Am I crazy? Should I do this?

LaserSVT

LaserSVT

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I love my Lincoln and all the little things that make it special. I am about to drop some money on it over the next month or so and I am starting to think I am losing my mind. The car is only worth a couple grand and if it was pristine then it would still only be worth $4000 to the right person.
I paid $3200 for it almost two years ago and since then I have put over 30K on it. In that time I have spent another $2000 in just add ons, not including maintenence.
Well I am gonna spend another $4000 on it with paint, gears, driveshaft, trak loc, tires, strut rod bushings (again) and a complete LMS exhaust.
Sure it will sound great and accelerate much nicer and do 140 without vibrating my bowles loose but still, thats allot of money considering the car is worth squat.
I love the ride, the look, the power, the sound, the room etc etc but I keep thinking I could sell it and use that cash to buy an A6 with a 2.7 turbo and half the miles for the same ammount.

Please tell me I am doing the right thing. Also, dont bash the Audi on parts cost cause they are cheaper then the Mark and I have owned two and they were both quite reliable.

Help me my friends!
 
The car is paid for so I say go for it. I lost my ass on mods for my Mustang, but I had a hell of a lot of fun doing it. The Audi will just be another car, the Mark will always be unique and an attention getter. I have been shocked at the comments I have gotten with my 97.
 
The ? is what's the car worth to you? Most custom cars (that aren't like corvettes, mustangs, and other high profile collector cars) aren't worth what the owners have in them. I'd say go ahead and put the money in it. Then you'd have a almost new car that you could enjoy for a few more years. If you're going to get all jazzed up then sell it 6 months or a year later, then forget it, you'll just be wasting money.

Edit: To me Audis are kinda like fat folks and mopeds, they may be fun to ride but you wouldn't want your friends to catch you on either one.
 
What are your plans for the car? Are you going to keep it forever? If you EVER plan to sell it do mods that are easily reversible. Generally speaking, stock cars are worth much more than a modded car. I say spend the money. I have put quite a bit in all the cars I have owned and have absolutely no regrets, so far lol.
 
Would you rather have a new car with payments? Most people see cars are depreciable things that in time are worth nothing. Other see them like most see a house, something that when not in the best of shape can be cleaned up, fixed up and enjoyable again. Like some houses, a lot of work and money can go into it and if sold would be so at a loss.

So if your Mark is in great shape or easily restorable do what ya want. If your spending less in a year than you would on a car payment is is really a "loss" or being smart by spending some money on you car versus something new which you may not want to modify (warranty).

Personally I like the Mark VIII. I do want a Gen II though. But I would rather have a cheap Mark, paid off with some mods than a new Chrysler 300 with payments.
 
Which would you rather have?
From a strictly responsible financial perspective, neither of those choices make sense.
 
Calabrio said:
Which would you rather have?
From a strictly responsible financial perspective, neither of those choices make sense.
Click to expand...
+1

Its up to you really. Your going to do whatever you wanna do anyway.

I like the mark, esp the gen 2. I looked for mine for a year until i found it. I dont plan on getting rid of it, ever. That doesnt mean i wont, just means i dont plan on it. I know every dollar i put into it is considered a loss and i accept that. Its my money and its what i like to do. Ive thought about if i'd ever sell it, and maybe to get a 68 fastback...but then again, the fastback wouldnt be nearly as comfortable and is still just another mustang. The Mark VIII is unique...and even cooler when its tastefully modified.
 
I know I'll never see the money I put into my 98 ever again, but I don't care, cuz it's been really fun. Before I got my first Mark VIII, I hadn't even done my own oil change. (I did actually replace the trans. in my Mark VII myself twice, but that was with some help). Just about everything I know about cars was learned because of my Mark VIII's. Whenever anything has broken or there was something I wanted to upgrade, I did all my research and then did the job myself. If I hadn't, I'd have put a ton more money into it, none of which I'll ever see again, but like I said, it's been fun.

I added everything up that I've put into the car (upgrades, replacement parts and original purchase price) a couple years ago, and it totalled about $26k. It's probably over $30k now, and no regrets. I love it, and as long I can, I'm keeping this car, no matter what it's "worth."
 
Just some points. I can buy a 02-04 A6 turbo for what I could sell this car for and the money I am about to spend. Also, I have no idea how long I will own this car. I have owned it longer then any other car I have ever owned at 2 years. I always buy something and mod the hell out of it, chase a butterfly and then sell the car and move on.

