auto_editor

As someone on the ripe side of 40, I know what it means to have your parts start showing wear. But given the cruel eye of an accountant (my wife), keeping my '89 CC doesn't "make financial sense."

Leaving fuel, fluids and insurance aside, she's right. But as the now-under-fire Top Gear UK host said in Eric Bana's "Love the Beast", you don't trade in your wife for a newer model because she is getting older and has the sniffles.

[Unless you're a wealthy dentist, lawyer or one of the rest of the stereotypical bunch that late in life start becoming "trophy wife" collectors.]

Anyhoo, cosmetically she's showing the ravages of age, especially in clearcoat separation, metallic-paint fading and wheelarch rust. The number of electric bits on her that work--especially in her interior--threatens to decrease at any moment and, worst of all, she needs a new/rebuilt engine.

But the heart wants what the heart wants, and I look at none of this as a sign that she needs to be towed out of my life. She still runs, and will putter around town all day, no problem. [All that smoke from her tailpipe is normal. Yes, it is. Hush!]

I have the driveway space (yes, with a slowly-enlarging black stain beneath her sump) and the time(-ish) to keep her road-going.

[Though the driver's door window switch replacement project DID stall in September, leaving it all apart across the rear cargo floor.]

SO, to the point ("FINALLY!" I hear you say. Sshhh!): Do you keep your cars out of love, a sense of duty and/or the plain wild desire to hang on to the car you spent so much time finding, fixing and enjoying?

I could never replace her for "what she's worth", even if I could find another (I can't) in a color scheme/trim level I wanted (ditto) for even five times what I paid for her. She has served me faithfully (pretty much) apart from a few of what my engineer grandfather would term "energetic disassemblies" (brake lines blew at the rear axle, radiator blew pretty much all over the place, etc.).

But I want to keep her soooooo bad.

That brings me to the crux of the dilemma: Some people would spend twenty grand treating their fourteen-year-old cat for some hopeless cancer. I find that cruel, "dying with dignity" and all. But does that apply with cars?

My line is leaving her inert in a field somewhere to just rust away, which I'm not. But I'm not exactly restoring her, either. And I know she's not a super-rare car in general that I need to preserve for the ages, but she's the only one like her I've EVER seen. And, above all, she's mine.

Feel free to tell me my obsession is warranted and shared. Comments like "I'd never let my car either" will be forwarded to my wife. All others will be deleted.

Charlie Jones

You're not alone. I have , for a daily driver, a 1988 Dodge Aries with about 180,000 mi.
Remind your accountant what the payments are for a new car vs. the average monthly cost of maintaining "Angie".

oldcutlass

Look at it this way... If this a DD look at the cost to repair vs replace. Looking at this strictly as a business decision.

A car is like a woman, if you have a terrible relationship and she is high maintenance, is it really worth keeping her? Is it worth investing more money and time if there is no chance of reconciling your differences. On the other hand if your relationship is good, and there is truly love there, perhaps a rebuild is in order to correct her misgivings.

Sampson

Sounds to me like you two need to grow old together!

Koda

In my opinion, sir, you need to keep the car operating on a minimal budget. You enjoy working on it, so discount the labor, but don't spend a lot of money. I would not rebuild the engine; I'd run it till it dies, then swap in some running engine you got somewhere on the cheap. You can keep these cars going for not much, provided you compromise a bit on appearance, and numbers matching, and using used parts.

And when you find some right minded kid, with more time than money, pass it on.

mikeamondo

Your first mistake, if you wanted to do anything other than keep her forever, was to name her and give her a personality..... once you personify a car, you're stuck! Of course, if you don't name them they are nowhere near as loyal to you.... so it's kind of a catch 22...


I tend to keep mine until the repairs exceed my expertise. I can do a good bit of work, but if I can't trust it to drive across town, I need to fix it or pass her on to someone who can. Often a heartwrenching decision. Like sending an old friend off know you'll never see them again...


"Abe" was my 85 Lincoln TownCar, well over 200,000 miles and maybe 8 years of daily driving. Nearly cried.
My second TownCar, a '97 named "The Mary Todd" (she was a good old girl, but bit crazy like her namesake)... 5 years and I put a good 80k miles on her. But eventually the repairs needed exceeded my time and money...


