Toile Car

The car I totaled on November 15 is still in my driveway, inoperable. The claim has been settled by the insurance company, which paid out the cash value, minus $100. They provided the name of a salvage company which would come and get the car and pay me the remaining $100 for it if I wanted. Or I could keep it and do whatever with it--sell it myself, fix it up, or just leave it to rust in the yard.

The whole salvage project got stalled because the title to the car is lost. Or rather, inaccessible at the moment. A duplicate title can be gotten from the registry for $25. But meanwhile a handy friend, who just happens to own a service station with a nice lift, etc., offered to take it off my hands and fix it if possible; otherwise, sell it. We looked up the necessary body parts online and determined that they would cost about $600. That's just body parts. He'd have to check it out more thoroughly in his shop to see if the brakes or transmission or anything else was damaged, making it not worth the bother of repairing.

Long story short, this poor little car has already been given up for dead. So if he proves to have one more life (and I don't call him "Trusty" for nothing), I'm thinking maybe I could get a little bit creative with him.

Here's a car I saw on the Champs-Elysées the last time I was in Paris. Note the Louis XVI side chair inside! Don't think I could do that and pass inspection in Massachusetts, but it gives food for thought. Like those runway creations that wouldn't actually be wearable on the street, concept cars inspire us to rethink our mundane wheels. It was Trusty's missing hubcap that started my "art" collection in the house. Maybe I could use the house to inspire a new look for the car?