Woman buys new car - 40 years after last one

It was time for Doris Forkin to get a new car.

The retired Columbia Falls schoolteacher hadn't gone car shopping for awhile - 39 years to be exact. She has been driving her 1965 Chrysler Newport ever since her husband bought it from Balding's Used Cars in Kalispell in 1966.

Last week she made the switch to a 2005 Chrysler 300, special-ordered through Kari Dodge in Kalispell.

It was time, she said.

"The mileage was crowding 200,000," Forkin said. "But it's been such a dependable car. It didn't owe me a thing."

The reason Forkin waited until now to get a new car is simple: She hadn't seen one she really liked. Then she took a spin in a friend's Chrysler 300 and fell in love with the car.

Forkin did her homework on the upgraded Chrysler and learned it's the Motor Trend Car of the Year for 2005.

She told Kari sales consultant Rod Kuntz what features she wanted in her new car, and three months later, the all-wheel-drive vehicle arrived from the factory. The color is "magnesium," a sort of iridescent dark green. Her old car was dark green, too.

"It's been fun for me," Kuntz said. "The Chrysler 300 is one of those cars, when you drive it, you want to come back and pull out your checkbook. They're not on the lot very long."

As for Forkin's '65 Newport, she's still got the classic Chrysler and hopes to sell it to an old-car buff.

"I'd like to sell it to someone who could restore it," she said. "This car is in excellent shape for being as old as it is. It's always been taken care of. It's a wonderful vehicle."

Other than the usual tune-ups, new tires and a new battery every now and then, Forkin can't remember any major overhauls. Before her husband, James, died in 1974, he put new ball joints in the car. That's the last big fix she remembers.

Forkin doesn't have any long-distance road trips planned, just the usual jaunts around Columbia Falls and the Flathead Valley. She's looking forward to going in style.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com