy, I have a hip problem and would like to move around a little more when on a long trip. My longest trip with the car has been from Beaverton, OR to Oceanside, CA & back; and I drive, usually, ~ 10 MPH over the posted limits. And way more than that if the conditions and what I don't see allow it.

If I had my druthers I would like to have a camel/saddle interior, but why be picky?

I also bought a BMW Mobility Kit due to no spare tire, and just recently bought a used Supra space-saver spare ( that sits in a plastic bag in my garage ) for any long trips if I want to take it along.

The car is somewhat of a garage queen as my primary transportation is my '03 Toyota Tacoma pickup.

If this SC is a reliable as my pickup, I will have no complaints; only time will tell. I do get my cars repaired almost immediately if something does go wrong.

Now back to your regular scheduled programming.

Jerry Baumchen

76210Guy

Nice Jerry. How cool some of us old guys enjoy these little gems as much as the younger crowd. I am 55 and feel like I am 25 when I put the top down. My first drop top was a 1965 GTO convertible when i was 19 and I swear, I love my Lexus more.

Rock on Jerry!

Poqman

I got my '02 a year and three months ago. Had to immediately do a timing belt change to get the maintenance caught up. Since then, nothing. It's flawless with 95k miles. I have to say this is the most delightful car I have ever driven. I only wish the body were more rigid when the top is down. Body flexure is very noticeable with the top down.

huy33

I'm part of the younger crowd and I LOVE my 430.

azkaty

Wouldn't it be fun to see what the age brackets are for ownership of the SC?

18 to 29
30 to 40
41 to 50
51 to 60
61 to 85

Anybody want to start this as a poll?

Katy

JerryB

Hi Katy,

I'm old and don't know enough about computers to start a poll.

But just to get you started: I am 70.

Jerry Baumchen

scdroptop

iTrader: (1)

36 here Guess I'm in the middle on the scale

I think it's truly amazing how this car appeals to such a wide range. Some cringe at the thought of our cars becoming "tuning cars" but I think it would be a great compliment-keep the parts on demand and certainly create a "cult" for these vehicles. Not sure if the cost/economy or whatever will interfere, but I'd love to see what has happened to the Supra, 300ZX, Rx-7 and first Gen SC's (along with Preludes, etc) happen to the SC430. Some get upset when they see a 18 year old driving this car, I think it's cool.

One time in the late 80's a buddy of mine "inherited" his dad's old, huge speakers. At first we were laughing at how huge they were and what we were going to do with them. His dad was bragging about how these speakers were the best money could buy, etc etc blah blah blah. We were young punks. I had a cd boombox that I thought was the bomb so we hooked up his hand-me-downs, took the covers off and discovered they had a funny name on these speakers but they ABSOLUTELY ROCKED!!! The speakers were Cerwin Vegas. This was in 1988. He still has the speakers today and they still sound amazing. He wouldn't give them up for the world-I know, because I tried!

Jerry-congrats on your anniversary! Treat her nice this weekend and give her a good shine and some premium drink!

thelopez

Same taste, I picked up the white and saddle 04 about 5 months ago for my wife but with 100k miles. My regular driver is a 04 Tacoma Crewcab. Last weekend a young couple flew in from Portland, Or, to buy my Toyota 88 SC MR2 with one way tickets based on just pictures and conversations. Although the SC isn't as fun as the MR2 it is definitely more stylish. Is exporting cars from Souther California to Oregon that common?

JerryB

Hi lopez,

Wow, I owned a '86 MR-2 for many years. A very fun car to drive,

Jerry Baumchen

huy33

I had to google up '86 MR-2 to see what it was

JerryB

Hi huy,

Quote: The MR2 was also on Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best list for 1986 and 1987.

So there




Jerry Baumchen

scdroptop

iTrader: (1)

huy33-the mr2 paved the way for the SC!!! Have you ever heard of Yoda in the Star Wars Series?

Yoda is to Luke as the MR2 was to the SC...sort of.

Without Toyota's huge success with sports cars like the Celica, Celica Convertible, Supra and MR2 there would probably be no SC430!

The MR2 was one of the most prolific and unique sports cars of it's day.

They had a sweet little exhaust note and zipped around...very sporty, classy and affordable too. Much sportier than the Celica, but not as robust and expensive as the Supra. Two seater...came with t-tops 1st Gen 1986-1990 and 2nd Gen 1990-1996? Disappeared with all the great Japanese tuners from 1996-2000ish and then third gen came out as a spyder.

I wish the MR2 was still around-very cool car. You don't see too many any more. There was actually some kind of fire at a major plant back in 1997. I was actually looking at some 1996 Celicas, Supras and MR2's at the time and the salesman told me that they would all three be discontinued and were stunted big time by the fire.

huy33

I was born in 83 in Vietnam and didn't move to the USA till I was in 1st grade so I missed out on some experiences. My coworkers have been "Americanizing" me with such film as: Slap Slot, Blazing Saddles, Revenge of the Nerds, etc...

I didn't see a bunch of cars till I got here to America. Loving them ever since though

scdroptop

iTrader: (1)

It's definitely an age thing then, not necessarily an immigration thing. My best friend Vu is from Vietnam and came over in 1991 and was a Japanese car guru already! Even though he said he and his family rode bikes in Vietnam, he must have had some exposure to them. Funny thing is that he's got a Porsche and two Mercedes now in his garage Snob! He forgot his roots. He used to love Accords, Preludes, MR2's, Civics, Rx-7's etc etc.