Nope. I did sell my classic MGB twenty years ago for a down payment on my house and I never regretted that. I usually listen to my audio system about three hours a day which I find more enjoyable than being stuck in traffic three hours a day no matter the pedigree of the car. However, on the weekends, I still enjoy a drive in my BMW M-3 or vintage BMW 1600. |
New frontiers are good. So can be trading in one set of toys for another. Some of us like to refer to our earlier lives---student days---backpacking days---a life in Europe. In my case I really don't do anything as much as I overdue everything. In 1978 I hiked the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada and then I spent the next four years of my life reding a bicycle around the world. I sold that bicycke in West Africa, having rode it from Jerusalem to Cape Town and back up to Mauritania, where I sold it, for much of what I paid for it so many years before.
I have not been on a bicycle since. Former lives are good. If you are really ready to move on, invest in the new. It is good for you. |
Taters,
Years ago, I made the opposite choice - I sold my hot car (a vintage '69 Camaro) to focus more on my audio gear, and I've never regretted it. Cars are a black hole for your disposable income. Besides the insurance and the upkeep and the steady depreciation, you also have all kinds of wear, tear, and road hazards to contend with. And if you add things like mag wheels, performance mods, or a cool stereo system, you never get your money back when you sell the car. Buyers are only interested in book value and good luck getting much beyond that.
Recently I bought a sporty little Acura GSR that I really like, though in the six months since I bought it I haven't driven it much. But it has depreciated. One guy clipped the bumper in a parking lot, and now it's in the shop to repair extensive hail damage from a freak storm. Luckily the hail nicked my window molding because someone tried breaking into it this past week while I was having it tuned up and broke its attachment clips near the door latch (so my insurance will cover it). I'm thinking of selling it when I finally get it back, if anyone's interested... It's loads of fun, really! :) |
Rhljazz, which M3 do you own? E30, E36 or the new E46? I have a '99 E36 myself, and it's my daily commuter. I think the older E30s were pretty damn cool.
Plato, I owned a '96 GSR and loved the sound of that motor at full song. I really believe that car isn't happy unless it's revving somewhere between 5500 and 8200 RPMs. |
Gunbei, mine is a 96 E36 M-3 coupe (Estoril Blue) which I use mainly for pleasure although it is not a garage queen. I would rather drive it than do the wash and wax things. I own a BMW repair shop (www.beyermotorworks.com) so parts and maintenance are not much hassle. That being said, I agree with Plato that the audio is a better investment and less expensive to maintain and I use tube preamps and amps which sometimes require service. Insurance on the M-3 runs about 1500.00 per year and that in itself would buy a lot of cd's and records or at least one new/used component to try out for the year. |
Yeah Gunbei, I have a '95 in Paradise blue/green, which should be lookin' good when I get it back (hopefully tomorrow!), and it does like to rev.
It has a nice sound system too, with a CD changer, and a custom-built, powered subwoofer system containing 4 Scanspeak 8" woofers and then Morel tweeters in the door panels. It sounds decent for a "portable" system. :) |
Had a big buck system in the early 90s. Sold it to buy a BMW. Had fun in the Bimmer, but too much fun. Sold it for another system. Then sold the second system and got an Acura NSX. Didn't learn my lesson the first go'round. It spent most of it's time in the garage. Had it for 2 years and put 1,000 miles on it. Just couldn't justify the huge payments vs. time spent in it so it was sold as well.I spend most of my time at home anymore and my love of music pushed me into another system. I can't afford both, although it was fun playing with both. Much happier now but there are times I most certainly miss that NSX!!! |
Hi Guys.
I've had both clasic cars and audio gear.
I love the gear and the music. I have a modest tube system and enjoy the tweaking and DIY part also.
Clasic cars are also a passion of mine.
My current vehicle is a Black 1966 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe.
427 Big Block, 4 Speed trans. and side exhaust.
It has a working AM/FM radio but I never turn it on, the rumble of the exhaust is music to the ears.
Easier to work on than the newer cars and classic car insurance is super cheap.
Several of my friends have classic (muscle) cars so we get together and go to cruise nites and local shows.
I love the BMW's and some day will own an M series.
Cars and audio. 2 great things to enjoy.
How can ya hate it.
Rick.
|
Odd how many of us like cars and high end systems, maybe we just appreciate high perfomance stuff? The two hobbies are similar in that you need to keep things in perspective or you can go WAY overboard for that last inch of perfection. Slippery slope for both pass times. I've owned various BMW and Audis, fun cars but the care and feeding of fine German engineered automobiles can be a bit overwhelming.
My winter car is a stock 2001 Acura 3.2 Type S (yeah, including the Bose system but I just can't bring myself to carve up the dash switching out the 6-disc head unit). Fun car: 265 HP, 17" rims, tiptronic tranny if you want to shift gears (or leave it in automatic), great handling, and totally reliable. No regrets, a real nice ride.
My summer car is a 1989 Toyota Supra Turbo, never winter driven and for the most part all original. Cosmetic changes were the mags (Momo's), window tinting, and of course the stereo. Dual MTX subwoofers, dual Pioneer amps, 12-CD changer, Pioneer head unit, stock speakers swapped out for Infinity's, and 1" dome tweets thrown in for good measure. The Type III Supras are gorgeous looking cars and one helluva lot of fun to drive! |
Rhljazz, so you own the very first 3.2 litre E36. Mine is the very last. It's Titanium Silver. Where are you located? I could use a good shop, hopefully you're close to me in Los Angeles, CA. :-)
Plato, I had a red GSR and it got stolen three days beofre my lease was up and two days before Thanksgiving '99. It was recovered on Christmas Eve a month later completely stripped. Whoever chopped it did a very neat job, but then again they had plenty of time and privacy. I did remove the carbon fiber shift knob and give it to my girlfriend at the time before it got snatched.
Ramond, nice ride! Does your Vette have one of them old Muncie shifters? Rock Crushers? I agree. With your car who needs a car stereo, the engine and exhaust are the music! Or maybe in your case closer to 7.1 earthquake surround!
UncleJeff, that is an amazing trek you accomplished! |
the two just seem to go together somehow. to fight the itch i've tried to buy modern classics that are too good in my eyes & pocketbook to sell. Bimmer: '88 535is white on red leather. Beemer : '95 R100RT Classic Edition
now if i could just get settled on the audio end..... |
Dma, that NSX is an awesome car. I really want one, but can't afford it! I was passed by one on the highway once and it looked like some hi-tech dream from outer space. I love that car.
Gunbei, that stinks about your GSR being stolen during the holiday season. Now that you mentioned it, I hope I get my carbon-fiber shift knob back when I pick up my car from the body shop later today. That would be nice. :) |
Plato, during the time I owned the GSR I had a chance to drive my friend's NSX. It was around midnight Christmas Eve and the roads in Southern California were pretty empty so I had a chance to open her up.
The seating and cockpit of this car fit me perfectly, and since this was a '96 model it no longer had the heavy manual steering of the early models so it was just as easy to drive as an Accord. No supercar diva here. This could easily be a daily-driver.
Heal-toeing is easy in this car and I needed it when my friend scolded me for taking a freeway on-ramp too slowly in third gear. So I downshifted and let that V-TEC buzz away on the long sweeping on-ramp. The acceleration is effortless in this car, and it wasn't until after I upshifted to third I noticed we were doing almost 110 mph. It' sooo easy to go fast in this car. I would have loved to take this car on the run from Los Angeles to Vegas!
My M3 is nice, but the NSX feels like you're in the cockpit of fighter jet. |
