okay, I've been through some problems with a 30 year old car and it's no longer within what I would consider to be "reliable".....

I have 2 choices now:

Get car fixed, drive it till it breaks again....and then sell it
Buy this sweet-ass Saab and sell my teener after it's fixed


honestly, I don't want to sell it, but i need something to get me around and my los parentes are only covering one car for me. I *COULD* maybe go halfsies on a storage unit or something to put cars N crap, or sell my 914 stuff and come back to it in a couple of years...with more $$$ for better stuff.

No flames please...play nice, what do you all think?


honestly, who would like to buy my car? (both the red Daily Driver[used to be and soon will be again] AND my highly-sought after Pink car I used for repair....and a 2.0 engine and a 1.7 engine[currently in the car] and a 1.8 bus engine[mayybe]

You are in a pickle, your car has not been reliable so far. These cars at this age really are tough to use as a daily driver. You gotta know how to fix all the stuff, have the extra parts and exta dough in your pocket to get it fixed quick.

If you can find a way to keep the car that would be great, but if you are paying a hundered plus a month for storage for a year or two, why bother? There will always be other teeners in the future when you are ready. Never be a prisoner of your own stuff..

QUOTE (Travis Neff @ Jun 24 2005, 07:52 PM)

There will always be other teeners in the future when you are ready.

I am freaking out over the availability of 914 stuff...I mean will there honestly always be a domainant 914 presense like this let's say 10 years from now?

Nope, there will be less and less. I was in the same boat back in 1994 when I sold off my stuff. Got another in 1999 which has seemed to become garage art, then this year I got the grey car. Actually my most expensive one to buy was my first one in 1990, and my best one was the one I got last.

How many junk 356's do you see around for sale vs. nicely taken care of and restored? More decent cars than junk, as the junky ones of today are either fixed or scrapped.

Oh and since the advent of great big clubs like this one and ebay, I see more parts today than I ever have in the past.

see I was thinking that....great people are doing great things with 914s....honestly i suppose i could keep the pink 73 and take my time restoring that car...I am keeping it at the body shop and so far it looks awesome.

I love the 914 car, but I just need somthing to get me from place to place and I can only have one car.

Hey Britt,

If you are considering selling, I am interested in aquiring another 914. I used to have one back in the day, but had to get rid of it for a less expensive to maintain car. Now that I have a garage, and a dependable (and paid off) truck, I am interested in getting another one. I live in Lex, so I would be interested in checking out either one of your cars if you are thinking about selling. Just let me know.


Thanks Bert

since your semi-local ( ) I'd love to meet and discuss the selling of the cars issue....look at my webpage link for the red car pics......


I really hate to get rid of these 914s, because i love them to death. If i sold these cars, I'd have to do it like in the blink of an eye, or else i'd reconsider.......

I have to ask the inevitable qustion....does pinky still have it's VIN numbers intact and on the car in it's proper location(s), never cut out then put back in ...........or cut out and put in the red car. I know it was clipped but WHERE was it cut and how are the numbers? no flame, no flame,no flame..........

Besides their "quirkyness", Saabs have their own set of problems. The tranny is enclosed in the engine oil pan on a traditional Saab, and that poses a whole 'nother kind of trouble. Their FI is just like all the other mainstream European cars, and has the same failures. The clutch is easy, though, on the older ones. Takes under an hour to do one. Parts are harder to find on the aftermarket than you might think. What year/model are you considering? The Cap'n

a 91 saab somethingsomething.....

honestly i didnt get a chance to get a model #, but it looks real awesome.

I'd like to take a look at the cars some time. I am headed to visit the inlaws in the Big Apple this Sunday afternoon, and will be back probably on Friday. I could possibly come up either after 5pm Saturday, or early Sunday, or next weekend sometime. Send me a PM if you have time for either of these weekends.

Bert

'91 will be a "900"`or "9000". I had an '86 900 S (16 valve dual oh cam). A great car it was, but when it hit 130k miles it became real $ intensive to keep roadworthy, and is quite a bit more complicated than a 914. Although the technology is straightforward, the construction methods and materials create a need for more powerful and bigger tools that the pros have (but I don't). In other words, it could be down as much as yer 914, and not as ameinable to home mechanics.

are the saab forums as kind and helpful as www.914world.com?

k

Britt
Fuck the Saab, get something else...its way worse then a 914, fun car don't get me wrong, but you are looking for something that lasts, and drives 90% of the time. This a very expensive car to keep. When they run, they run well.
They have absolutly no resale value for a reason.
I have worked on lots and lots of "another Saab story"
There was a high miler 96 convertable for sale, blown motor, my bid was the highest bid at 1500$ canadian dollars. He sold it for parts. and I thought I over bid
A decent shape 914 is a very reliable car, but apart from a rebiuld it hard to achive that reliability...
Later
Joe

wish there was a big sigh smilie..... I was hoping that Saabs were better to keep going. What kind of problems do saab's have anyway. I see *TONS* of older saabs on the road.... I just like the oddball cars, which is what attracted me to the 914. I guess that will eventually be my downfall.

