This forum is very quiet these days. Why?

[Walter K]

I have not been active lately. It's summer here (only comes once a year here, and if you sleep in, you might miss it! ; ) ). Once the weather turns I will have more time to get back to working on the cars.

I have noticed that other forums I am on have been slow. I also suspect that the combination of things like the election year, summer, time squeezes, and tight money are having an effect. I also have a small Lombardini and Kubota that I am working on that fit the garden equipment.

Regards,

W.

[Quahog]

in addition to f'ing up classic mercedes in my spare time, my latest build, a custom Tripp 62 cruiser/racer leaves the dock next week. working directly with a dozen or so other guys, we have crafted this one-off beauty from carbon fiber with all the bells and whistles one could ask for. glad to see it go and wish the captain and crew the best of luck in the coming seasons.

[Stretch]

Originally Posted by Quahog

in addition to f'ing up classic mercedes in my spare time, my latest build, a custom Tripp 62 cruiser/racer leaves the dock next week. working directly with a dozen or so other guys, we have crafted this one-off beauty from carbon fiber with all the bells and whistles one could ask for. glad to see it go and wish the captain and crew the best of luck in the coming seasons.

Well that looks nice

[otto huber]

I've had a handful of problems these last 6 months and I'm grateful to all those who quickly respond with helpful information. It seems like I can get a reasonable suggestion within 6 to 12 hours.

As much as I enjoy driving my SD, I think that I'm near the end of my rope with the car and old MBs in general because of my tendonitis that doesn't heal as quickly as it used to. I make my living as a musician, and I'm at the age where I need to be careful not to put too much stress on my hands. I can't afford air wrenches and other top notch tools, so I'm thinking of selling the SD while it still looks and runs well and getting a Toyota/Lexus.

[t walgamuth]

Originally Posted by Quahog

in addition to f'ing up classic mercedes in my spare time, my latest build, a custom Tripp 62 cruiser/racer leaves the dock next week. working directly with a dozen or so other guys, we have crafted this one-off beauty from carbon fiber with all the bells and whistles one could ask for. glad to see it go and wish the captain and crew the best of luck in the coming seasons.

Very cool looking boat! (Or is it properly called a ship?)

I never met BC in person but did sell him my 91 350SD.

[Graham]

Originally Posted by Quahog

in addition to f'ing up classic mercedes in my spare time, my latest build, a custom Tripp 62 cruiser/racer leaves the dock next week. working directly with a dozen or so other guys, we have crafted this one-off beauty from carbon fiber with all the bells and whistles one could ask for. glad to see it go and wish the captain and crew the best of luck in the coming seasons.

Looks like an all-out ocean racer, but then - "teak" decks and in-boom furling? Then I read on Tripp's site that the owner will use it as a day sailer! Quite the day sailer

[Quahog]

it will be primarily a raceboat, the cruising interior gets him a more favorable rating.
the lifting keel will allow him to cruise shallower water at the expense of weight & complexity.
air conditioning is a nice feature as well

[97 SL320]

Some thoughts:

In the old days, there was not much info on the net so a mailing list was about the only way to get info. ( this is where one would send subscribe using e mail then when you send a message, it gets sent to others on the list. Think of it as a proto Twitter. )

Next came message boards where the postings were on a site and U tube was getting popular.

Now, if someone needs information, they can just do a web search rather then posting a question to others.

The cars in question are shrinking in numbers along with those willing to keep them going. There is a golden age where the cars are cheap, not too worn out and salvage yards pretty populated. Eventually the population of cars settles out into total junkers or pristine museum pieces as many of the daily drivers have been used up.

[ykobayashi]

Originally Posted by 97 SL320

Some thoughts:

Now, if someone needs information, they can just do a web search rather then posting a question to others.

.

This is an astute observation. We always say "use the search feature". What you're saying is people are doing just that.

I notice the activity on a dirtbike forum and a sustainable lifestyle forum I post on has way less activity this year. Not sure why. The reasons here are just as good as any others.

I've been at this ten years and I am feeling a little old to be crawling under my car all the time. At some point I know my hobby will have to end and I'll be driving something boring and conventional.

Maybe it's the price of diesel? I used to do the WVO thing but I moved and lost my equipment and supplier. With the low price of D2 there's no reason for me to rebuild my filter. Maybe we lost a bunch of alternative fuel folks?

