Project Cars--You Get to Vote on "Hold 'em or Fold 'em"

fintail

Got the fintail back from the shop, 16 days later. The car got a LOF, flex disc replacement, brake flush (it had been many years), new spark plugs. No surprise, they couldn't hear the odd noise/vibration I feel like I notice, but I notice there now seems to be zero driveline slack, I think there was a little before -must be the flex disc. On the invoice it is noticed there is slight whine from rear differential, "not abnormal for this year and model". Car is running fine, had to take it back in early rush hour traffic, no issues. The people at the shop raved about it, said visitors would look at it, etc - makes me feel better about throwing money at it, especially with the house upgrades costing twice as much as I initially expected.

They used "Lucas" oil for the oil change, apparently not the prince of darkness Lucas.

Michaell

fintail said:

Got the fintail back from the shop, 16 days later. The car got a LOF, flex disc replacement, brake flush (it had been many years), new spark plugs. No surprise, they couldn't hear the odd noise/vibration I feel like I notice, but I notice there now seems to be zero driveline slack, I think there was a little before -must be the flex disc. On the invoice it is noticed there is slight whine from rear differential, "not abnormal for this year and model". Car is running fine, had to take it back in early rush hour traffic, no issues. The people at the shop raved about it, said visitors would look at it, etc - makes me feel better about throwing money at it, especially with the house upgrades costing twice as much as I initially expected.

They used "Lucas" oil for the oil change, apparently not the prince of darkness Lucas.

Welcome to home ownership - it's like "Money Pit" without the comedy.

fintail

A couple weeks ago I got to re-enact the scene when Shelley Long is in awe at a working kitchen sink. I never realized how I took for granted a fully functional kitchen. Fortunately, a one story house on a slab, so no stairs to collapse or floor for a bathtub to fall through, and my house didn't come with a 29 Lincoln (yes, another 80s movie I like).

Michaell said:

fintail said:

Got the fintail back from the shop, 16 days later. The car got a LOF, flex disc replacement, brake flush (it had been many years), new spark plugs. No surprise, they couldn't hear the odd noise/vibration I feel like I notice, but I notice there now seems to be zero driveline slack, I think there was a little before -must be the flex disc. On the invoice it is noticed there is slight whine from rear differential, "not abnormal for this year and model". Car is running fine, had to take it back in early rush hour traffic, no issues. The people at the shop raved about it, said visitors would look at it, etc - makes me feel better about throwing money at it, especially with the house upgrades costing twice as much as I initially expected.

They used "Lucas" oil for the oil change, apparently not the prince of darkness Lucas.

Welcome to home ownership - it's like "Money Pit" without the comedy.

tjc78

@Michaell said:
Welcome to home ownership - it's like "Money Pit" without the comedy.

Indeed it is.

I told the wife there are no upgrades at either home next year. Maintenance and needed repairs only. After the last year and half I’m done!! Luckily she 100% agreed (for now!)

Michaell

tjc78 said:

@Michaell said:

Welcome to home ownership - it's like "Money Pit" without the comedy.

Indeed it is.

I told the wife there are no upgrades at either home next year. Maintenance and needed repairs only. After the last year and half I’m done!! Luckily she 100% agreed (for now!)

We just bought a new area rug and ottoman for our living room. Beyond that, nothing major is in the works.

stickguy

We decided to hold off on DW since the one we wanted isn’t available until February now. So since old one is currently working, will just see how long we can nurse it. Hopefully until it is the next owners problem.

xwesx

Michaell said:

Welcome to home ownership - it's like "Money Pit" without the comedy.

I nearly died laughing on this one. A simple "LOL" response was not nearly enough to convey the perfection of it.

xwesx

stickguy said:

We decided to hold off on DW since the one we wanted isn’t available until February now. So since old one is currently working, will just see how long we can nurse it. Hopefully until it is the next owners problem.

Now that you say something, I just remembered that the house in Ohio has a dishwasher. From looking at it, it appears to be a fairly nice one, too. Even though I was there for six or seven weeks, we didn't use it even once - only hand-washing of dishes. I actually haven't used a DW since I was in high school. Man, looking back, it seems like such a luxurious place we lived in back then. I've never even sniffed a place that nice since then. Ah, the little things.

