Decisions Decisions! Should i part with the old girl?

Bevan Boy · 03-08-2005, 04:43 PM

Hey guys and girls!

I'm after some fellow ford nuts advice!

I know this may be a long read but i'm trying to get all the facts out there to make a final decison, so any oppions appreciated!!!

The story so far...

About 3 years ago i bought my dream car, a 74 XB Hardtop.

After numerous $$$$ and many a dodgy mechanic the car has been on the road for 2 years. Problem is i was never completely happy with it nor did it turn out exactly how i wanted it (got ed over by too many mechanics and wasted half of my budget fixing their mistakes, but anyway)

Now a couple of years down the track, rust is coming back, parts are wearing or breaking and i cant find anything to replace them with, and with all old cars its just getting frustrating and a hassle to own.

However, my quandry is this. I'm looking at heading overseas in January for a couple of years to work and play. Now i have been paying off the debts from the coupe the past few months hardcore so that i can get over there and not sell the car. Because i know when i come back i will want to do it all again, whether it be this xb or i purchase a new one.

I'm at a point now where i cant really drive the car (without the threat of more defects) until i fix a few things on it, nothing major but i'm not prepared to spend the $2-5k fixing it up when i need the money for overseas.

The question is do i sell it and head overseas with a bit of extra cash in the pocket and no debts at home, to return one day buy another one and do it all again???

or do i keep it, just work a bit harder over there, less ****ing it up and send some money home to finally pay the debts off knowing my car is still in my garage for my return??

Even if i never restore it i think the Hardtops are only increasing in value and being more sort after and harder to find? Which cant be a bad thing if its still sitting in my garage.

But then what a waste to spend all those $$$ just for the car to sit there?

Anyway end or my essay/rant!! Thanks for listening

Whats ur advice? what would u do being a fellow ford lover who understands my predicament?

PS a pic of the old girl

03-08-2005, 04:50 PM

Well, a fair bit of the equation is what do you think the car is worth now as against the amount to "fix it up", looks neat in the photo, good colour combo and coupes are a bit hot at the moment, might be worth off loading for the right $$$$'s.

BJ · 03-08-2005, 04:55 PM

Steve if it were me I would keep it. Work you butt of pay it of and keep it. as you say it will only go up in price and you may never find one in your price range again. I know it is hard to justify keeping it while you are over seas but. Have i said keep it.

b2tf · 03-08-2005, 04:55 PM

If you have somewhere to store it, hang onto it. As youve said, as the years pass the vast majority of these cars are only going to go up in value, and if you still have it you have the option of redoing it all yourself. Whereas if you sell it, you may be kicking yourself when you come back.

TZENU · 03-08-2005, 04:56 PM

Is the opportunity to work overseas sorta a "one opportunity of a lifetime" or is it, that you have to go?

If its the opp of a lifetime and you may not get the option again then i would be selling the car only because working overseas and having that bit of extra money to tie yourself in is worth every cent!..... Also knowing you have no debt is prolly the best feeling EVER!!!!

HAving said that, if you cant bear to see the car leave your hands, store it till you come back!

NAK302 · 03-08-2005, 05:01 PM

your thread tells me you are not happy with it and really couldn't be bothered doing anything about it. if you have a sale figure in your head and get offered it, take it. a couple of years is a fair whack of time to move into a new direction.

Bevan Boy · 03-08-2005, 05:06 PM

The problems with it now are:
- rust in the rear qtrs near the sills, and a touch in the boot
- front seal need to be replaced with the box
- wiper needs to be sourced and replaced
- one bank on the extracters has cracked through the collecter pipe, ie new set of extracters
- tail lights, lamp holders need replacing

like i said not to much, but enough to cost me $$$ if i sold is

I'm assuming i could prob get no more than $10k for it as is.
Restoring it down the track i know i wont be able to help myself but to do everything again to get it perfect so that means $$$$, but i feel my obsession with this car wont be quenched until i have it perfect?? plus i love it when everything works

Its not that i cant be bothered with it, its just i cant justify pumpin anymore $$$ into atm, i'm only young and i need to do more with my life than spend it on a car, especially when all my mates are over there seeing the world and earing some nice $$$, but then does it ever get easier to justify spending the $$$ on a car?

