The Car

I mentioned in my previous post I might be buying a car here in Australia. Well, I did it! I am the proud owner of a white 1995 Ford Mondeo with a manual transmission, and just under 190,000 km on the odometer. It’s got new tires (tyres?) A/C, manual windows, manual seats, power locks, grey cloth seats, and a tape player! Aside from a few issues with an intermittently high idle and being a bit cranky to start when its cold it actually runs pretty darn well.

Since picking up the car late thursday night and getting my first taste of driving on the left side of the road from the right side of the car, I’ve been doing quite well. Most of my journeys so far have been to various beaches, with a 40 minute trip down the motorway to get the car back to the city, and a trip to the airport to pick up Luke interspersed in there too.

More on the (awesome) waves and beaches later, I promise! In terms of getting used to driving on the other side of the road, I’m pretty comfortable now after only a couple of days. The first few times out were a bit nervewracking, but after getting used to it its really not much different than driving at home. Shifting with my left took some getting used to, as did staying in my lane (Being on the right side of the car gave me a tendency to drift a bit further left than I should be… I’ve gotten much better at this though!). Some things to remember if you ever find yourself driving here: No left turns at red lights unless its explicitly stated, and no u-turns at traffic lights (though I’ve still seen people doing it!). Also, in the city the leftmost lane tends to get filled up with parked cars, so be wary if traveling there that you might have to quickly move over!

I’ve been using my iPhone loaded up with TomTom Australia as a navigation tool. It seems to do pretty well at getting me where I want to go, and has a handy warning indicator for speed cams, red light cams, and whenever I’m exceeding the speed limit by a good amount. It also lets me choose routes without tolls, which is nice too.

I went down to the RTA on Friday and got the registration formally transferred to my name (as required by law, within 14 days of purchase). As far as I know, this makes the Mondeo the first car ever legally owned free and clear by me! While I was at the RTA I also picked up a Toll transponder, which I figured might come in handy.

Working on planning out road trips now, I’m excited! Having a car gives me lot of flexibility as to where I go and what I see… Since getting it I’ve already seen a ton of things I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Lets hope the trend continues, and let the adventures continue!