Sell one of them Debian boxes you have and get a cheapo' Honda, and maneuver to keep the 914. Best of both worlds!

not mucho dinero for my debian box...it's worth like $50

Look into a Saab Sonnet 2 seater. Has a fiberglass body and you don't see very
many around.

rezron

QUOTE (Travis Neff @ Jun 24 2005, 09:59 PM)

How many junk 356's do you see around for sale vs. nicely taken care of and restored? More decent cars than junk, as the junky ones of today are either fixed or scrapped.

And then there is Frank, fixed AND scrapped, all at the same time... so..


M

QUOTE (bd1308 @ Jun 25 2005, 08:02 AM)

I guess that will eventually be my downfall.

Dood, I bought a 9000 new in... '88, and replaced the tranny at 13k, 42k, and 73k.

I replaced the fresh air fan alot. The seat heating system had problems, the dealers weren't trained in most of the systems... the radio never seated very well..

QUIRKY JUNK!

Get something like a Honda, or a.. god forbid.. a late 80's Mustang.





M

Nissan Maxima, Goes forever. Now about those VIN numbers........I ask as an interested party.

QUOTE (rezron @ Jun 25 2005, 06:30 AM)

Look into a Saab Sonnet 2 seater. Has a fiberglass body and you don't see very many around. rezron

Parts for Sonnets make parts for 904s look positively common ......................... The Cap'n

He's right! You'd be better off with a 904.


M

GAH.

Fine Dork! Go with the Sonnet..


M

no saab..... i can live with that.

well if i remove the 914 badge and put in the 904 badge and crunch the rear trunk down to remove the boxy look....i'll have a 904!

Yeah, and this is a Ferrari:




M

miles, if you say its a ferrari, than it is. You're my rolemodel. And the goat too.

Definitely just go for a simple Honda. Try to find a regular old virginal one that hasn't been hacked to shit by some ricer without a torque wrench. Its gonna save you the most on fuel too. Either that or a Toyota Corrolla or something like that. Old chevy pickups can be had fairly cheap and they run forever, but beware the gas mileage.

Honda CRX here I come!

if you have space, and a little dough, park the teener(s) someplace covered and out of the weather, it will wait for you and get you a daily driver... honda, toyota, anything is more reliable than the teener has been for you so far... then you can tinker with it as money and time allows... just keep rust outta it... if not, maybe trying to get one later in life is the smartest move... it's better to arrive where you are going in a honda, than be stuck on the side of the road in a volks... err... porsche.

personally, I hope you keep it to tinker and eventually get going right...

Wayne is absolutely correct. I was in your same shoes about 15 years ago. I wracked up a lot of credit card debt trying to keep my 914 going. At the time I did not have a garage to work on it in, nor the time or knowledge to do it myself. Plus it was my sole means of transportation. I loved the car but finances finally forced my hand and I had to sell. Now I am trying to get another one. So if you can, put it in storage until you can mess with it, cause once you have had one it is only a matter of time until you want another one! Just look at me!

Good Luck with your decision!

Bert

I skipped to the end...didn't read any of the comments....

Buy a Volvo wagon...you can get laid in the back and get home....in one piece....

OK...we can close this thread...

I didn't read mike's reply, and you shouldn't either, even if he said get a Volvo wagon.


M

QUOTE (redshift @ Jun 25 2005, 10:03 PM)

I didn't read mike's reply, and you shouldn't either, even if he said get a Volvo wagon. M

shouldnt what?

even speed reading, this was a waste of 5 minutes that I'll never get back.

how many names do you have on here?

really, don't buy a saab if your issues are $$ and reliability.

gotya....someone (a new-age VW guy) mentioned a Cabriolet...liek a 80s style...

britt, there is a memeber here who has a 76 complete 2.0 motor with 300 miles on it ( well the block and internals) for sale. it has the exhaust muffler everything, it is plug and play

for 1 k you could be running again and the internals would be good for years. or send me your car with 4 k and i will put in a suby 2.2, then you will get 130 hp 30 + mpg, and you wont need to work on it. heck i might even weld the engine lid shut just so you dont get in to a tinkering mood

sweet. might check out the 76 motor.
the porsche mechanic is going through the car....he has 1.7 heads if need be....

Scott, I am so intrested in the suby swap.....near future I will see you about that

OK, last week in the previous episode we had a VW mechanic that knew "stuff". Now we have a suddenly transformed Porsche mechanic that was formerly a frog with a VW shirt that was kissed by a princess?

Stay tuned.

Enter Miles, stage right. Dialogue ----> Where is the buffet? Is that GOAT cheese? I can get this stuff wholesale for you.

okay listen, 2 guys, one is a VW guy and one is a porsche mechanic. Guy#2 has 16 914s in a warehouse and picks parts from them....i've seen them. Guy #1 throws parts at a car and hope that they stick. Its at guy #2s shop (Auto-Motion...search it, i posted something about it) and somehow i haveta come up with the money to pay the outrageous bill. So let me introduce you to Britt the guy with 2.5 jobs.

This is better than "must see TV"......

Z, is that you?

Guilty.....

i'm keeping the 914. If i got rid of this car now, i dont think i could ever find another one in ten years.

Gud call.