Having a weak moment, Looking into the possibility of selling... Options

['73-914kid]

Well, lately the 914 and I have not been getting along so well.......

When I was driving my car to and from high school on a daily basis, if something broke, it was no issue to have it fixed before the next morning to get me to school in time. It only left me stranded twice, both of which required waiting until I could get home, grab the trailer, and get the car home. I was never busy enough to highschool to ever have the car interfere with studies or school work. Now that I'm in college however, things have gotten to be a little different.

I've been stranded a total of 3 times now, always about an hour from home. I've done valve adjustments in the school parking lot, resynched carbs in the parking lot, changed tires, and fixed electrical problems. Lately, these problems have been occurring with more frequency. two weeks ago, I was stranded in Irvine with an electrical fault. Before that, I melted a distributor Rotor right outside of school. The recent problem was a failed fuel pump. All of these little things have been getting to me, and significantly taking time away from my studies. I'm getting sick of driving this car every day, and taking so much of my time to fix it.

So the question must arise... Is the car worth keeping anymore? What say you fellow world members? I love my car to death, and couldn't ever imagine seeing someone else drive down the road in it, but I just am ready to drive something that is more reliable, and it's not at all in my plan economically to purchase a second car. After 3 years, this car has become a part of me, so a sell would be unbearable... It's hard enough paying for college as it is, much less throw money at another car.


So help me out guys, what would you do? I'm hoping that the problems subside, but recently it feels like the car has been trying to tell me it doesn't want to be a daily driver anymore. I'm stuck..

Any advice appreciated.
-Ethan

[ThePaintedMan]

Hey Ethan,
I'm in a similar boat as you as a graduate student. However I bought my 914 as a "second" car when my Mustang craps out. (Unfortunately that already happened while the 914 was on jackstands so no help there!) I was very attached to my '84 Thunderbird which was my daily driver during my undergrad, but plagued with problems. Eventually I was forced to get rid of it for something more reliable - at the time, that was the Mustang.
I think these guys have given you some good advice. Either get a second, reliable car like a civic or do a good run-through of all the components on that car. Either way, its going to cost money, which is always tough for college students. I'd lean towards a second car if I were you, but again, its all dependent on your finances. A good Honda can be as cheap as $1,000, which hopefully is within your range. Good luck buddy! Don't get frustrated!