What is your all time favorite automobile?
The Fiesta was the only car I ever thought about getting in my life mostly because I didn’t have far to travel to work at the time and it was cheap to run except for the insurance quote I got at the time.
I had been working back in the late 1990s doing furniture restoration and I was earning £125 a week and living with my parents in a rural area at the age of 21. Everyone else seemed to have a car and I was hitchhiking to work in the morning and my parents and boss were suggesting that I buy a car since I have a Job so I decided to try to find a suitable car and it helped me make up my mind about driving in general.
So while browsing the used car sites I came across a ford fiesta from the 80s for £500 at the time 4 weeks work and I have the price of a car I was happy with the whole concept until I looked into the price of the insurance which is why it helped me make a massive decision on what I was going to do with my life.
I called the car insurance company and told them I was 21 years old with a provisional license and working. They asked me about the engine size and I informed them that it was a 1.0 liter engine and 9 years old and gave me a quote of £1500 so I said thanks and Hung up and went back to work and thought about it.
Yes that’s how much the insurance was going to cost and it was the equivalent of a week’s wages every month for the price of the car insurance. So since I also had to buy fuel and pay taxes for the car plus my weekly upkeep at home and trying to find a place to live away from my parents and saving for that also I would probably have nothing left at the end of the week to even socialise and travel which is important for a 21 year old.
I could have gotten a loan from the bank and paid the insurance upfront but I would have to get another one the next year as the insurance company said it would be £1200 the next year so I made another decision instead of getting the ford fiesta.
I had known a few people who had working in a construction company in Holland and got in touch with them as they provided accommodation along with the job which was sometimes 13 and more hours a day. A few days later I gave my notice to my boss and told him I need a car to get to work and I can’t afford to pay for one and I am not going into debt for a car and that I was leaving the country.
I spent a few months working with the council in Holland but felt uncomfortable in the job as they would move you to another town with little notice so I ended up getting some work with one of the many employment agencies in Holland at the time and lived there for another 3 years and quite enjoyed it so I love the Ford Fiesta as it helped me make up my mind and start living for life instead of going into debt for an object. Thanks for reading
