The 5 Most Memorable Cars I’ve Ever Owned: Our Automotive Subject Matter Expert, Mia Bevacqua’s List

Over the years, I’ve owned more than 50 cars, most of which have cost less than a fancy dinner or a designer-brand suit. There’s something about resurrecting a fixer-upper—particularly one that’s vintage and quirky—that I find intriguing. I’d take a Chevrolet from the 1980s over a brand-new Mercedes any day.

If you were to ask which of my cars has been my favorite, I couldn’t give you an answer because, well, I’ve loved them all to some degree. But there are a few that stand out from the rest, mostly because of the associated memories and experiences.

The 5 Most Memorable Cars I’ve Ever Owned 

During my driving career, I’ve owned (and loved) many cars, but there are a few that really made an impression on me. Although the cars I find memorable are neither powerful nor luxurious, they all have character and a story to tell.

1987 Chevrolet Cavalier Z-24

As a teenager, I developed a passion (some would say an obsession) for General Motors J-body cars—Cavaliers, Sunbirds, Cimarrons, and Skyhawks—from the 1980s and early 1990s. I have owned more than a dozen over the years, one of which is the 1987 Cavalier Z24 that I currently own. 

I bought my Z24 off of Craigslist for $800 back in 2010. The plan was to drive the car back from the San Francisco Bay Area to my home (at the time) in Monterey, California. Unfortunately, about 30 minutes into my return trip, the old Chevy began to overheat, forcing me to make a pit stop to remove the thermostat. I was able to limp the car home with the thermostat removed (not a practice I would recommend).

But that was just the beginning of a series of never-ending problems with the car, including a blown head gasket, which likely resulted from (or was the cause of) the overheating I experienced after buying the car. I eventually ended up replacing the engine with a remanufactured long block, only to have one of the cylinder heads develop a crack shortly after.

Even though my Z24 seems like a never-ending project, it still makes me smile. In fact, I love the car so much that I currently have three additional vintage J-bodies in my collection, including two other Z24s and a turbocharged Pontiac Sunbird.

2001 Toyota Prius

Several years ago, I realized that I needed to get up to speed on hybrid and electric vehicle technology. In an effort to do so, I took online classes and read training material, but I was still missing the hands-on element. That’s when I decided to look for a project hybrid vehicle that I could use to gain some first-hand experience. 

I settled on a first-generation Toyota Prius that I found for sale online for $500. The dealer had determined that the car needed new electric motors and a new inverter—a repair that would cost nearly $4,000 for the service center to complete. 

The owner decided to abandon the Prius after receiving the repair estimate from the dealer. So, I towed the car home and got to work installing a used transaxle (the transaxle contains the motors) and a used inverter.

According to the repair instructions from Toyota, the transaxle is supposed to be removed together with the engine from underneath the car. But that maneuver requires a hoist, which was something I didn’t have access to, as I was doing all of the work in the single-stall garage I had at the time. I managed to replace the transaxle by supporting the engine, removing the subframe, and using a dedicated transmission jack. 

Owning and working on the Prius was a great experience. After tinkering with the car, I was able to pass the Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) L3 Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Certification test. 

I now have a 2009 Honda Civic Hybrid (another car I picked up as a project) that I use as a daily driver. While I’m happy with the Honda overall, there are still days that I miss owning a classic, first-generation Prius.

1979 Plymouth Horizon TC3

When I’m waiting in line at the grocery store or engaging in some other mundane task, I often kill time by scrolling through online automotive classified ads. One day while browsing, a Plymouth Horizon TC3 popped up in my feed. 

Although I had never heard of a Plymouth Horizon TC3 before, the car had all of the definitive 1970s design cues that I adore—including a set of rear window louvers—and appeared to be in mint condition. I knew I had to check it out.

And the Plymouth did not disappoint. The seller was the daughter of the original owner, who had recently passed away. For decades, the Plymouth and the rest of the owner’s automobile collection had been kept in heated storage. 

The family had initially considered fixing the Plymouth up so that the original owner’s granddaughter could drive it. To prepare the car, they had a shop replace the tires, flush the fluids, and perform other routine maintenance.

I ended up buying the Plymouth on the spot. Once I got the car home, I changed the 40-year-old timing belt, performed some minor repairs, and added an aftermarket temperature gauge (the car didn’t come with one from the factory). 

Now, I take the TC3 to local car shows, where it gets a lot of attention. The funky little Plymouth easily stands out (whether for good or for bad) amongst all of the Camaros, Mustangs, and other classics that are more common and more collectible.

2002 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec-V

In college, I had just one car: a 2002 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec-V. It was bright red, lowered several inches, and had a massive subwoofer in the trunk (ah, to be young again). 

The 2.5L four-cylinder engine that comes in these cars is known for sucking in material from the catalytic converter (yes, really) and sucking in screws from the butterfly valves (again, yes, really). Before going off to college, I worked on the car in my parent’s driveway to fortify the engine against both problems.

After graduation, I took a job in San Jose while living in Monterey. The commute was over three hours round trip, and much of it was through a portion of California’s Highway 1 that used to be known as “death alley”.

On my way to work one day, a Ford Expedition pulled out from a stop sign onto the highway in front of me—and that was the end of my sporty little SE-R Spec-V.  But I walked away without a scratch, which is a testament to modern vehicle engineering and safety technology.

2001 Toyota Tacoma 4×4

My father bought his 2001 Toyota Tacoma 4×4 when the truck was just a couple of years old. At the time, I was a teenager with a 4×4 truck of my own, and my father and I would take our trucks off-road together.

For over 15 years, the Tacoma served as my father’s daily driver and the family workhorse. Then one year, after my parents had purchased a new car, my father gave me the Tacoma as a Christmas gift.

The Tacoma now has nearly 250,000 miles on it—and it still runs like new. I’ll never sell the truck because it always reminds me of my father. 

Looking Forward to Making New Memories 

Some of my best memories have been made while driving or working on cars. Even on a bad day, when I’m struggling with a project and holding back curse words, I still enjoy myself to some degree. 

My growing collection of oddball vehicles will undoubtedly produce more memories in the future. For example, my latest project car (another Z24) has a number of curiosities under the hood—including an air intake made of hardware store tubing—that should make for some interesting stories. 

Do you have a memorable car that you’d like to tell us about? Let’s hear about it in the comments section below!