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I need some sense knocking into me. Much as Dez did a little while ago with one of his projects, I'm hoping that by getting my thoughts out there will help out with mine. It's 4:00am, so what better time to get it out of my head? I do keep trying to remind myself I went from this.  To this.   Over the course of a year, which isn't bad going. But all I see when I look outside is this.  I've been tooling around in the Princess, a car I love and loathe in equal measure, and my experiences with her and the approx. 20mpg around town (ouch!) are making me want something small and silly to enjoy. But I don't know if the Polo is that car any more. To get the Polo back in use he needs a new backbox (£30ish), some new headlights (£15ish), sidlights fitting (£5ish), and MoT (£45ish) and at least 6 months road tax (£70ish) and if it breaks when resolving the windscreen leak, a new windscreen (£100ish for a new one, £30ish for a second hand if I can find a good one). That's £195-265ish to be back on the road. I can't buy a better car for that money, not that would be a suitable replacement anyway (quite taken with the idea of a Citroen Ami, for example). I've loved working on the Polo, every success and failure has been a miniature adventure for me and I've learned an incredible amount of practical stuff from interior retrimming to engine maintenance to what to do when you break down in the middle of nowhere with no breakdown cover or spare parts. The Polo has been a part of my life now for 12 years, so I've known him for a long time. But something's missing, it's like the spark has gone and I don't know why. I don't think the Princess has taken the spark away, it's an entirely different animal much as I wanted it to be, and is very little fun doing what I would consider to be Polo duties. At the moment the Polo has insurance ticking over on him until I can rummage up the funds to get him fully back on the road again which is helping build my NCB and allowing me to run the Princess affordably, after all he was only supposed to be laid up for a few weeks back in October last year and at this rate he could be laid up until this October! Does it make more sense to finish off what I can on the Polo to get him on the road and see how I feel, or should I cut my losses and get something different in my life? I really genuinely don't know what to do, so your opinions on the matter are very welcome. I have to remember that the Polo is an object, a tool, it is not a family member. Equally, I mustn't forget the time, effort and expression of self that I've put into him. So what would you do, if you were in this predicament? Perhaps you've been in this predicament recently and have a story to relate of your success or regret from a decision made. Thank you, in advance of what should be some interesting reading. |
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This is your car, so only you can make the decision.
You've had it for 12 years, so there's nothing wrong with wanting something new. It would be a shame to let it go looking unfinished and sorry for itself though. Have you achieved everything that you wanted to do with the car?
What I would recommend is that before you make your decision, you should put it all back together and make it look as presentable as possible without spending any money. That way you can better assess how you feel about it as a car, rather than looking at it as a pile of parts. The costs that you list to get it back on the road sound pretty minimal to me. I would say that it's almost worth it purely for the purpose of reviving your mojo! Even if you sell it at a loss afterwards, you will feel better watching it drive away than you would scrapping it.
I have very similar feelings with my Superbug. It has sat in the shed with full registration and insurance on it for the last 12 months, with no carburettors on it. I got part way through a twin Weber conversion and ran into problems, then I bought another car and decided to forget about the bug. I have thought many times about selling the bug, as I'm not getting any use out of it sitting in the shed, and I don't feel any strong motivation to fix it up. I have the luxury of garage storage space for both my cars, and another retro car currently on the road. So, I have decided to let the insurance and rego lapse on the bug and let it sit there for another 6-12 months until I can afford to fix it up. From what I've read on your thread, I believe that you do have a garage to store the Polo? If so, I would be maybe tempted to let it sit while you save up the money and/or mojo to fix it.
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devilishdesigner
Australia
Gleaner of possibilities
Posts: 2,961
Member is Online
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Another way of looking at it, it will be worth a lot more to someone else all assembled and driveable if you put it back together and decide you've lost the love with it
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Remade In Australia
thereimaginarium.com.au
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It's so easy to fall out of love when you're looking at an uncomplete car everday. My engine disintergrated itself, and the spare engines I bought to fix it had no compression. Hiding it in the backyard and going away on a holiday and car free break gave me the enthusiasm to give it another go.
