by "Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
Published 06/09/2017 at 21:00
by "Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
Published 06/09/2017 at 21:00
No Tags
STARS: 11
My choices in vehicle ownership spawns lots of commentary from my friends and family. They’re always asking me “why on Earth” I choose to drive such odd cars, instead of a “normal” car. If you know me at all, you know that I have owned some pretty random vehicles. I’ve owned a few Maserati Biturbos, multiple Audi 5000 variants, a turbocharged first generation Ford Probe, and that’s just a basic start.
The truth is, I always idolized the quirky cars as a child. Most kids had a Corvette or Porsche 911 poster growing up. I had a Lotus Elise Sport 190 poster. I dreamed of owning a Maserati Biturbo. Instead of a common Porsche 911, I’d fancy a Lotus Esprit instead. While this doesn’t make sense to the general car population, it does for me.
Flashing way back to my very first car which was a 1986 Audi 5000 S, I immediately fell in love with the rarity and mystique of a quirky car. People would often gaze and try to figure out just what in the hell it was. In a small town flooded with Ford Escorts, SUVs and Mustangs, I had a very weird looking sedan in an abysmal color. I became hooked on the idea of not following trends, and not being a part of any certain group. I’d decided at a young age that I would do my own thing and just run with that.
It wasn’t very long after owning my old 5000 that I had moved on, a few vehicles later I had acquired a rather clean 1990 Ford Probe GT. This particular car was pretty cool to me, instead of the common second generation Probe, I’d had the more rare turbocharged model. Not much really happened with this car since it had developed a catastrophic transmission failure, and once again I had moved on. However, that car stuck with me for years in my head. I longed to own something odd like that again someday.
Several years later, I’d purchased another Audi 5000, this time I had found the very rare Turbo Quattro model with a manual transmission. I was sold on the car before I ever even went to look at it. I truly had no idea what I was getting into, and this Audi had changed my way of thinking for a very long time. I had heard all the maintenance horror stories with old Audi cars, yet I’d covered 200 miles just to bring it home through a blizzard. I had covered almost a year of daily driving, and the only problem the car had was a bad battery. Sure, the old CIS fuel system was finicky at best, but reliability was absolutely a strong suit for that old car.
Regrettably, I had sold the 5000 due to several electrical issues that seemed intimidating. The power windows did not work and a hot Tennessee summer was coming. The heater did not work, yet I’d made it through one of the coldest winters in Tennessee history. The Audi served me admirably and went on to a great home. I’d go on to miss that car for many years.
Flash forward to a few years ago, I’d owned my second Maserati Biturbo, this time a fuel injected model. My previous Biturbo was carbed and never really gave me much reliable service. I’d found an opportunity and jumped on it right away. I traded my beloved 1989 Jaguar XJ6 (a finicky car in it’s own right) straight up for the 1987 Maserati. The Jaguar was in need of a head gasket, but save for that issue, was an extremely reliable car for me. I was nervous, obviously the Biturbo has a horrible reputation for unreliability. However, that was anything but the case for me.
Now I’ve written a separate article about this particular car I’m referencing, but for the sake of this story, I’ll recap quickly. The Maserati was the single most reliable car I’d owned in a few years. There was never a single occasion in which I needed to get somewhere that the car didn’t oblige. Quite literally, it was without flaw. Everything electronic worked, the heater worked, the windows, I mean everything. On a -50 degree winter day, my Mother’s two year old Chevrolet Impala would not start. The Biturbo jumped it and gave it the chance to run. No, I’m not joking.
Once again, regrettably, life circumstances happened, and the Biturbo said goodbye to me, and went on to a new loving home. With that being said, owning that car gave me the confidence to tackle quirky car ownership. I’d serviced it myself, I’d kept it reliable with minimal fuss, I thought I was the man. So when the opportunity presented itself around six months ago to purchase my 1986 Audi 5000 Turbo Quattro, I did not think twice. It had a manual transmission, it ran and drove. The body was pretty well straight, and the frame was clean. I’d reminisced on my days of owning my other 5000 in Tennessee. What could possibly go wrong? For $1300, I figured not too much could.
