NINETY EIGHT REGENCY

I have news.. I have a huge confession to make. As you recall, I had bought the wrong Toronado twice!! Recall I wanted the one on Ebay as it was what I always wanted and the color and interior was correct? Well... This is how it started. The very next day after I sent that weekly email a friend stepped up to the plate. I was busy in my office. He came on the messenger. He asked me had any of my friends offered to help me get that Toronado? I said no. Jo said she told me she was concerned about me. He said do you want the car? I said yes, I do but I do not have all the funds. I have some, not all. He said It is your dream. We are going to to get you that car. I said what!! He stepped up and said We are going to get you that car. He said God sent me. He is using me a vessel. I then begin to realize what was going on and there was a lesson in this for me. I did not bid. I waited from all the last week of August until September 3rd the last day. God used that time to tell me what was going on. He then told me August 31st what I needed to do. He said do not go to the grocery store. Do not go to the Third Planet. Do not spend any money. You will understand later. I did. I then told Joshua and asked him would he drive the car here should I win. He agreed. He was ready as he never had met me before, but we have known each other for years. I went to God and asked should Joshua drive the car. The answer came on that Monday September 3rd. In the meantime, Jason and I were making our plan, going back and forth online. We talked on the phone. I had to wait with the right attitude and not be anxious or fear or step ahead. As I was waiting, I realized had I bidded early I would have driven the price up. I had to keep a cool and level head. I realized a lot about being driven by being anxious and what issues it will cause. Joshua came forth on September 3rd and was honest and said he could not drive the car to me. I appreciated that because he came and told the truth. He was sad because he would not get to see me. The time came for us to bid. We waited until 20 minutes before the end. We took turns bidding trying to meet the reserve. Each number we put it was not the reserve. Jason finally hit the mark. After each bid, we kept going back and forth on the telephone and the computer counting our money and seeing how much could we bid. We won the auction! We met the reserve. By not going to the store and waiting the right way, that extra money helped us win. We paid the initial deposit. God then told me on August 31st what was going on and how the second Toronado came into play. As I was driving home, he cleared so much up. He said when I told you do not fix the engine, I meant exactly that. Do not fix the engine. Do not fix the car. You almost missed that message because you kept fixing the car. That car needed a lot of things done. It was going to cost your more to save that car than what you paid for it. That is why you saw the Toronado I wanted you to have. This is why you never drove that Toronado in your driveway after May 11, 2007. The last day I drove it was the day of graduation for the Spring 2007. You were never going to get ahead trying to fix that car. I wanted to show you what being anxious almost cost you. I am going fix your mistake you made. Do not step out ahead of me. You will sell the yellow Toronado and use that money to get the new one titled in Texas and to start paying your friend Jason back. The long term impact is to give you your life back. I am removing your burden. You have not been able to live life or do the things you wanted to do for months because of that yellow Toronado. It is like business. You are cutting your losses in order to get ahead. You will owe your friend less paying him back than trying to fix that car. The money you were going to use to fix that Toronado will go to Jason. I added it up. It is true. I in fact will owe him way less.... I then posted the yellow Toronado car online on at least 6 different places to sell it. What about the new Toronado? Jason talked to the owner. It was the daughter selling it for her elderly mother. It is close in mileage to my Ninety Eight, and the owner drives like I drive my Ninety Eight. The color is right, the cloth was right. The mother had owned a Oldsmobile before that. They talked about the car and relayed the information to me. I ran a Autocheck on the vehicle history. It came back clean. On September 4, 2007 I went and took my share of the money out of the bank. God spoke to me about my next step. He said we first must get the black Toronado here. Once that is done, and it is on your insurance, then the yellow one will be sold. What you will do is swap cars on your insurance policy. Jason wrote this to his friends and family: There comes a time in all of our lives when we stumble upon a dream... often, not one of our own choosing. It may come upon you suddenly, without warning, or the semblance of it may grow in your heart over a period of years, even decades. I have known Landis for several years now and without fail, in every email he sends out to friends and family, there is always a mention of Oldsmobile and GM. He is the Master of things Oldsmobile and GM worldwide. I have to say I was most impressed by the lengthy letter he wrote to GM about their organizational/car development problems one or two years ago. This letter received a thorough response from GM that thanked him for his input and knowledge. Well, Landis acquired his 2nd Olds not too long ago -- an early 90s Oldsmobile Toronado. He has had a lot of problems with it and it looked like it was time for a new engine. Just a few days ago, someone posted on eBay the exact model car he had been looking for: a 1992 Oldsmobile Toronado coupe -- just 1,000 or so are left in the entire US. Unfortunately, he mentioned in his e-mail he had poured money into fixing the one he had and it still had a long way to go. Financially, he was looking at a long haul. The sad thing was the one on eBay was in excellent condition, had only one owner, and only 75,000 miles. And, it was the exact color he originally wanted -- he was looking at the expense of painting his current car, too. I said that's a shame... he'll be stuck in that car he has for a long time trying to fix everything. I instant messaged him and asked him what was happening. He said he was learning his lesson for being so anxious to jump at the first Toronado he could find. He took the first one he could get but he got one with problems. So, he was going to have to watch this one slowly disappear as the days of the auction winded down. It then hit my heart, I said I know how much that car means to him, and how big of a part Oldsmobile plays in his life. We came up with a plan, got our finances together, Landis decided to put his old Toronado up for sale, and here I was thrust for the first time on eBay to bid!! We had a number of discussions about how to bid and when. The owner of the Oldsmobile had a hidden reserve price -- a price they were not willing to go below to sale the car. We ended up using a "sniping" strategy -- bidding in the final seconds to try and get the car with the highest bid -- leaving no time for other bidders to respond. It worked!! We won the car!! Now comes the part of payment, shipping, etc. It was quite the experience and a lot of fun, too. And, soon, my buddy Landis will have a 1992 Oldsmobile Toronado in his driveway... it will be the realization of his dream... and of mine. Perhaps it is the bond of friendship that allows others to share in dreams... maybe even that is not needed. Maybe in some metaphysical sense, we can share in anyone's dreams. I hope that you, too, have the occasion to share that experience. We felt really blessed by God yesterday... and for me, it was a labour of love. Dreams... dreams are a powerful part of our lives. story continued in next post..

