Remember the Love Bug?

My first car was a Beetle. Colored orange and then another Beetle, colored aqua blue.  Both were reliable and sturdy compacts which were able to traverse flooded Metro Manila streets of yesteryears.

Then came a Ford Brenda. Later an Isuzu and just recently, a Plymouth Voyager mini-van.

Now, I drive a Montero.

Last Sunday, while on a trip to Cavite, its battery got weak and I had to get a series.  Back in Manila, I found out it had a 21-month warranty while it's just on its eighteenth month with the SUV.

Unlike the two previous Beetles, the Montero is a four-wheel drive and still goes berserk when you hit on its gas.

It is a beauty physically, too, that's why perhaps the household members find it irresistible and make its various parts play various roles.

For instance, its hood gets decorated with flower pots, sometimes with small trash cans, too, candy containers, mosquito swatter, etc.

Its metal bumper becomes a clothesline for little rags.

Inside, the dashboard becomes a little altar with small religious statues and icons. The mid-section compartments are cluttered with combs, paper fans and notebooks. And the driver's drink compartment gets loaded with coins.

Alas, the luggage section is fully mine, so I get to put my car tools in it.

The neat freak in me gets its fangs out when I see the add-ons in full view. I simply see red.

My old love bugs were supposed to be user friendly and they were; they didn't care if they had add ons, or less ons.

Manilenos are clean freaks when it comes to their vehicles. Their cars get washed everyday by the help, never mind if the water is expensive or just a drip.

In U.S. and Canada, where there's no household crew, people go to drive- through car wash and presto in five minutes, get a spotlessly clean car. Or wait for the vehicle to get really dirty, especially during winter, before getting the vehicle hosed down.

In Manila where most car wash services are done manually by car wash boys, car owners wait for at least an hour to get their cars out.

So while here in Manila,  I do most of my car wash, outside and inside clean up, and rely on a regular on-call mechanic. 

Because vehicles are a lot cheaper in North America and car financing much easier to obtain, the car buying public gets to choose from a wide variety of car makes and models. And practical car owners often lease or buy used cars.

For instance, a cousin-in law, an engineer for a big car manufacturer, rarely buys a brand new vehicle. He prefers used, top-of-the line cars.

In Manila, people prefer brand new because the old ones get poor maintenance, like batteries that die within two years. 

The SUV is the ruggedly handsome mode of transport for today.  The Love Bug is the manly car women love to cuddle.