Losing the love..?

[Jim 1]

I'm worried it's started to happen to me. After many years of ownership and with several Corrado's under my belt, now I own the "one I always wanted" I feel like I've started to lose interest.

 

Maybe it's just been the long winter, and not going to any meets or shows for ages.. or the fact that I have to store the Corrado in a place where I have no power or water, and have no facilities for cleaning the car at home either (making upkeep a pain in the arse), and that it's on a limited mileage policy which I've already reached 6 months into the policy and which means I'm going to have to ring around and stump up more money to change policies.

 

But ever since getting the daily driver and enjoying the convenience, having to do anything with the VR has just started to feel like a chore. And now I'm starting to get worried about how the engine is sounding these days and am mildly worried there may be some big bills in my future. And I've never really been into doing mechanical work on my own car mostly down to lack of confidence. I had been saving money to get the VR repainted.. but that's fallen by the wayside too now :|

 

I just feel like I can't be bothered with it any more! :|

 

Have I just grown out of my Corrado interest? Help! :|

[VAG-hag 0]

Jim,

 

It sounds like we are in the same boat re: Storage, Ltd mileage, Lack of cleaning area at home, long winters with no C etc etc. I have felt the same a few times but then after having a good run the bug returns!!

 

I too have been saving for paint for years, collecting new parts to go on etc & now its happening! Im now working on the car most weeks & loving it even though it is: a) costing a lot despite not even being driven and b) a bit daunting that it is in so many pieces & the end result is a good way off!

 

Wait a few more weeks, pick a nice sunny day & enjoy. Doubts will dissapear quicker than the cobwebs out of the exhaust!

 

RE insurance; bit of a learning curve that one.... mine varies from a few hundred PA to thousands (like when touring europe etc...)

 

Running 2 cars is expensive...... selling a nice car that you "always wanted" may prove to be more so in the long run.

[coullstar 0]

How often do you use it? I had pretty much lost interest in using mine when I had the Scirocco but as Im using mine every other week for commuting I have regained the interest. Not to the same extent that I used to but not to the point where I would sell the car.

[Jim 1]

I just feel like I want one GOOD car. Something not terrible on fuel, not too old that it falls apart, but with a bit of poke. I think it's the inconvenience of having to drive a few miles to my lock up to dig out the good car, having to keep on top of keeping it clean after I've used it..

 

I guess the winter weather hasn't helped and going into the summer I think I'll be more inclined to fill some bottles of water and head over for a bit of time cleaning the car on an evening!

 

How often do you use it?

 

Every couple of weeks I go dig it out and use it for a bit. Problem is my commute is so short (few miles) I'm worried that I'm just killing the engine off every time I use it.

 

And as I say, I get unpleasant knocking out of the engine now from cold.. I'm dropping it in to DG Autotech in a few weeks for them to have a listen as it's starting to make me think there are imminent problems with the bottom end.

 

I guess the main beef is insurance.. if I could just get both cars onto one easy policy where it didn't matter which one I used for which purpose (commuting, whatever) it'd be a start! Need to do some shopping around I guess.

[emu 0]

Sam thing for long time now, never thought I will enjoy driving TDI as a daily and Corrado was started for the first time last Sunday after 6 months hibernation. Classic insurance, limited mileage but you always can use 2 different clocks :)

 

Full storage of parts to rebuild it, huge bill burning my pocket, you fix something before putting it to storage over the winter to find out it won't work when you take it out for the first time.

 

Not driving it every day as you use to do as TDI uses only quarter of petrol to do same distance.

[Jim 1]

Bingo. The Fiat may be slow but honestly after years of driving a retro car which needed bi-weekly trips to fix something or other, just getting into a car and driving it every day and needing to do NOTHING to it other than put petrol in is a revelation! I haven't missed the Corrado at all :|

[corradophil 3]

Am I mistaken or didn't you sell up and buy a sensible newish car a few years ago? A Mk4 Golf diesel IIRC, you ended up getting another Corrado after that.

 

I sold my Corrado and bought a Mk4 GTI and ended up at Stage 2 spec ~ 230bhp, but it still could not replace a Corrado, and in the end I was lucky enough to buy mine back.