Everyone told me it was a waste of time and money, but I got a $200 rebuild kit and had some great time rebuilding with my mates and it been going awesome ever since. When it's back on the road and you're zooming around you'll realize why you stuck it out. You'd always wonder "what if?" if you sold it
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heh heh, you got through to the Good Call Centre  The folks from the southern hemisphere speak sense, I have little to add other than that car is YOU dude. |
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1941 Wolseley Not Rod - 1956 Humber Hawk - 1957 Daimler Conquest - 1966 Buick LeSabre - 1968 Plymouth Sport Fury - 1968 Ford Galaxie - 1969 Ford Country Squire - 1969 Mercury Marquis - 1970 Morris Minor - 1970 Buick Skylark - 1970 Ford Galaxie - 1971 Ford Galaxie - 1976 Continental Mark IV - 1976 Ford Capri - 1994 Ford Fiesta
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PHUQ
Part of things
Posts: 861
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I had a spate of problems with the Marina, got a bit disheartened with it and sold it.
Regretted it hugely and bought it back when it came back up for sale. Have had a further spate of problems since, but it's definitely not going anywhere now.
I reckon you'd be the same with this- you won't realise what it means to you until it's gone.
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Sadly its probably worth very little to anyone else, its been done very personally to your taste. Think of all the hours you've put in and how much you value your time.
If it were mine i'd definitely keep it and get it back on the road. Whats to say the next car you get won't have a list of issues that need doing, what ever old car you get will need money spending on something.
I've got a pair of headlights I could post for £10, thats a £5 saving already. Got piles of other stuff too if you need anything.
I still regret selling a car a few years back because I didn't see it through and needed some money. That £167 didn't last me very long yet I still look back at the pics of that unfinished car and wonder what its up to today.
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1970 Porsche 911E
2002 Porsche Boxster S
2002 Peugeot Partner 1.9sdi
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Finish it. Wipe the slate clean, as it were - you'd get a pittance for it as it is now, you've learned so much, and I reckon the idea behind the project (with the lights, windows etc.) was sound. Unless there's a pressing need for the space, just chill out and take your time over it.
So. Reset the clock and the budgets, write it off and treat it like you've got this idea and suddenly someone gave you a car to build it out of that is already part-way there.
And never mind this 20mpg around town stuff in the Princess. I checked what our 1.6 Clio did driving in Birmingham - at best it was 24mpg. My van does 18mpg. I'm considering swapping it for a 5.0 V8 Merc I know from experience will do 28-33mpg on the motorway (where the car belongs), and 13mpg in town. The problem with "around town" MPG is that every car is just sitting burning fuel going nowhere, or revving up, slowing down, lots, and they're all rubbish. Try having a car with a cat on it - my Volvo 480 2.0i was theoretically a 44mpg thing, but until it was warm the trip computer said that first couple of miles was consuming 10mpg.
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Lawsy
Posted a lot
Posts: 2,615
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As most say
to get anything for it, then you would have to do the work anyway, then its done an you may love it again
I've sold too many cars and regretting selling a lot of them too - eventually you get the stage where you cant find love in anything as you always miss the other stuff
If i coudl go back and be in this situation that you face..
Roll the princess, but keep the polo on the back burner, do the little jobs as and when you can, as long as you've always got somewhere to keep it parked up and can keep it fairly dry then do it..
you may own several other cars, but nothing will tell you your own story as much as that polo does..
I look back and have 3 or 4 cars at the most that i wished I'd kept.... Couldnt replace them now tho sadly
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ruffgeezer
Posted a lot
Attracts french tat.
Posts: 1,252
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Do it the Ruffconemy(tm) way, buy another polo like yours, preferably as close to scrap money as possible, nab the bits you need, sell the bits you don't, then send it over the bridge and at least break even. At worst it'll cost you a few quid, at best you'll have all the parts you need and a few quid in your pocket, not to mention plenty of those little bits that always escape/break/were never there and cost a fortune to put right. I bought an ax for just this purpose, it was too far gone to save, I pre-sold all the bits I didn't want and by the time I'd got home, I'd made back 90% of the outlay and got my own parts free  |
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EmDee
Club Retro Rides Member
Committer of Autrocities.
