DWB: Driving While Broke

"Oran J Sands III" (merlyyn) 06/18/2014 at 11:12 • Filed to: None

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It's hard being a Jalop and be broke at the same time. Yet despite that I suspect that the majority of us fit into this category in one manner or another. Let's start of by defining "broke".

Broke is not being able to afford what you want. Or deserve. Especially the latter. Broke is not being at the poverty level but it could be. It's all relative. You can be broke and driving a Ferrari. In fact it's almost impossible to to NOT be broke and driving a Ferrari!

Being a Jalop means you enjoy things with wheels and going fast. You like the finesse of a well-ground valve, the blat of a Jaaag and the grace of a good fender crease. And as hilarious as Rich Corintian Leather sounds you wouldn't mind having some in your interior. Misbehaving in your automobile is not unknown to you. You kids probably tell mommy "dad drove realllly fast!"

Now let's combine the two.

Scenario #1; You want to race so bad you can taste it. But how? Depending on your income you could run autocross in a stock class. Modifications are limited so you won't put out too much cash and you can race your daily driver! It's fun and cheap (kinda). You could also race with other cars in LeMons or CrapCar racing where the costs are mostly controlled. Hey, you're not driving the latest Dallara chassis but it's racing! You could also try rallying. Again, it can be done on the cheap (realtively) and the few events a year give you a chance to refuel the checkbook between rallys.

Scenario #2: You love working on cars. Making them unique. But designing custom rods and racecars is a bit beyond the budget for now. So work on what you have. And if that's not appealing then get something else but something a bit more interesting. An interesting car that you wanted when it was new 15-20 years ago. This is known as The Project Car. Being Broke usually means this is a car that will sit under a tarp in the driveway until your neighbors call the cops or the neighborhood association. So to avoid this you decide to get a project car that will double as a Daily Driver. This is a great idea. Except you'll spend lots of time making sure the car runs well enough to get to work. Which cuts into the budget for those new intake runners and european bumpers. Many speculate that it's impossible to have a Project Car as a Daily Driver. YMMV

Scenario #3: The Barn Find. Legendary and not always a Bentley but often you'll be given/find a car you wouldn't otherwise have a chance at. If your rich uncle died and no one knows what to do with his old, garaged (and a bit ratty) Porsche you tell Aunt Flo that you could give her a couple of grand and get it out of the garage for her. You've now gotten a Project Car. With a caveat. It's a needy bastard. "Give me tires, I want Premium, I need new rotors, am I dripping? Sorry". You've entered the Black Hole of Neat Old Car ownership. You suddenly realize why your uncle left it sitting in the garage. He wasn't as rich as you thought.

Scenario #3b: Be Careful What You Wish For. Or TANSTAFFL. Back in the late 80's Alpine car radios were famous for being installed as factory radios in Lamborghini Countaches. So they had a contest and gave one away. It was won by a 18 year-old in Ohio who almost immediately regretted having entered the contest. His dad wouldn't let him drive it without insurance. So he scrapped up a couple of grand and bought a months worth of insurance and drove the car few times. Then sold it.

If anyone gives me a Ferrari I'll hoon it for a while, without insurance and sell it immediately thereafter. Have you ever priced a tire for a 455? I could feed my family for a month instead. Very cool cars have massive prices attached to everything bolted to them. Tuneups require more than a oil change.

But yet we all keep dreaming. No harm in that and there are steps to take to feed our passions. Buy cheap. Roam junkyards for parts. Get a second job. Move into a cheaper house. Drop the wife/girlfriend (sometimes a bigger maintenance issue than a Jaaaag.)

I had a subscription to AutoWeek for a long time. And they started running ads stating the average AW reader had a 4 car garage with awesome cars parked inside, earned $407K a year, a 6 bedroom house and so forth. I thought they were hilarious. Then I found out they weren't joking. Thank god for Jalopnik. They get it. You get it.

DWB. It's not hopeless. But sometimes a bit frustrating.

The author spent several years driving a Ford Tempo during which time his soul died. A '83 VW GTI appeared on his doorstep and life's been better ever since . Unless you count the 3 other VW's he's gone through trying to get one to run/look acceptable. Pics above are the author's. Pray for him.

thebigbossyboss > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 11:16

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I drove a ford tempo tooooooooo

505Turbeaux > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 11:19

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soon

McMike > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 11:33

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Twin-stick Colt FTW! Too bad it's not a Turbo.