The Cadillac engine that switched from a V8 to a V6 to a V4 The diesel 350 Oldsmobile V8 The great downsizing of 1985-1986 of all the fullsized cars and luxury coupes The Chevy and Oldsmobile 350 debacle The look alike GM cars from that same era in the 1980's The X Bodies The issues really started in the early 1980's The whole stripping each division way of its independence and merging them in car groups( CPC and BOC) The bad leaders Roger Smith, Robert Stempel and Ronald Zarella The whole marketing effort to market cars like toothpaste and consumer products( 1990's) The botched launch of the new Oldsmobile The killing of Oldsmobile The fact they let models languish for too long with out changes( 1992 Eldorado and the Saturn line up) The whole Saturn start in the 1980's GM stopped listening to the customer in the 1980's. They lost touch with what buyers want The duplicates of models across car lines The mess that has been made of the images of many GM cars( trying to fix that now) Pontiac Aztek The quality that suffered and lost them buyers. the GM minivans( front wheel drive) Bad cars: Chevrolet Vega

More a reason for the Holden UTE to come to the states provided they can make it work financially..

Yes, there are some issues at Toyota. I liked what one article stated: Toyota is in every segment. What room do they have to grow? They wanted to be GM and be bigger than GM. They now have big company problems. The other odd thing is all those executives jumping ship. You were right about what they said about Honda too. Who finally took the blinders off? GM people cannot start gloating yet.. The battle is far from over. Stying and product must be backed up with quality. It has to be shown.

Nice photos. I like the last Bonneville. It is a shame it went though. I guess G8 is supposed to fill that spot. I liked the Oldsmobile seats and the crosslace wheels the once used. Too body no wood trim was offered. The car looks great in black.

Very nice photos. I enjoyed looking at your cars. I also can tell you nice photo set up. You will be able to fix the cosmetic stuff. I assure you. I look forward to when you finish. Be proud of your cars.