This ladies and gentleman, is where things get sketchy. I still own this 5000, and let me tell you something right away. Be smarter than me, and buy a normal car. Want the Audi badge? Buy an A4. Want a turbocharged all wheel drive car to have fun with? Go buy a first generation Talon. Do anything, but don’t do what I did. Now that we’re getting to the point, I’ll break this down into segments for dramatic effect.
Cost Of Ownership
Seems cut and dry, doesn’t it? I paid $1300 for the car. In reality, it hasn’t REALLY broke down, but it hasn’t exactly been safely road worthy since the beginning either. I had purchased a set of RS6 wheels for a very cheap price, and was pretty excited to put them on. Except, 18 inch wheels don’t work on a 5000. So, we grabbed a fender roller and got to work. That is when we discovered the first of many major issues. The rear upper control arm on the passenger side was snapped in half, and the rear strut was also broken off at the mounting point. Seems easy enough to fix, doesn’t it? That is when we get into:
Parts Availability
Not to be immodest, but I’m proudly at a point in my life that I can afford to fix major repairs, mostly because I sold my soul to truck driving. So, being the overly thorough person I am, we inspected the rest of the rear suspension. What we found was what we expected, thirty one years and over a quarter million miles made for a very sloppy suspension. My best friend Nathan works at a major auto parts retailer, and I had him order all new bushings for the lower control arms, since the lower control arms went “no longer available” many years ago. We went ahead and ordered new upper control arms, all four struts, some bushings, and we figured that would be easy enough.
So here is the sad news folks, it’s NEVER that easy with rare vehicles. For instance, I get the call from Nathan, he tells me that two of the bushings we need are discontinued. There is no stock anywhere. A few days later, he calls and tells me the front struts arrived, but unfortunately, the rears did not. They were also discontinued and nobody could source them. Frantically, I started searching high and low. Even the almighty parts giants at ECS Tuning told me in a very polite way, “Sir, you’re shit out of luck” and I began to freak out.
By some miracle, the rears arrived. Turns out, I got the last rear struts in existence for my car. The only others I have found are the OEM Sachs for $200 each, and there are only a few sets available. I said a quick thank you to the Gods above, and figured it would be smooth from here. Another newsflash, it’s NEVER smooth from here. I still did not have bushings for my lower control arms, and the bushings in the ones I have were absent. Reluctantly, I hit the forums and found a set of control arms off of an Audi 200, which is a similar car. They were in good condition, and beat what I had by a long shot.
I told myself, since we are already in there, better order the parts to replace my brakes at all four corners. By some miracle, the parts were in stock. A couple clicks later, I had the parts coming. What started out as a simple upper control arm replacement quickly snowballed into a repair costing over a thousand dollars to do correctly. Even then, everything wasn’t smooth.
I had ordered my components based off of my VIN number to insure accuracy, since there were parts changes in 6/1986. When do you think my Audi was produced? You guessed it, 6/1986 and my font brake pads were very incorrect. The vendor did not do much to help, and I ended up having to reuse my old pads on expensive brand new rotors. This did not make me happy, obviously since I frown upon this. Also, the control arms I had received had differences we ended up having to address. This theme had followed the car since day one. Everything from spark plug wires, to control arms arrived incorrectly.
It gets even better. My rear axles seals were also leaking, allowing the oil to leak from the rear differential. The rear driver side wheel bearing was toast. I ordered two new wheel bearings and axle seals. Now, before I even open that can of worms, you know what comes next. The parts arrived incorrectly, and the correct ones are no longer available. I by some stroke of blind luck found a rear wheel bearing that was correct, and Nathan cross referenced the axle seals by size, and we finally had what we needed. A simple weekend repair turned into a stressful two week ordeal, simply because of parts scarcity.
Working On An Obscure Vehicle
Admittedly, Nathan has the horrible job of doing the repairs. Honestly, he is far more skilled than me, and I sleep better at night knowing things are done correctly. With that being said, this comes with many challenges of its’ own. For instance, that basic Craftsman tool kit you got as a wedding gift years ago, well, it’s not going to cut it. Ever heard of a triple square fastener? If you haven’t, get familiar before you buy odd ball European cars, and be prepared to spend a lot of money in specialty tools just to do even basic repairs. You may think I’m exaggerating a little here, but I promise you, I’m not.