Shonky · 03-08-2005, 05:42 PM

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Shonky · 03-08-2005, 05:43 PM

*pant* *pant*

Shonky · 03-08-2005, 05:44 PM

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Shonky · 03-08-2005, 05:51 PM

Sorry. Just had to get that out of my system. You can delete those last three if you want. At least you know where I stand...

Steffo · 03-08-2005, 05:56 PM

If I were heading overseas, I'd sell the car. What country are you headed to btw?

brenx · 03-08-2005, 06:16 PM

Give it to me, give it to me, Give it to me, give it to me, Give it to me, give it to me

Just had to be said.

Fix it!!! Unless you give it to me ;) There isn't much wrong with it. Remember it's 30yo and will never be as perfect as a new car. That's the joy of driving an old car. I prefer to hear what the cars doing and not be oblivion to the outside world.

None of the repairs are excessive. Just time consuming. Whats stopping you paying someone and fixing it yourself?? Old cars are straight forward and new cars you just have to join the dots ;) Paying someone is expensive unless your loaded with $$$$$.

The Mighty Red · 03-08-2005, 06:29 PM

nice looking coupe, how much do you want for it?

Maybe you could give us a bit of a run down on what it has got for those of us that are not familiar with it.

mcflux · 03-08-2005, 06:47 PM

With that looking as good as it does, and the problems listed not seeming major (although the rust sounds a bit off-putting), it looks like a keeper to me! Coupe values will only rise I reckon ;)

-Dave-

OzJavelin · 03-08-2005, 07:44 PM

Sell it to me!!!! (unforunately I probably can't afford it)

I understand entirely .. is it "worth" the cost? I've had lots of neat cars, but never loved any of them enough that I HAD to keep them .. bit sad really :( Problem is that I was always looking for the "next" car and at a certain point would start to question how much more I would spend on a specific car ...

If you even remotely think you'll want a Falcon coupe again .. keep it. They are only going up in price. It's getting cheaper to buy a good Mustang rather than a Falcon coupe these days (wish I'd never sold my XB GS :( )

Rod

Woz · 03-08-2005, 07:56 PM

Garage it. Don't worry about the whole "it seems a shame to keep it locked away" thing, as I'm sure it won't be the only one someone's thrown in a garage somewhere.

big_pete · 03-08-2005, 07:58 PM

id keep it, i think its one of those cars that in 5-10 years time you'll go "i wish i still had the ol XB"
especially when you see the prices they will fetch then............

Bevan Boy · 04-08-2005, 09:25 AM

Cheers guys, i'm feeling better and better about keeping it. I think the only reason i'm contemplating getting rid of it is i cant justify spending more $$$ on it when i need as much as possible for overseas.

I'm looking at working in london for a bit, with trips to germany for soccer world cup, norway to live with an old mate, greece to work and live with the gf's family and wherever else i chose to go. But hey if i come back with $4000 pounds in my pocket thats at least $10000 australian to spend on the car when i come back

For those wanting a run down of what it has...
351 Cleveland, 2v Heads, 750 Holley with vacum secondaries
standard bottom end, differnet cam, valves etc
c4 auto with stage 2 shift kit, no bloody stally though :(
9 inch diff, with 4 wheel disc brakes
the car is straight as a die

but a bit of rust is leeking back in :(

some more before and after pics for u guys and gals

bindi · 04-08-2005, 10:00 AM

Yet again, the offer is made: Bevan, will you be my boyfriend? :sm_drool: :sm_drool: :sm_drool:

04-08-2005, 10:21 AM

keep it, you will regret selling it ;)

Velociraptor · 04-08-2005, 10:34 AM

Well I think its all been said mate , from my experiences Id store it .oh btw nice unit.

Borgod_F6 · 04-08-2005, 10:46 AM

A few years a go I had an XB Coupe GTrep that had everything done to it. Was in excellent condition and the motor was a 500hp firebreather. I loved it.
Over time however the rust slowly returned, the paint faded in places, chips suddenly appeared and I wanted to continue to pour money into it to fix these things up, make it look better and go that little bit faster.

In the end my folks 'forced' me to move out of home and I had to sell the XB to fund this move.

