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Short history of my car: 1. Purchased in Aug. 2000 for $13k, had 62k on the odometer, was running a NA ECU and 6 TT injectors, 1 NA injector (cylinder 6). Salvage title.
2. Fixed hackjob injector/ECU setup, started upgrading car. Spent about $9K (rough estimate) on bolt-ons.
3. Car blew up in
4. Had longblock assembled by PSM (Bakersfield, CA). Bolted up JWT SP530 turbos, etc. See profile for remainder of mods. Dropped about $10k on the buildup (includes turbos, DPs, all internal parts, labor for longblocking, porting, etc. longblock build link
5. Dropped engine in car, ran like $hit. Was missing, couldn't get timing to advance past 5* TDC @ idle. Car sat for months and months, basically gave up.
6. Towed car to Greg D. Greg found 2 stuck lifters and an improperly indexed exhaust cam on the DS bank that resulted in 2 bent exhaust valves. Note that I elected to reuse my old lifters in the build, and the improperly indexed cam was probably my fault. I've done 5 60k maintenance w/no problems, but apparently I botched the one that mattered.
7. $4,500 later, the car is back together, SS braided oil lines installed (w/restrictors) since engine was out.
8. Removed TT PS and HICAS setup. Did NOT get NA PS pump bracket, so Greg couldn't hook up PS system (pulleys don't align without proper bracket. Alternator bearings also shot, and AC going out, but car runs like a bat out of hell. No tuning, AFR, nothing, does rolling burnouts in 3rd gear. Giddy like a 3rd grade schoolkid.
9. Get a flat first time driving car to work. Frustrated again, decide to sell the car. Had wheels repaired for $900 @ Wheel Repair Specialist, put them in the garage and had car up on jackstands to address PS/alternator issues.
10. New PS pump, new alternator, etc. New underbody trays. Car pretty much ready to go. Just need to install SAFC Neo, 2x EGT gauges, and have Greg tune. What the hell should I do with this car? I have way over $25K invested, and it is a salvage title vehicle probably not worth a dime over $10k blue book. I already have the wheels up for sale, and as soon as the dyno is done, I am probably going to try and sell the car. Would you purchase a heavily modified salvage title car? The engine only has 1,500 miles on it since the rebuild. I think I have 2 options here. Post it up for like $16k (still taking a HUGE loss), and wait up to a year for a buyer. Drop price to $12k, sell quick, and cut losses. I have a baby on the way in November, this is the option my wife is pushing for. It hurts my heart to see this car go, but I also have a 300 AWHP (on a Mustang, so 350+ on a Dynojet) '06 STi with a TD06-20g and all supporting mods. I don't need 2 rathole cars to throw money into. Personally, the STi is more fun to drive than the Z any day, even though it is certainly 100+ HP down. I can't really describe how fun smoky 4-wheel burnouts are, spinning in a perfect axis. Sure, rolling burnouts are fun in the Z, but it is nowhere near as safe to drive or as tossable as the Suby. The Z is not a good drag car. It's too heavy. I have full interior, so weight will never be in my favor. It's not a good track car. I am confident I could post lap times in excess of 3 seconds faster @ Buttonwillow with the STi. With minor suspension and braking mods, the car destroys the Z. Mind you, I have spent 4x as much upgrading the suspension on the Z. The Z is not a show car. I spent most of my money on functional mods, so the car show circuit is out of the question. Especially if I sell the wheels. I'm working 6 days a week now. Any repairs to the car are likely to be done by Greg D. I no longer have the time or patience to deal with a 15 year old Japanese sports car. When the baby comes, I will have even less time on my hands. Thoughts, suggestions?
"Have you installed chinese locking fingers in your hole yet?" -ni[X]it 10:19:08 05/02/06
"It must suck for you to be the most retarded than everyone else here." -AzHeat 09:30:20 09/10/04
"So I nailed it, took off like an F18 from carrier. Of course the chase begained." -Tim_N/A 10:27:15 04/07/03
"Ps, I ate a real chocolate jesus today. it was kick ass. it was about 3" tall and solid chocolate. I was in heaven." - niXit 10:53:48 10/02/02 |
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