There seemed to be a rage a few years ago where everyone was buying up a w123 diesel and finding out it was more than they'd bargained for. I saw many people around me give up on their cars after they realized they couldn't afford them without mechanical skills.

[disqo]

I bought in during the mid-2000s chasing a veggie oil dream that I quickly realized was more trouble than it was worth. Sometimes I get fed up with the constant wrenching, but I test drove a new wrangler the other day and I came away preferring my car + wrenching over a car payment. I am finally installing the Sanden A/C kit I bought two years ago and I think functional A/C will get me by for at least a few more years. I made the mistake of picking up a Ducati sport bike and then a second and now I spend a ton of my time on the Ducati forums and wrenching on bikes. I also have a couple of kids that didn't exist when I started down the path to diesel enlightenment. Not a bad way to pass the time... .


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[97 SL320]

Originally Posted by ykobayashi

This is an astute observation. We always say "use the search feature". What you're saying is people are doing just that.

Thanks

I've been on a few mailing lists / forums since the early 90's as my interests and need for information changes. Hopefully new faces have filled the spots I had vacated.

Originally Posted by ykobayashi

Maybe it's the price of diesel? I used to do the WVO thing but I moved and lost my equipment and supplier. With the low price of D2 there's no reason for me to rebuild my filter. Maybe we lost a bunch of alternative fuel folks?

There seemed to be a rage a few years ago where everyone was buying up a w123 diesel and finding out it was more than they'd bargained for. I saw many people around me give up on their cars after they realized they couldn't afford them without mechanical skills.

An astute observation on your end.

I view the alt fuel / electric car thing an experiment / something interesting to try but probably not a money saver in the long run once all the time invested is taken into account. ( at least in the US where fuel is cheap )

Now is probably a good time to get into the alt fuel experiment by buying someone's equipment at a discount. It's like stocks, buy when the market is down because at that point, everything is on sale. Don't buy when things are flying high as the market is bound to drop at some point.

[Junkman]

I also am considering getting rid of some projects. I remember a time when I drove an MGB and didn't mind the frequency with which it broke even when new. Now, I'm too still cheap to pay someone to wrench (and frequently do a poor job). I also don't want to crawl around in the dirt and haven't gotten much done on the older stuff this summer.

I did buy a 12 VW TDI with only 60,000 mi on the clock and lucked out because VW is going to buy it back for more than I paid. Unfortunately, I like the car and would keep it for a while.

[VW1300]

I've been working more lately and reading the internets less. My '97 has been running pretty well lately so I have not been motivated to read the forum every day. Having said that, I'm overdue for something to happen, so you will probably see a post from me this fall.

[VW1300]

Originally Posted by Junkman

I also am considering getting rid of some projects. I remember a time when I drove an MGB and didn't mind the frequency with which it broke even when new. Now, I'm too still cheap to pay someone to wrench (and frequently do a poor job). I also don't want to crawl around in the dirt and haven't gotten much done on the older stuff this summer.

I did buy a 12 VW TDI with only 60,000 mi on the clock and lucked out because VW is going to buy it back for more than I paid. Unfortunately, I like the car and would keep it for a while.

Do you have to sell it back or do you have the option to keep it?

[Junkman]

Originally Posted by VW1300

Do you have to sell it back or do you have the option to keep it?

I think I get a minimum of $5,100 and have the option of keeping it or selling it back. The sell back is at 12/2015 NADA retail adjusted for mileage. One of my friends talked to a consultant to the auto industry. Scuttlebutt says cars with manual transmissions are likely to see little degradation in performance, autos may see a significant change.

I bought the car knowing there was an issue and that my purchase timing would qualify me to receive whatever restitution VW was paying. Also, I couldn't find anyone that didn't like the car. So far I've gotten $500 in dealer dollars and $500 in a Visa. I'm thinking that I'll take the buy out then buy back whatever I want. Used TDIs should be plentiful in dealer show rooms if I want to go that way.

I may go for something completely different perhaps a low mileage gasser. We mainly use this car for long trips and sourcing diesel quickly when on the road has taken more effort than just pulling up to the more plentiful and cheaper gas pumps. Gas is significantly cheaper when fuel prices are high. That was reversed when I started messing with diesel. I haven't had a vehicle with less than 60,000 mi on the clock is years and years. It may be nice to only have minimum maintenance for a change - on at least 1 car.