OK, the post title is sarcastic. In the grand scheme of things my blog is close to the quintessence of nothing. Still, it is important to me and, I hope, is of some importance to those who read it on a regular basis.
As I have written ad nauseam I am struggling with the direction of the blog. I do not want to turn this into a political blog, a blog about old cars or just a random collection of facts. Given that I have no interest in SUVs, pickup trucks or electric vehicles–nor do I have to–automotive content will simply have to be a smaller part of this blog going forward, no matter how much longer I keep blogging.
I apologize if it seems I lean too heavily on links to Why Evolution Is True. I just find Jerry Coyne’s blog to be very interesting. I also wish a tenth as many people followed Disaffected Musings.
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The Z06 saga is over. (I buried the lede again.) Stephen, the owner of the shop “in charge” of the repairs but not actually doing them, texted me on Wednesday (the 28th) that the parts needed to finish the repairs were supposed to arrive on Thursday.
My wonderful wife and I decided to get everything out of the Z06 that we needed, most importantly the license plate. We did that early Thursday morning. The young tech doing the repairs was sure he would finish that day and he did as the parts did finally arrive. The Ford dealer from whom I purchased the Mustang acknowledged receiving the Z06 that afternoon and promised to begin processing the large payment I am owed from the transaction.
I must admit that I had no pangs of nostalgia or regret seeing the Z06. Yesterday was 24 weeks that the car first failed to start. Enough was enough.
I must thank Stephen for his patience and perseverance. I am not a patient person, by nature, something I demonstrated when I called the Ford dealer on Tuesday and gave them an earful because my position was that since they had the title to the Corvette they owned the car, meaning I had paid for the Mustang and was due the amount owed to me ASAP. They disagreed and they had all of the leverage. Fortunately, the end of the saga was much closer than any of us thought.
When Stephen visited me Thursday evening, bringing the aftermarket headers from the Z06, he implied (or maybe I am inferring incorrectly) that General Motors is having more difficulty with its supply chains and logistics than other automobile manufacturers. With the exception of a few foreign vehicles, I have only owned GM cars; well, until I bought the Mustang. I can’t say Stephen’s words were a surprise, but they were a disappointment.
Without revealing details that are not mine to share, he told me about his future business plans. We also discussed my obsession with the Studebaker Gran Turismo Hawk and not only did Stephen offer to help me find one, he offered to store it at his shop and even be involved with the restoration/modernization. By the way, a 1963 model recently sold on Bring A Trailer for just $9,000, not counting the 5% buyers commission.
It is 90%-95% likely that I am going to sell the Cascada. I don’t want a convertible as much as I thought and if I can’t depend on a new car to be reliable, then I am SOL, anyway. Of course, between the amount I am owed on the Mustang purchase and how much I will receive for the Cascada, I could buy something affordable like a Gran Turismo Hawk and have plenty left over, some of which could be spent on the car.
Onward and upward!
#DidYouMissMe?
#GoodbyeZ06
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Disaffected Musings 
It sounds like you are, partially at least, getting the disease I have had for most of my life. Buy car, drive for 8-12 months, sell car. Lather, rinse, repeat. Now there are some that are “keepers”, but in the big picture probably around 4-5% of the vehicles I have owned over the years have stayed longer than that. Good luck with your hunt.
Speaking of Bring a Trailer, it seems like that Hawk was a good deal. I thought it would go for a fair bit more, 12K or so. And I’m following an auction on the site. I need another car like I need a hand growing out of my forehead, but…. I’m sure if you hit the link, you will understand one of the reasons I’m interested.
https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1964-chevrolet-chevy-ii-22/
The second reason is that my first street car was a 1962 Chevy II Nova Deluxe. It was given to me for my 15th birthday by my uncle. It was a 6 cylinder Powerglide version. I spent the next year, with much help from my dad, a neighbor and whoever I could talk into helping, transforming it into a hot rod. 396, 4 speed, 3.90 posi. Being as I drove it in the manner it was built for, it was a money pit: 2 transmissions, 1 rear end and finally the engine, in just over 14 months. But to this day, I still have a soft spot for that vintage Chevy II. See where this auction goes. At the current bid, it would take over twice that, just to build the engine.
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Thanks, DDM. While my average length owning a car has been more than 8-12 months, it sure hasn’t been 8-12 years.
I owned the Z06 for 3 1/2 years, the Z4 for not quite 2 1/2. I owned the Infiniti G37x coupe (the forgotten car) for a shade under 3 years. I owned my first two Corvettes a combined total of 6 years. See a pattern? At about 3 years I want a new car and I don’t even lease my cars, not usually, anyway.
The longest I ever owned a car was about 9 years; it was a new 1995 Pontiac Grand Prix that I acquired when I moved to California that year. I leased at first, but bought the car when the lease was up. The only vehicle I have driven 100,000+ miles was the 1988 Chevrolet Blazer I bought new in January of that year to “celebrate” my being hired full-time by my then hometown baseball team and to get to work in the sometimes problematic mid-Atlantic winter weather. I sold the Blazer in May, 1995 before I moved to California.
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The longest I have owned any vehicle is a motorcycle I bought in 1976, a BMW R75/5 and still have. Second is my 86 Shelby Charger, the first new car I ever bought in November of 1985. Over the last 12 months I have been selling as opposed to buying, time to thin down the herd. But there is some serious temptation on that Chevy II. See what happens. 🙂
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