Well, I bought a tractor, and I even bought an ugly one which was more useful than the “pretty” one! That’s gotta be a first.
Category: Past Indiscretions (Page 23 of 25)
Valuable, if hard, lessons learned
The subtitle to this entry would be “How to restore a car, Age 22.” I had no money, no workshop, few tools, and had no business “restoring” any car. This poor old machine was unfortunately the victim of my misplaced enthusiasm.
At one point, I owned three MGBs concurrently: My trusty but rusty ’67, a 1968 MGB-GT which was literally a parts car, and this 1969 MGB, which had a knocking rod in the engine. The idea was to pull the engine from the GT and put it in this car, making one decent machine. Why I never got around to that still puzzles me. I sold all three for $2000 to a guy from Shelton.
Ever do something that seems logical at the time but later, from a more distant perspective, seems downright idiotic? Ever get sucked into another friend’s enthusiasms, without really knowing what you’re doing? Enter into my life this execrable Mercedes. The photo is of a similar car, I took no photos of mine–even then I sensed it would be a source of future shame.
I loved this bike! It was the first sport bike I ever sat on that seemed to fit…most are designed for 5’6″ guys who weigh 125 lbs. The Triumph was definitely not for them, shorter friends had a hard time even getting their feet to the ground. Moreover, it was top-heavy, especially with a full tank of gas, and it was very hefty for a sport bike, 500 lbs all-up.
This was possibly the nicest classic car I’ve owned, as far as appearance and condition go. The fixed-head coupe E-Type is perhaps the lovliest car ever made, and this was a very nice example by the time I was done with it. What else to do, then, than sell it?
Well, a nice guy named Bryan took the XJR off my hands tonight for $7200. I think he got a good deal, and while I’m sad to see the car go, I’m now going to be able to bring Reggie, the ’63 MGB roadster up here.
The easiest way to fix up a house or a car is to sell it. All those little jobs you put off for months and months suddenly get fixed, and you wonder why you didn’t do it ages ago. Am I the only one who does this?
Case in point: The driver’s seat of the XJR has one motor that makes noise but doesn’t do anything. It is supposed to raise and lower the front of the seat base…and now it does. It took all of five minutes to fix, too. I’ve been living with it inoperative since I bought the car…
It’s funny how cars once ubiquitous disappear almost overnight. My second car, a 1977 Toyota Corolla liftback, used to be seen in their many thousands, but I haven’t seen a mid-seventies Toyota of any stripe recently–and it’s been years since I’ve seen a liftback.
I sold the MGB-GT today (or so it seems, transaction won’t close for a few). I don’t what it is, I had no action on the car for what seemed like forever, and then today I get five people who want to look at it. Weird. In any case, someone who knew what they were looking for and looking at bought it within fifteen minutes of seeing it…I lost my shirt but that’s the way these things usually go. I don’t think I’ve made money on a car in fifteen years!