NachO_SRT

Originally Posted by ElScooby

I have finally come to the conclusion that I am going to have to sell my STI, and now at the point where I have it exactly the way that I have always wanted it. This totally blows but I have been doing a lot of thinking this last couple of months, regarding my current and future financial situation. For those of you who don’t know my company has been going through the approval process of being bought by BMO, or Bank of Montreal and the status of our jobs has been up in the air for quite a while. But as time has passed I we have been getting more hints that our jobs might be in jeopardy as the company likes to outsource local IT work to IT solutions provider companies.

I have put so much time and money into my car the last 7 months that I cringe a tiny bit when I think about it. For me and my car obsession it was easy to rationalize it all at the time, but now when I sit down and put my finances and everything on paper it hits me that I just cannot afford the car any more. And on a single income supporting my family having an extra 475 a month between insurance and car payment for the STI, it is the right thing to do to sell it. The majority of the money for the mods came from my tax return.

The crappy thing is that I have never had a car that I am so excited about. Just thinking of getting home so I can take the car out and go cruising makes me want to take time off from work to get home sooner. And honestly, when I put the pedal to the floor the rush I get from the ridiculous power makes me giddy like a kid again at Christmas time. It just pulls so hard and never wants to stop until I have to finally let off the gas so I don’t take flight!!

I have a couple hundred dollars more I need to put into it to get the project completed right. Btw the crusing/stumbiling issue is gone, the O2 sensor was the issue with drivability. It is now purring like a kitty cat, until I stab the throttle. The things I need to completed are as follows. When I get everything done I will make a decision on how much I am going to try to ask for it, and at that point I will get a ton of pics and then put her up for sale.

Things to complete or wrap up…..

Get a new gel cell battery for the trunk

Create a way to mount the battery

Solder 4 different locations where I ran the new battery relocation wires

Finish tucking all of the wires that I ran through the cabin

Correctly mount the Bosch 044 fuel pump and filter. They aren’t moving at all but I want it to look better and be more stable for whoever does get the car.

Finish putting back all of the center console pieces back in place
Reinstall the back seat
Have the new/used RE70 tires put on the rims, balanced then aligned.

Empty the surge tank and take it to have the top cut off and a new AN fitting welded in to replace the temporary JB weld.
Then correctly bolt the surge tank back in the engine bay, as it is just currently using wire zipties

After six month in the garage collecting dust I need to detail the crud out of it and get that pretty shine again!

Then finally I want to drive it for a few weeks to enjoy the damned thing as much as I can before I have to let her go. Honestly I almost feel a bit sick at my stomach while I am typing this up. But I such is life. And to be honest I can always get another car someday. My friend Aaron had two of his friends die of cancer last week and life is more important than continuing to scrape by and having my obtainable dream car, which this car has been. I will probably just pick up something sporty and fun with the amount I get from selling the STI minus that I still owe on the loan. Something that can be fun, but paid for in full so I don’t have to keep shelling out all of the money each month that I am currently doing. Who knows.

Ok I know I have been rambling on but I can’t seem to help it. I just wanted to get my thoughts out there.

Is this a sign of things to come? Has the shrinking economy started to dig into our personal escapes and hobbies?

My friend Jon did it all correct, saving where he could and buying parts in as small of chunks as he could so as not to upset the apple cart of finances. Did he finally realize his goal only to find some empty hole under it? Alternatively, is it a matter of life shrinking around us? Things like a gallon of milk and a carton of eggs are just getting out of hand. Inflation is killing a billion dollar industry. Is our society polarizing once again, the middle class is evaporating as the rich get a little richer and the poor get a lot poorer?

I cannot help but wonder what the next 12 months holds for the future of many businesses facing shrinking margins and budgets that just barely support operations. With more and more Mid-level jobs being exported to foreign shores where are we putting all of these highly trained, moderately paid people? We are putting them on Craigslist and local forums to sell off their lifestyle to maintain mortgages, light, water, trash, and phone bills. Basic needs kind of shit.

NachO