aarang Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 Well, I've been building on my car for a year now ( an 82na ZX being converted to a ZXT) I have all new or recovered black interior, I am almost ready to send the engine out for machining, basically I have ALOT of money tied up into this car and a basement piled full of good parts( LS 3.70 R200, intercooler, etc) when out of the blue my wife says " maybe you should get a new car." " You spend too much time with the car and not with the family."I have always been intruiged by the new Mustang Cobra. I know this sounds strange, as I have always looked at the Mustang croud as the Z's nemesis. I took a drive in the new Mustang and it was like " Holy S#*t! this thing is fast!" If it wasn't for the supercharger and the IRS, I wouldn't even consider it. My wife says get it, but the Z has to go. I love the Z, but that Mustang would be sweet! If I try to sell the parts I have accumulated over the years, I would most definitely lose my ass on the money I have spent. Anyway, I guess I am just trying to way my options at this point. Any opinions as to if I am being stupid to consider the Mustang, or if I should keep the Z are greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavD3 Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 Well,this is what i think.The main issue is not to Z or not to Z. The main issue is your family,your wife.If she is saying that you spend too much time with car she is missing you. As for Z, i think once you get Z bug it will stay forever, so you can come back to Z sometime in a future when situation will be more on Z side. Remeber you have all these parts but they have to go on a car, and everyone knows that when you do hybrid you will face probles and those need to be solve and it consumes time and this, my friend, means you will be away from your family again... for sometime. If you have funds to buy new Mustang and save those parts wich you accumulate for time go for it.If you need money to make a downpayment on Mustang sell the parts and get a new car.I'm sure everyone in your family will enjoy brand new car more then 20 years old ZX, and you can tell them how ZXT handels and accelerates better (if) for hours,but unless they were bitten by Z bug nothing will work. So in my opinion family is more important then Z,Mustangs,Camaros ets.You can have all cars later now catch up for that lost time with your love ones. And don't worry about loosing money if you sell parts,you will loose something,but on the other hand you will gain something too. By the end it's only up to you to decide which way you'll go.Everything above was just my own opinion.Just my .02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
denny411 Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 I think everyone needs a hobby and some time to themself(without the family).That doesn`t mean you have to spend every extra minute in the garage like I do. You should scale back on how much time you spend with the ZX and save the cash that you would be forking out on car payments and insurance. in short...I think you should keep the Z. Just think of the depreciation of a NEW car. The loss in the first year alone will be nearly as much as the conversion for the Z. Try working on the Z two weeknights for a few hours, and one day on the weekend, and use the cash you save by not haveing a new car payment to do something extra nice with the wife and kids one weekend a month. WIN WIN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ON3GO Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 to tell u the truth if you get the cobra your gonna spend more time driving it, working on it, etc then you would ever with the Z.... trust me on that.. mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueovalz Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 A hobby is time and resources spent on something you enjoy. Whether it is a blue oval or a Z (blueovalz??). Anyway, changing vehicles will not necessarily create the change in family time your wife desires. Self evaluation on how your time is spent will though. I am in a fortunate position in that my shift work allows time on a hobby when nobody else is at home, making it easy to spend time away from a family that is already away. When I do periodicallly work a normal day shift pattern, I find this time management much harder to do, thus sometimes the project will remain unchanged for weeks or months on end. Denny411 has a good view on this. I've found that the kids grow up WAY too fast to not enjoy them when you can, and the little woman will appreciate you more than you will realize when you focus more time on her and the family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
80LS1T Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 Not a big Ford fan over here but that 390HP super charged engine sure is tempting isnt! I agree with the guys on this one though. You wont have any of the pride that goes along with knowing that you built the car. I know I could have had a used LS1 Camaro with the money that Ive spent on my ZX LT1 conversion but it wouldnt be as fast and it wouldnt be one of kind. Yeah I could have bought an LS1 camaro and put a super charger on it and yeah it would haul som serious a$$ but I would still know that any joe-smow could build the same exact thing and be just as fast. I guess I really like the fact that no one knows what I have under the hood and seeing the look on peoples face when I blow the doors off their "fast car" Guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aarang Posted September 8, 2003 Author Share Posted September 8, 2003 Thanks guys. I think I will keep the Z and just scale back how much I spend with it ( time and $$$). I work at night, but my wife comes home early enough where she always sees me with the Z, while I am supposed to be waching my son. I guess I did'nt think of the depreciation of the new car. It would be at least $5000 in the first year wich is the Z engine build money right there! Thanks for the reality check Any more opinions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afshin Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 Well I certainly know where you are coming from. i used to have a couple a Z's about ten years ago than felt the need to get another one as a hobby I could seriously enjoy. Off course now I have a wife, two wonderful little kids, busier at work.... So I kept debating about getting a newer fun car (practical and still fun) or another Z (less practical, much more fun and true to my heart). Well here I am with another one. Am I glad now that I'm back into it, absolutely. However with the wisdom of age, more money and mostly much less free time I decided to spent less time saving money buy not buying cheaper parts, used parts..., and just buy (within reason off course) what I want for the car. So my advice if you are to keep the car is to spend a little more money and a little less time on it. I would also consider having some of the less fun jobs such as replacing suspension bushings done by a mechanic. You should even have the mechanic swap the motor/tranny and you do the harness yourself... And while it feels better to do all of it yourself, it does not seem to be the better choice considering your family needs. A compromise is needed, this will save a whole lot of time, and will still cost a lot less than getting the new mustang, specially if you consider the depreciation on the new car. This way you keep your personal toy/hobby and don't neglect the more valuable family. So scale back on the time as you suggested, but I would scale up on the $$$$ as opposed to scale back, otherwise it will never get done and continue to drag on and cause further distress. So spend all the money upfront as you would when getting a new car, it will be done much faster and make everyone happier. That's my two cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forrest Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 If you have to get a new car and get rid of the s130 - at least get a z33! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Juday Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 If your is wife telling you to spend a wad of money on a new car just to have a little more time with you then she is desperate. It's not about what you drive, it's about that wonderful person you committed to spend your life with. We all get sidetracked every once in a while. And a Z is a big temptation. But it's still just a car. Family needs to come first. They need to know that you love them more than that Z. My advice would be to take a two weeks and do nothing on the car. Spend that time with your son and wife and reconnect. It will do wonders for your marriage. The car will still be there when you get back to it. And it will never know you set it aside for a while, unlike your family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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