My new life with a youngtimer
Posted: Sat Aug 18, 2012 4:45 pm
Having dreamt about a youngtimer for years the search started this spring, many a car was disccused and finaly the discission was made to buy a 480.
The 480 was chosen because of its looks and roadhandling. The 480 is a rare care in Denmark and there is few to choose from, importing a car was out of the question due to our stupid impord taxes. Well a seemingly nice car was spotted and wieved with my father in law (that I now know has littel in deapth car knowledge) and bought at a reasonable price (compared to the Danish prises).
I'm now the proud owner of a white 1989 480 ES the car has a new MOT with only a faulty exaust. Nobody but me likes the car, the girlfreind thinks it's ugly and just so 80's but I don't mind, it's mine to drive not hers. I drove the car back a couple of hundred km in realy bad weather and I was really impressed with the handling, brakes and noise level, it realy made me smile
However the car is not without faults, some I was aware off and some I wasn't. Can't help feeling that the seller wasn't beeing totaly honest about the car, You know the feeling??
So here are the known faults and the to do list.
1) Exaust needs replacement
2) tires need replasement ( although I got 8 alloys with tires on, it is not possible to piece togehter 4 in the same size, I'm currently running M+S 175/60 on the front and M+S 185/65 on the rear, I'n not even sure that it is road legal so how on earth it got through the MOT beats be)
3) Rust, it needs to have the rear arches repaired on both sides and some other places as weel
4) The boot is like a fish bowl
5) Pop-up has a periodic fault
6) Long range beam's dosen't work (according to the seller they were never connected, find it hard to believe)
7) Rear fog lights stoped working on the way home
engine running a bit unsmooth at stable speeds
9) need new real lights and center plate as they are cracked and a possible reason amoung others to the water in the boot
Reading some of Your secret life stories make Me feeling a bit perfectionistic, the girlfreind says i'm to perfectionistic to have a old car and she might bee right, atleast I'm able to laugh at myself I'm not expecting a perfect car that is like new, but the basic thinks need to be in order. And maybe my biggest problem, the lack of a garage and knowledge about how to fix cars, but I'm willing to learn. Retrospectiv I might have bought a car with less electronics.
The 480 was chosen because of its looks and roadhandling. The 480 is a rare care in Denmark and there is few to choose from, importing a car was out of the question due to our stupid impord taxes. Well a seemingly nice car was spotted and wieved with my father in law (that I now know has littel in deapth car knowledge) and bought at a reasonable price (compared to the Danish prises).
I'm now the proud owner of a white 1989 480 ES the car has a new MOT with only a faulty exaust. Nobody but me likes the car, the girlfreind thinks it's ugly and just so 80's but I don't mind, it's mine to drive not hers. I drove the car back a couple of hundred km in realy bad weather and I was really impressed with the handling, brakes and noise level, it realy made me smile
However the car is not without faults, some I was aware off and some I wasn't. Can't help feeling that the seller wasn't beeing totaly honest about the car, You know the feeling??
So here are the known faults and the to do list.
1) Exaust needs replacement
2) tires need replasement ( although I got 8 alloys with tires on, it is not possible to piece togehter 4 in the same size, I'm currently running M+S 175/60 on the front and M+S 185/65 on the rear, I'n not even sure that it is road legal so how on earth it got through the MOT beats be)
3) Rust, it needs to have the rear arches repaired on both sides and some other places as weel
4) The boot is like a fish bowl
5) Pop-up has a periodic fault
6) Long range beam's dosen't work (according to the seller they were never connected, find it hard to believe)
7) Rear fog lights stoped working on the way home
engine running a bit unsmooth at stable speeds
9) need new real lights and center plate as they are cracked and a possible reason amoung others to the water in the boot
Reading some of Your secret life stories make Me feeling a bit perfectionistic, the girlfreind says i'm to perfectionistic to have a old car and she might bee right, atleast I'm able to laugh at myself I'm not expecting a perfect car that is like new, but the basic thinks need to be in order. And maybe my biggest problem, the lack of a garage and knowledge about how to fix cars, but I'm willing to learn. Retrospectiv I might have bought a car with less electronics.