We've all been there (at least the more sentimental of us) but in the end only you know 'when it's time'....

rustyroger

You can leave any mechanical parts alone right up to when they don't work anymore, and it will cost no more to fix/replace than if you did the job when it first showed signs of wear.
Rust is another matter altogether, the longer you leave it the more it will cost to fix properly.

The bean counter approach would be to scrap the car and buy something from Korea or China.
The gearhead approach is to say; "NO!!!, I love my car and will spend my life savings to keep her on the road".

So how much will it cost to bring your car back to serviceable condition?.
Most likely more than the car would be worth if you sold it after you had fixed it?.
But measure the fixing up cost against what it would cost to buy something that would be able to do what you know Angie can do.
Unless rust has a serious grip on your car I think you will have a strong case for keeping her.

Just about every old classic car in great shape has cost far more than its present value simply to still be in great shape after all this time, factor in time spent cleaning, waxing, and polishing, money spent on mechanical maintenance, and what it has cost in storage. I don't mean a climate controlled cocoon, just a garage or barn to shelter it from the elements. If it has undergone restoration only a very few cars will show a return on the money spent. On the other hand depreciation isn't a factor anymore, only the trends of the collector car market have any bearing on a classic cars value.

I say if it won't cause undue friction with your wife or stress on your bank balance, keep her. perhaps let your wife think you are having a mid-life crisis in a way she can deal with. After all, if you are in the garage underneath your car with dirty hands you sure ain't chasing after younger women or getting drunk in a bar.

Roger.

Oldracerjones

I think it's the memories, the work you put into it and the desire to keep that piece of your life that meant so much to you. Not talking about obsession but appreciation for the piece of metal so close to your heart.

speakfordadead

Great thread....
You guys are so...... cute. Very sweet. can I get an Awwwwww

joe_padavano

Right, because paying $40K for a new minivan makes MUCH more sense...

Even worse, how about an SUV that gets worse mileage and will never go off-road?

It will ALWAYS be cheaper to keep the old car running. I look at my truck. For $4K I can get a brand new crate engine from GM, or I can pay $65K for essentially the same truck (except that the new truck has waaaaay too many electronic nanny systems).

It took me three tries to get a wife who accepts my car hobby and habits. We've been together for 17 years now. It helps that her horse hobby REALLY doesn't make financial sense.

speakfordadead

Now that's funny right there!!!

Jamesbo

Don'r EVER say I said it but it's called "Ovarian Logic'

Greg Rogers

What has always happened for me is this. I become sure that I no longer want that car for the various logical reasons, so I attempt to sell it for what I feel it's worth. I can't get what I want for it but my mind is made up, so I lower the price, because I need the money, of course. So I finally sell it for much less. After 6 months of friends telling me I sold it too cheap, and so and so would have bought it for a better price if I had only asked, etc, etc, I regret the sale and wish I had kept it. Then as time goes by I regret it more and more. So you already know you don't want to sell it so don't! Time spent on it is hobby time just like Golf or hunting or model railroading, etc.

bluecab

I once calculated the average time I keep a car; it came out to 18.5 years.So I'm not Really the guy to ask. But...

If it runs and provides transportation ask your wife what she thinks you should replace it with.

Compare the monthly payments to the cost of repairs. You will no doubt win that argument

CaliHurst

Horsepower and financial sense rarely wind up in the same sentence. However, all that money sitting in a bank won't put a *****-eating grin on your face quite like the roar of a V8 with your foot on the floor or cruising in your favorite classic, will it?

cjsdad

I once had a '67 Cutlass Supreme Convertible that I bought in the Bay Area, California, moved to Phoenix with it, and traded it in on a newer car because the heater didn't work in February. I soon remembered that "cold" and "Phoenix" don't go together for very long. I don't regret the car I bought, it was a great little car, but it didn't have the personality of the Hooptie! My co-workers named it that. I missed that car so bad that I bought another recently and it is in worse condition than the one I traded away so many years ago. Classic cars and logic go together as well as cold and Phoenix. If you want to keep her and fix her up, make a deal with your accountant to take the monthly payment of a new car and apply it to your beloved classic and in just a few months she will reward you with more comfort and reliability. Which is what you want in a newer car anyway, right!