Well how can I say this.... even just a short couple of minutes after making my reply to Erics thread I am convinced that I've hit the end of the road.
I've finally after a long period of unemployment found a new job. Prospects are looking good for quick advancement and thats got me eager to find a new ride. While I'll not bore you with ideas I will say that a different forum will house all of my new questions.
I've known for a while that I can't drive this car for much longer. Even knowing it inside out and backwards I just don't feal the need or have the desire to replace the remaining parts required to keep it as a daily.
Even with the new engine I've got, I've hit a brick wall. Required parts to reassemble are costly, much more than the car is really worth.
I'm not getting rid of it anytime soon as I will need time to take care of all the acumilated bills from unemployment before I can dive into something else.
But you will be seeing alot less of me around here as I will be at work alot and at school and when I do have free time...... I just am not fealing the Cougar like I once was.
Farewell
.
So uh, are you still coming to Carlisle?
Ah, Fartsicles. Still up for coming up here sometime?
Claude...if you'd have started with a V8 car to begin with...you wouldn't be having this conversation with yourself. ;)
Don't beat yourself up over it. Remember, these are not Mustangs. Ford didn't hand us cars that were easy to soup up. That's what separates those of us on the board, from everyone else. You get out of it what you put into it. But when you put your heart and soul into it, and it doesn't give you that love back...
Is that what you're saying, or what?
Another brick in the wall of "Hay, why are you driving a 20 year old Thunderbird"? ;)
T'is a shame, but I guess you can't change the way a man feels. You know If i were you i wouldn't give up hope on these cars.. you just have to find one that stands out among the rest and it changes your total perspective on things.
And what about the steering wheel piece for poor little kingcars? :tg:
Man, I think that being away from the board for a few days has driven everyone mad. Is there such thing as a forum withdrawl rehab center? We could use one :D . Aw well, good luck to you on your future endeavors!
And the mirrors for poor little Cougars 2 go
and the $100 for poor lil me
I understand you completely. I'm at the point now where I don't want to sell my car because it'll disappoint the guys on the board. :p
No! Don't leave Claude! I'm telling you from experience, don't give up on your Cougar but just set it aside for a while. By doing this you can only make it better.
I was in your position. I was to the point I wanted my Cougar crushed, not sold, not junked, crushed and it even is a 5.0 so the idea that you feel this way because it's a 3.8 is rubbish. If I couldn't have it nobody would ;) Anyway, this was when I bought my new car Feb. last year.
Listen, your car is paid for, it's not costing much to keep (what, insurance and tags) so why can't you have your cake and eat it too. Buy yourself something new and reliable and slowly work on your Cougar. I'm telling you this is the best remedy. My relationship with my car has improved greatly since I've parked it and occasionally work on and drive it. Besides you have so much work into it already, it wouldn't make sense to give up now.
Wow this post makes me sound weird :wtf:
you be sad.. i still miss mine.
LOL I myself was just toying with the idea of buying a mark8 and selling my bird... I couldn't do it because of friends, family, and you guys here... everyone is just so use to seeing me with the tbird
Which ever you decide, most of the guys will be behind you. I am new so I can't say but it feels that way. Congrats on the new job, and just put it aside as everyone is saying, make it an affiar when you get your new car.
Dan
im not really sure whats going on here lately because ive been gone for a while but it seems every third or fourth thread sings of a fox owner with terminal boredom.
there is a wealth of knowledge base within this community and the hard work of others, the sweat and efforts of those who were curious enough to investigate "how does this work" made it easier for the newer folks.
It is amazing that we have come to a point where there is not one single piece part of our cars that we have not seen, touched or simply became aware of its existance and as with any other thing in life, at some point it will become boring. This is the ugly reality that i think some of us face and myself have to be very careful of the false alarm i feel as well.
Ive thought long and hard about the moments of excitement growing more far and few between and concluded that my mind is ony playing tricks on me. I started feeling a little board in the spring of 05 but after being gone for so long, i found myself having a well deserved beer in the quiet of the night standing next to a physical object which i swear emitted a personality. She and i have been together for the longest haul of any of my cougars and i still remember my first 84 coug i got in 86. I still urn for a burgandy coug but that is a relationship i will build if the moment and time arrives.
Its pretty clear to me that most of you have pretty much became a master of you own desire. This was your original goal wasnt it? To get to know your baby from bumper to bumper so nothing about her would be a mystery and keeping her heart beat in tune. What you all have done is shown follow through, perseverance and a willingness to share. All these qualities are traits of a dieing breed and they are not replacing us.
So where do you go from here? I happen to know that as a result of my sweat and hard work, i saw this coming. You have a new toy , you work it to death, you fix and revive it and at some point it becomes work. The attitued is the issue here and i have noticed that with the right intention, you will not be so board with your desire as you are now. My intent originally was to have a cougar as long as it did not rust in half and still be a daily driver. I have noticed that when i drive my cougar, its sort of like wearing a badge. Its my identity, i am associated wth it being with me and questioned when i am not. I am cornered by the general public and family when she is absent. It is almost like the universe conspires to join us at the hip. Its like a message in a bottle that says you are stuck together and you must accept it.
Aside from the hours of labor and getting to know my desire, i happen to be at a point where i realize those moments were stepping stones to where i am at now. I have concluded that the real desire was to build a relationship with a material thing that has become a part of our family and relative to my existance. It may sound wierd to some, but a car can develope a personality even if it is in our own mind. I know this is impossible but my playful and childish side has no limits and therefore it is possible that i feel a presence when we are together.
