Hey Barney ;
Thanks for the words of encouragement. Problem is I Just finished the
rebuild on the Morgan . The Alaska trip took its toll. 180 Paint chips,
four cracks in the chassis, and a engine rebuild.
BTW Your web page on the Speedy Sleeve came in handy as I needed to
install one on the front pulley .
Bob Nogueira
On Tue, 22 Sep 1998 03:47:53 Barney Gaylord <barneymg@ntsource.com>
writes:
>At 11:54 PM 9/21/98 -0500, bob nogueira wrote:
>>.... I've been driving my MGBGT as my daily driver for the past 9
>years
>.... it has required almost no maintenance.
>>
>>My problem is that it has reached the point where everything needs
>redoing, I Figure I'm looking at 1500.00 for a engine rebuild,
>1000.00 for
>an interior, 600.00 to buy paint and materials for a refinish. Throw
>in
>tires, a new steering wheel, new windshield and I'll have another 3000
>to
>4000 dollars in the car plus months of labor. The idea of just
>parking it
>and picking up a more conventional daily driver is growing
>appealing. ....
>
>Whoa there, Bob. As it has been a reliable car and a daily driver, it
>should remain that way. Don't throw in the towel just because it's
>time
>for a little scheduled maintainance. A totally fresh engine should be
>less
>than $1000 if you do the R&R and most of the assembly work yourself.
>After
>that, just how urgent is the rest of the stuff? A do-it-yourself
>paint job
>is pretty cheap, and the tires are a periodic item with whatever you
>drive.
> Windscreen glass is not too expensive, and do you really need a new
>steering wheel for a daily driver? Go at it a little at a time, maybe
>over
>a year or so if you're getting stressed out over a tight schedule, and
>next
>thing you know it's ready for another 100,000 miles.
>
>I think the key to keeping it running indefinitely is to treat
>everything
>as peridoic and preventative maintainance. Do the engine when it
>needs it,
>do the paint when it needs it, etc, etc. Don't try to do it all at
>once,
>and do try to keep it on the road as much as possible with the
>shortest
>possible layovers. Do the engine in a few weeks time, get it back on
>the
>road, take a break for a while. Ditto with the paint job, do that by
>itself and get it done in short order, take another break for a while,
>and
>drive the wheels off of it. By that time it'll be back in such good
>shape
>that you wouldn't consider retiring it, and there isn't all that much
>money
>involved (yet).
>
>A good incentive to do the interior might be an upcoming car show
>(after
>the engine and paint). Start dropping hints about window glass anad
>interior kits around the holidays. And "We wouldn't have to buy
>another
>car for years" can work wonders, as long as you don't have to actually
>mean
>it.
>
>Keep the faith, Bob. Give it another life.
>
>Barney Gaylord
>1958 MGA with an attitude (and maybe another 40 good years left in it)
>
>
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