What do you do when your red Pontiac Bonneville gets totaled by a Chevy Avalanche?  If you’re me, you replace it with… another red Pontiac Bonneville; specifically, a 1995 Pontiac Bonneville SSE.

My 1995 Bonneville

The new car looked so similar to the old car that several people commented to me, “Wow, they did an incredible job repairing your car!”  That would have been quite the trick, since I got the replacement a week after the collision, and the interior went from gray cloth to black leather.

I can appreciate a good prank...

Along the way, BonnevilleClub grew.  Users took it upon themselves to print calling cards promoting the site, plaster the URL on their car windows, make t-shirts, and organize meets.  They were the engine of the site; I was more of a benevolent, hands-off financier than a day-to-day manager.  That distance taught me the value of hiring good people and the importance of dealing with issues.  It also honed my server administration skills.  Overall, a very positive venture.

I sold my second Bonneville to a gentleman who was buying it for his daughter.  It took about a month to sell, and at the time, I thought that was unusually long.  Little did I know that my next car would need almost half a year to find a buyer.  But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Stats

• Red 1995 Pontiac Bonneville SSE
• 3.8 L naturally aspirated V6
• 205 hp / 230 lb-ft
• 4-speed automatic transmission
• Black leather interior
• 155,000 miles when acquired (ca. May 1, 2002)
• 188,000 miles when sold (ca. November, 2004)