am I the only one?, paranoia about driving ruins it? Options

[tat2dphreak]

ok, over the past 6 years, I've done damn near everything on my car... the transmission is probably the only part 'untouched' and even it got new seals and every linkage bushing...

but now, when I drive it, I'm nit-picky, and every little thing seems to cause worry...

example... yesterday it got up to the high 80s outside, and my car, in stop-go traffic got up to slightly less than 220 on the way home... and I started worrying of over heat...

every rattle, noise, smell or anything a 40 year old car could have, worries me bonkers to the point the fun in the car is far upset by the paranoia...

does anyone else get like this?

[pcar916]

I am one who hears it all too. Fortunately my hearing is s^%& so I don't hear it ALL! I've have this daily driver for the last 16 years. The more I know about it's mechanical and electrical systems, the more confident I am with it.

Fortunate too is the fact that I drive the car in a "spirited fashion" with the expectation that I've built it like a C-47, possibly the most over-engineered aircraft in US history. With that knowledge I'm able to mentally mark any weird noises and look into them with however much urgency I think they need. I also travel with all the tools I think are required to recover with reasonable speed. That said;

I built it to drive like a scalded dog and love (nearly) every minute in it. There is one thing that this car has taught me over the years. It's true of all cars but more obvious with our 914's. I've made it an obsessive mission to shift carefully and smoothly. True with whichever transaxle is in the car, that doesn't mean drive slowly.

It simply means matching revs both up and downshifting, and getting the clutch pedal all the way to the floor. Once smoothness is habitual, driving is faster and safer and the mechanical bits are happy. As for creature comforts;

Southern summers are hot, but not as not as a Norton (15 years) in full leathers. And the winters, until I started using my front oil cooler as a source of cabin heat, were... full of clothes that make the racing seats so tight that my wife won't ride in it. Come to think of it the heat in the summer has the same effect... crap. I'm on my own here with this car! Life is full of trade-offs. The point is...

Ignoring those noises takes many hours of practice, both driving and learning the car! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif) Zen and the Art of 914 Maintenance (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)