Nothing has fit me as well as this car has. Every switch is where my hand rests, the pedals are perfectly positioned, the center console dosent hurt my knee and its the easiest to get in and out of.
So there is a huge plus.
I get compliments all the time on how nice it is and what is it. Then they see the fender and walk away so that will be fixed soon. Its parked right in front of my office so I stare at it all day and dont grow tired of it. I watch couples walk past it all the time and both are looking and you see the woman say "What is that?" and the dude always shrugs.
So thats another bonus.
I set the cruise at 80 on the highway and average 23.7 while doing it.
Another plus.
It has killer power and all the mechanicals run like clock work. No leaks or noises and starts every time and never has stalled. Just today I was in a 70mph zone behind a truck doing 55 cause it was drizzeling. I nailed it and passed him, it shifted into third at WOT and the traction controll kicked in and I was not on the strip, I was still in oncoming traffic.
Big plus.
Parts are fairly reasonable and I can do the vast majority of work on it.
Big plus.
After I do the exhaust the next mod is only the intake and thats costly for a minimal gain and loss of cruise controll. A blower is currently out of the question.
Big minus.
If some idiot smacks me then I will get a max of $3700 for it.
Thats my biggest gripe.


As I said, I have owned this car longer then any other and its the only car I have ever had where I wont let someone borrow it. I think for the first time I really bonded with a car. Its always there for me and it always makes me smile when I play with it. When I am lazy the car can feel the same and be like riding a barko lounger if at the speed limit.

Guess I talked myself into keeping her. I have never been more comfertable in a car in my life. Of course I have never driven a Phantom or an Aston or a Bugatti or a real high end ferrari but I have driven all the rest of them and this car just fits me the best. :)
 
If it does get totaled, then buy it back for peanuts from the ins co. and go find another. Swap the parts over and keep on riding. Sell off what you don't need and have more money for something else. I have seen a lot of folks sell their Marks and then come back a few months or a year or so later and have either sold what replaced the mark and get another one or just buy another one. Yeah, there's better cars out there but for what you pay for the mark, it's an economical alternative.
 
LaserSVT said:
Just some points. I can buy a 02-04 A6 turbo for what I could sell this car for and the money I am about to spend. Also, I have no idea how long I will own this car. I have owned it longer then any other car I have ever owned at 2 years. I always buy something and mod the hell out of it, chase a butterfly and then sell the car and move on.

Nothing has fit me as well as this car has. Every switch is where my hand rests, the pedals are perfectly positioned, the center console dosent hurt my knee and its the easiest to get in and out of.
So there is a huge plus.
I get compliments all the time on how nice it is and what is it. Then they see the fender and walk away so that will be fixed soon. Its parked right in front of my office so I stare at it all day and dont grow tired of it. I watch couples walk past it all the time and both are looking and you see the woman say "What is that?" and the dude always shrugs.
So thats another bonus.
I set the cruise at 80 on the highway and average 23.7 while doing it.
Another plus.
It has killer power and all the mechanicals run like clock work. No leaks or noises and starts every time and never has stalled. Just today I was in a 70mph zone behind a truck doing 55 cause it was drizzeling. I nailed it and passed him, it shifted into third at WOT and the traction controll kicked in and I was not on the strip, I was still in oncoming traffic.
Big plus.
Parts are fairly reasonable and I can do the vast majority of work on it.
Big plus.
After I do the exhaust the next mod is only the intake and thats costly for a minimal gain and loss of cruise controll. A blower is currently out of the question.
Big minus.
If some idiot smacks me then I will get a max of $3700 for it.
Thats my biggest gripe.


As I said, I have owned this car longer then any other and its the only car I have ever had where I wont let someone borrow it. I think for the first time I really bonded with a car. Its always there for me and it always makes me smile when I play with it. When I am lazy the car can feel the same and be like riding a barko lounger if at the speed limit.

Guess I talked myself into keeping her. I have never been more comfertable in a car in my life. Of course I have never driven a Phantom or an Aston or a Bugatti or a real high end ferrari but I have driven all the rest of them and this car just fits me the best. :)
Click to expand...

Ok, now you have talked yourself into keeping it. Leave the intake alone and put a damn moon roof in and keep your cruise control. I think you'll be happier with that decision.
 
With your reaction you will never forgive yourself if you don't push it to the limit and see if the vision you have for it is as good as you had hoped it was.
 
Yup, I may be crazy but I am gonna have fum with it an mod it.
Parts are on order and appontments are made. Now if I could just find some 18" Saleens. :D
 
Don't bother with the A6....

The control arms on those alone are nearly a grand!

I had an A4 2 years ago..... good car before I hydrolocked it in a flash flood, but parts were outrageous.
 
Controll arm is not a wear item. Brake pads, plugs, belts, rotors, sensors, A/C components, switch gear etc etc are all at the same price or cheaper then Mustang parts. I have had tyhe A6 2.7T and the S4 2.7T and both were great cars and easy to work on.
The reason I said Audi is because you can get a nice clean one for around $6000. There are not too many cars I would want around that price as a DD that have power and lots of extras and are easy (for me) to fix.


Dont matter though, gonna keep my land yacht. :D
 
the 2.7TT have ALOT of potential and more is being developed everyday...

I have always wanted an A6 4.2 body with the 2.7TT in it.... OR for something REALLY crazy I thought it would be fun to transplant a full LSx drivetrain into the audi and make it rwd!

I love audi's and know quite a few fast ones... would I get rid of my Mark? HELL NO! would I get an audi to compliment it? HELL YES! LOL!
 
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