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!

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(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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