Sold without regrets

The only Corvette that does anything for me is the C2.
Quite the car for its time.
That said a "rare" C2 is the same price as a Boxer. 12 mid engined cylinders and hand formed body.
No brainer.
Wanna race ?
Get a Formula Vee.
Race cars dont have doors.

 

If you wouldn't regret selling a Ferrari to buy a Corvette, I don't think you ever, "got" the Ferrari, "thing." For me, no other car - not even another exotic - could replace my Ferrari, and the only non-Ferrari exotic I'd be interested in would be a McLaren (And that would be behind an F50 on my list).

Inside of every Ferrari - even relatively plain ones like the 412 - beats the heart of a race car that is always begging to play. No other marque gives me the same feeling.

All that said, I hang out with a LOT of muscle car guys, and they have their own culture, which is very cool in its own right. If I had more of a DYI bent, I'd probably get something like an SS 396, but never a Corvette, and never ever as a replacement for my Ferrari. Middle-aged guys in Corvettes are simply too cliched. lol.

But, to each his own, because it takes all kinds to make a world.

Cheers,

George

 

My former cars: 454 Corvette, Pantera, Porsche 911, another Corvette, and F355 Spider

My current car: F430 Spider manual trans

The only car I miss ... my F355 Spider.
As far as a 60's muscle car, my choice would be a '69 396 Camaro or '67 427 Vette (does this count?). There's nothing like a Ferrari ... but I also like the brute torque of a big block Chevy with the sound of an M-22 trans.

 

Had a 246 Dino GT and sold it. No regrets. I don't miss it.

There's a time for them to go to new owners. I have new passions now.

 

I had a few regrets when my 328 went, because it was a rare color combination both exterior and interior and would be somewhat hard to replace.

If a '70s Corvette is what you want, go for it. I've never gotten into them because they were mass produced and the quality is atrocious (although better than the Chevette and Citation). The pinnacle of cars for me growing up was Ferrari, specifically the 308. Now the pinnacle is '60s Ferraris and vintage racers from Porsche and Jaguar.

If you go with your passion, and end up with The Right Car, I think the regrets will be secondary.

 

I don't understand the motivation behind keeping older cars.

I've loved every car I've ever had... but each time I've moved on to something new... I've never had a desire to keep the previous car in the garage just because I could afford to.

I get that they can become "part of the family" and what not... but at the end of the day it's still a car, a material possession, and at a certain point it becomes hoarding. To say you "collect" cars is one thing... but I really have no desire to have a whole bunch of cars just taking up garage space.

 

I owned two desirable collector Vettes befor buying my first Ferrari.

Guess I got the Corvette passion out of my system. In thinking ahead to a next sports car, the idea of one, vintage or new, doesn't ring any bells.

I know I could get a topline fully equipped new Corvette or a nice "midyear" vintage model for the price of a used 360 or 550, but rationality doesn't rule these decisions. If still in Ferrari mode in 2 or 3 years, I'll go for the 360 or 550; if not, something cushier, like a near-new Jag or Mercedes.

 

To own, enjoy then pass along to enjoy another is a beautiful thing.

 

Some of you may chuckle...I have a spreadsheet of cars I have owned, purchase and sales prices, costs of ownership, notes on what I like and dislike about each. I had to review my list, as I considered any regrets of selling any of them. The answer is no...no regrets.

There are cars (such as laggy 930 or peaky 911S) that I think about driving just to refresh my memories of their driving feel, but no regrets of not owning anymore.

If I sell my 328 (which is my third 3x8) at this point, I may regret it. Hence, it stays with me.

 

Cars come and go. They are "toys" I have an F150 as a daily driver now. Had a Nissan frontier for 10 years, and before that a Jeep Cherokee. In the garage sat the "fun cars".

In the last few years, as some may remember i have had several early 4 speed Camaros and Trans Am's. Fun cars. owned 8 911's so far, I just love the 84-89 911's. 2 308 GT4's, 2 early carb 308's, 2 euro QV's and a 328. 2 Lotus Esprits and both were crap, as were the 3 Lamborghini's I had.

I am bored car wise. Testarossas are neat, but I am scared off by the trans axle issues and parts cost. i love / want a Maserati Gran Turismo, but they are STILL going down in price, and there are 220+ on Cars.com for sale at any time.


Some newer cars appeal to me, I keep leering at newer Vettes and well optioned Mustangs and Camaros. i feel like I am cheating, getting a fun car for so little money, when i have typically had between 5-9 cars at any one time.

The problem is, the Ferrari's, ect are making me feel like a target every time i go out in one. Too many " have nots " out there.

I think I'll be better off buying land, and have a cabin / gun range / pond all added.

i am not done with fun cars, but there are NO Regrets. I feel its important to try different cars if you are a car guy and have the means.


A friend let me spend alot of time with his 85 Countach. We both shunned the car a bit as it was insane to take out unless all the right boxes were checked= nice weather, lite traffic, you are well rested and in a good mood.

The car was an adrenalin rush all its own, but you then had to deal with some "good" people and the idiots in the general public who reacted and over reacted to the car.


Neat lessons learned, and a privilege too. But its very hard i think to find a fun car that is not too expensive, fun, yet not "insane" that you can use without going to jail or feel like you are going to be robbed or messed with over.

Very hard IMHO to find that balance.

Guns and guitars are more fun anyway.

 

Well stated.

 

I've had my 928 for 15 years. I've been debating whether of not to sell it as I really don't drive it anymore. Right now the market is telling me hold onto it... sell a car with $1500 bucks.. but if I did, would I regret it? Probably. It's been with me for so many years, so many good times. Emotion should be separate.. but I haven't found it easy to do.

 

I believe after selling the first "love/part of the family" car all the other ones come and goes with no regrets.

I loved each car and enjoyed at the fullest. I never owned any car for more than 2 years and have no regrets...

 

I will always have a Ferrari in the garage unless hard times befall us. I will probably still figure out a way to keep it.

 

I've never been a big 'vette fan. However, I've had a few muscle cars (and still have one), but they are a completely different animal. It's like a machete vs. a scalpel - depends on what you want to do with them as to which you'd be better off with. If you want to just pull out a big knife and have the local boys ooh and ahh, well you won't scare anyone with a scalpel. But, if you want to perform some surgery, it won't be much fun with the machete. I could hustle my muscle car along the back roads or a track and it ultimately had similar grip and power, but it was hard work. The Ferrari isn't, it's a precision machine and gives all kinds of feedback that I couldn't get out of my muscle car.

 

Love my street legal Formula Vee....although I have added some steroids (Porsche Power)



beev
Image Unavailable, Please Login