Automotive Addicts V8 Pt. 2 - Real Motors have 8 cylinders and Pushrods Edt. - General

I was on my second driving lesson today. I managed to drive back to the driving school

I have been playing Dirt Rally lately with my friends, using a PS3 controller. It is challenging and fun. Would recommend. I did buy it during the recent Humble Bundle too for like 5-6€, was worth it.

American cars have always been my weak spot so i caved in and bought 2006 chrysler sebring 2.7L. Full service history, that is a new to me. I've always bought crap second hand cars that have been in the verge of breaking down. It wasn't all that cheap i admit but at the same price tag not too bad of a deal. Came with brand new summer and winter tires with aluminium grills pretty fancy to me. Need to do service and probably swap the engine timing belt, exhaust might need rework too looks a bit rusty. Here is example that looks exactly like it https://i.ytimg.com/vi/onFt5VrdWwE/hqdefault.jpg It is in almost pristine condition inside and out which is a feat in itself since the car is over 12 years old. And with the 2.7 litre engine its fun to drive, never actually had anything bigger than 1.6.

Congrats on being the first person ever to have a sebring be their dream car. 2.7s are plagued with issues. Watch the waterpump like a hawk. And by that I mean, do your due diligence and also pray, because its a fast failure and not something you can actually see. Change your oil religiously, and I mean religiously, every 3k miles. If it looks the slightest bit suspect, take it to a shop and have someone look at it. The pump is driven by the timing chain iirc, so this may have been addressed already. Still, keep an eye on it. Google 2.7 issues and read. A lot. My grandma has one that's at 200k. They'll last if you put some effort into it, but it's not a drive and forget type of motor.

Thanks for the input, with the timing chain change waterpump is a must change too. That pretty much applies to all cars belt or chain. Going to have to put some money into the service but it should help longevity down the line. So far to comparison my old car its been wonderful to drive with. My old renault laguna was a real piece of work, remote doors didn't work so i had to pry off the handle part to use key, most fuses were gone because of electrical issues i would imagine, had like 6 fuses in the entire box left. Passenger side electric window didnt work and lately had been falling down on its own. It moved forward and back, it did brake too but that was about it when it comes to working parts. So yeah chrysler is like luxurity to me

Finns are weird. But hey, if you're happy. And speaking of Mopar, their is this 71 Fury wagon with the 383 on CL that is steadily dropping in price. I wouldve picked it up by now, but hey you can't do shit when you dont have a job.

Oh dear you bought a Chrysler and a sebring at that....... My first suggestion would be to take it back and tell whoever you got it from that you made a horrible mistake and hope they take pity on you.....barring that pretend it's an IED and any click bang snap crackle or pop is just it's way of telling you "Hey i'm about to have a catastrophic failure probably at an inopportune time that will leave you stranded somewhere" and take appropriate measures on the plus side (of which there aren't many) it's not the EDZ 2.4 version that fucker will break if you look at it funny

Honest question here fellas, why do people buy new cars? I'll use my 06 Suburban as an example. It has: -Reliable LS 5.3l -Reliable and cheaply rebuilt transmission -Reliable and strong chassis, with replacement parts everywhere -Leather interior -3 rows of seats -Front and rear AC With the possibility of more aftermarket parts than you can shake a stick at, and can be bought for under 10 grand for even an immaculate model. The new suburbans have all that but they're almost $80k, and have constant electrical issues. A lot of new cars and their older models have similar comparisons. Why do people buy new?

Status symbolism? Social expectations? Consumerism? Honestly boggles my mind too.

better features? fuel economy? crash safety?

A) People don't want a car with problems. A new car probably won't need any work, especially if you do your research and pick a reliable model. A used car will definitely have something that needs to be addressed, even if it's a minor issue that would only take half an hour for anyone in this thread to correct. This leads to my second point... B) People don't know how to fix a car / they can't physically do it / they don't want to do it themselves. This means they'll have to take it to a repair shop and pay big bucks to have someone else do it. That's a guaranteed expense when buying a used car, but the odds of a new car having major issues is much lower (especially if you do your research, et cetera et cetera). C) Cheap or abundant parts don't mean a whole lot to the general public. Most people aren't going to trick out their cars with an aftermarket turbocharger, even if it's cheap. They're not too concerned about the price of the parts themselves, considering that repair shops will charge big bucks anyway - after all, it's the labor that's most expensive. Above all, it's a matter of trust. The public expects automotive manufacturers to sell them a decent new car, and that is usually the case. Joe Handyman hocking his used shitbox on the street corner carries no such guarantees.

