New Jersey tradition: Why people throw coins in a new car

I recently had the joy (heavy sarcasm) of buying a car. It’s a used Camry, and so far it’s treating me well.

The whole ordeal reminded me of what you’re supposed to do when someone does this.

What is car coining?

I never knew that I was supposed to throw coins in a friend’s recently purchased car for good luck.

It wasn’t until I got my old Camry in 2016 that I learned of this tradition and it actually did give me luck. I’ll get to that in a moment.

Why do people throw coins in a new car?

According to Wikipedia, this is a practice popular in the New Jersey and New York area.

Because of the area's many toll roads, many drivers would carry change in their cars.

The friends and family of the new car owner would throw coins onto the floor of the new car so if the driver ever ran out of their own money, they could always reach down and find some extra money on the floor.

This actually came true for me, even though we’re in the E-ZPass era.

Throwing change for good luck

When I first got my old car, my neighbor came over and threw change in the backseat.

At first I thought it was a matter of “well, you now have car payments, so you need money.” I had no clue what was happening.

He explained that it’s for good luck, and I figured I’d never think of it again.

Maybe two weeks later, I was driving on the Parkway approaching a toll. It was then that I realized I hadn’t put my E-ZPass in the new car.

Oops.

I safely pulled over to see if there was any change in my wallet. There was maybe a dollar’s worth.

Then I remembered the good luck change.

The coins my neighbor threw in were enough to get me through the toll.

I couldn’t help but smile. They actually were lucky.

So you better believe that when I got my new car, I was thrilled that a friend wanted to continue the tradition.

Next time someone in your life gets a car, keep the good luck going. You never know when there’s going to be a doofus like me who will actually need it.

SEE ALSO: Proof that New Jerseyans get an unjustly bad reputation

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5's Kylie Moore. Any opinions expressed are Kylie's own. You can follow Kylie on Instagram.

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