I was lucky because for me it was the right time. As much as I enjoyed being behind the wheel, after 15mins driving the stress of it all made me not enjoy it so much. Weary of other driver, dicks who wanted to race me at every street light, cops, wet roads etc etc

Since Ive sold it Ive never really looked back. It was the biggest money sink (although I haven't learnt since then... F6 Tornado next week) but I know that by selling it it allowed me to concentrate on other things, save my money for other projects and let me enjoy another car without the worry of fixing and working on it all the time.

I sold mine for $14k so your could sell yours for at least that.

It's a tough call for you mate because while you're over there you will know you will have that piece of enjoyment to come back to.

To summarise:

Pros of keeping-
Classic to come back to
Will appreciate, although slowly
When you come back to it, you will be glad you did

Cons of keeping-
The costs to fix it now will not stop. There will be something else to fix.
Realistically will you return with some extra cash? Living in Europe is not bloody cheap and all my mates who have gone over there haven't come back with anything extra.
Will you be into it in a few years? What a pain it would be to return to find out your love for the car has gone, and you have to spend MORE cash to sell it when your heart just isn't into it.
The extra cash now would go a long way. You dont want to go overseas with debts behind you and I'd imagine you'd want as much cash as possible to travel in Europe.

I say sell it now, because there will be more rust and more things to fix when you get back. If you want another coupe when you get back, then buy one for $20k that will have ALL the fruit you want.

GraveDilute · 04-08-2005, 11:38 AM

I've also done the overseas thing for a few years and I know that it can be hard. You will need at least 2 months of living expenses saved up when you go over, otherwise you'll struggle. If you've got that, and you've got a good chance of finding a half decent job then I'd say keep the car.

I returned from living overseas for 3 years in October 2002, and since then I've bought 4 cars. I was really only happy with the last car which I bought, and the first 2 have now be sold on to new owners.

When you get back from overseas you may or may not be flush with cash (remember that exchange rates do change a lot over a couple of years) and that you will be unemployed. If you've got a nice car in storage which needs some time consuming but not particularly costly repairs to do on it then it will keep you busy, and give you something familiar to hook back into as you try to re-adjust to life back in Australia. Believe me, you will find it strange coming back, even though it is your home country.

If you come back and decide that you don't want to fix it, then at least you've got a fair asset sitting there which should bring you some money. Again, if you come back penniless, then you have something you can sell.

OzJavelin · 04-08-2005, 12:39 PM

Quote:

Weary of other driver, dicks who wanted to race me at every street light, cops, wet roads etc etc

Hey! I had the same problem with my XB GS (GTrep) .. *EVERY* A-Hole wanted to race me at every traffic light! The damn thing had a single-rail in it and it would never shift from 2-3 properly ..

.. and it wasn't fun in the wet either .. the big rear tyres aquaplaned a LOT.

Rod.

LTDHO · 04-08-2005, 12:57 PM

Serious problems there mate, plus you can't look after her while you are away.

Look I'll take her of ya hand for a couple of grand...... ;)

Bevan Boy · 04-08-2005, 02:45 PM

haha thanks again guys, i'm not sure i should trust some of u! i think u just want it for urselves! hahaha

thanks for the offer bindi, but i'm sick of women wanting me for my car haha

in regards to work and cash over there and here, i think i'm well sorted cause i'm an accountant, there is always a demand for us, and they pay well over there, so i will be straight into a job and earning good $$$.

Much appreciated on the opinions guys, its always good to learn form others mistakes/life experiences so that it wont hurt me as much!

Borgod_F6 · 04-08-2005, 02:54 PM

Dont get me started on those gearboxes!

Bearman · 04-08-2005, 03:13 PM

Hi Steve, I'd keep it. As long as you have somewhere safe to store it while you're away that's what I'd be doing. As long as it's in a decent garage the rust won't get much worse than it already is. Just try not to spend anything on it before you go.

Half decent coupes are bloody hard to find now for decent money, what's it going to be like in 3 years or so?? If yours is good for $12K now then you'd be up for $18-$20K for the equivalent in 3 years time and be harder to find.

Ask yourself if you sold it now would you want another coupe when you return? If the answer is yes, then don't sell.

Cheers.

ZC-Cruiser · 04-08-2005, 04:47 PM

Get some Fish Oil and fill up all the cavities to arrest the rust.
Park it in a shed up on stands and get someone to start it every now and then.

If you even THINK you might want a coupe when you get back, don't even THINK about selling this one...