Posts: 5,932
Club RR Member Number: 108
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GT lump
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Last Edit: Jun 12, 2012 9:05:46 GMT by EmDee
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Jun 12, 2012 10:11:59 GMT
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LPG on the princess would solve the 20mpg worries, it'de be a simple install and you could do it descretely to hide the filler, it'd be an interesting project....but get the VW done first
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Jun 12, 2012 10:28:17 GMT
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It really is a no brainer. Forget time, forget money, forget everything for just one moment and concentrate on this one thing: how much of YOU is invested in this car? Your heart, your soul? You have to put your current emotions aside for a bit and ignore how the car currently looks, that's what is dragging you down. In your mind you need to recapture the vision that got you through everything so far and turned the car into your car. We all get low mojo at some point and it's sometimes easy to allow that to dictate decisions that aren't actually truly right for you or the car. Every time you look at it in its current state, you are just reinforcing the view that you maybe should call it a day. That's the wrong decision. Nearly all the hard work and graft is done and although its aesthetically looking very sorry for itself, to get it back to its former glory, in truth, isn't a massive amount of work when you rationally look at that list of jobs. You need to turn the emotional side of things around and reinvigorate yourself towards the car. The best way I have found to do this is to concentrate on the black & white - the actual physical things that you need to address with the car. Breaking it down how I would, firstly look at the costs. If you do look at buying another replacement car, not only are you having to find the funds to purchase it in the first place, but you are buying into an completely unknown quantity and you'll probably also have to tax it so that cost is something you need to consider whichever way you go. With that in mind, take the tax out of the equation for a moment. You'll then have a 'new' car which could be hiding more problems than you're wanting to deal with. Are you willing to take that risk when you know the things that need addressing on your own car and how much it's going to cost you to put right? Set a self-imposed goal that you will get the car sorted, no matter what your feelings are towards it (like I said, this is the bit where you put the emotions to one side) and use it as a challenge to prove to yourself that you won't be beaten. The car will live and be roadworthy. Make a list of EVERYTHING that you A) need to do to the car and B) want to do to the car. Don't just picture the list in your head. Write it down. With costs. And rough times it'll take to complete each bit. Now leave the list overnight and revisit it again the next day with a fresh mind. The fact you've got it in writing will help you rationalise the next part. Go through the list and start to pick away things you can do for free, things you can do straight away. Prioritise those things first. Then set an hour or so aside every day to try and find the 'cost' parts cheaper. Use it as a challenge to see how cheap you can get them. This alone will help your mojo. Scoring an exhaust for pennies or a set of headlights for £5.00 will be a lot more rewarding than just paying the going rate. All the while, you are spending other spare time getting the car nearer the road working on the 'free bits'. Get the wings on, clean the interior to make it as immaculate as you can, do things that will make the car look more like your car again instead of an unloved vehicle clogging up the drive. As you work through these things you will naturally find the love for the car returning. It's not actually gone, it's just hidden under a cloud of uncertainty, not helped by the way the car currently looks. Even though you say the Princess isn't a factor, it kind of is. Because you've got transport elsewhere now, the urgency to fix the Polo isn't there. It may be only subconscious, but it is a factor. You need to address this by giving yourself a focus. The list, despite how silly it may sound, will be a huge help. Walk around the car once you've written it and add to it all the other things that you didn't think of first time. Once you're happy with it, re-write it into two neat well organised lists....one for the things you need to buy and one for the jobs you need to do. As you do the 'free' work, the things from the 'to buy' list will gradually start to come in and you can then address those too. Each and every step, cross off any jobs you complete or parts you get. Make a note of any money saved. Seeing the list shrinking and seeing how much you've saved will keep adding to the boost. It's something I've done whenever I've been at a stage like you. I did it with my MX5 when I was faultering with it. It worked and worked flipping well. It keeps you focused and you really start to feel good as you see more & more things crossed off. Your 'rational' self will feel better for having risen to the challenge. Your emotional self will feel better as you see your car coming back to life. Each one will help enhance the other. It's a viscious circle in reverse....and you suddenly find yourself addicted to gettitng back behind the wheel, momentum builds and before you know it, you're booking an MOT. Sorry if I've waffled on, I tend to do that. Apologies if what I have written is of no use, I can only speak from personal experience, but I know it works for me and seeing how you've tackled things on this car that were previously way outside your skill set, I reckon you have the means to address this lull and regain the mojo. I have every faith in you. |
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Jun 12, 2012 11:20:19 GMT
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1 Litre polo power, you know you'd miss it. People kept on telling me to get rid of my breadvan, but I think I'd miss it (even though I could walk into a garage and buy a new car). I'm glad that I didn't as it seems to raise a smile (or frown) when people see it. anyway, have a 1L polo engine (you might have already seen it on other forums), not everyone wants a big engine, but its amazing how much better they look after a lick of paint  |
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Jun 12, 2012 11:21:38 GMT
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Great post, Bruce! Very true.
