SPC - Mistakes We Made When Buying Our Cars, What Ones Did You Make? Porsche &/or Other Makes Options

[Tom_T]

When this `66 Ford Lotus Cortina ad from Driver's Source came to email (link below), it reminded me of the decision which I made between a Lotus Cortina & Opel Kadette - a mistake? - perhaps - which I made when I bought my first car in Fall 1969.

http://inventory.driversource.com/vehicles..._eid=b96b164c98

The above Lotus Cortina in restored form today is asking $105,000 - whereas the value for a DD to nicely restored condition Opel Kadett B in any body style/sub-model is currently ranging from say $7500 to maybe $20,000 - or 7% to 20% of the Lotus Cortina's value. In Fall of 1969, I was faced with the choice of both at a used car dealer in San Diego for my first car.

When I got to the used car dealer with my hard earned budget of $800 - $1000 for my first car (I had to also have savings for my college starting the next year Fall 1970), I was presented with a much more "used" 1966 Lotus Cortina with 80,000+/-miles IIRC for $1200 - vs. just $800 for a newer Red/Black 1968 Opel Kadett 2-door Sedan base model #31 with about 40,000 miles, with the small 1.1L I-4 & 4-speed stick, & the basic rubber floor mats - to give you an idea of just how base model I mean!

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/dealeraccelerate-all.s3.amazonaws.com-10181-1499215156.1.jpg)
^ PS - Note: this above is NOT the actual car which I saw, but just a pic of a similar one which was on that FS listing at the link above. It looks like a very nice resto!

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/farm5.static.flickr.com-10181-1499215156.2.jpg)
^ PS - Note: this above is NOT my actual car, but just a pic of a similar one which I found online. Mine was a USA Buick sold LHD Kadett of this #31 2dr. Sedan model/body style in Red/Black, & when I got mine it lacked all 4 hubaps, with just silver painted wheels. Geez, I'd forgotten how "Porky" it looked from the back 3/4 view though!

Now I really didn't know much about that Lotus Cortina back then, except that I knew Lotus from racing, so I surmised it was the hopped up Cortina, but it was "rode hard & put away wet" with twice the miles & 2 years older - & it looked rougher & getting a bit tattered & rusty. Also, my good HS buddy had a 66 Cortina base model, with which had had a lot of problems mechanically that he was always fixing. Plus - I'd put up with my Mom's avocado green carpet & furnishings since `63 - so I wasn't crazy about that green side stripe!

And at $1200, it was 150% of the Opel - to which I could've stretched my budget to buy, but it would've cut deeply into my savings for college, & reserves for any repairs, etc., if needed.

So I bought the Opel, learned to drive a stick on the way home from "the heights" above Lindbergh Field airport in "midtown" San Diego - steep hills indeed for a newbie, & then went off on a long "learn the stick" drive up to Oceanside & back to where we lived In University City/San Diego later that evening.

My little red Opel was cost effective at about 30 mpg, it toted up to 4 friends + me all through senior year of HS, & then all of my stuff up to college in LA at USC the next year, & back-n-forth every weekend.

Unfortunately, being RED it attracted the attention of every cop around - even when I wasn't speeding! It turned out after talking with our neighbor who was a SDPD Lt. - they actually LOOK for RED cars, then all other bright colors of next Orange, Yellow, bright Greens, Bright Blues - in that order! Maybe white with green side stripes was "stealth mode"!? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

My little Opel only lasted up to late Spring on 1971 - when the head cracked & I sold it, taking over the payments on my Dad's `69 Pontiac Ventura 4-DR Hardtop that summer when they moved back east to Indy for a job transfer - which was NOT a good car in 73-74 when the Oil Crisis gas prices spiked from 25-27 cents/gallon, way up to $1/gallon in just 2 weeks, along with the even-odd license plate gas rationing of 10 gallons every other day! The old members will recall that debacle!

While I couldn't afford to make the jump to a more fuel efficient sports car then - eventually focusing on a 914 - while still a struggling student in college working 40-70 hours/week - I did get my 73 914-2.0 in late 1975 - about 18 months after my graduation in June `74, despite setback due to a bad economy & a few months on unemployment in late `74, due to the lack of jobs.

Unfortunately I don't have any of my older pix with my then very nice 914 from back then scanned, so I just put my 914 in it's sad current state of the pic below - still showing it's damage from being hit front & rear in a parking structure in May `85 - after a 1976 rust repair/repaint, & then full rolling resto in 1980-83. I'm currently moving slowly on it's 3rd resto due to time, budget, parts & other projects, work, etc. getting in the way.



While I still think that I made the right choice at the time in buying the Opel - it also makes me wonder if the Lotus Cortina would've held up better/longer & if I would still have it today? Of course, if I still had it, then I may not have gotten the 914!

Whereas, I definitely think that by my 3rd car - my choice for my `73 914-2.0 "914S" WAS the right choice - with NO second thoughts! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

What silly car buying mistakes or questionable decisions have you made? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/confused24.gif)

Happy 4th! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/flag.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)
Tom
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[ConeDodger]

I've been very fortunate with my toy cars. I bought my 240Z in 1980 with about 50K miles for $2200.00. It already had everything in the Datsun Competition Catalog installed, including some of the high dollar items. Plus the head had been P&P by BC Gerolomy who was a legend in Datsun Racing. I didn't have to do a thing with it except drive the piss out of it. It's currently getting a new engine built by Dave Rebello who is another legend in Datsun racing. McMark will be Megasquirting it.
My 914 I bought sight-unseen from an estate sale. The description said it was a one owner car purchased by a salesman from Sierra Porsche+Audi in Riverside (Harvey and Al Weidman worked there) the guy drove it for 5 years and then retired to Oregon. Within a year he had a stroke and was unable to drive. He wouldn't let his family sell it. He had them put it on jackstands in the garage and swore he would drive it again. He passed in 2003 and I got the car in the estate sale for $2500.00. It arrived on an open transport looking like a new car but it would barely run and one of the calipers was locked up. Everything mechanical had to be rebuilt.
There have been many other cars and I have usually broken even or made money when I've sold them. I lost my ass on an RX7 I bought new in '84. It got flooded during a rainstorm and totaled by my insurance company. I kept it and of course started having electrical problems that were costing a fortune. Percentage wise, the best purchase I ever made was a 944S2. I paid $3500.00 for it to one of my anesthesia buddies at work. His asking price was $5000.00 and as I was test driving it, I was listing off the things I'd need to do to make it a driver. He listened and talked his own price down. I knew it was an S2 and thought he understood that it made it something more than a 944. Turned out, he didn't and a year later he asked if he could buy it back. Too late, I had sold it for $12K!
When I was a kid though! I traded my 57 Chevrolet step-side pickup to a guy for a 10 speed bike! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif)