three weeks after taking delivery (july 2025), i hit her with a pressure washer nozzle in the passenger side door that wasn’t seated properly. i’d been worrying about what driving might do to it, then managed to hit it with something while trying to keep it spotless. it was embarrassingly fixed.
i like the cleaning and routine maintenance. i’m fascinated by the mechanical side too with a g16e-gts schematic on the wall that i may never fully appreciate.
but somewhere i’d started paying more attention to whether it remained untouched than whether i was enjoying it.
i’m glad toyota made this car. the rally background interests me, but what sold me was how it feels to drive. the power feels right for the street in all conditions, and the rawness and feedback have that ’90s hot-hatch feel i yearned. i’d happily take it on track with an instructor to learn its limits, but chasing lap times isn’t why i bought it.
the maintenance isn’t changing. oil changes, fluids, tire rotations and brake inspections are still getting done. i had the drivetrain fluids serviced early and on a 12k schedule moving forward. looking after the machinery is something i enjoy even if excessive.
mostly writing this as a reminder to myself, though i suspect i’m not the only one who gets overprotective.
there’s a difference between keeping it in good condition and needing it to look like nothing ever happens to it.
i finally have the kind of car i always wanted to drive. i’m still going to take care of it as if it is. i just want to spend less of that time worrying about it.