Also, very little information exists about even basic torque specifications and repair procedures. You’ll find very quickly that Facebook groups and model specific forums are your best friend, without them, you will fail, bank on that!
Insuring An Odd Non-Exotic Car
Let’s see, Geico says if I wreck my car and it becomes “totaled” I would receive $3200 for it. I surpassed the $3200 investment mark a while back. You can see where I’m going with this.
So Why Do You Own Something Like This?
This question never has a good answer, and now you see why I say to stay away from cars like this. I do it because it is my passion. You’d think finding parts for a nearly extinct Maserati was hard, but you’d be wrong. In comparison to my Audi, the Biturbo is a Civic in terms if ease of acquiring parts. If and when I blow out a rear strut, or need another rear wheel bearing, I’m going to be in trouble again, and the stress of finding parts starts all over. This is only the beginning as well. This is a low production car that is now 31 years old, and there isn’t exactly a huge following for them. So when you do finally find parts for them, you’re going to pay premium prices for those items.
What I’m trying to tell you is this, buy a car like mine because you truly want to own it. Do not buy it because it is “different” or “cool” because I’m being brutally honest with you, it is not worth it, and it is never going to be worth it. Resale value isn’t terrible, but the resale market is. Need to sell a car like this in a pinch and I assure you, not going to happen. When you own something like a Biturbo, or an old Audi, you own it because you embrace the quirks, you respect the heritage it has, and you love the nostalgia it brings.
For many people, they want to get noticed. Admittedly the Biturbo was good for that, it sparked conversations constantly. However, nobody is going to come up to you and say “dude cool car” or even respect the hell you have been through to own and maintain that car. The positive to this is, when someone does approach you about your odd car, chances are they know it, own or have owned one like it, and you form some pretty cool friendships because of it.
It is very easy to drop $5000 on that cool car you like, but the question you have to ask yourself isn’t whether you can afford the car, it is can you afford to maintain it, are you resourceful enough to spend hours trying to find something as stupid as a wheel bearing, and are you really prepared to be asked constantly why you won’t just buy an A4?
My Name is Matthew, and I’m an author of mediocre articles. If you’d like to follow me and read more of my thoughts on random vehicles, you can do so on my very mediocre and very new website www.powershiftautomotive.com we also upload podcasts each Sunday.
Thank you so much for taking time to read my article, and hope to see some feedback from each of you!
"RallyWrench" (rndlitebmw)
06/09/2017 at 21:16, STARS: 3
I’m going to read this in detail later when I’m home, and I agree with the premise, but...
A client is offering this to me for $3k. Turbo, manual, it’s perfect. Everything has been done, everything works, comes with loads of spares. I have a 4000CSQ with a bunch if scaffolding in it, and had an UrQ for 13 years, so it’s a bit of a disease.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/09/2017 at 21:19, STARS: 0
Hey thank you so much for checking it out! That looks to be a clean car for sure. I’m not trying to deter anyone from buying something like this, rather I’m outlining some of the troubles with owning cars like this. You’ve obviously got experience with these, so you definitely won’t have any issues.
I’ve always wanted a red 5k, mine have all been terrible colors haha.
"Svend" (svend)
06/09/2017 at 22:23, STARS: 2
Great read mate.
I’ve never been mechanically minded to maintain a car other than my enjoyment of keeping them clean, both mine and others.
It’s great to see some of the old timers still rocking about the roads.
For all too many a car is a consumable product and there to get you from A to B. When it starts to show signs of wear (because they haven’t even took time to maintain them passed legally required efforts to keep them on the road) they sell them off or scrap them. So much automotive history sent to the scrapper way before their time.
You keep fighting the good fight mate. Who wants to be the same as everyone else anyway.
"HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles" (hondasfordsvolvo)
06/09/2017 at 22:24, STARS: 1
I do now, and I intend continue doing it. But I’d never own an Audi.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/09/2017 at 22:27, STARS: 2
Very solid points, I really enjoy this comment. I appreciate the personality of cars like this, and seeing them parted out and junked truly breaks my heart. Cars are so much more than just consumable appliances. To me, they are a way of life and a statement.
