old cars

As much as I love my older cars , the prosaic truth is that I'd kill for something new(er) to have as a daily driver . Something with a functioning heater / defogger / defroster ; something that doesn't have weather leaks ; something that gets better fuel mileage ; and something with a sound system in it .

However , I don't want :
- stupid c.v. axles / complicated front end parts
- a motor I can't easily work on
- a trans which has no dipstick ( the 2001 Cavalier I drive at work has a trans -- 4T40E -- which has no freakin' way to check the fluid level !! )
- bunch of plastic ****
- steering column stalks with 100 features / functions on 'em
- something that requires smog checks ( I despise giving this greedy *** state any more of my hard earned money !!! )
- timing belt(s) ( I'll take me one of them "noisy , rough" chains any day !

I had a 1990 Corolla which was my daily driver from July 1999 - May 2005 . My parents bought it new ; I bought it from them when they got a new car in '99 .
That thing was GREAT ! 40 mpg if I took it easy ( 32 average ) ; a stupid-easy spark plug / cap & rotor / ignition wire change ; accessible air filtre ; everything worked on it .
The only reason why I sold it is that after 260,000 miles , the trans was going bye-bye ... and , yes , it was serviced once-a-year since new .