Sunday, June 08, 2008
Sad decision - putting the Corvette up for sale
Today I finished a round of electrical repairs on the Corvette. It started when the alternator and a fusable link failed while AutoFab was putting on a new smog pump (as I didn't want to spend my own time dealing with the car). Well, the cooling fan failed on the way home. So I tore into the wiring myself. Ended up replacing the fan motor, another fusable link, the positive battery terminal, and the battery itself. After confirming every one of the parts I replaced had, in fact, gone bad. Seems like it had some sort of mini electrical meltdown. But it's running now. Because I want the next owner to start with something they can confirm is, for the most part, in sound and operational condition.
I've decided to put the Corvette up for sale. I know it's the sort of car where 10 years from now, maybe 20, I'll find myself wishing I still owned it. But this car should be someone's project and weekend driver, not the car I depend on to get me to work. It's still got a few nagging electrical gremlins, including an A/C blower that only works when it feels like it and wipers that don't always turn off when they should. It gets 19 miles to the gallon in the city. And, I've got to face it... I'm not a very good racing driver, and a Z51 is not a very forgiving car to take around an autocross. It's the wrong car for me right now, and I know that I need to sell it.
But even with its foibles, I can't say I regret having bought the Corvette. It's a chapter in my life story written in iron and fiberglass:
I'll be able to tell people for years about how I owned a Corvette once.
I'll be able to tell them about the time it got me safely through a blizzard on the way home when SUVs were taking shelter in the nearest parking lot.
I'll be able to tell about the time I took it drag racing.
I'll be able to tell about how much fun it can be to cruise with the targa top off.
I'll be able to tell about the time I got it sideways repeatedly in a Six Flags parking lot. (In an officially sanctioned race, that is.)
I'll be able to tell about the funny looks I got using the Corvette to haul garbage to the dump because it could carry a trash can better than my wife's sedan.
And I'll be able to tell how it wasn't too much of a financial hardship to sell it, because I can honestly tell about how I was able to buy a Corvette with an envelope of cash.
Whew. Quite a memory. Now, anybody wanting to buy a C4 Corvette? I'm only asking $4,000 and I'm flexible on the price. It hasn't been abused all that much.
I've decided to put the Corvette up for sale. I know it's the sort of car where 10 years from now, maybe 20, I'll find myself wishing I still owned it. But this car should be someone's project and weekend driver, not the car I depend on to get me to work. It's still got a few nagging electrical gremlins, including an A/C blower that only works when it feels like it and wipers that don't always turn off when they should. It gets 19 miles to the gallon in the city. And, I've got to face it... I'm not a very good racing driver, and a Z51 is not a very forgiving car to take around an autocross. It's the wrong car for me right now, and I know that I need to sell it.
But even with its foibles, I can't say I regret having bought the Corvette. It's a chapter in my life story written in iron and fiberglass:
I'll be able to tell people for years about how I owned a Corvette once.
I'll be able to tell them about the time it got me safely through a blizzard on the way home when SUVs were taking shelter in the nearest parking lot.
I'll be able to tell about the time I took it drag racing.
I'll be able to tell about how much fun it can be to cruise with the targa top off.
I'll be able to tell about the time I got it sideways repeatedly in a Six Flags parking lot. (In an officially sanctioned race, that is.)
I'll be able to tell about the funny looks I got using the Corvette to haul garbage to the dump because it could carry a trash can better than my wife's sedan.
And I'll be able to tell how it wasn't too much of a financial hardship to sell it, because I can honestly tell about how I was able to buy a Corvette with an envelope of cash.
Whew. Quite a memory. Now, anybody wanting to buy a C4 Corvette? I'm only asking $4,000 and I'm flexible on the price. It hasn't been abused all that much.
Labels: Corvette
