Ever feel like owning a Corrado is like have a disease?

[EJ Taylor 22]

Bought nice tyres.

MY FAULT ENTIRELY.

dont fit.

whole car painted 2/3 years ago.

front arches rusted.

Bought Nice breaks.

Dont fit.

booked in for mot and find out why not cooling.

fans not kicking in.

Aux pump f ucked.

underneath rusted to sh it.

got it repaired all repaired.

booked in for diff and Meth.

originally one week.

head warped.

now might take a month.

head skimmed.

Head re-built.

all sorted. back together.

Fans not kicking in as they should.

they forgot to fit water pump.

now strip down again as charged and need to take various bits of to fit pump.

then back to other place to find out why fans not kicking in.

meant to be going on holiday next week.

now dont know if ill be able to go or not.

"unable to confirm a completion date" (cant argue with that they are doing there best)

I feel like my car is cursed? pushing me to my absolute limits.

Now im broke.

spent all money on car.

money meant for the holiday i was going on with the car.

why?

What?

HOW, can you spend so much time and effort on something and its still a untrustworthy cursed money and sole and life eating pit of doom.

Words fail me.

Sometimes it makes me feel like i could cry.

Corrado life.

 

 

JUST ME?

[Jim 1]

Yep.

[MZpog 10]

The only cure being driving one.

[seanl82 23]

I'm sorry EJ, I know its different being on the other side but I did have a little chuckle at that. The holiday thing is obviously not funny, but the rest of it and how you've written it made me laugh. :bonk:

 

Chin up mate, you could have a stress free life but drive a Focus and be like the majority of the wet farts who lives to work rather than work to live. You get masses of enjoyment out of it MOST of the time, but remember its just a hobby so don't get too disheartened. It'll come good eventually.

[EJ Taylor 22]

Yep.

 

Then you see a for sale thread written by an "enthusiast" who's owned nothing but Vauxhalls his entire life and owned this, his only corrado for a total of 4 weeks. YOU HAVE NO IDEA!

 

The only cure being driving one.

 

You get masses of enjoyment out of it MOST of the time, but remember its just a hobby so don't get too disheartened. It'll come good eventually.

 

AGREED! but when its been of the road since the back end of 2015 you kind of start to loose that corrado influenced love.

 

And yes, im glad you laughed, its a laugh or cry situation. As most situations seem to be that involve or revolve around that God forsaken word (Corrado)

 

Should of been called a Corradon't.

[easypops 8]

I have the illness real bad, I will never count up what I've spent :lol:

[mic_VR 3]

Sell it then.

 

But is it the Corrado? Or is it your nature to be the kind of person who (maybe not all the time - see above) generally enjoys tinkering with/modifying cars and to be honest no matter what you drove you're likely to be taking it to pieces?

 

I know, me personally, like having something I can still spanner on. And even if I did sell the Corrado I'd still be trying to work on whatever I replaced it with. IMO

[seanl82 23]

Sell it then.

 

But is it the Corrado? Or is it your nature to be the kind of person who (maybe not all the time - see above) generally enjoys tinkering with/modifying cars and to be honest no matter what you drove you're likely to be taking it to pieces?

 

I know, me personally, like having something I can still spanner on. And even if I did sell the Corrado I'd still be trying to work on whatever I replaced it with. IMO

 

THIS!!!!

 

I must admit I've thought about selling over the last few months, but know it'll just be for something else to tinker with. Who knows what sort of money pit that could end up as, knowing mine has at least been very reliable - even if I have still spent a small fortune on it!

[EJ Taylor 22]

Sell it then.

 

But is it the Corrado? Or is it your nature to be the kind of person who (maybe not all the time - see above) generally enjoys tinkering with/modifying cars and to be honest no matter what you drove you're likely to be taking it to pieces?

 

I know, me personally, like having something I can still spanner on. And even if I did sell the Corrado I'd still be trying to work on whatever I replaced it with. IMO

 

THIS!!!!

 

I must admit I've thought about selling over the last few months, but know it'll just be for something else to tinker with. Who knows what sort of money pit that could end up as, knowing mine has at least been very reliable - even if I have still spent a small fortune on it!