Thanks for the clip, but yes, that is true. You see how things really were and you think and laugh. I have enjoyed that show for years. GM put those seats belts like that in so many cars. That Grand Prix actually has more features than the current one. GM has taken things out of cars over the years too. The quality of materials was not great for quite some time too. It is just good to see these things..

Nice photos sir. It looks like some of the photos in the 1984 Oldsmobile Cutlass brochure. There are many stories to tell with the photos. A young man and his Oldsmobile.

nice photos.. I am sure the car wil have a nice long rest for the winter..

Hey Yall!!

Dear Blackviper: I am sorry about the day you had.. I really am. I know it is hard to deal with all of that. We all have days like this. Some of us have years like that. It is what we do in those dark times that determine how we deal with it or move on to the next thing in life. It is hard to hear about someone's death I am sure. You had a bad day. You take what you can away from it and move forward. I did not know you got a job.. Good for you!

I am so sorry sixty eight. I really am. This is the time you take to heal and you bond closer with your wife. When you are ready to come back here and talk, you will. Use this time to do what is important for your wife and your relationship. You what you need to do in order to get through this.

I am glad you got your lucky break. I was lucky like that after someone broke into my Ninety Eight a few years ago. They did not get the car or anything. They broke the rear door quarter window. I went to the far out junk yard, got the window frame in my friends Saturn ION, and came back and this mobile company install it with no problem. Looking at my car you would never know it came from a 1991 Oldsmobile Ninety Eight. I totally understand and feel you on your achievement. I hope that we can see photos soon.

Keep the full coverage.. That is how I got my second Oldsmobile Ninety Eight that I own now. The first one got totaled. My coworker at the time told me to get rid of my full coverage. I ignored her. A few weeks later, I experienced the C and G curse. They gave me full value, I got to drive a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix for 12 days, and I got my Ninety Eight I have now in the process. The same thing happened with the Toronado I just sold. The first one got totaled, and I was given enough to get the second one. So, you never know who you are dealing with when driving, but it is better to be safe that sorry.

Scion comes to mind instantly and cheap LS460..... If they switch this next Avalon to rear drive, GM , Ford and Chrysler better be on guard. Too much says this will happen. That is based on where everyone else is in the segment is in the United States. I know this car is aimed at people like me. I have no desire to own this car.

Thank you for sharing. I must thank you.. Questions.. maybe it is just me.. I may be late to the game, but..... 1. Why do the new Accords like like a cross between the Ridgeline and BMW sedans and coupes? 2. Are you sure Bangle does not work for Honda? 3. What is with the BMW styling in the interior? When Oldsmobile had all those buttons, they caught hell. No one says anything about this ? 4. The steering wheel looks good. I like the four spoke wheel. 5. I do not know what to say after that....

Very nice photos. It was interesting to see them. I liked the "Chevrolet " Alero. Thank you for the photos to share with others.

It looks shorter... I see the Chinese Buick influence though. Their LaCrosse was shorter than ours. That car in those photos has to be between 190-195 inches long. It will be interesting to see the end result. To quote the past tag lines: The great American Road again will belong to Buick . It's Buick.

Thank you. I understand now.

I do not understand what you are saying.. I read it several times. I still do not get it.

I want to know too! I have no idea what it is. I know everyone kept saying they will die. Someone or something has marked them for death. It does not matter to me what language he speaks.

I have them remove any dairy. I cannot have dairy. They look at me odd when I tell them to take the cheese of the food. They also are very nice too and go out of their way so I do not get sick.

I agree with you about him being quite handsome. Here is a video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=9HXr_V5acbo and more http://youtube.com/results?search_query=Mi...p;search=Search

I watched it too. I thought it started off slow, but it is getting interesting. What was interesting was watching Mr. Sulu of Star Trek fame on the show. I was glad that Milo's( his real first name) character is still alive.

I am sorry to hear this. I am relieved to hear you are okay. It is sad this happened. The accident did put things in perspective for you. I am glad that you two are not fighting any longer. It is sad these accidents keep happening.