 

I think short term you would be happy with selling up and being rid of the hassle, but give it a year or so and you'd start looking at Corrados in the for sale section.

[Jim 1]

I did run a Golf for a while yeah.. that didn't really have much in the way of performance though so didn't scratch that itch. And wasn't that new so still broke a fair bit :)

[Abdul 0]

Bingo. The Fiat may be slow but honestly after years of driving a retro car which needed bi-weekly trips to fix something or other, just getting into a car and driving it every day and needing to do NOTHING to it other than put petrol in is a revelation! I haven't missed the Corrado at all :|

 

Hi Jim

 

I was the same when I bought my clk, awesome car for the money and took a good beating without complaining once but I sorely missed having a corrado in the drive.

 

Even now, I hardly drive mine, maybe about 30 miles a week on average but I like knowing its there and I love tinkering with it. I have to say untill we begun to get a few sunny days recently I was beginning to think maybe rados aren't for me anymore as the love was fading fast despite owning it for a short period of time. Once the sun came out and I took the rado for a solid drive all was solved lol.

 

Having said the above if my rado was parked else where with no facilities and I used it once ever few weeks I'd sell it to be honest. Put the money from both cars together and buy a good all rounder then buy a rado in a few years or something when the situation suits better.

[Tempest 0]

Have to admit the winter months do do a lot of damage to Rado-love. Noticing it myself at the moment: My Rado just sits in its garage waiting to be retaxed beginning of May, whilst the 928 is keeping me amused, and not really lusting for the Rado at the moment, so to speak. The Mk1 oddly enough is a different affair. Couldn't wait to reatx that, which was conveniently early this year, with the Mk1 to go onto the SciroccoRegister stand at UD. Stupid grin on face all the way to UD and back again.

 

I am hoping the same will be true with my Rado, when I retax.

 

I am, however, holding on to the Rado, because I know I will regret having sold my Rado if I did sell. Seeing some Cs at UD did re-ignite the fire, too. So I'm currently working to the premise of keeping the Rado locked away, and not sell, the love will increase all by itself :)

 

I'd suggest the same may work for you: Keep your C, the itch will return, may take a bit longer maybe, but once it has returned, won't it be nice to know that you can actually enjoy a Rado there and then?

 

Tempest

[robrado974 1]

I have been the same way of thinking for a while Jim . My ins is due ,i have not got the dough to pay for it , the tax is due as well . I sold my transit van and bought a t4 , i love driving this around and have not missed the c at all.Have been talking to matt about it . She justs sits in the garage ,but i cant bring myself to sell. I know that if i did let her go ,i would never have a spare 5k to by another .

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I haven't missed the Corrado at all :|

 

Get rid of it then :D

[C5 OEM 0]

I`d love to store mine for a few years and forget about it.. or just burn the fcuking thing,,,lol

[Jim 1]

Get rid of it then :D

 

:)

[CazzaVR 0]

Been through this a couple of times :lol: The winter months are a bit of a downer + if mine was in a lockup, away from home, it would have a hugely negative effect on my thinking. Also, as you say, lack of shows etc doesn't help.

 

Work out what you could get if you sold both cars. See what's out there- is there anything as good for the money? Will it scratch the itch and continue to do so for years? TBH, I can't think of much (unless you spend loads!) that would do the job. At the end of the day, the Corrado IS special.

[KIPVW 0]

Stop being such a big fecking baby Jim, you know full well you'd be annoyed a few months after selling it, remember toads BBQ you said about great cars and great friends and all that.

 

It will return I for one can vouch that from my own experience, I had a fair pot of money put aside to finally fit the brand new vag suspension thats been under our bed for two years :lol: this year but due to being off work with minimum salary that money is now going to have to substitute my wage, believe me this is depressing news for me but i'll be back and it will get done at some point.

 

So many people go through this at this time of year and it's less than a month til Elsecar now so start buffing ;)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Stop being such a big fecking baby Jim, you know full well you'd be annoyed a few months after selling it, remember toads BBQ you said about great cars and great friends and all that.