She and her life span have exceeded any manufacturing expectations and frame by frame, there are images of what has happended in the past as she carried my family and i through the years. She never complained about my tiny boys stuffing toys or food down in the seats. Never once has her complaint department filed on me because one of the boys took a dump in a diaper and stunk up the inside. There has been laughter, tears, joking and music, and a mind full of memories supplied to us while she has been in our family and carried us to safety.
I have decided that it is not the car or the mechanics of it all that makes this desire worth while but the relationship that sneaks into our life like the stray dog that ended up being your best friend.
The end result of your desire is simple. Drive her because you know you want to. Drive her and you say so many things without speaking a word. People know you are amazing and have no idea how you did all these things. Your peers wonder sometimes how in the world are you able to know so much about so many things. No matter if your desire hangs on by a thread or is in mint condition , we all share something way beyond nuts and bolts. DMV is still forced to keep alive this VIN and has a likeness to your own social security number. Both of you still remain in place moving forward and will not give in to change.
There is a song i think is suitable for the moment "my old yellow car" if anyone needs some motivation. Its a country song but tells a story. Song by Dwight Yospooge if i am correct.
PS,,,,,,,,I am so glad to be home,, been gone for too long now.
mmm, first of all, its good to have jcassity again, you have to tell us some stories when you were out of the Foxtown...welcome...
Second, maybe i understand Claude`s statement because when i wrecked my car, i didnt even want to see my car like that. And is pretty fixable and cheap (already got the fender at home ready to install) , but there was more than fixing the car the thing that stopped me to continue.......perhaps is the fact that i never can restore my loved car due the extensive rust in the firewall, trunk, fenders, doors, or because i cant fix the issue of the 15 mph max speed, but the problems in this car are the really way that i love my cougar. The others cars, lets see, the F-150 and the Explorer, both common trucks, equipped , fast and everything else, but these dont need my care, they simply do a work getting me from A to B point, and no more. And my car makes me smiling, even sometimes making me happy, driving the cougar on the streets with big buildings and windows at the stores only to see my car reflected and how good it looks, truly styling and no more....
I hope you dont leave us completely, at least do some drunken posts (very funny), or simply come here every now and then....
At least youre the first "known" man to swap a T-5 in the 3.8 V6, and youll be remembered for that.....
(And if all those speaking wont work, can i have your Cougar ?.....hehe, only kidding)
cooch.
man there is alot of this going around letaly....so whats it gonna be claud? you arent going over to the dark side are you?
Im with Claude on this one once i actually get into the union im going to Kemba for a loan, The cougar is either going into a lock and store or being sold if i sell it i will post it here first.
Well Claude is a Chevy guy at heart.... ;)
Will suck to see you go man...
so are you going to build a truck?
chevy sucks
Has he even been back to confirm or deny any of this? I'd say some of us are getting a little worked up over speculation that he MIGHT get a chevy truck, or a VW Golf, or God knows what...
ive been out of my cougar for 2 years or something like that and i drove that thing with pride everytime i allways got that look of what's that car. but since it's death i do miss the car probably even so sice it wasnt my fault and the car got twisted pretty good that night i hit that lady's truck. but anyway people still know me from that car. they say Erik with the cougar? and makes me sad everytime i hear that. but i did jump rite back into a fox. (mustang) but i belive owning a cougar first changes things and makes you not want to do the ugly things people do with foxbodies.
but if the car is gonna cost more than it's worth than hey do what you got to do .
doens't mean you have to leave, i don't own one right now, but this is still the best MB i have found. and I have been to alot. you guys are knowledgable, friendly, and have some darn good stories.
(i also love these cars, even if I don't have one)
i guess you don't need the horn button now? i got a cover out of the yard yesterday(the cougarhead),the button itself was trashed
When I started Sam's Fox T-Bird, Cougar and Mark VII page back in 1997 (later to become the Sam's Fox Thundercats) I didn't even own one, and my only previous experience with one was a zero option 1985 light sage green T-Bird, carbureted V6 engine, C5 tranny and all. When I sold that car in '94 it was several years before I got into another one, but the first one was the kindling for the fire that's burned in my heart ever since. It wasn't until I got my second Fox (a 1988 Cougar LS 5.0) in January 98 that I really got into these things in a big way. Then, when I wrecked that car in April '99 I was without a Fox for another year and a half, 'til I found my '87 Sport. Then I sold that and went another half year without one before buying my current '88. Although I have not always had a 'Bird or Coug, I have always loved 'em, hence the existence of Sam's Fox Thundercats and to a lesser extent this messageboard
You saved that car from a junkyard. Do us all a favor if you do get rid of it. make sure it gets a good home.
Remember the good times! Donuts behind BigLots, finding those T-bird seats, Autohole burnouts, TOWING THE CAR from the junkyard with my bird! 5-speed! luxury dammit!
The cure for your woes is speed! Take a ride in a fast car with a big motor and it will spark something new in your heart! Do whatever it takes to make you happy though.
I will have to park the bird to do what i want too with it. And the worse thing is i'll be driving a Mercury Mistique soon!!!!!!!!!! But i'll do it so the T-bird has a chance at a better faster life.
Remember speed without the suspension is dangerous. Your suspension is almost perfect, so you can start working on speed soon... Don't give up!