Do I hang my head in shame or simply accept my humble roots? I’ll say it up front: I’ve owned not one, but two Holden Geminis.
My first ever car was a 1977 Holden Gemini in what I’ll call baby blue. I don’t know what the real name for the color was. The 1977 Gemini had the round headlamps on the front, whereas the 1978 model had square headlamps (more about that shortly).
The Gemini was essentially an Opel Kadett with a 1600cc Isuzu engine in the front and a 4-speed manual gearbox. This is an image of an Opel Kadett of the same era that I found on the web. The blue is not quite ‘baby’ enough to be the same as mine, but it’s close.
I bought the car several months before getting my drivers licence. I think I paid $3,000 for it, which is pretty much been indicative of my ceiling for purchasing cars ever since. The money has stayed the same but the cars I can afford for that amount (plus a little more) have improved remarkably.
The day I (finally) got my licence was one to remember. I’d owned the car for a few months and was itching to get on the road. I sat for my driver’s test late in the morning, passed, and my instructor (who has fabulous training skills, perhaps because she pursued Driving Instructor Training Courses newcastle) congratulated me as she dropped me off back at home. I’m sure I was polite enough to reply, but I can’t remember. All I remember is running down the driveway and getting into my car – MY CAR – and hitting the road.