Thank you so much for the feedback as well, I love hearing everybody’s thoughts on subjects like this.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/09/2017 at 22:30, STARS: 0
Absolutely nothing wrong with that. What do you drive, I’d love to see it!
"Svend" (svend)
06/09/2017 at 22:41, STARS: 2
No worries mate.
Some of my favourite cars are what others wouldn’t even think to look at.
Cars are a testament as to what was in at that point in time and the technology that was available, every car was trying to be futuristic and different.
I will own one of these one day.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/09/2017 at 22:50, STARS: 2
Oh wow, that’s quite a beautiful assortment, I’d love to have any of those myself.
I’m really glad you said that, that’s a big part of the attraction for me. The Audi is so neat because it’s a turbocharged all wheel drive sedan with a manual transmission, in the 80s, with diff locks. That’s so cool and innovative, truthfully cars like these paved the way for the EVOs and STIs of today.
"Svend" (svend)
06/09/2017 at 23:05, STARS: 1
Ye’, people don’t remember that bit.
The closest some will come is, ‘my dad had a car like that’ and walk away. No fond memories or following comment.
If I had a big enough house and garage (hell, even if I’d a garage), that garage would be my living room, each day moving a chair to a new position to take it the beauty and craftmanship of such, lets be honest for their time, utilitarian vehicles. Classic cars some from a very different time to what we have these days. It was a post WWII time, things were in short supply, things were made for purpose, then a time came to embrace life and it’s beauty of still being alive, it was a new world, things changed and were still changing. Unfortunately they kept changing, changing too much from what the new world was all about.
Sorry getting all mellow-dramatic now.
Good talking to you mate.
Keep on doing what your doing.
"HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles" (hondasfordsvolvo)
06/09/2017 at 23:09, STARS: 2
It’s a 1991 Mitsubishi Galant VR-4. 1 of 3000 imported to the US in 91-92. It was built as a Rally homolgation car before the Mitsubishi started using the Lancer as the Galant moved up market and got bigger. Which is why some people joking call it an Evo zero. Kinja won’t let me add a picture right now but here’s a link to a post with pics.
http://oppositelock.kinja.com/took-the-galant-for-a-logging-road-blast-1794885204
It’s kind of funny because you meantion a Talon as the car to buy when you want an AWD, Turbo, manual car. And the Galant is very similar to a first gen DSM but the differences it has make it much harder to own, maintain, modify if you so desire.
The biggest things are, the Galant has rear steering, which means a completely different rear subframe and suspension, ABS, 4 bold hubs instead of 5 bolt, and it’s 8 inches longer in the middle. Which means it’s also about 100lbs heavier.
Is it realy worth it to have this car instead of a DSM? No not really, but the Galant came into my life more by chance than me really picking it. I sold my 01 Civic to buy something more instersting, not FWD, and something that would force me to grow in my knowledge, and abilities as a mechanic. I wasn’t looking for this car, but it showed up 10 miles away well within budget and it was just too cool and unique to pass up. After all part of the reason I wanted to sell the Civic was because I was tired of seeing clones of my car every time I drove around town.
I bought the car with no brakes, a soft line in the rear was leaking, and actually blew as I was test driving it. Lol. Then I did the timing belt, o2 sensor, Fuel pressure regulator, had the ECU rebuilt, replaced the Idle air control valve, did lots of regular maintenance stuff. Next on the list is rebuilding the whole front suspension, and replacing shocks and springs all around. Unfortunately the only springs I’ve been able to find are lowering springs, and i don’t want that at all. Also the turbo leaks oil, so that needs attention, and it desperately needs a new clutch. Unfortunately I’m not yet at a point where I can afford to buy all the parts, so everything will have to come with time.
I’ll admit there has been points where I wanted to quite. For a long time the car had a fuel cut off issues. You be accelerating but as you hit 3500-4000 RPM it would just stop dead. After trying many many thing I found it was the throttle position sensor. Now that I can actually enjoy the full powerband the car is much better.