Funny enough, we ended up having to replace nearly all the appliances that we do use in Ohio. The prior owners wanted to take it all with them, and we insisted the appliances stay. Good thing my wife used delivery services on all of that, as removal of the old appliance was part of the service (and it's otherwise a pain in the butt to dispose of appliances in that region!).

qbrozen

wait, wait ... I think the appliance talk has migrated. Gotta drag that back to the other thread.

fintail

I haven't used a DW in ages either. Last one I tried to use leaked, and I don't dirty many dishes to begin with. This house came with a virtually new Bosch, though, so it is staying, the only appliance I didn't replace. The house ("project" house, perhaps) came with all appliances, but some were ~20 years old and showed it, and I'd rather replace when I can than maybe have it be a burden later. The local company I bought the replacements from would have hauled them off for free, but scrapped them, a shame as they still appeared to work, and would be better than what someone out there has. I hired a handyman to do a few things, and he gladly took them, saying he'd try to find new homes them or scrap/part them out at worst.

I did so much to this place in the past 2 months that it shouldn't need more than maintenance for a bit. Only real concern is the big maple tree, I think it might need a trim next year, neighbor said it loses a big limb now and then. It has to be 30-40 feet anyway, no way I am getting anywhere close to that.

xwesx said:

stickguy said:

We decided to hold off on DW since the one we wanted isn’t available until February now. So since old one is currently working, will just see how long we can nurse it. Hopefully until it is the next owners problem.

Now that you say something, I just remembered that the house in Ohio has a dishwasher. From looking at it, it appears to be a fairly nice one, too. Even though I was there for six or seven weeks, we didn't use it even once - only hand-washing of dishes. I actually haven't used a DW since I was in high school. Man, looking back, it seems like such a luxurious place we lived in back then. I've never even sniffed a place that nice since then. Ah, the little things.

Funny enough, we ended up having to replace nearly all the appliances that we do use in Ohio. The prior owners wanted to take it all with them, and we insisted the appliances stay. Good thing my wife used delivery services on all of that, as removal of the old appliance was part of the service (and it's otherwise a pain in the butt to dispose of appliances in that region!).

xwesx

fintail said:

Only real concern is the big maple tree, I think it might need a trim next year, neighbor said it loses a big limb now and then. It has to be 30-40 feet anyway, no way I am getting anywhere close to that.

Yeah, trees. I love having them around, but it's also important to remember that they do have a life cycle just like pets and people. So, big trees are grand for a while, but something has to be done with them when end of life comes around.

For your big maple, if it looks healthy and full, the best thing you can do is have it pruned in the early spring or late fall, as it will maintain its strong core and shed a lot of the burden at the extremities in exchange for a smaller, fuller canopy for the next couple decades.

At our Ohio place, we ended up having five trees removed completely due to them being in a death spiral (probably hastened by some sort of leaf blight that infects most of the maples in that region). They should have been removed a decade ago, likely, but of course it is difficult and costs money, so it fell to the only responsible stewards the trees have likely ever seen. Ironically, the neighbors behind us had a maple along the property line (technically their tree) that half-collapsed onto our house. Apparently, no matter where it is planted, if it falls on your property, then it's your problem. Seems like BS, but whatever. We had the tree partially removed, and, thankfully, the neighbors were smart enough to not complain to us about it even though any privacy their back yard might have had from us was gone after that!

Anyway, the whole job cost us $3,600. Not cheap at all, but I really didn't have much choice because there are so many buildings and utility lines around there that there's no way to fell them in a traditional way with any modicum of safety, and I draw the line of DIY at climbing trees with a chainsaw in hand!

Just across the street from where we had the maples removed, the neighbors there have six maples of the same age as ours, and most of theirs are completely dead. MAJOR liability there, but they just stand nonetheless. A huge wind storm went through a couple weeks ago and ripped a number of branches off the trees (mostly into the street) and some yahoo came along and piled them all in the front of our yard. Seriously.... as if they couldn't tell where they had originated!

