What's up with this, Jon?

 

itch, itch, scratch

 

Wow, 6 days now...this thread has been going. I haven't been keeping track of this situation but I see it's going down hill really fast. Looks like someone's a real attention "*****". Sorry to be so blunt Jon, but it looks like you've really been playing some people here. Something just doesn't seem right about your story.

 

Hey Jon,

Now this is a thread I can relate to! I bought my C5 when I was 21. It was a stretch, but I lived at home and had a decent job so after a couple of raises the car payment wasn't a big deal. Was racing the car regularly at Englishtown and having an awesome time; winning races and almost winning the Corvette Challenge points race my first year ever racing. Since I was bolt-ons running mid 12s; all was good, no breakage and just replacing cheap drag radials. Budget is still okay at this point. Then I starting really getting the need for speed. The next 3 years were a myriad of highs and lows. I ended up with a legitimate 10 second street car I was able to drive to work everyday. Drove to Florida, placed 3rd in a Vette/Viper shootout running 11.1s all day, then drove home. Had one of the greatest times of my life... After that my luck took a turn for the worse. I was leaving E-town on a flatbed more often than not and my car was in the parking lot at Cartek more than it was in my own driveway. One launch at Atco cost me $8000 in broken parts... for one LAUNCH! Insane stuff. And this breakage happened right after I had already overexteneded myself to do all these mods. Basically last year I ended up with a very fast car I couldn't afford and was now afraid to race. Along with nearly 30k in debt to top it all off. While I still LOVED my car to death, the fun I had of driving it hard and racing it care-free when I bought it was gone. My debt and financial burdon caused by the car killed the fun for me. When I looked at my once beloved car all I could think about was how it cost me every penny I had made for the past 5 years and probably for a few years to come. Not good stuff, it had to go. It was more difficult to sell than words can describe, but earlier this year I sold it. My fiance and I were upset about it for days, we still think about how much we miss our car sometimes. But it was our only choice. I have no seller's remorse, it was the right move for us.

After being very careful with money and consolidating our CCs, we're now down to less than 10k in CC debt. And if all goes well we will have it all gone by the end of the year. Then next spring we can finally move out on our own and buy ourselves a nice condo... with a garage of course. Having ZERO debt will be the greatest feeling ever. I don't have any regrets of what I did with that car, I had some AWESOME times with it. But now, at 26, it's time to get a little smarter with my money. And I think I can say I have FINALLY learned my lesson. If I can't afford it cash, I won't buy it. It was an expensive lesson to learn, but now I'm confident that I'll be making smart decisions in the future.

I will buy another Vette after buying the condo (C5 Z06)... but I will not buy ONE mod I do not have cash for, and I will not race unless I have enough money in the bank to cover any potential breakage. I still belive you have to spend some money on yourself, you can't just save everything, because then you never know what you might be missing out on. You just need to learn balance, and that's much harder than it sounds.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

 

Modding a car with a CREDIT CARD?

Bad Idea

Every mod that I did to mine is from leftover $$
My credit card is payed and I 50K is for emergencies only (i think I have one soon Ls2 402 )

 

I hate to say it, but you don't sound like you'll meet you life goals with the car. Try working things out, but you'll probably have to sell your baby if that is your wish. Cars are fun and as much as I love mine I may have to sell it too for medical school. You can always get another car, but you only get one shot to do things right.

 

[QUOTE=BillY2KFRC]Hey Jon,

It was more difficult to sell than words can describe, but earlier this year I sold it. My fiance and I were upset about it for days, we still think about how much we miss our car sometimes. But it was our only choice. I have no seller's remorse, it was the right move for us.[QUOTE=BillY2KFRC]

Bill,

Man - your breaking my heart... . I took your old girl and spruced her up now; 383 stroker,MTI turbo cam, kept the Cartek stage 2X cams, Ron Davis EOC radiator, rebuilt tranny with viper internals, new 3.42 rear-end with hardened half-shaft, new rotors, pads, ss brake lines, kooks LT 1 7/8 headers, 60# injectors, racetronix fuel pump, KB BAP, and last but not least .....
STS twin turbos system going on the car in the next 2 - 3 weeks.

If you can get a decent airfare from CT to Houston this fall, come stay with me and we can go out to the local strip and run down some cobras ..

I think all of us at one point in time have had issues with getting in some kind of debt, you just have to accept where you are financially at all stages of your life....It's all relative, I make good money - not enough to have three houses - Houston, Florida, Colorado. Sure I could go get two more mortgages but why....I like looking at my bank account and feeling real good, not worrying about am I going to make it till next Friday when I get paid.

PM me if you want to take me up on hitting the drag strip here in Houston, check out Southwest.com they have the cheapest tickets and direct flight from CT to Houston.

Later,
Jason

 

Hang in there, Jon. Hopefully, new opportunities will come your way (the new job interview) to help you through this difficult period. Modding sure is expensive. And, you have created a beautiful ride. Try to keep her and enjoy her. However, take all the steps necessary to stay on your feet. And, we will be here praying and cheering for you.

Best Wishes to You,
Eden

 

Jon,

First of all congrats on a truly bitchin car. Definitely one of the best on this forum. However, I must ask, why didn't you just put this project on the back burner after you quit you job?? (If somebody has already asked this question please accept my apologies.) Furthermore, please explain how you were able to do all the modding that you did when you were working on a 50K job? Remarkable!!! Please do not be offended, I’m just curious.

 

Tell ya what.. I'll trade you my car for yours (less than 500 miles on my new Cartek 447 setup and less than 8K on the rest of the car), AND give you $25,000 cash!

 

my head hurts

 

Why would you need a car to get chicks?

Chicks are everywhere, you can get them for nothing. And they sure as hell won't be around long term w/ someone that has that much debt.

If you guys get married, she legally is responsible for ALL THAT debt that YOU put her in. Think about that.

 

Dang, I thought I was the only one that felt this way (the after taste of spending hard earned $$ on mods).

Just FYI, I think you couldn't do more to your car, man. It's pimp just as it is.

 

That is exactly why I stopped drag racing. I still go and watch and have a good time, but, at the end of the night I know exactly how I'm going to get home.

Things break at the track (clutches, differentials, transmissions, etc) that would last pretty much indefinitely on the street.

You can really beat the crap out of these cars when they're in the 12's, however, that quickly changes once you get deep into the 11's.

I had a good time drag racing my car earlier this year. I got a good idea of how the car performs, but, now that I know I can't see going back all the time and risking breaking something. The real fun, in my opinion, is driving the car every day.

About 50K / year. That may be a decent wage, but, that is no where near enough to maintain a 600+ rwhp car that you drag race - at least if your not spinning your own wrenches.

Mark

 

 

sounds like its time to work 80 hrs a week, eat at home, cut up all(and i mean all) the credit cards and nothing new gets done till the debt is payed off-it wont take as long as you are probably thinking right now. man good luck and keep the vette but maybe it needs to be put away for awhile.

 

Sell the car.

 

I would also check with an attorney to see what my options would be for filing bankruptcy maybe? Could you homestead your house to keep the creditors away? Granted your credit would be ruined for probably seven to ten years....But isn't it already ruined... maybe a option to consider? Good luck

 

Put paying off the credit cards as a high priority, hold up on any more mods or car expense, get the job, get married, and then work on the car. God, family, then other.

 

You gave up a job to move - into a house you planned to pay for with what? THEN you racked up the CC debt?

Despite what MTV Cribs might have us believe, cool houses and cars are NOT that important. Sell the car and get yourself out of this trouble. Get into a credit counseling program and look into 12-step.

No offense, but your spending compulsion is as self-destructive as heroin.