Yoj, You’re My World, You’re So Rad, You Were The Best Ride I Ever Had

Can you see the ninja in this photo? Didn’t think so…

Never in my life have I become so attached to an inanimate object as I was to this somewhat reliable bucket of metal, bolts and rubber.  After 14 years of faithful service, Yoji (Named after the mediocre tattoo apprentice from Miami Ink of course) my infamous sushi powered 2001 Mazda Protege, with his 110 horses of pure Japanese muscle, is finally headed to the graveyard.

In June 2006, I bought him for $8500 after my previous ride, a gas guzzling 4WD SUV, decided it didn’t want to run for me any more.  He had a few dents, and was starting to rust in some places, but the prospect of significantly better gas mileage was all I really cared about at the time (Side note – gas was a measly 82 cents/litre the first time I filled him up).  I learned to drive stick in Shakey (the family truck that earned it’s name by – you guessed it, shaking violently and constantly) a few days before taking Yoj for a test drive.  It didn’t really help, but luckily I was able to get it off the lot without embarrassing myself, and I eventually figured out how to drive it.

Throughout 2007/2008 when was I still into foolishly pursuing freelance camera work as a profession, I practically lived in this car.  It was much more than my mode of transportation.  It was an office, a lunch and break room and sometimes, even a bed when a hotel room wasn’t in the budget.  Many contracts and RFQ’s were signed on the hood at truck stops along the 401.  He was the Ottawa, Windsor, Collingwood (or whatever city I happened to be that week) satellite office of my barely successful limited liability corporation.  In 2010, I murdered him out, making him look extra ninja-ish.  More in the interest of saving money on a paint job than anything else.  Even in his last months, I still got compliments from car dudes on how cool it looked.

I saw a good part of the Eastern side of the continent from behind his steering wheel.  Back and forth many times to Montreal.  Several trips to Buffalo and Detroit for various concerts, and a summer road trip to Chicago, VIA Ohio and Indianapolis to see Alkaline Trio.  This, when he already had a good 300,000 km on him.   His crowning achievement as a car was an overnight, 14 hour trip to Thunder Bay, through Northern Michigan during a massive winter snow storm.  Sure footed as a mountain goat, he didn’t slip or slide once.

The final km count on this little ninja was 353000+ km (This not including ~20,000 I put on it during the year or so I drove it around Ontario with a broken odometer)  About 200,000+ of that was put on by yours truly.  Aside from routine maintenance, this little guy never really cost me any money, and aside from one trip on a tow truck after the alternator died, he rarely let me down.

I’ve had this thing longer than I’ve had most girlfriends, and as you tell from the previous 500 words, I’ve treated him like a human being and a friend.  Yeah…I’m weird.  Whatever.

RIP Yoj.