Amazingly, though, I spied another neighbor (not sure who due to the distance from the camera) spending hours in the front of our yard last Saturday cutting them up and stacking them in neat piles in the yard of the person whose trees shed them. I was so grateful; I really want to know who did that so we can thank them.

explorerx4

We had a branch of a big maple come down in August 2020, along with a lot of other stuff.
It was 28 paces long and over 2 feet wide where it broke off.

fintail

This is the tree on Google Street View, 2 years ago:



Those are some big limbs. In the spring I'll probably contact an arborist and see if it needs anything. It's a beauty when the leaves are out, and has no obvious dead areas, but I am far from an expert. I'd rather keep it than lose it. There are underground sprinklers around it, too (the rock area is the quirky landscaping of the prior owner, they loved rock, low maintenance I guess as they were elderly).

On the car note, there's a ~64 Imperial languishing in a driveway about a block from me, but it's not on street view, which means it arrived in the past 2 years.

xwesx said:

fintail said:

Only real concern is the big maple tree, I think it might need a trim next year, neighbor said it loses a big limb now and then. It has to be 30-40 feet anyway, no way I am getting anywhere close to that.

Yeah, trees. I love having them around, but it's also important to remember that they do have a life cycle just like pets and people. So, big trees are grand for a while, but something has to be done with them when end of life comes around.

For your big maple, if it looks healthy and full, the best thing you can do is have it pruned in the early spring or late fall, as it will maintain its strong core and shed a lot of the burden at the extremities in exchange for a smaller, fuller canopy for the next couple decades.

At our Ohio place, we ended up having five trees removed completely due to them being in a death spiral (probably hastened by some sort of leaf blight that infects most of the maples in that region). They should have been removed a decade ago, likely, but of course it is difficult and costs money, so it fell to the only responsible stewards the trees have likely ever seen. Ironically, the neighbors behind us had a maple along the property line (technically their tree) that half-collapsed onto our house. Apparently, no matter where it is planted, if it falls on your property, then it's your problem. Seems like BS, but whatever. We had the tree partially removed, and, thankfully, the neighbors were smart enough to not complain to us about it even though any privacy their back yard might have had from us was gone after that!

Anyway, the whole job cost us $3,600. Not cheap at all, but I really didn't have much choice because there are so many buildings and utility lines around there that there's no way to fell them in a traditional way with any modicum of safety, and I draw the line of DIY at climbing trees with a chainsaw in hand!

Just across the street from where we had the maples removed, the neighbors there have six maples of the same age as ours, and most of theirs are completely dead. MAJOR liability there, but they just stand nonetheless. A huge wind storm went through a couple weeks ago and ripped a number of branches off the trees (mostly into the street) and some yahoo came along and piled them all in the front of our yard. Seriously.... as if they couldn't tell where they had originated!

Amazingly, though, I spied another neighbor (not sure who due to the distance from the camera) spending hours in the front of our yard last Saturday cutting them up and stacking them in neat piles in the yard of the person whose trees shed them. I was so grateful; I really want to know who did that so we can thank them.

ab348

Maples are plentiful around here as street trees and as a result left to their own devices they often self-seed relatives on private property. I hate them as a ornamental tree. The ones here all had leaf "tar spot" blight for the last few years, plus the seed pods get into everything outdoors. My old Delta 88 was apparently parked near one by a previous owner and the front fender bottom was full of the things.

The main problem is that they tend to grow in the way Fin's is configured, with two trunks that split from the main one partway up. That lets water/snow/ice/organics accumulate there which will lead eventually to rot and failure of the tree. I have had several instances of that here.The first was one that was in the back corner of my yard near the property line when I bought the place. A couple of years after I got here the adjacent nasty neighbor, now deceased, accosted me one day demanding that I get it taken down or else, claiming it was rotted and was going to fall on his house. I knew nothing about it but didn't want it anyway so I hired a company to remove it, which wasn't cheap. The city also removed a big one on the so-called "boulevard strip" (the section between the curb and sidewalk) out front one day while I was at work, which did not displease me.

However my next-door neighbor on that side has 2 maples on the strip in front of her house, and they have both been problematic, especially the one nearest my house. It has shed branches in windstorms over the years, including one large main branch that I watched come down one Saturday. It fell at a 45 degree angle towards my house, taking out a section of hedge and miraculously just missing my roof/gutter. The city has done some minor pruning of it since but they really need to take it down. There is another elderly one on the side of my house (I'm on a corner lot) which looks decrepit and which I wish would be removed, but again the city is reluctant. It is problematic as it not only fills my gutters with junk every fall but also is in a position to take out my electrical and cable service should it ever fail.

