It would depend on a few factors. What’s the car? A Jeep with an inline-six (or the like)? Sure. Something with complicated electronics or difficult/impossible to reach components (think engine-out services)? No way.

Convertibles are like a lot of things in life: a lot of fun, but not for everybody’s tastes. It does mean an open-air driving experience whenever you want it, but you also have to live with the cloth-top every day, which means more noise, an interior that will wear quicker, different handling, occasional leaks, and a…

2nd Gear

Whenever I read in the news about some CEO or executive making tens or hundreds of millions running a company that is failing miserably, I think of the governor from “Blazing Saddles”.

I have to agree with the Northeast being ranked last. Sure, there are cool classics and exotics in hamlets like Nantucket or the Hamptons, but by and large, cars get the shit beaten out of them in the New England states.  Rust takes so many of them at an accelerated rate, and the style of both driving and the roads…

The thing that worries me about this scenario is that if you bought a new car in February/March, and lost income in the next few months, even if you were able to get the loan deferred for a time (let's say six months for the sake of comparison), you would still be taking a sizeable hit on depreciation for that time…

CP, but not because I don't like the car or it isn't within my realm of automotive tastes (it isn't).  Just think of how much automotive fun you could have for $15k.  Fifteen large buys quite a lot of used car happiness.  For that money, I would want something two people can road trip in with some room to spare.  

Overpriced, recession-era Chrysler product with a Check Engine Light?

I am in the service industry, and an working with new rules and precautions, and at a limited capacity. My employer and bosses have been nothing but great to myself and my coworkers.  I am one of the lucky ones, and I am thankful for that.

There’s no shame in picking the easier option. Does the numbers-matching really matter to you? You already know that you have the ability and expertise to do the more difficult option, so there’s no need to prove anything to yourself or others.  It seems like you have more than enough projects to work on, so why not…

By default, it has to be something from the 70's, right?  

As usual, most mods are for the tastes and benefit of the current owner only, and will never be recouped financially.

I feel the same way about taking my car to the shop to do something that I am probably capable of doing myself, but I really hate learning the hard way that something is beyond my capabilities or that it is not worth the time, anxiety/aggravation, or beyond my shop (garage) constraints. Just last week, I tried to…

McBain’s Canyonero - 1 HWY 0 City

I do really love trucks and 4wd of this vintage, but I just cannot see spending $15k for this based on what you actually get for the money.

I had the 2-door version of this, same year and color, cloth seats, though. It was the most miserable, unreliable piece of shit I ever owned. It bounced like hell under any conditions, it was uncomfortable, it got 13mpg in the city, and it was lacking for cargo space, despite the size of the vehicle. The ball joints…

As much as I appreciate the quirkiness of the Pacer, $4k for 88hp with rust is at least twice what is reasonable.

1st Gear:

My vote goes to the 2-door Wrangler. You can choose between having cargo space or four seats, but not both. If you do use the back seat, it’s a pain to get in and out of. It’s noisy inside. It’s the textbook definition of “unrefined”. There are no real armrests. It’s horrible to be a passenger in. It’s bad on gas…

My parents had one of these from 90-92. From a kid’s perspective, I loved the sliding rear windows. Every other minivan just had the stupid push-out variety that barely provided any ventilation. My dad still says that it was the most comfortable driving vehicle he ever had.