The bad news is I had to pay the shop!
Next, getting it installed. I will probably pay the mechanic who removed it to reinstall it. The job is somewhat complicated and my fingers no longer work like they once did. Getting old, bah! It is not the four bolts that hold it on, it is all the little hoses, etc.
When done, I will be in around $900 for a 33 year old rusted truck with 171,000 miles. Makes no sense financially I know. The truck has been the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned, including my two previous Mighty Max's, and I want to keep it.
My sister says she is going to bury me in the truck, assuming I precede her. Since the family has their own private cemetery, she can probably pull it off.
She enjoys reminding me several relatives in the area have backhoes (and she is their favorite cousin).
No doubt the truck will now pass emissions (a bi-annual $25 ripoff) and $71 for tags so will keep working for awhile to get the finances back where I want them.
All in all, progress.
16 comments:
Sometimes you get attached to a certain vehicle for no apparent reason, and just want to keep it, even if it makes little or no economic sense.
Kinda like an old pair of boots or an old sweater that fits "just right".
I've had a couple of cars like that, but sadly, both were totaled in accidents not of my causing.
Supra? I've never totaled one but the ex did. 2dr Ford Fairmont, 2 dr, completely loaded with a 302 V-8. A widow wanted something new. I bought it off her with 8,500 miles on the clock for $700. Needed a new master cylinder. Then sold her a new Taurus, for cash. Yah, beat my employer out of a great trade.
My ex needed glasses to drive a night. Was always misplacing them. One rainy night caught a curb with the passenger front tire, spun 180° and slid the driver side rear wheel into another curb. Toast, plus a concussion. My hope some sense was knocked into her wasn't granted.
We do tend to get attached to vehicles. I loved my ol Explorer, bought it used from a dentist that got a new ride every year. Put a lot of miles on it, and hauled a lot more stuff than it was ever designed for. Replaced the radiator and a couple of belts, serviced it regularly, and never had any problems with it. The A/C didn't work because of a pin hole leak that would have cost more than it was worth to fix. So I rolled down the windows.
Your last name alone should offer you the privilege necessary to be buried any way that you like. In the truck? Why not? Knights of old were interred in their armor, oft times with their dog. It's not Kiplings, "The Grave of the Hundred Head", which is how I want to buried, with the heads of inner city people from LA forming a pyramid. But eternal rest in your truck should work. Many years in the future, aliens will exhume your remains in an attempt to understand how humans lived and they will be puzzled that you were buried in your truck. Who says that you can't take it with you?
No, this Supra is my first. I'd probably sroke-out if some moron ran into me!
The first car I really liked was my 1973 Chevy Vega GT "Kammback" station wagon. It had the Ziebart treatment when new, and since I had a heated shop at the time, it got washed and dried every week because of the road salt they used in Illinois. After the third OEM engine expired, my buddies and I put an "Iron Duke" in it. Ran great, but got rear-ended by a full-size pick-up with a "tow truck" front bumper and a bed full of heavy stuff.
The second was my 1975 VW Scirocco. Best built car (up to that time) I'd ever owned. Got destroyed on Memorial Day Friday when some half-drunk 20-year old dim-bulb broad ran a stop sign, and I had nowhere to go but into her. Couldn't drift to the left to miss her because of on-coming traffic, and if I went to the right I'd go off the road down into a gravel pit about 50' deep. Soooooo...... slowed down as much as I could, and went into her 1975 Chevy Caprice. Bounced right off that big old cruiser and really did a number on my poor little VW.....
Brig
My sister's Exploder died at 500,000+ miles. Her F-150 is coming up on 300,000 miles.
LL
Knowing some of my relatives, grave robbing is in their genes.
drjim
I liked our Vega but not the clutch every 10,000 miles with the ex driving it. Irked me so I replaced it with a Chevette and auto tranny. The bottom timing belt gear has a tiny (and fragile) pin holding it into place. I would pickup three or four every time I had to visit the junk yard.
You know, it ha4d to let go of a loyal friend. I was that way with the gold beast. Everyone thought I was crazy.
It works, that's all you need, right? And not a bunch of electronics to short out.
MF
A tool that works needs no explanation.
Old NFO
About 95% EMP proof. The parts that might be ruined are backed up. Mainly ignition related and the voltage regulator.
On the positive side of things, you could leave this truck parked with the keys in the ignition on the wrong side of the tracks for a day or two, and then come back and it would still be there.
No self respecting car thief would bother with this rig, Fool.
Fredd
Ouch!!!
I could put it on Craigslist for $1,850 and it would be sold within a week. (Bigger Fool Syndrome)
Don't forget the gas station down the street selling ethanol free gas. Just a thought to keep Maxine going strong for many more years.
Sisty
Per the carb people, the rebuild material will handle ethanol. That said, Murphy will be where she will be filled when I'm not on the road.
Good idea. That way you can probably stay ahead of the game.
Fool: that old truck may be a pathetic eyesore to me, but to you it's YOUR pathetic eyesore.
Beauty (or pathetic eyesores) are in the eye of the beholder.
As for this beholder, the only way I would take possession of that dumpster fire of a vehicle would be if I were paid, and it would have to be more than $1,000 and some begging to get me involved.
Kinda of hard to believe that you used to be involved in the car sales biz. There are lots (and LOTS) of cars that have a leg up on this old beast, and that you could pick up for a song using your contacts in the trade.
Fredd
I'v owned 50+ vehicles not counting the ones I bought for sales inventory. Some I kept for a long time. I also own and carry a nearly 50 year old .44 Special revolver. I keep what works for me. That old rust bucket puts a smile on my face most days I drive it.
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