But the point is because of its rarity, and its Rally heritage, and its potential; this car is the first car I’ve ever owned that I consider a “forever car”. It might not always be my only car, but I will never sell it to move on to something else. At least not by choice
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/09/2017 at 23:31, STARS: 1
Bro, we just became best friends. I’m a life long DSM enthusiast, the 4G63 is quite literally my bread and butter. Check out my website, there’s some 4G63 goodness on there under the life and misc menu lol.
The GVR4 is a car I’ve always wanted to own. I’m honestly rather jealous now!
"RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars" (rallydarkstrike)
06/11/2017 at 16:16, STARS: 1
Very cool article! Ah...vintage Audis.....I do not envy you sir. :P
You must be new on Oppo, are you...? Maybe I am blind (and I admit I have a terrible memory), but I don’t remember seeing you around!
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/11/2017 at 16:22, STARS: 0
Thank you so much! She’s a headache for sure, but she’s also one of two loves of my life.
I am indeed new to Oppo, and I’m very excited to be here. I’ll be posting up at least a few times a week as my schedule permits. I love writing car related articles.
"RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars" (rallydarkstrike)
06/11/2017 at 16:44, STARS: 3
Glad to have you, welcome to the community! We’re an interesting assortment of people!
May I recommend the following Youtube channels for weird / quirky / content if you’ve not heard of them before? :)
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAtc-JKY9I-kIgaY3gnsJew (This one is Flavien Vidal’s channel - he’s here on Oppo and exports cars from Japan!)
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo0_6VxevokFfUbf8ECJkAw - Pacific Coast Auto, they also do exports from Japan and Derrick is originally from British Columbia, Canada.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUfLJhCe4ZzIISnoCH7r6KA - Lots of awesome Microcar and European car stuff from Oregan (or Washingston...? I forget, but he’s in one of those two states! :P)
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1lIHn3KlcJimyxsVugP4uw - Some cool old car videos including Saab and a Trabant (he’s also the one who lent his car to Doug Demuro for the Trabant review!) :D
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfejXM_W1JtRx5KFARC6Tsw - Lots of of Japanese Kei Car reviews!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfCRDwiCae7UWjBkSuDPnXw - Basically a Russian SaabKyle04 (look him up too if you haven’t heard of him!) - lots of cool Russian and European iron!
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/11/2017 at 16:59, STARS: 0
Thanks for those, I know how I’ll be spending some time this afternoon now! I love good YouTube channels, never a dull moment. Oppo is definitely a great place to share and read everybody’s thoughts and cool stories. Very nice section we have here.
Also I intend to do some YouTube stuff myself as well, I’m anxiously gathering equipment now to get started.
"RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars" (rallydarkstrike)
06/11/2017 at 17:33, STARS: 1
Cool, will keep my eyes out for your stuff! Enjoy the videos, hopefully there is some stuff there you like!
"Nauraushaun" (nauraushaun12)
06/12/2017 at 04:11, STARS: 1
Old Japanese cars are where it’s at ;)
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/12/2017 at 05:17, STARS: 1
I love old Japanese cars for sure, came very close to buying a rather decent AE86 years back. I really regret not buying it. I’ve owned quite a few DSMs, I just have an all around appreciation for weird old cars.
"Nauraushaun" (nauraushaun12)
06/12/2017 at 06:30, STARS: 1
I think they’re a good tradeoff between the weirdness and the reliability nightmares. You can bet there are plenty of both OEM and aftermarkets parts for the AE86, and the 4A-GE shouldn’t give you a trouble!
"Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo" (akioohtori)
06/12/2017 at 12:25, STARS: 2
I am actually a little surprised by this. I’ve owned “quirky” cars since my Honda(s) turned out to be just an unreliable as my old Saab, and I’ve never really looked back.
In general, each make has its own specialist parts website that seem like they’re wizards at having what you need, in stock. I’ve never encountered running gear/ replaceable parts that were in the realm of unobtainium, though you’re certainly looking at a big bill, especially if you’re having to ship big, heavy parts from overseas.
