A New Poem for Sunday

I'm trying to get all the poems written for the Fall 2010 contests. In this one I played fast and loose with the facts, like '83 for '93. And where it refers to speed, you ought to read efficiency and dependability--I never really outran the troopers. And old Abe is still going. This poem is for the category "Look On the Bright Side."
*
Eulogy for Old Abe

Old Abe was my car that traveled near and far
In all kinds of weather and places;
Born in '83, it was very plain to see
That he'd never lay down in the traces.

He guzzled the gas, and no other car could pass
When I put my foot on the pedal;
Any time we had a mind, we could leave 'em all behind
Waitin' for the gravel to settle.

I can't forget the time on I-59,
When I saw the state troopers up ahead;
The gauge said 102, and I thought, Uh-oh, we're through!
But Abe wasn't ready to play dead!

He edged to the right, so the mirror caught the light
And blinded the law with the glimmer!
When we left them there a-blinkin', they must have been a-thinkin'
That what passed them was only a shimmer.

But since it's Nature's way, in '09 there came a day
When we couldn't keep up such a ruction;
We were 'way out in the woods, when I popped up the hood
And saw a tragic scene of destruction!

The engine was gone and the radiator blown;
Every B had come loose from its A (so to speak);
There was no use to boo-hoo--Abe had met his Waterloo,
Just like that old Deacon's one-hoss shay!

So Abe came to be a mere streak of memory,
Like so many other wonders from my youth.
They can build all kinds of tripe, but they'll never see his like;
Old Abe was the best, and that's the truth!

And if there's a place where ghost cars can race,
Some track out beyond space and time,
You can bet that Old Abe is leavin' 'em in the shade,
Just like he did on I-59!

By JRC, 09/05/10