Who was it that got you into cars? Was it your dad? Friends? Another family member? Either way, most folks would mention a male figure that brought them into the world of cars. But things were a little different for me. The person who got me into all this was my mother.
Of course, my dad did play a role in it as well, but it was my mom who helped it grow into what it is today. It also helped that my mom was, and still sort of is, an enthusiast.
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Growing up, mom would tell me all about the cars she grew up with, some of which are quite fascinating. See, she didn’t grow up with nothing but Japanese cars. She actually experienced a wide variety of these, from American, Japanese, and yes, even French cars from the late ‘60s and onwards. She’d also tell me tales of one of the first cars she grew up with, which was a Renault Dauphine. And if you had to Google that, I totally understand. But the fact that she experienced some quirky, rear-engined French family sedan has got to be extra enthusiast kudos points.
Other cars my mom remembers from her youth? There was the second-generation Toyota Corolla Deluxe that replaced the Dauphine, and a Rambler American station wagon that brought her to school. But one of her most memorable rides to school was the 40-Series Land Cruiser. It’s not because it was a cool thing to be in, but rather, it was the pogo-stick ride quality she remembers the most.
But it could be said my mom’s love for cars grew when she got behind the wheel. Having inherited her uncle’s Corolla Deluxe, she named it Carol and became her daily driver for years. Carol (the Corolla) would later become the car both my mom and dad would take to work in the ‘80s. The stories mom would tell me about Carol still stick to my memory. Mom would clean the car as often as she can, going as far as getting behind the chrome bumpers to prevent rust. She knows how to adjust a carburetor, too. If anything, mom takes better care of her cars than me.
So, how exactly did my mom help me become a car enthusiast? Growing up, my parents didn’t exactly like the notion of me playing with guns, so they decided to buy me a set of Matchbox cars to play with instead. With the power of foresight, it’s those cars that would lead me to where I am today. But my parents saw that it wasn’t just a phase, and it was my mom who cultivated it and let it grow. She saw that I had a passion for it, and mom supported it from day 1.
That love for cars grew even more when we visited the US in ‘95. It opened me up to a whole different world of cars, and it was my first time seeing land yachts such as the Chevrolet Caprice and Ford LTD, but also my first experience with European luxo barges. I still remember mom and dad taking a photo of me beside a Mercedes-Benz S500 and a BMW 740iL along Beverly Hills. It was mom who told me not to be shy when looking at the cars too.
It was also in the ‘90s when the popularity of Tomica boomed in the country. Mom would get me one almost every week, and I still remember the day she gave me one of my first models. It was a blue, three-door Toyota RAV4. But aside from buying toy cars, there is one bonding experience that I enjoyed doing the most. Mom would let me row the gears of the car when she was driving, and I was essentially her ‘shifter’ when we were on the road. My dad would later teach me how to shift by ear, just like most kids of the ‘90s. Mom would also bring me to showrooms and just take a look at the cars there. If most kids grew up in a play pen, I grew up running around the floors of Honda Cars Kalookan.
But if there’s one thing that makes my mom special, it’s her support. She never called my car-loving ‘vice’ a ‘waste of time’, and never once said I would quit it. She truly understands my passion for cars, and never told me to ‘find a better job’ because, well, automotive journalism doesn’t exactly pay CEO-levels. Far from it, in fact. Besides, mom is also a great help in reviewing cars too, especially when it came to ride, transmission behavior, and seat comfort. If anything, it was mom’s input that helped make some of my reviews a little more, well, grounded.
These days, mom is happily retired and drives a lot less. She still dreams of having another midsize SUV, having owned a Toyota Fortuner for the longest time. Her love for cars is still there and she still asks me what I’ve been reviewing lately. And while my mom might not be the biggest car nerd in the world, her enthusiasm for it made me who I am today.
Simply put, I would probably be aimless and still figuring out what I want to do had my parents not steered me towards cars when I was a kid.