The worst was a large maple adjacent to my driveway. Sometime prior to my buying the place the city installed a cable support between the two main branches above the crotch to hold it together but that failed in an ice storm in the early 2000s and half the tree fell into the street. My Delta 88 was parked there and it was damaged which the city eventually paid to repair. No wonder I despise maple trees.

sda

Our area and neighborhood are cursed with bradford pear trees. They too are subject to blight, have a short life span and routinely lose branches or split in half during even mild wind storms or when covered in ice or snow. In our front yard we just had the two bradford pears cut down, stumps ground, new topsoil put down. They had a severe case of blight and were going on 20 years old. It wasn't cheap. Glad they're gone but miss the shade they provided and need to find a better replacement.

stickguy

I have sweet gum trees behind my fence that drop tons of seed pods that we call “ball bearings”. I hate those things.

andres3

Speaking of home ownership maintenance costs, Can a home be a lemon? If so, I'm thankful my house is not a lemon.

fintail

In looking at my tree, I see a trunk remnant that was removed in the past. Fortunately, nobody is directly beside or in front of it, so probably low risk of anything hitting a car or house, and with prevailing winds here, my house shouldn't be in the way should something happen. I guess that might be next year's big "project". That tree produces an insane amount of leaves, too - had drifts of them behind the house.

On the project car and streetview subject, down the street from me is this car, still there today and it was there in 2019:



Back in the low resolution days of 2007, it was there:



In 2011 the cover must have blown off or someone was actually tinkering with it, no shock as to what it is:

explorerx4

We had a Bradford Pear tree split, so we had the rest cut down, but left the roots.
It grew back!

sda

stickguy said:

I have sweet gum trees behind my fence that drop tons of seed pods that we call “ball bearings”. I hate those things.

We also have those dreadful trees in the back yard just outside our fence in the wooded common area. Branches overhang into our yard. They drop those spiky gum balls by the hundreds into our yard. They are not friends to our dogs or me for that matter. Much raking to keep the yard clear.

ab348

I wonder what the ideal ornamental deciduous tree would be? We can rule out maples, Bradford pear, and gum trees already. Oaks are nice but the acorns are a nuisance and their leaves tend to not decompose easily. Elms are majestic but the dreaded Dutch Elm may get them (I hear there is a resistant type of Elm now though so that may be promising). Sycamores? I don't think they grow in this climate. We have a lot of birch trees here but they seem not to be long-lived and look rather spindly. The city planted an ash tree to replace the maple that fell on my Delta 88 and I do like that.

kyfdx

It is hard to beat ornamental pears (most aren't actually Bradfords, any longer).
But, you just have to realize the 20-30 year average life span.

I have one in my back yard, that may have been 3-5 years old when planted, and we've now been here 23 years. It's huge. But, very well-formed, and slightly protected from the wind. I just assume it will come down, some day.

Every tree has positives and negatives. When this one comes down, I'll plant another one, and feel bad about losing it. But, it's better than dealing with big hardwood trees on a small lot.

Michaell

At our first house, we planted two aspens in our back yard. Didn't do too much maintenance, and yet they grew to a height of, I think, 30-40'.

However, they have a short lifespan, and one of them died after about 15 years - typical for the species. More recent photos of the backyard show that both trees have been removed.

At our current house, we have a Red Maple in the front yard, and a dwarf blue spruce and crabapple trees in the back yard. I'm trying to do more to keep them alive.

xwesx

andres3 said:

Speaking of home ownership maintenance costs, Can a home be a lemon? If so, I'm thankful my house is not a lemon.

Hahaha; I thought that you were going a different direction on that one!

Yes, but "lemon" houses are generally the fault, entirely, of the builder, as they tend to cut corners. A house is a large, complex climate control system. How it is designed and performs depends heavily on the climate both inside and outside the home.