found a 1.8L manual protege hatch for $900 going to look at it tomorrow but the only problems (they say) is one tyre is shitty, air intake hose is fucked (they've got some sort of temporary fix in place), theres a dent on the rear left quarter panel and some scrapes and scratches, and someone stole the headunit. Pretty cheap to fix or irrelevant problems for a hillclimb car, hopefully if I decide to buy it the engine wont asplode the next day

https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/226043/5ed3fa7d-5b48-4523-84e6-e63bda5d63f7/2FDA51DC-6B8C-4974-B967-31A90562571C.jpeg I drive a Ford, but fuuuck, I’m actually contemplating shelling out $80 to buy this. It’s a poster of all 32 Holdens to win at Bathurst since 1968. Link if anyone else is interested https://www.authenticcollectables.com.au/collections/v8-sleuth/products/holden-bathurst-winners-50th-anniversary-print I always loved the L34s (75 and 76). I’m not a fan of the VN-VR Commodores of the 90’s, but the Castrol Perkins liveries (93, 95 and 97) just look so good. And I didn’t realise the VC (80) looked so good in race spec - road-going VB and VC Commodores typically looked rubbish. My favourite has got to be the LJ (72); a relatively small and unassuming coupé with a six-pot which managed to beat 351 cu in Ford Falcon GTHOs and Valiant Chargers.

nah bru the V ELL

https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/228931/6b8b65b9-5625-49c7-a841-005789e7d7e3/IMG_1438.JPG Two coats down. Letting it dry then doing the last one

For me, certified cars were hardly any cheaper than buying new, and I couldn't really find many used cars that: +have a reputation for reliability +had features I wanted +stick shift / dual clutch auto +were well taken care of +fun to drive while not breaking my back +aren't black (why is every damn used Mustang black-on-black?) All while staying within my target price. In regards to serviceability, I like being able to work on my own car, but that doesn't mean that I want to. It's miserable to work in the Florida heat, I don't have a garage anymore, and even cheap parts are rarely less than a hundred bucks. also, sold my Avalon and bought a Civic Si https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/114112/951b006d-29fc-4f92-90dc-353e0591375b/IMG_20180726_190449627_HDR - Copy.jpg

turned out to be a complete nugget, oh well time to find something else

There was some muck gathered in different places in my car so i did some cleaning to get rid of it so it wont rust right away. Had a bit of a look on the bottom, sure enough rust was there as expected but not as much i had feared. Spare tire was spotless in the back with enough pressure and even with aluminium grill. Who knew! Exhaust didn't look too bad even though it had rust on it, but in the next mandatory annual check i'll see if it is rusted through or not. Found towing hook in the trunk, completely unused and in original condition which is good. So far with modest service it's going to be in good shape. I am getting used to using "cruise" function i have never had a car with it so it feels very luxurious. Hell i am happy with AC working as intended.

I am honestly wondering when you are talking about budget. Are you talking about having the actual money to afford it? Or just the possibility to take out a loan for it. From my European perspective it seems that a lot of Americans are just taking out loans left and right which is something that’s increasingly harder to do in Europe(or atleast in The Netherlands). Again, my perspective might be skewed so maybe I am just talking shit but just really wondering how you guys do it over there

Does anyone run a turbosmart wastegate actuator? I bought a dual port 14psi and want to remove one of the 7psi springs but I cannot for the life of me get the collar off the wastegate, tips or tricks?

Personally I have no interest in post-recession cars let alone a new car, save for the Fiat 124 and maybe the new ovlov/polestar cars because they look fly as fuck. I hate the ugly aero and safety reg driven designs, massive wheels, and especially the shit visibility. None of these cars are going to last like older cars do, everything is an electronically controlled assembly and stupid expensive to replace when (not if) they fail. My dad's 2011 Ford had a flickering taillight just out of warranty and it was over $500 for the new assembly, I had a taillight go out and spent mere dollars on a pair of bulbs. I can't disregard the incredible power, efficiency and safety achievements of the last several years, but with so much added complication to the simplest of things it's less and less viable to DIY everything and run your car as long as you damn please. The cynic in me draws parallels with the tech industry and planned obsolescence.

