My 1986 Mitsubishi Mighty Max is back on
the road. I’m $800 poorer.
Years of ethanol contaminated gasoline
degraded the carburetor innards to the point the truck wouldn’t pass the
Colorado mandated emissions test.
As removed.
As received from Guaranteed Carburetor.
My fingers don’t work well anymore so had
to hire the work done. Once reinstalled, a few minutes with the key on to
activate the fuel pump, a few turns of the starter motor, and she fired up. Two
or three coughs then bliss! Didn’t even need to adjust the idle speed.
Took it for a drive – no problems. In the
next day or two will run it past emissions testing then off to spend $71 for
the tabs.
So what kind of fool spends $800 on a 34
year old rust bucket import truck with 171,000 on the odometer? Why, a well
seasoned one.
13 comments:
Maxine deserves all the TLC that you heap upon her. She never falters and is always anxious to do her duty. Besides, she is your coffin upon death.
I've had cars that I kept running when it was beyond economic sense to do so, simply because I *liked* the car that much.
My '67 Valiant was one (two door post coupe, 273 V8 with a 4-speed!), and my '67 "Rustang" (289 2V, dual exhaust, C4 auto) was the other.
The Valiant went to a good friend, and the Rustang went to a young, budding hot rodder.
Sisty
OK already!
drjim
This has been the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned.
I confess I had a 1976 Chevrolet Monte Carlo that during 8 years of ownership replaced every system in it: engine, cooling, A/C, heater core, most of the electrical system, door hinges, transmission, rear end, windshield, tires (many times), brakes (many more times), carpeting, vinyl top and finally upholstery.
I sold it for a song. Best car I ever owned. I called him 'Monty.' Clever, huh?
As for that POS truck of yours, I will bet you are willing to dump another $10 Large into it and not think twice. Hence your moniker....
Well done! I keep trying to buy a new (used) rig, just a fleet 4x4 F150 sort of thing. But every time I get ready to buy a financial catastrophe strikes. I've been thinking I should keep the truck, we have a lot of history. Hmmmm.
Fredd
Not $10large but $4 Large ???????
LSP
I know many people with a $800 a month truck payment. Not for me.
If you like it, fix it... :-)
OldNFO
Did!
Fool: you may not have a steady truck payment of $800.00 come due on the 1st of each month, but once a POS such as you have now (POS: pitiful, outdated, sickly) gets up there in age (which this one is), those outflows of cash are required on on intermittent basis rather than first of the month intervals. Dings of $800 here, $1,200 there, another $2,700 here, pretty soon they add up to some serious cash, probably equal to regular truck payments.
I could see it if this were a 1959 Jaguar XKE, but THIS eyesore?
I don't get it.
Fredd
I spent 25 or so years in the retail auto business. The last time I had a car payment was 1984. All any vehicle does is haul my fat ass down the road. That truck I bought for $800. In six years and 71,000 miles, it has cost me a set of tires, shocks, front brake pads, thrust bearing, muffler, and now the carburetor. Factoring everything but routine maintenance, I've spent about $200 a year plus gas, license ($71 year) and insurance ($260) a year. Most times it has been a backup vehicle and my recreational vehicle.
Since I'm mostly indifferent to how others view me, the sheer nuisance value of pissing off the general public forced to see my P.OS is priceless.
Add to that my sister's plan to bury me in it means my coffin is already paid for.
WSF, I refuse to get into debt and pay the usurers. Seriously.
I guess the numbers don't lie. And I guess at our age, being a chick magnet with a hot car doesn't crack the top 10 in priorities. If you don't mind being seen in butt ugly wheels like this, more power to you.
My last car/truck payment was in 1998, but in my biz I can't risk breaking down in an aging husk of a vehicle, it needs to be dependable and accordingly I get rid of them. My 'old' rig, a 2013 Ford F150 4x4 spun a front wheel bearing at 94,000 miles and it cost nearly a grand to fix. Ouch. It had to go. Once I get hammered on a major repair like that (a lousy wheel bearing - not just a Timkin bearing and race, no siree bob not anymore, the damn assembly was the size of a softball, and could not be serviced, the whole assembly had to be replaced), the rig is getting traded in. But that's just me.
LSP
Cynical me would say I'm a vector, not a debtor. Give payments, don't make them.
As I will comment on Fredd, reasoned choices.
Fredd
Reasoned choices, with some effort gone into the whys and wherefores. In the car biz we made money on the "want" buyers and scratched long and hard making money on the "need" buyers. Guess which group I respected more?
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