I will miss you.It's amazing how one can grow to be so attached to an object, which by now has become more than that; it is now an integral part of me. It's been six long years since it had been by my side. When i first decided to get it, I was only planning to use it for 2 to 3 years. However I became so used to its presence that I had never given a thought about parting with it since.
It saw how I grew over the years.. from a bright-eyed ignorant clumsy little girl who just started work, to the (relatively) mature jaded woman who has now gotten worn off over the years.
It provided for my need for speed when I was still full of youth and energy and able to respond quickly, and slowed down over the years along with my reflex system as I grew to become comfortable with a slower mindless pace.
It followed me as I went through the various stages of my career - into the isolated treatment plants and installations, onto the Malaysian motorways and small single-lane roads with heavy vehicles and reckless motorcyclists, by the roadside next to barricaded work sites of water seeping/gushing out, and in the comfort of basement car parks of government buildings.
It supported me during significant moments - not only for the wedding and moving out, but also when flexibility is much needed during the passing of closed ones.
It unfortunately also got pulled into a complicated relationship that caused me much grief and frustration, though at the same time I am glad that it managed to provide whatever help it could on my behalf.
Tomorrow will be the day it will leave my life. It is as though a loved one is leaving - just the thought of it already fills me with sadness and helplessness. It sounds like exaggeration but that is just how attached I had grown to my Vios. I guess I am feeling worse because I will be scrapping it, instead of simply exporting or selling it to another owner (which means that it would still be intact, kinda like still living somewhere else).
I am so thankful for getting it, despite not really knowing what to look out for when I was looking for one. I just knew that I wanted a basic entry-level manual vehicle which was safe and reliable for driving in Malaysia without attracting any attention. And it was the one and only car which was shown to me by my agent that fit my criteria. Since I don't know better, and the car evaluation done by STA showed that it was satisfactory, it became my first car.
I still remember how I got lost on the AYE in my first weekend of driving in Singapore, having to depend on the book of Street Directory on my lap (there was no smartphone at that time!). And also all the accidents / near misses that I got into, mostly in the first few months of ownership as the refresher period after getting my licence.
- The harrowing experience down Jalan Kayu - It was the second or third day after getting my car. My brave, or perhaps ignorant, brother accompanied me for supper. Being my second time driving at night, the numerous kind of lights on the roads from cars, lamp post, etc.were very distracting. I had no good sense of speed at that time, and an even poorer sense of the size of my car. Vehicles were illegally parked along both sides of Jalan Kayu, leaving only one narrow lane in the middle of this two way road just enough for one vehicle to pass through at any one time. I kinda lost control and simply sped through it without even realising it is a two-way road and whether there was any car coming from the other direction. There was this part that was so narrow, and cos I was going so fast, I couldn't do anything but cross my fingers and pray that nothing will happen. My side mirror was probably millimeters away from the side mirror of the other car. It was such a close shave.
- The taxi accident along Jalan Eunos - This was probably in the first month. I was on the left most lane behind a taxi. Yes, this was when I learnt that one should always not follow a taxi too closely as they may stop abruptly anytime. I was not able to stop in time and just swerved out into the next lane instinctively without even checking whether there was another car! Thank goodness there wasn't, but I reacted too late and still scrapped against the side of the taxi. The taxi's side mirror was hit and probably came loose. My side mirror simply closed in with no damage and I got away with just some scratches on the car body. Perhaps the taxi uncle saw that I was a young little apologetic looking girl, and that the damages on his taxi were not so major (or perhaps covered under his company's insurance) and hence he let me off easily.
- The Mercedes kissing incident in the backlane - This was in the second month I think. I was looking for parking in the CBD area in the evening, and went into this back lane. It was already full of vehicles and hence I had to make a many-point-turn at the dead end to get out. Apparently I was still unsure of my car's turning radius, and it was so dark I couldn't really see and gauge how far I was from the black Merc in the corner. Hence I half-clutched and inched as slowly as possible to do my many-point-turn. As it turned out, I was so slow that I didn't felt anything when my car was already in contact with that Merc. And it was until sometime later then I realised my back door was dented inwards by the Merc's bumper! Well, the good thing is that the Merc did not suffer any damage at all. -_-" The power of Merc. And so I just went away with a dented door, which cost me about $200 to knock out.
- The sleepy accident at the traffic junction- This happened either last year or the year before. I think I was too tired that day. I was behind a lorry at the traffic junction, waiting for the light to turn green. When it did, I thought I saw the lorry in front started moving and hence I also started to drive off. But before I knew it, I was too close to the lorry and I did a emergency brake. Unfortunately I still heard a 'bang'. My bonnet dented. For the lorry, only the vehicle plate was slightly out of place. The lorry driver adjusted it, said it's okay and left.
Despite all the horror stories I heard about getting a second-hand car, my Vios had been performing well for me. It had not given me much of a problem at all, except the only time when the air con broke down when I was on the North-South Highway back to Singapore on a hot summer afternoon with 3 other passengers inside. Other than that and the occasional headlight bulb fuses, and the 'fish tank' in my brake light at the back, it had never failed me. The interior had also always been looking good, despite me never maintaining it at all (hee.. sorry about that!). I don't think it even looked like a 10-year-old car now. It is such a pity it will be scrapped!! *sob*
Thank you Vios... for having been a part of my life and supporting me all these while. I am not getting a replacement and have no plans to get one in the future (yet). I will miss you.