1. crikey you sound like me as a combination of few years ago .. and now!
On our honey moon, we drove up to the central country for 3 weeks, Lake Eyre, and Chambers Pillar, Wolf Creek, Bungle Bungles, Darwin and stuff like that. 19odd years ago in a '79RRC.
2. Got a D1 auto about a year ago(see sig). About a month later I was on a quick drive late on night, got as far as Beaufort, when the transfer case decided to implode! Turned back .. headed home in a self induced limp home mode.
I always get cars with the premise that I'm going to keep it at least 10 years, usually 20-ish .. with almost total abandon for the cost I have to endure in those 10-20years.
Sometimes it doesn't work out, any non Rover vehicles almost guaranteed not to last more than about 5 or so(too boring, no soul, not as reliable or cheap as many lead you to believe!)
The way I look at it:
No matter the vehicle, it's going to cost you money. That's a given.
How much money and how this cost is borne varies, but overall it's sure bet you have to pay for the privilege to run a vehicle.
But a modern (eg) $20K vehicle today, in 10 years time you may be lucky to see about $10K for it when it comes time to sell it .. more likely $5K. ie. over the course of 10 years, you'll be lucky if it only cost you $10K in depreciation.
Hard to say what it'd cost you in maintenance over the course of those 10 years too , but at least $5K .. I reckon it's more likely to be something closer to $10K.
This is what it has cost me to run my last two Jap cars if I were to properly keep them maintained.
I used to work as an adhoc courier for just over 20 years, and for a while I decided to stop spending money on maintaining cars, and just use them as disposable tools. I've had Falcon wagons, Saabs, Corollas, .. jeezus can't remembe rhalf of them.
All bought for about $3K($3,5K with a RWC was my upper limit), and if something major came about, it'd get junked and then the next one came along. Falcon lasted just over a year, Saab lasted the longest, Corolla just under 2 years.
I've also used some of my personal cars for times when I was between 'disposables'.
As a courier, you would be doing the job if you didn't do at least 70K klms/yr .. averages were more like 90K klms oil changes subsequently happened every 2 months or so. brakes every 6 months, etc, etc.
My last two cars lasted a fair while tho. Rodeo V6 and a Frontera V6(same motors). Both went onto LPG to minimise the cost of running .. but that reduced daily cost, ended costing more overall.
Rodeo ended up doing 660K klms, and Frontera ended up doing 360K klms. Both had the same problem. The LPG used to wear the valves at about the 250K klms mark. No point in just doing the heads, as they'd then start blowing oil past the rings .. so in reality the proer fix woudl have been a recoed motor .. at about $4.5K for the motors, and about $1K to fit, plus the obligatory radiator required for waranty .. etc. so close to $6K every 250K klms for these.
They were 'reliable' tho .. just depreciated like lead balloons!.
Rodeo was got for close to $19K(very low klms on it), Frontera at $8K as it had electronic injected LPG.
I got $1500 back for the Rodeo, and $200 for the Frontera. (both 4WD models) .. the only reason I got any money back was that they were 4WD models, and the parts worth something.
Both disposed of as too far gone to even drive.
I was adamant that the Frontera was going to cost me 'nothing' in terms of broken parts. Just the regular servicing. Those V6 motors are nice, but expect about to pay $2K every 100K-ish klms for the tappets alone! Due to the LPG they needed doing more often .. to call it a PITA was an understatement. In the end nothing really broke on it, even tho I tried hard to get it too ..
.. it even survived about 8 hours across part of the Anne Beadall Hwy, as well as many other badly corrugated roads.
Rodeo had major $s spent on it for it's 660K klms tho. I reckon it cost me about $15K in repairs in the 6 years I had it. Add in the $18 lost in depreciation .. close to $30K for 660k klms.
The old '79 RRC I had, done about 600K klms too(lost count after so many odometer resets .. only counted up to 99999klms. I used to mark the dash for every 100K klms
That cost me about $23K, which included the cost of purchase. IIRC about $12500 back in '88. Only real major expense was that I decided an LT77 + LT230 was a better idea than the archaic 4sp LT95(or whatever it originally used). On a cruise it used about 1.5-2km/lt less, so after about 5 years, I reckon the cost of the 5sp conversion payed itself back.
So now, with the D1. I wanted simple all mechanical fixability. It's my daily driver too.
I also have a D2 V8 that I'm getting on the road soon too. Love the TD5(brother's) but too many idiosyncratic electrical sensors and stuff that ruin the fun if you enjoy the middle of nowhere for what it is .. remote!
I also have plans to get a TD5 one day too .. D2 V8 will eventually go. It's just a project car to give me an alternative hobby.
The D1 is going to be my traveling vehicle tho. This is where the majority of my $s will go over the next 14-19years. I'm slowly improving it to make it feel more modern .. or more accurately less agricultural.
I know I've spent $s where I could have saved, for example the sound insulation I recently acquired has proven itself for the 1/4 job I've done so far. I plan to add more, some under body to reduce road noise a little and a bit more in the engine bay .. simply to make those long drives less arduous.
I do have plans to spend approximately another $5K (give or take) on it, as I'd like a VNT, and a couple of diffs(most likely ATBs) and that's about it.
I have a plan for it. I intend to stick to that plan too. Only things that stuff up plans is when some idiot uses your car as a cushion with their car, and it has to be written off. I'll do my best to keep it for all the stuff I've added to it so far.
If you don't have a decisive plan for your vehicles, and you chop and change every time it 'goes wrong' it can end up costing you more in the long run.
Remember brand new cars don't seem to cost much in terms of repairs, but the hidden cost of depreciation is what costs you more in the long run.
I'm usually happy with a vehicle that doesn't cost me more than about $2K/yr for the car itself(ie, excluding the cost of daily running, scheduled servicing, reg, insurance).
If you've read my long reply, you'd be right to guess I'll try to make the case for fixing it up(properly) and keeping it. But you need to have a plan for it. You need to be committed to keep it for 10 or so years.
If you hanker for modernity, no point in wasting money on the D1.
If you don't mind being slower off the lights, keep it. You know it can get you to places some others may not. You learn about it's simplicity ... and it should get you there and back.
anyhow, sorry for the long reply, hope that helps.
Reply With QuoteOriginally Posted by johntins
LordRover
Subscriber
Swaggie
Maybe it is like the Bermuda triangle but for vehicles... You are correct. We DO need to plan out what our long term intentions are with the vehicle and go forth from there.
. Also, unless you are disciplined the money will just vanish into general outlay.
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