1989 Toyota Land Cruiser

Owner: Markus Rutledge, Creative Director
Location: Los Angeles, CA

The Story: "My dad had the same car when I was a kid, and I always dreamed of having my own one day." said Rutledge, from the roof of his parking garage in downtown Los Angeles. That dream came true four years ago when he found this one on eBay. He stayed up all night to win the bid, then took the train to Santa Barbara to pick it up.

It has low mileage (139,000 miles) because the previous owner developed an illness and was unable to drive it, keeping it garaged for many years. The gas mileage is terrible; about 11 miles to the gallon on a good day. It's slow when it comes to climbing hills, but it'll tow anything. Rutledge likes taking it camping as he and his English Mastiff, Baby Huey, can sleep comfortably in the back.

The Land Cruiser is famously reliable. It was once the official car of the United Nations, and has been used worldwide by many other humanitarian organizations since 1954.

Future Plans: He has absolutely no plans to sell it and hopes to replace the engine. He'd rather spend the money to keep it running than buy a new car, and we can't say we blame him.

Check out Rutledge's blog. His show "Christmastown, USA" airs Sunday, Dec 14 at 7PM & 7:30PM on Travel Channel.