As a recent college graduate and new corporate job holder, I worked daily until 5pm. One day, my parents called me and told me to meet them at the local Ford dealership because they needed a ride home. They had traded in their 1985 Chevy C10 for an awesome 1991 Ford F150 XLT Lariat. (I wondered why they needed a ride if they had bought a vehicle but I went with it.)
I pulled into the dealership lot expecting to see my parents ready to show me their new truck but instead, my mom took me by the hand and said we were going for a walk while dad “chatted” with the salesman.
Mom and I went onto the lot and she led me to a row of Probes. I really liked the look of the Probe and Mom knew it. She asked me what I thought and I was honest, I liked the red one, the silver one-I did not like but that burgandy one (Wild Strawberry) one was beautiful. Mom encouraged me to go look at the interior, asking me the color of the fabric, and if the car was an automatic or a stick shift. I told her it was stick shift and I know I was smiling because Mom then said – sit in it. (Being 6ft tall, she wanted to make sure it had leg room.)
I sat down in that car and wow, I had to catch my breath. Mom then climbed into the passenger seat and we looked at everything – the knobs, the pedals, the shifter and she stopped me and said “How would you like to have it?”
I just looked at her and must have looked a little crazy because she responded, you can afford it on what you make but do you want it. Oh my gosh, I told her yes, yes, yes but I wanted to drive it first.
Needless to say, July 12, 1991 (2 days after my birthday, I purchased this vehicle) and still own her today! She has been in storage for many years as I raise my family (my 6ft 3 in tall son does not fit into the back seat) but she is as beautiful and as incredible as she was when I first bought her.
My 16 year old recently got her license and someone suggested that I let her have my 1991 Probe – NO way, I gave her my 2002 Ford Explorer instead