Breaking up is hard to do. Part two of a continuing series.
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| Laugh if you will, but I already miss that thing! |
I broke up with one vehicle by having it break down on me. That was easy, if not painless.
Once that car was going to be replaced I bought something newer that would fill my needs.
It was direct replacement for my Explorer and it also would replace my XJ6, if it was up and in the rotation. It fulfills the role of a comfortable, spacious four door sedan as well as a cargo hauler.
I shared that acquisition in my last post.
Most of my vehicles have some utility for me.
The truck retains it's carrying capacity and sense of purpose.
The Mustang retains it's utility and sense of fun.
But what am I going to do with those three Jags?
The easy answer is to say, just sell them. If it was only that easy! You can only sell something when there is a buyer out there that wants it!
By buying a newer car (Ford) with only 30k on the clock, an extended warranty and a prepaid service plan, I've reduced a lot of let's say, lots of angst with at least one vehicle.
That leaves two 14 year old Fords that I bought new, even with 150k on them it should be a a short matter of time to get caught up on deferred maintenance,
Even my 25 year old Ford has received a bunch of non organized maintenance over the years.
None of my Fords, even the Explorer, have ever been drama queens.
I can't say that about my Jags.
It's kind of funny, because I really wanted each of my Jags when I acquired it. None were purchased off a nearby car lot, with just a short drive home. Acquiring each took a bit of effort.
The XJS was purchased down in Southern California, near the Pomona Fairplex. It took two trips to buy that car. The first one to check it out, The second with my truck and rented trailer, to bring it home.
The XJ6 was bought in Los Angeles, I had gone to see went to see another XJR, which turned out to have serious brake system problems, so I had to pass on that one. I couldn't understand how the seller couldn't have fixed it before I got there, or at least let me know about it, as I had advised him that I was coming the following week, and verified that I was enroute on the day I left. I was disappointed, and in our room that evening, I was combing CL and found my XJ6 that very night. After checking it out and leaving a deposit we made a second trip with a rental car to pick it up. Driving that XJ6 home was a fantastic experience.
I had to arrange for a tow recovery of the Mark VII out of a guy's backyard in Sunnyvale, where it had sat for years.
Is there anyone out there who would go through the same trouble to buy one of my Jags? It isn't even a question of money, I know that we could easily come to an agreeable price. It's interest! Is there anyone out there even interested in my cars?
I've had my XJS listed in the Jaguar forum for over a month. Wouldn't there be an enthusiast on the forum just itching to buy a car like mine?
It doesn't look like it. Not even one inquiry!
I haven't listed my XJ6 or the Mark VII yet. I'm too busy with other matters, but I'll put them on the forum in a few weeks,
I don't want to put them on CL and deal with the flakes, yet, but I'll have to at least give that listing a try.
I thought that I might cut down on my physic heartburn by limiting myself to just one Jag. It doesn't even matter which one, just one of them.
Unlike my collection of Fords, two of my Jags haven't really been drivers, one of those doesn't even run, so I have no real affinity built up with them.
Except for the XJ6. I drove that car home from LA, then drove it everywhere, everyday for over a year.
The XJS hasn't really ever been a driver. The Mark has always been just been a hopeful dream.
I came across a guy on LA CL this evening that is looking for an XJS, with certain preferences. I contacted him and told him about my car, maybe I'll hear back from him. I'm not asking very much for my car, so even with what it needs, the car could be finished up pretty inexpensively. Maybe he'll be the guy, even if he isn't, it was nice to have someone actually interested in an XJS.
It is kind of frightening to an enthusiast that the only way to easily dispose of an unwanted or unneeded vehicle might be to scrap it. The wrecking yard will come and take it and even pay you something for it.
Last year we replaced our 62 inch Hitachi rear projection TV, with a new wall mounted plasma unit. The TV still worked fine, it was even high def! It was our second big screen, the first which had been seen as a special treat for the family. The Hitachi was quite an improvement over our earlier 45 inch Magnavox unit. But nobody wants an old big screen, the plasmas are now so cheap, especially in the smaller sizes, and those big boxy sets just scream old! We couldn't even donate it to the Salvation Army, we had to arrange a large item pick up for the trash company to take it away.
Believe me, it kind of hurt. I'm a poor kid at heart. My family's first color TV was from the very late 1950's, that had a cabinet the size of a refrigerator, and a screen the size of a dinner plate! My Dad got it cheap because it had a a problem in the high voltage circuit, which he knew how to fix, and did. We used that thing for the next ten years.
My '96 Mustang is both old and high mileage. Though it is in pretty good shape. I saw a couple of similar 98 Mustangs with incredibly low mileage, one had 53 thousand miles and the seller was asking 9,400.00 for it. The other had 55 thousand miles and was incredibly well preserved, the seller was asking 18,500.00 for it. Probably way to high no that one, but they'd probably take less. They were asking for a pretty penny, but if you wanted one as a collectible, that would be the way to go. What could I get for mine? Probably not very much, maybe a couple of grand, Not many people want to buy a car with over 200,000 miles.
I shudder to think that it would languish on CL until I might scrap it in disgust.
Maybe you remember that silly IKEA ad where an old lamp is replaced and set at the curb and gets soaked in a rain storm. Watching that commercial always made me feel kind of sad. Then that weird guy comes on and ridicules us for feeling bad for the lamp. "It's just a thing it doesn't have any feelings." Sure, that's true, but anything not human or animal is just a thing. It is what we imbue in an object that gives it significance.
Our childhood home is just a big wooden crate that we used to live in. Over the years it could be run down and ruined, burned, or it could be torn down and something else built in it's place. Or it could be preserved and cherished by the new owners, does it make any difference? Which would you prefer?
I don't know, maybe it should, or maybe it shouldn't. It's these attachments that our give lives it's added depth and meaning. Favorite things. I think that life would be kind of dull without them.
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