Jim. I think price factors in too. If you are ever considering selling the car, then #1 is a better investment. If you plan to die with the keys still clutched in your hands, then #2 is the logical choice, assuming you don't pay a premium to acquire it. Like you I've spent countless hours and dollars making my car reliable. As reliable as it can be and still be original enough to roll onto a concours field and perform admirably. Yes, I've done a lot of undercover stuff to make the car run better, but I have not done anything (except for the exhaust) that will cost me at concours. I think that's the best of both worlds for someone who can really only afford one of these at a time. (Remember I have four kids in college!!) Dave
I am sure there will be some who will get all twisted over the non original parts, or modification of whatever, but for me I love Jon's attitude on this. He is making this thing perfect for him, and that is IMO just awesome. He will drive this thing with pride and know he put his heart into it and got it exactly as he thought it should be. Kudos on that. That is exactly what I would do to if I were doing something like this. The joy I would get from building it to my specs and driving it is far beyond anything I could get from some pencil neck "judge". I judge myself harder than anyone else could so if it met my sepcs that would in my mind equal perfection and that would be all that mattered. The other thing is I would drive the thing as often as possible with no regard what mileage might do to resale. I would have bought the car and restored it for me to drive, not bought, restored so someone else could drive it. It is like dating a super model and not knocking that out every day. What are you saving it so the next guy can tear it up?
That image is kind of hard to shake. It's really too bad you can't drive them both at once. My car is one of the originals, and because it's go so little mileage on it, it seems to be the bridge of both hotties. But, if the car had been repainted or something major done to it, I would not hesitate to make every possible acceptable modernization to make it the maximum pleasure to drive. Sure, I take it to to the supermarket once in a while, but being afraid to drive a Dino is a form of denial I just can't handle. Having said that, this weekend I avoided disaster by about 2 microns. Some idiot in a Saab pulled out from a stop sign on my left between me and the Benz in front of me on a country road -- he obviously just didn't see me and literally came in 10-15 feet from my nose. I was about 5 car lengths behind the Benz (for a change) and in no rush (thank God) going about 40-45. The only reason I managed not to either a) hit him or b) hit a tree on the right side of the road or c) steer behind him into possible oncoming traffic was that the scenario was EXACTLY the one they give you at the Skip Barber High Performance Driving School -- having to react and move to the one "green light" gate of three while panic braking. It's react, find the best spot available, and just go for it. I braked, hit the horn while I turned the wheel as hard to the right as I could, missed his back right fender by maybe a half inch, corrected back to the left to get striaght 2/3'ds on the dirt, punched the gas to the floor to get past him as he waffled all over the damn road, then managed to get back on the road without clipping his nose or the telephone pole and tree coming up dead center. He was behind me looking confused, and it took about 5 minutes for my pulse to get back to normal. I was seeing about $75,000 of damage, arguments with my insurer and the cops, and a now it's-been-hit Dino that I wouldn't see for two years while it got completely redone and made a shop very, very happy, all in about 1/2 a second! That's if I didn't discover first hand (and face) why I have been absolutely moronic not to get shoulder belts installed. Whew! I'm writing SBRC a note of thanks...
