Alvaro Alverez
From Seal Beach (Waiter)
It was a red Atlantic. And I really liked the car. It is basically like the Volkswagen Jetta is now. It was red. I was 16 when I got it, so...that was probably 1986. I guess some people can be real particular about their cars and what they look like. I was happy with it. It got me where I wanted to go.
Michelle Shocked
From Los Angeles (Singer-Songwriter)
My first car was standard transmission, so I was always grinding the gears when I was learning to drive it with my dad. It was a '70 or '71 bug. It wasn't until my mom explained the purpose of the clutch that I got it. I was once asked to autograph someone's car. It was an old station wagon, and I don't know why, but I signed it Michelle Shock Absorber.
Nikki Sixx
From Los Angeles (Mötley Crüe bassist and songwriter)
It was a '48 Plymouth. And if you can believe this, the thing didn't even have any floorboards in it. I had the car for a little while. The first car I bought when I got a little money was a Porsche Boxster. It was a little small for me, but at the time it was all I could afford.
Tony Atkinson
From Downtown (Waiter)
I bought an '83 Chevy Nova as a graduation present in 1985. It looked like a little Volkswagen Rabbit, not like those old Novas that were huge. I had it all through college. I think I paid $7000 for it, and it never needed a new engine or anything. It was a good little car that I put over 200,000 miles on.
Chino Moreno
From Mira Mesa (Landscaper)
My first car was a 1975 Toyota Celica GT Coupe. I was 15, driving with my dad, and he saw it on a car lot. It only had 25,000 miles on it and was in great condition. My dad negotiated with the dealer, and we drove off with it. I couldn't believe I had a car that I couldn't yet drive for six months. My dad drove the car since I was not of age. He smoked from the point when he put the key into the ignition until he reached each destination. It stunk like cigarettes for years, and ashes were everywhere in the car. I had fixed the car up with new paint, striping, custom wheels, and low-profile tires and gave it to my brother for his 16th birthday. He rolled it in the mountains a few weeks later.
Audrey Ricca
From Mira Mesa (Student)
It was a Mazda 626. The thing really sucked. It was always breaking down and was such a hassle. I guess a lot of people have that problem with first cars. It was a '94, and it was old when I got it. I had it for almost two years during school. I called the color of it "roarange" because it was red and orange.