[Brad54]

My point of reference is daily-driving the Suburban in my avatar for 10 years, 100,000 miles and through 20 states.

Yes, things wear out... so it gets repaired or re-restored.
Yes, gas mileage sucks. When gas was $4+ a gallon, I still drove it daily. I just stopped running to the store for a single can of spray paint or a gallon of milk.

But every minute behind the wheel of that truck, with no radio, no AC, no heat for a couple years, no weather stripping, no carpet or sound deadener, and one memorable trip to Nashville in the rain with no floor on the passenger side... was enjoyable every time.

No matter what kind of mood I was in, honking down the interstate in the left lane at 80mph in Atlanta while passing commuter econoboxes in the right lanes, made all right with the world, at least for the time I was behind that thin steering wheel on an unrestored worn out seat.

Sometimes, optimizing impractical is a lot better than just going practical.

-Brad