Owner passion?

[mararmeisto]

Bruce, sounds like you had a cup of brewed coffee, from a pot, with ground beans and the like (not the usual instant fare I know you Brits favour).

Thank you for your support - this is how I feel about these vans as well.

[jaggedfish]

But "owner passion" isn't that just ego?

The short answer?.... No.

The long answer...

This gets brought up a lot by those who don't really understand people like myself (and sometimes themselves) - usually, but not limited to, the more practical and fairer sex (altho there are wonderful exceptions to THAT rule too). Being a dedicated hot rod guy and serious gearhead with a vast appreciation for unique vehicles and all that makes them tick, I feel the need to defend my "passion". My love for my rides is not about "making up for something lacking or missing", nor is it to draw attention to myself... it is merely because there is something wired within me that can see the beauty of a "line" or "shape" or love that "lumpy" sound of a performance motor or "rattle" of a diesel or "whine" of a turbo and know that someone else equally, if not more passionate, has invested their time, energy and soul creating. "Owner Passion" is merely the appreciative legacy of the creators.

Now... to render my own judgement... there IS a reason we all went out of our ways to purchase the unique vehicle called "Delica" EVEN IF you only use it for a mode of transport... there are many other more readily available and easier to maintain vehicles on the market. Why did you go out of your way to purchase one of these wonderful vans? What attracted you to it in the first place? If we dig deep enough, "owner passion" is within all of us... why else be a contributing part of this wonderful community? Why else own a Delica?

[mararmeisto]

Thank you. Someone else who understands and was able to enunciate it much better than I had.

[Miloki]

I'm kinda with Kuan on this... I think...

I mean, to me the Delica just makes sense. I had always planned on replacing my truck with an SUV. Thing is, I don't want to feed a full-size SUV, and the mid-size will be tight on room for what I need. Most people I know that breed and show dogs have minivans, but I'm just not the minivan type. Then I find out about the Delica, start looking at them - the room of a van but a 4WD?! Best of both worlds. And they look cool! LOL That's worth something, too.

I take pride in all my vehicles, always baby them, always get attached to them and feel a little depressed when I say goodbye to them (pretty bad, huh?). If I do land myself a Delica, it will be the same - it'll be babied and well cared for, because, well, it'll be my wheels. I think the vehicle you drive says something about you. But at the end of the day, it's just transportation, right?

Now, if somebody told me that their motorcycle was just transportation, that would just be beyond my understanding... ;)

[konadog]

I've been thing over this topic a bit of late and thought some of you might be interested in John Muir's intro to his famous "How to keep your VW alive...for the Complete Idiot" He was a wise mechanic and his approach to automobiles has inspired thousands. He is talking about VW's, but the mindset translates to delicas too. Hey, maybe one day someone will produce a similar book for delica idiots!

[Adrock]

I've got yet another side of this coin. Many of you have seen what I use my van for on occasion. I beat the shit out of it, but to me, thats what it is for. It is in exceptional mechanical condition, after a trip to cvi last month, and whenever it decides to tell me there is something awry, but that is where I quit being nice to it. Do I love driving my van? yes. Do I love my van? no.

I am very confident that I could get just as much pleasure out of another vehicle, so confident in fact a couple months ago I was looking to trade in for a Hilux, (the truck, not the 4 runner) to turn it into a real 4x4 beast using north american toyota pickup parts, however I was dissuaded by mardy as he informed me that they are far less reliable than a delica. I have since come to terms with this and although it is not as capable as I would like it to be off road and in my opinion it is not financially wise to modify a deli to be a true 4x4 considering all the custom one off work that would have to be done at a hefty cost. I have decided to keep it, and in fact I believe I will be the final owner, because I can't picture not having something better, and I haven't found that yet, and it is now my work van, so whether I take the classic muscle car route or the sammy/yota truck 4by toy route, I will still most likely keep my work van, that has the ability to get into the muck if I really want to.

Its just a vehicle, but I really enjoy what I do with it. and if anyone can get me air lockers cheap let me know haha.

If it got stolen tomorrow and I got a $10 000 check from icbc (in 30 days of course) I couldn't be certain i'd buy another delica, I guess the novelty has worn off, but at the same time, i'm certainly not anxious to sell it, and there would be times i'd miss it for sure. One thing I like about it above all the other vehicles i've had the pleasure of driving is getting to meet people with similar and completely different interests. I don't need a van to meet people, but I'm 21 years old and there is a lot I can learn from everyone out there, under any other circumstance it would be strange for me to go on a camping trip with people "slightly" older than me. but I had a blast, learned a thing or 2, and enjoyed everyones company.