Lets Talk First cars Oppo

"Matthew Phillips" (flatsidewaysfl) 03/25/2015 at 12:07 • Filed to: projectcarhell Crownvictoria student broke storytime bored

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When I mean "First car" I mean the first you purchased yourself, not a hand me down.

Many of you already are aware of my Project CV, I'm Just curious about what led others to pick the cars they did and the lessons learned.

For me I sorta repeated a mistake I made and bought something that sat for a good year, but I did put things I learned from my past two hand me downs into this one. My main reason was also my wanting a Cheap RWD passenger car, that was fun to drive, but also fit my needs.

I found this on Craigslist for under a grand and went to check it out, First thing I did was copy what the guy who bought my first car from me did and asked to turn it on, checked for leaks and odd noises.

She turned over like a champ, but obviously wasn't where she is today, but doable. I fell in love and negotiated a price. got dropped off at the DMV and drove her to work all within three hours.

This was where I found out the Wipers didn't rest, both Driver side window regulators were blown, an Idle.... problem...which I fixed the next week....(hole in the Tee Valve), CEL was on, needed brakes, blah blah blah blah.... Fixed all but the windows .

I almost lost hope in this Project, I looked at what was required of me to get her running, and nearly sold her a few times. I didn't though. I looked back at the List the Mechanic gave me above the Quoted $2500 to fix her and after calming down and not wanting to buy a Civic, I paid $400 for the parts I needed, $320 for new tires,$150 in tools, and the whole way I was enjoying it.

I'm still not done, I'm not even driving it right now, but she runs clean, my CEL went off, and I have 113K original non tampered Miles on a 22 year old truck car. This is what I think is what it means to be an Automobile Enthusiast, Learning a craft and honing it to make it yours.

I've also found my Niche, I love big American cars, Old Muscle. I honestly can't wait to buy a secondary car so I can put this to the side and fully restore it.

Your Turn Oppo.

Party-vi > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:13

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I paid for my CJ3A myself and quickly realized it was crazy me me to think that I could use a 60+ year old vehicle as reliable transportation. Also, my dad thinking it would get 20mpg was just ridiculous.

Wacko > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:13

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My first car I bought was a 91 civic DX hatchback That i bought in 1997

but before that I had 2 hand me downs, a 1985 sentra wagon and then a Hyundai S'coope.

Bozi Tatarevic > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:13

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My first ride was a 92 Diamante. I got it with leaky valve seals and learned how to do that fun job. Looked like the one pictured below:

bob and john > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:13

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I have yet to get a car. At all. hand me down or bought XD.

Brian, The Life of > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:14

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I bought my first car, a 1954 F-100, for $500 of my own money just after I turned 15 and then spent the better part of the next year getting it roadworthy. I wish I had it back.

Jake Huitt - Two Alfas And A Nissan, Not A Single Running Car > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:16

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My 1998 Nissan sentra I bought last week.

Bandit > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:18

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My Trans Am I bought when I was 15

Matthew Phillips > Party-vi 03/25/2015 at 12:19

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Lol I'm also insane thinking I could Quote the EPA's 25 MPG for the CV while averaging 8-16...

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:21

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The first car that I bought myself is my 1993 Ford Ranger XLT. I got it 3 weeks before I actually had my license and its a stick. I had no idea how to drive stick before I got my license. It was amazingly taken care of, the PO logged every repair and fluid change as well as saved and included in the sale every repair order for the truck, the oldest dating back to late september, 1994. It only had 104k (documented) miles when I got it and It now just turned over to 107k last night. It had at least $5k put into it within the last year before I bought it. It had the diff seal done in april, brakes done in july, thermostat and temp sender done in june, and clutch done in september. I got it for a steal; $3000. I even share a birthday with it, down to the month and year. It has no issues. Its a 21 year old turn key and drive truck and shes my baby.

stuttgartobsessed > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:23

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1976 alfa romeo spider

MarquetteLa > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:24

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$8,000 for a 2002 NB2 Miata with 42,000 miles on the clock. Three years later, she's still beautiful!

jariten1781 > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:26

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Well, I paid for the first couple cars I owned ('88 Burb, '91 Cavalier) but they were all 'in the circle' (family/friends) as it were.

The first car I bought from a third party was a '91 760 Turbo in 1997. What I learned was that automatic transmissions are voodoo boxes and don't lend themselves to driveway repairs. Last auto I owned.

Matthew Phillips > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s 03/25/2015 at 12:27

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I drove my Uncles 94 with the 4.0 W/Positraction and he almost had to pry me out, these trucks are fun. If they had a decent Crew cab Model I most likely would be in one of those instead.

great Picture :) btw

Can't wait to do a serious photoshoot with the vic

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:27

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1989 Mazda Protege LX (5spd) with that horrible flaky white paint they had in the early days of "environmentally safer" paint experimentation. $1895.00 of summer work money in 1997. Car looked like shit from the bad paint, but only had 90K miles, a clean interior, almost zero rust, and full service records. I gave it a rattle-can respray with Krylon Epoxy Appliance White and drove it for 300K miles. I miss that car. I have driven cars with more powerful brakes, but I have yet to drive a vehicle (ABS equipped or not) that had as much pedal feel as that. The FieSTa is very good, but In the Mazda I could *FEEL* the rotors through the pedal. Not just surface condition, but heat load, impending lockup, which corner was biting hardest... it was like a telepathic link to four corners of the car under braking. Even the NA Miatas I've driven didn't have brake feel like that. It was a great little car. (even if it did tend to throw alternator/waterpump belts due to a slightly tweaked idler assembly that i never replaced and a tendency to rev it 'till the tach was berried (8k rpms) on a regular basis...)