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bortaf
Posted a lot
Posts: 4,549
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Jun 12, 2012 11:51:57 GMT
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Sadly its probably worth very little to anyone else, its been done very personally to your taste. Think of all the hours you've put in and how much you value your time. If it were mine i'd definitely keep it and get it back on the road. Whats to say the next car you get won't have a list of issues that need doing, what ever old car you get will need money spending on something. I've got a pair of headlights I could post for £10, thats a £5 saving already. Got piles of other stuff too if you need anything. I still regret selling a car a few years back because I didn't see it through and needed some money. That £167 didn't last me very long yet I still look back at the pics of that unfinished car and wonder what its up to today. THIS/\/\ Screen? don't break it simple! cut the rubber and change that you will not get a laminated screen out without breaking it if you don't have the correct tolls and experiance personly i'd try some seakandseal around it or some non setting screen sealant pumped in under the rubber.. |
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R.I.P photobucket
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Jun 12, 2012 13:44:17 GMT
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Thank you, everybody. After a rather fitful night's sleep, the above is precisely what I needed to hear. It's rational and good advice so I'm going to start by making those lists first and then I'm going to see about bolting stuff on again so he looks a bit more like a car.
The engine runs, I remember how good that made me feel when I got that going recently, with a bit of fettling I can get it running better.
The windscreen problem I can resolve, I found the spare windscreen seal this afternoon that I forgot I salvaged from another car, money saved? Hope so.
Once I've done my lists, I'll have a better idea of what I'm doing, I think the comments above highlight just how directionless I'm feeling about the project and that perhaps it's that which has me feeling the way I do about it.
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Jun 12, 2012 19:42:14 GMT
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I will update the build thread later, but just a note to let you chaps know that your words encouraged me to actually get out and do something on the Polo and to make some lists. There's some stuff I'd forgotten, some stuff I'd already done but my new target is just to get him road legal before I decide his fate. Maybe I'll change my mind once I'm driving him again.
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Jun 12, 2012 19:48:30 GMT
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when building my over budget sj vitara engine special an exercise i needed to do after wife died i had a list of nearly 70 jobs to complete
ticked em off , bought parts as and when and remember the day it sailed through the mot
first road trip parked alongside a koennig at an m4 service area i felt ten feet tall
sadly i sold it due to working too long and no time to use
regretted everyday and cant get back that special bond with any other car
trying though!!!!!!!!!!!!!
keep it persevere enjoy it
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Jun 12, 2012 19:57:53 GMT
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It's sad to hear of the reason for your building the Vitara, that sort of thing always is, but it does put my build into perspective. The Polo has been a part of my car life for such a long time that I probably would regret parting with him massively if I did and I've probably just not really thought about that side of things so much. Good luck on your epic quest to find the a new Vitara in your life, I don't envy you that particular challenge.
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