For example, you shouldn't build a house in Florida the same way you would build one in Alaska. If you cut corners, the whole system collapses. The most usual and universal symptom of a failed system is black mold.

andres3

xwesx said:

andres3 said:

Speaking of home ownership maintenance costs, Can a home be a lemon? If so, I'm thankful my house is not a lemon.

Hahaha; I thought that you were going a different direction on that one!

Yes, but "lemon" houses are generally the fault, entirely, of the builder, as they tend to cut corners. A house is a large, complex climate control system. How it is designed and performs depends heavily on the climate both inside and outside the home.

For example, you shouldn't build a house in Florida the same way you would build one in Alaska. If you cut corners, the whole system collapses. The most usual and universal symptom of a failed system is black mold.

Water intrusion is the ultimate enemy of any building design. Most commercial builders won't touch residential either.

fintail

I know someone in the industry who says to be leery of covid-era builds - materials costs mean possible cut corners. Water intrusion can be a big issue on the west side especially - mold is seen frequently, leaky condos and apartments can also be an epidemic, especially (often negligently) unmaintained older builds. Vancouver BC had a big issue with leaky condos, and the building I last lived in near Seattle had to have the entire exterior cladding/membrane replaced at around 10 years old, I think the builder had to be sued.

My house actually had a water issue when I bought it - source was unknown, but some wood floors were damaged, and being on a slab, this scared people. I suspected it wasn't terminal, as the damage didn't look too old, and was so unusual. Inspector called it out, appraiser didn't seem to care. The issue ended up being the furnace condensate not draining properly, instead of being routed into the washer drain, it was draining behind it and into the floors, then finding the lowest point in the floor - there were random areas of stained and warped wood (a shame, as the previous flooring was expensive). Cost a couple hundred bucks to fix, oh, and the replacement of the flooring for the entire house. Seller granted a credit to offset most of that, as by then I had nickel and dimed him, and he wanted it over with, he made his money. It was a big job though. drying out the slab and leveling a spot, treating it, before floor replacement. Worth it, as the market here is nuts, and it enabled me to get a place I like.

xwesx said:

andres3 said:

Speaking of home ownership maintenance costs, Can a home be a lemon? If so, I'm thankful my house is not a lemon.

Hahaha; I thought that you were going a different direction on that one!

Yes, but "lemon" houses are generally the fault, entirely, of the builder, as they tend to cut corners. A house is a large, complex climate control system. How it is designed and performs depends heavily on the climate both inside and outside the home.

For example, you shouldn't build a house in Florida the same way you would build one in Alaska. If you cut corners, the whole system collapses. The most usual and universal symptom of a failed system is black mold.

xwesx

Water is wonderful unless you're a homeowner. Then, it is your worst nightmare!

tjc78

Water is the enemy for buildings.

When we bought our place down the shore we luckily didn’t have to nickel and dime the sellers… but we did hit them up for an AC compressor. AC wasn’t working when we looked at place and was original to home (16 years). I said don’t bother fixing it, replace only. They did it. They owned the place for over ten years and practically doubled their money. I had a feeling that 5K wasn’t a deal breaker.

fintail

Yeah, seller of my place made out like a bandit too. He bought it from the older people who lived here, husband moved on after his wife passed. House was on a large double lot, house built clear of the lot line, he knew he could split the lot and sell it quickly in this market. The lot sold in little time, and once the house was done, even with concessions granted to me, he probably cleared 100K+ after all taxes and fees, not bad for sitting on it for a year and doing very little work on the house beforehand. I am fine with it, this area has a housing shortage and needs new builds that aren't miles from town, my lot is still ~7500 sq ft (I am not a lawn maintenance devotee anyway), it worked out. The market is so competitive here and there's a dearth of available material, I might have got lucky just a little, and feel like I "saved" the house after that water issue that scared people away.

gsemike

First car shopping on Long Island

Audi A3 6 speed. Nice shape but ad gives me a shaky feeling

2010 Maxima with reported 93k Unfortunately has salvage title. Weight that as you will

Decent looking Impreza 09 was I believe before the revisions to the 2.5 engine so bears some going over

Lexus ES Looks really good besides the front seat looking a bit worn

xwesx

Scary bunch. I think the Lexus is probably the winner here, if you can get it down to $4K. The Maxima might be decent, but it looks like it has seen some hard years; the Lexus seems better even with 2x the miles.