To your point, most of the “big box” retailers laugh at you when you try and find parts. “You need a what for a what ?” Before they start laughing and hang up. Or try and spell “Alfa Spider” as “Alpha Spyder”.
Now, I admit I know nothing about old Audis, so I can’t remark on your specific experience. I guess the takeaway would be “research parts availability in advance” but, lets face it, I bet neither of us will ever actually do that.
All that said, I buy my quirky cars because I like my quirky cars. Finding out the weird ways in which each of them does what you’d think was a solved problem (brakes, suspension, etc) keeps my interest. If a car doesn’t pass the lookback test or I get annoyed when it breaks down rather than concerned, that car needs to be on Craigslist going to its next owner.
Doggo for your time.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/12/2017 at 16:41, STARS: 2
Nope I fully agree, I love my car to death, and that’s what I was getting at. You really have to love a car like mine, if the love isn’t there it’s just not going to be worth it in the end. Finding parts is very hard when it’s the little things. There are some really nifty aftermarket components I do have, it’s things like wheel bearings, shocks and struts, shock mounts etc that are like finding a needle in a haystack.
I would never get rid of my car, but I aimed to inform the average enthusiast that a car like this may not be for them. I really appreciate your feedback by the way, us quirky car owners are a rare breed.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/12/2017 at 16:43, STARS: 0
The AE86 is almost impossibly reliable, they’re really built like tanks. The one I was looking at was solid and super fun to drive. I look back on the summer and hate myself for passing on it. Someday I’ll finally give in and pay a ridiculous price to have one because “AE86 tax” is a real thing.
"Nauraushaun" (nauraushaun12)
06/12/2017 at 22:55, STARS: 0
I hope for your case it wasn’t stock and decent! So many have been trashed with shit mods, shit parts, shit paint. And they’ve spent the bulk of the last 30 years being treated as an old Toyota economy car.
Any sort of decent one that’s mostly stock for less than drug money is a steal these days. And not getting any cheaper!
"torque" (torque01)
06/21/2017 at 21:24, STARS: 1
Nice post. About 1/2 the way down (starting w/ “cost of ownership”) I thought to myself this is good Oppo!
I too like odd ball cars & those willing to continue to maintain them. As you’ve pointed out, the biggest challenge in driving something that few have an interest in, is parts availability.
For odd ball cars w/o a following, you have to be like Mike Brewer (and the team of people from the ol’ Wheeler Dealers that have zero screen time) hunting down and finding NOS (new old stock) or referbushing used parts.
For stresssed wear items like NLA (no longer available) rear lower control arms, that’s where you may need to get even more creative and either fabricating it yourself or having a new part fabricated for you; which can be either a high personal technical challenge or could be challenging for one’s wallet.*
Which is where having (or making) friends in amateur racing can be a Huge blessing. Fortunately for you, Audi’s strong 80's rally heritage could prove very valuable in finding rare parts for your 86' 500 turbo. That and the VW Group has long had an evolution (vs. revolution) engineering approach meaning you could usually find nearly any 1 part in more than 1 make/model/year vehicle. As you mentioned thee Audi 200 has a lot in common with your car.
In fact you may find it easier to replace most of the rear suspension with Audi 200 parts, which of course affects its originality, however only the geekiest of geeks will notice or even care. If you are one of those geekiest of geeks, my condolences & my hats off to you!
*Reminds me of that Dusenberg Guru Jay Leno knows that has original blueprints of many of the Dusenberg models & has had many parts re-created from scratch. I’m sure a manufacturer would be willing to produce new suspension bushings if you can get them the specs. Then it is a matter of figuring out how small of a limited production run you can have them make in order to make it affordable to purchase. Assuming of course you can find a big enough group of like minded fans of your make/model/year...
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
06/22/2017 at 02:25, STARS: 1
Great post, and huge thanks for the feedback! Parts availability is always challenging on cars like these, but as you said you just have to be crafty. Originality isn’t a huge deal for me, functionality always wins that war haha.
We have the ability to fabricate and that’s what’s honestly saving my ass at the end of the day. Thanks again for the feedback, it really does mean a lot! I love writing about cars and my trials and tribulations with them. It’s a huge passion of mine.