KatzManDu > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 11:37

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I recognize these cars and this house from being on the east side of Indianapolis.

ddavidn > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 11:48

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Yup. $5 doesn't get me home from work. And sometimes I don't have $5. Good article! I can identify!

Oran J Sands III > McMike 06/18/2014 at 11:54

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Hush your mouth! It was a Turbo! And damn fast til the fenders started falling off.

Oran J Sands III > KatzManDu 06/18/2014 at 11:55

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Indy yes. Eastside no.

McMike > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 12:06

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Turbos has "Turbo" in the pinstripe, just under the side mirrors.

Then again, it's been (exactly, since the turbo was only available in '84) 30 years. Anything is possible.

Oran J Sands III > ddavidn 06/18/2014 at 12:07

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I once worked a job that was 75 miles from home. Exactly at the same time gas prices went from $2 to over $3 a gallon. Many times getting to work and back meant searching the couch cushions for change. And that was driving the VW "project car". And people wonder while I carry tools with me. Today I commute by bike so I can hoon when ever I drive the car. It's a good trade-off.

Oran J Sands III > McMike 06/18/2014 at 12:12

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It was a repaint since it was dropped off the carrier. replacement stripes weren't available. And even better it was a Plymouth Colt Turbo. Only year a Colt was sold as a Plymouth (probably done since the only grill available said Colt on it. Ass-end of the car had a big TURBO decal.

Oran J Sands III > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 12:14

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Says Turbo here as well.

McMike > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 12:16

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I had one, and have been answering the "WTF is a 8-speed twin-stick" question on the internet ever since.

Doesn't surprise me at all that the stripes weren't available - it was a one year run. I had a driveshaft on national backorder back in 1988 - when the car was only four years old.

ddavidn > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 12:18

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Yeesh. My job is only about 30 miles away. I actually take the bus right now, which still has me searching frantically for change (like I was this morning) because it still costs $3/day. And I also have to drive 10 miles to the bus. And my car could probably be considered a project car, by some...

Oran J Sands III > McMike 06/18/2014 at 12:26

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God I loved that shifter. I was auto-crossing nationally at the time and I never found a corner I didn't have the right gear for. Having 2 speeds in reverse was a great party trick as well.

AKS > KatzManDu 06/18/2014 at 12:32

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Nice words Oran, loved the blog. My little Cabby is there, im so glad to have passed her on to Oran the great. She's the little black Cabby to the right i think. By the way i have a an old moped i need some work on in Indy, or maybe just sell. We should chat sometime.

Aaron

McMike > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 12:33

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Heh, we were Dominic Toretto shifting back before it was cool.

While it made no sense and took two hands for two of the shifts., I know (like I did) you rowed through every ratio.

Why?

Because they were there.

People used to get in the car and ask what the other lever did.

The answer more often than not was.. "Watch this."

Frosted > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 13:26

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I'll be a heretic here and say I've never really cared for super expensive, fast cars. Sure they're pretty to look at but 90% of the time, you'll be going the same speed as every Camry or Accord on the road. Instead, I dream of daily driving one of these:

And maybe doing some Autocross or trackdays in one of these:

Small and cheap. That's my dream.

Gee, I'm really reaching for the stars here when I think about it.

Oran J Sands III > Frosted 06/18/2014 at 13:36

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Frankly I'm with you. Supercars aren't worth the hassle to use on a daily basis but these...

Luc - The Acadian Oppo > Frosted 06/18/2014 at 13:37

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Kei cars are the shiznit! How I wish we could get those here.

TwoFortified > Oran J Sands III 06/18/2014 at 20:06

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My project is my daily. It can be done. It's a waking nightmarish hell, but it can be done. I've only been late to work once this week, and have only had it towed twice this month.

I swear, if I didn't love my car, I'd fucking hate it.

Trevor Slattery, ACTOR > McMike 11/19/2014 at 12:22

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Huh?

McMike > Trevor Slattery, ACTOR 11/19/2014 at 12:34

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Yep.... Four speed with an overdrive for the whole box. Two reverses, too. .

Shift on the fly, and select any ratio, anytime. Fast and Furiously over-shifting before it was cool.