stickguy

I love the A3. Conceptually. But don’t trust it. Maxima is probably a nightmare. Lexus could be good.

xwesx

@andre1969

What do you think about this?!
(Let me know if the link doesn't work)

texases

I'd have to REALLY love it to put up with that slow engine, assuming the parts you can't see aren't rusted.

xwesx

I thought dropping an LS into it was all the rage these days?

fintail

I am not Andre, but I think it is priced at least double what it should be. Neat and very sturdy cars, but not much upside outside of a labor of love.

xwesx said:

@andre1969

What do you think about this?!
(Let me know if the link doesn't work)

xwesx

fintail said:

I am not Andre, but I think it is priced at least double what it should be. Neat and very sturdy cars, but not much upside outside of a labor of love.

I was thinking at least double based on what is there. I thought it was rather neat, though, as I can't recall seeing one this old before. Most that I have seen are mid-late 50s.

fintail

Interesting, as the forward look cars rusted fiercely, while 40s-early 50s models lasted forever. Still plenty to be found. That one does look to be in reasonable condition for something that might be living outside.

By its proportions, it looks like a DeSoto "Suburban", a LWB model, the Cunningham/Mr. C car on Happy Days.

xwesx said:

fintail said:

I am not Andre, but I think it is priced at least double what it should be. Neat and very sturdy cars, but not much upside outside of a labor of love.

I was thinking at least double based on what is there. I thought it was rather neat, though, as I can't recall seeing one this old before. Most that I have seen are mid-late 50s.

texases

I would be interested in a mid-50s Chrysler with a hemi, before the Forward Look.

fintail

Quick CL browse:

The world we live in

More overposted JDM importer stuff, but I like this one

Grab it

I can imagine it on an episode of TPiR from the same year

Nice patina

Single lights

Interesting design, condition might not warrant price

Dreamer of the day - "invested", "work of art", "save a lot of money", "will appreciate", "restored"

texases

That's one clean Nova.
The Jeep, on the other hand...'didn't damage the frame'...because it doesn't HAVE one. Pushing in the unibody like that is not a good thing to do.

gsemike

That Nova is remarkably clean, but those big bumper cars are so much less loved, I think that price is steep. If it was a 70, then maybe

In these parts, craigslist has practically died since they started charging

stickguy

Nova does look like new. But still does not seem to be worth that price.

I was thinking about grabbing the grabber to complete my fleet of Mavericks, until I looked at the picture. Plus he lied and listed it as a Manual, but it is an AT. Needs way more work than the listing implies.

ab348

Interesting Nova but I agree it seems overpriced. I was watching an old episode of Blue Bloods the other day, 4th or 5th season perhaps, and youngest son Jamie was driving one very much like that as his personal car, only time I ever saw it on the show. This ep was in between the one where he wrecked the early '70s Chevelle SS after its brakes were sabotaged (sadly he didn't think to shut off the engine and step on the emergency brake) and the later eps where it magically reappeared after being rebuilt.

The GP seems more interesting and a better buy.

Michaell

ab348 said:

Interesting Nova but I agree it seems overpriced. I was watching an old episode of Blue Bloods the other day, 4th or 5th season perhaps, and youngest son Jamie was driving one very much like that as his personal car, only time I ever saw it on the show. This ep was in between the one where he wrecked the early '70s Chevelle SS after its brakes were sabotaged (sadly he didn't think to shut off the engine and step on the emergency brake) and the later eps where it magically reappeared after being rebuilt.

The GP seems more interesting and a better buy.

I saw an episode from Season 8 where he was driving a Saleen Mustang Fox body.

The Nova was in an episode where he was teaching his niece Nicki how to drive.

ab348

Michaell said:

The Nova was in an episode where he was teaching his niece Nicki how to drive.

Yes! That was it.

sda

The Toyota Century is interesting and seems to be in remarkable original condition. The period of square corners, multiple buttons and digital displays!

explorerx4

Interesting left side front passenger seat on that Toyota.

texases

explorerx4 said:

Interesting left side front passenger seat on that Toyota.

I assume you take your shoes off before using that feature!

sda

I don't think I'd like someone's stinky feet resting next to me as I drive.