Next was the '92 Alfa 164-S... I put almost 400K miles on that. I miss it too...

duurtlang > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:31

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The first car I bought for myself is the one on the right. The Peugeot 406 coupe. It's still my daily driver, and I love it. The other one, the 205 GTI, is one of the cars I bought later and also a car I still own.

And yes, framing of this picture sucks. Sue me. And yes, the 406 has vintage 205 GTI 1.9 wheels with snow tires.

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:33

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Mine also has a 4.0 and a 3.55 LSD in the rear. They are serious fun

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:34

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Oh and that wasnt a serious photoshoot, I took that with my phone

Roundbadge > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:34

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My actual first car was purchased with half my money and half my parents' money...an '81 Honda Accord, for $1600 in 1992. The first car I purchased with my own money was my '86 Honda Civic Si, in February of 1993. I took a bath on the Accord, but I had that Civic for 3 years after.

Matthew Phillips > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s 03/25/2015 at 12:34

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How well do you think that Rear end will fare in a CV ?

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:35

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If its an 8.8, pretty good. But I'd keep an eye on that diff seal

Matthew Phillips > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s 03/25/2015 at 12:39

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I need to replace an axle seal pretty soon, I'm looking at just replacing the whole Axle since it will already be pulled out.

Gotta put a new rear seal on it regardless

Matthew Phillips > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s 03/25/2015 at 12:41

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http://www.amazon.com/Yukon-YPKF8-8-…

boom

Opposite Locksmith > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:49

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my 1997 Monty I bought from my parents for too cheap, but I bought my WRX myself from a dealership

yamahog > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:57

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Having been very #blessed with my family's wealth of shitty cars to hand down through high school/college, it wasn't until October '13 that I bought this thing:

220k, 3" lift, automatic, somehow still running in mostly one piece. My down payment on my new car will be three times what I paid for the XJ.

jester74 > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 12:59

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1970 VW Westfalia Bus (pretty much the clone of the one below). I friggin loved that thing. While I was in basic training, my wife decided to trade it straight up for a 1982 T-Bird (biggest POS ever).

RallyWrench > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 13:08

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A '68 BMW 1600-2, in Bristol Gray. Rusty, but with a 2.0 from a 2002, Weber 40 DCOEs, and Recaros from a 320is. For $600, it was great. I took all the good bits out & parted it out later after I found my current 2002, a '68 in need of an engine.

Matthew Phillips > jester74 03/25/2015 at 13:25

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that's tragic, are you going to buy another one anytime soon ?

Galileo Humpkins (aka MC Clap Yo Handz) > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 14:38

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Model year '99 bought in early '00 right before my 16th B'day. Not the actual one pictured but it was a black coupe.

JaqcuesCampbell > stuttgartobsessed 03/25/2015 at 14:55

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dude what's your instagram? i've got a shooting brake that's going to break your dick.

jester74 > Matthew Phillips 03/25/2015 at 15:13

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That was the first in a long line of VWs I have owned. I currently have a 1967 VW Bug. But I want another van here soon.

Matthew Phillips > jester74 03/25/2015 at 15:20

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I want a bug so badly

pip bip - choose Corrour > Matthew Phillips 03/26/2015 at 03:56

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1978 UC Holden Torana.

red 202 with filipino 4 speed.

great car/engine just a shit gearbox.

had it for 2 years/75,000km

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Matthew Phillips 03/26/2015 at 11:35

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1989 Jaguar XJ40.

Bought it for £60 from my uncle after it had been sitting in his garden for 3 years. Wouldn't start (cleaned up an earth and it started first time), doors wouldn't open (he tied a piece of string to the locking mechanism and fed it up through the window to open the driver's door), power steering leaked out its fluid faster than you could fill it and a whole host of other problems.

Over the years I was at uni I fixed it up, sourced a manual gearbox for it and was mid-way through swapping it when this happened last Christmas Eve:

I've since sold the manual transmission and the car's still sitting there bruised and battered beyond practicable repair.

I'm still weighing up whether to part it out, scrap it or strip it out fit big offroad tyres and straight pipes and make a ridiculous rallycross car out of it...

Matthew Phillips > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 03/26/2015 at 16:53

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Whoa, I would rally the sucker while you have the option.

I love those old XJ's, I was offered one a few months ago for a grand, I hope you find something to make use of yours.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > Matthew Phillips 03/27/2015 at 05:21

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Oh I will :) if it's not as a rally car then it'll donate its IRS to something cool like a TR7, SD1 or MGB GT V8 :)

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Matthew Phillips 03/29/2015 at 20:36

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Bought a 1986 Mazda RX7 GXL with a 5-speed for $1100 dollars from a kid in Lansing. Drove it for a summer, beat the living hell out of it, removed rear glass and used as pick up truck, etc. Had to sell it due to an alarming amount of rust, but still made a significant profit on it :P.

Matthew Phillips > whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU 03/29/2015 at 20:51

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...................................................................So.....you successfully Dailyed an 80's RX7.....

I.....feel.....so................................stupid....

whiskeybusiness NOW A DANGER TO CROWDS NEAR YOU > Matthew Phillips 03/29/2015 at 20:58

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Never left me stranded once. Yes, it had a couple issues with failing hydraulic systems ( clutch and brake) but that is typical for a car of that vintage. I commuted to and from work daily, transported a lawn mower with some regularity, did a monthly 2 hour drive to get bike frames painted (I worked at a bike shop), and never once did it let me down.