 

:lol:

 

Jim's just getting old before his time :D For Christ sake the man prefers his boutique fashion handbag on [tiny] wheels over his 90s classic coupe mate, there's no helping him. And he clearly DOESN'T want to get rid of it, otherwise he'd have done it already :lol:

[Jim 1]

:lol:

 

Jim's just getting old before his time :D For Christ sake the man prefers his boutique fashion handbag on [tiny] wheels over his 90s classic coupe mate, there's no helping him. And he clearly DOESN'T want to get rid of it, otherwise he'd have done it already :lol:

 

Tis a great little car mate! The stereo is excellent and the hands free bluetooth which is voice activated "CALL CHEESEWIRE" is awesome technology! :) And it costs £40 to brim from when it's running on fumes..

[Kevin Bacon 5]

£40 to fill?!? Jesus. What's that, 8 gallons?

 

Well my missus (well, ex missus now as it happens) chopped her Polo GTI in for a Fiat 500 in that Magnolia colour, and the 0.9 litre Twin air engine. It's quite a different beast. The polo engine sounded wicked at idle and used to shake the porch doors, but the Fiat engine just sounds like it needs oil in it. A very nasty and tinny clattering noise. It's very her though and she loves it, bless her :D

[poll250 0]

I must admit, I think I loved my car a lot more when there was a stack of thing's left to fix on it. I think some of the best times have been spent laying underneath it with bruised knuckles!

[DriverVR6 11]

Jim, totally understand how you feel, however, DON'T SELL THE C!!

I've had mine for 12years, and in that time I've only done 30k ish in it. When I do drive it in the summer it's great and I enjoy every minute in the car. I remember I got rid of my mk 1 Escort RS2000 a few years ago, and I have deeply regretted doing so, so I won't be making the same mistake again. As you know, I'm buying one of your old C's in a few days time.

Unfortunately, we live in a country which has successive car unfriendly governments, so we pay high fuel, insurance, road tax etc, so that the scumbag politicians can claim their fiddled expenses.....DON'T LET THE SCUMBAGS WIN, and keep motoring in the C!! We should all drive down to London in our C's convoy style and protest outside Parliament about the cost of motoring!

[jamiehamy 0]

I didn't get fed up of my Corrado, just got a new job and saw something I really fancied. So after 5months and 16k miles in a lovely '99 S4 2.7 Twin turbo, that is faster, more economical, has more grip, arguably handles better, bigger and safer I'm hankering for the Corrado again.

 

The S4 is technically perfect, but has no soul. So, all things going to plan, the Rado is being unretired for a bit soon.

 

I'd put money that if you sold the Rado Jim, within a week you'd think 'Wish I hudnae done that' :)

[Jim 1]

Cheers all.

 

I guess I'll be hanging onto the Corrado for now. It's a different feeling from other times though. Previously when I got rid of the Corrado's it'd been because of practicality or expense or whatever, never because I just felt like I'd had enough.. but it does feel a bit that way.

 

On the plus side had a chufty as I left the office with a work colleague asking me about the car, nosing around it, and chatting for about five minutes - and that always helps.

 

Booked in for a trip to see Graham @ DG next week too... been a while since I went there and opened my wallet so maybe the nostalgic feeling will help rekindle the interest.. lol! :)

[Stonejag 10]

Not just you, I've been getting hacked off with it too - doesn't help that every time I get in something else breaks!

 

This winter it's been:

- door handle broken, AGAIN

- passenger seat now won't fold

- sunroof got worse

- dodgy garage broke my aux pump mountings, hose clips, engine plastics, ignition cables and lost some of the bolts

- water pump failed

- passenger window stopped working

- roof trim perished

- coilpack cracked

- battery wiring fell apart

Now all the hoses are leaking and need replaced which means fitting an external gearbox cooler! Oh, and my fan controller might have died. Which isn't helping my respray plans...

 

I think you just have to grin and bear it at times - I just think of how awesome it's going to be when I've sorted the latest crop of near-disasters :) Having the odd chufty does help though...

 

Stone

[shaunVR6 0]

Jim i felt the same a few months back, but as everyone has sed now the weather has changed and ive started to tinker on it fells rite again hope you keep it mate