Pablo said:
You just described the story of my life
with every car I've owned.
I suppose it would help if I had the cash to buy low mile pristine examples.
The key is to prioritize what you need to do on a list and then start forking out the cash. Figure out how long something is going to take you to fix, and how much its going to cost. Now multiply that times three.
I think you need to be making atleast 100g's a year to really enjoy cars as a hobby, or maybe not since when you are broke you take more pride in your ingenuity to get around issues
I wouldnt know if it becomes more fun when your only limit is your imagination
yup. story of my life too - also with *every* hotrod I've ever owned.
it's been pretty much a constant series of leaks and broken parts some of which were very minor and some resulted in flames and smoke
I could write pages of details, but it would bore most readers as I'm sure most guys have had similar experiences.
After 20 years of tinkering on cars, I've concluded that the problems are more frequent when you have a limited amount of time and money (like me). Now that I have a wife, kids and a full-time job I really don't have much time or money for my car hobby so it gets really frustrating at times. I sold my previous GN after it trashed a second cam and started eating rod-bearings. I *thought* I was done with the whole thing, but that only lasted about 3 months and then I couldn't stand not having a car to tinker on. (of course I bought another Buick :biggrin: )
As for buying a low-mileage "pristine example"....NOPE! Been there, done that. Doesn't help much. Once you start modifying them, all bets are off. That's why most guys eventually give in and by something to use as a "daily driver". I bought my first turbo Buick in '96. It was a burgundy '86 T-type. I had very limited funds but I found this '86 and paid in the neighborhood of $3500.00 for it and I *thought* I was getting a good deal since it looked very clean and was an intercooled car. turned out to be a real POS and much more work than I could afford at the time. I sold it and decided to wait until I finished college and then buy a low-mileage, pristine GN. About a year after I graduated I located a purchased an '87 GN hardtop car with 16,732 original miles. It was fine until I started modifying it. The more I increased the power, the more problems it had. Some of them were factory flaws, some were defects with aftermarket parts and some was just simply my fault, but it was a string of problems. That was the car I sold just last year when I thought I was "done". Now I'm on my 3rd turbo Buick, an '87 GN T-top, that has a lot more miles, but still "looked" very clean. However it's already had a long list of problems. I'm sorting each problem out one at a time, but it's an expensive and frustrating process. I've also de-modded the car significantly in an effort to make it more reliable within my budget range.
So what's my point? well, you're not alone! it's all part of the hobby. and you'll experience it with any make and model car, especially once you start modifying it. just be patient and try to think through each problem and determine the best solution. And try to spend your money where your car really needs it.
Hang in there, and good luck.