my focus was a weird financial situation, as my parents (who are paying for the first 1.5 year of payments), could have basically paid cash for it right then, but didn't want to, but financial history wasn't great (improved since), so it's financed on meh APR the way i look at it, any car I actually want in the future (next gen explorer ST, Tesla model s) unless I plan on not buying them for 10 years, there's no way that I'd be able to afford cash. I will most likely though be able to put significant down payments on one of them (I haven't decided for certain if I actually want the explorer ST, and the Tesla requires me to live in a place where I would be able to put in a 240v charger) in the next year or two, between a down payment, having the focus loan paid off due to other financial windfall, and then trading/selling the Focus (private party might do better since the discontinuation of the focus in 2020). that isn't to say my financial experience is typical and I don't expect other people to just be able to do this, but I also don't think the hateboner for new cars is warranted

So that green MG Midget I posted the other day.. This happened. https://imgur.com/B5RxuBf Who's jealous?? https://imgur.com/W4EYVal British stuff everywhere. https://imgur.com/aUyM2U7 At least this one is british racing green like they're supposed to be. https://imgur.com/8cwGD7e So as the story goes.. The orange one belongs to my friend's mom and has been sitting in a crummy garage without a roof or hood for 10+ years. We had to pull it out of the garage with a truck and chain because one of the wheels is locked up. We had to lift it up and set it on a 2x4 to slide the thing up onto the trailer to tow it.. then drag it up onto the trailer with a truck and chain. Then I had to drag it off the trailer with my car and a chain. https://imgur.com/cBiGHRq Holy cow that thing stinks, too. Stinky stinky. I started beating the heck out of the rear to break the wheel and brakes free but that hasn't gotten very far. The engine turns over if I jump 12v to the starter, so that's good.. not locked up from sitting. But other than that almost nothing works, no electronics, etc. The green one, however, was from Craigslist and picked up for $800 hoping to use it as parts to get the orange one running.. but the green one is in significantly better shape. That one doesn't run either, but I got it diagnosed down to no spark from a bad ignition module (UK 70's junk). Also the fuel pump doesn't work (maybe empty tank?) and the clutch goes to the floor. But yea.. I'm gonna keep picking away and see where I get. I'll talk to her and see if she's dead set on the orange one running, or just getting one of the 2 running to get back into driving and MG. I'd really like to get the green one going and then see if I can just swap the parts from the orange one to get the nice spoke wheels on it and all that, because I think the orange one is gonna need a full rewire and who even knows how bad the brakes are gonna be. Oh boy! The garage is coming along, too.. roof is on and felted. https://imgur.com/TZicVuQ https://imgur.com/5FZfBLb

That British Racing Green isn’t quite flawless, but it does look so wonderfully well maintained for a car of that age. BRG is best colour ever. True fact. Well at least for me it’s a tie between it, Alfa’s Rosso Competizione and Morgan’s Willow Green.

Using the green one as a parts car would be sacrilege tbh, it looks NICE and british racing green is much better than orange.

It's not as nice as it looks in photos.. a decent amount of rust bubbles, sanding marks, and waves/dings in the body. But that being said.. yes it is much much nicer. In my mind it's a perfect car for beating around on the weekend and not really caring if it's a little dirty or anything.

I only recently found out that there's a HIllclimb track 5 miles out of town. We went today on what must've been the wettest day of the summer so far, I had great time I'm annoyed that that I've learnt this so late in the year, there's only one weekend of events left on the calendar. https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/227878/fdb0e862-608b-41b0-acf0-364240729f28/01insta.jpg

So I was watching some Datsun 260z revival videos a few days ago, and brought up the idea with my dad of doing a project car. About a day later, this happened. https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/215174/ae61f5aa-5fd7-4693-9655-b62a5c03825b/JjobsPZP4MLa4Xd_r9vMdVhHlvHVOU44trvtZ98t7XOcqEZHiufyrh4XZIJkUDhMilybi8So-xRhkH3soHvI=w1920-h943.jpg It's a '79 280ZX that's been sitting in someone's garage for a few years after they stopped trying to repair it. Supposedly they ran the engine 2 years ago, and before that it was last driving 15 years ago. All the parts are still on the car besides a few cracks in the body panels and rust spots, and the distributor, plugs, and master cylinder are all new. All for $800 on the condition that I take the previous owner on a drive once it's running again. help me I"m gonna be broke

ahhh stop it The two top cars for my "fun 70's car" slot are either a Datsun 2x0 or a Celica. Both of which tend to be a bit tricky to find in decent shape, the Celica even more so. Awesome find though. Hell for $800 you could put in a ton of work and still come out cheaper than some of the ones I've seen on BaT.

$1000 AUD later.. https://i.imgur.com/sAReLdk.jpg financial responsibility is for NERDS