 

Lucky my misses is as laid back as she is. Meant to be saving for a house and about half way. Ive easily spent a mortgage deposits worth. And for someone living in oxford. thats a statement haha.

 

Thats what kills it, i could be up in my own place with my lady for all the fecking money ive burned into that w ank sock of a car.

 

Had a "I GIVE UP, ITS HOPELESS, IM SELLING IT, WE CAN USE THE MONEY TO COMPLETE OUR MORTGAGE AND GET OUR HOUSE"

 

she wasnt having any of it.

 

But still, it kills you to total it up. People say "oh what you spent on that now" YOU DONT WANT TO F UCKING KNOW MARGRET. STAY OUT OF MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!! :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Jim 1]

For what it's worth I'm stuck in a similar situation with mine. Coming to the crashing realisation it'll never be the car I want it to be, and am pretty close to just getting shot of it.. but it's problematic for various reasons. Not worth very much, and only 500 miles into a 3,000 mile engine running in process - can't just get shot of it only for the new owner to want to rag it around a bit thus completely invalidating any warranty they might have with Stealth in the event something bad happens to the engine. So at the very least I need to keep it for a year, and run it in before I get rid of it :(

 

But in the mean time just splashed out on new suspension, and there's a multitude of other little gremlins I want to try and resolve. I find it hard to 'enjoy' it with the problems I'm aware of, but don't want to spend money any more on it... ARGGGHH...

[mic_VR 3]

THIS!!!!

 

I must admit I've thought about selling over the last few months, but know it'll just be for something else to tinker with. Who knows what sort of money pit that could end up as, knowing mine has at least been very reliable - even if I have still spent a small fortune on it!

 

I've had this thought on many occasions, but I've never come up with a suitable replacement... so it now sits in the garage and I stop thinking about it until the sun comes out! :lol:

 

EJ, buying a house makes running a Corrado seem cheap believe me. You're very lucky if the missus is still happy for you to spend money on your hobby. I remember a complete financial lock down whilst the wife and I saved for our first house. Worth it though in hindsight

[EJ Taylor 22]

I've had this thought on many occasions, but I've never come up with a suitable replacement... so it now sits in the garage and I stop thinking about it until the sun comes out! :lol:

 

EJ, buying a house makes running a Corrado seem cheap believe me. You're very lucky if the missus is still happy for you to spend money on your hobby. I remember a complete financial lock down whilst the wife and I saved for our first house. Worth it though in hindsight

 

That was the reason behind all this expenditure, the last hora if you will, get it all sorted to a good level, then its lock down and save, buts its just gone from one to to the other. Where do you draw the line. I could still think of about another 10ks worth of **** to do. its never ending. But this is it for a long time, get it going and running wel. then just enjoy it.

IN THEORY.

[mic_VR 3]

I'm not the person to talk to about where to draw the line..... I'm not sure there is one!

 

Good attitude though. Get it running and enjoy. Leave it be for a while and hopefully it'll be good as good for you.

[EJ Taylor 22]

I'm not the person to talk to about where to draw the line..... I'm not sure there is one!

 

Good attitude though. Get it running and enjoy. Leave it be for a while and hopefully it'll be good as good for you.

 

Plan is to do more track days and enjoy the car for what ive built it for, driving.

 

Less ponsing in show rooms and fields/ car parks, more driving and thrills, although this often comes paired with expenses, WE SHALL SEE

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I had the 'Corrado plague' for 9 years and spent ridiculous sums on it!

 

As Mic says, it's in our nature to tinker, otherwise we'd all be signing on the dotted line for a leased Audi A3 wouldn't we?

 

It does change as you get older and life circumstances intervene though. When I had the Corrado, if I heard a strange noise on the way to work, I'd be on it immediately when I got home. In the GTI, I just think to myself "Yeah I'll wait for what ever is making that noise to break first and then I'll fix it". So don't worry, the cure for the disease comes in the form of old age, marriage, houses and babies......not that I have indulged in the latter 3, or ever likely to :D

[robrado974 1]

I know where your coming from ,believe me I do and so do countless others on the forum .I know I should count myself lucky for having a driveway at least , but not having a garage makes it hard to do any work . In the summer time I don't want my car in bits , it's a waste . In the winter your battling with the rain and cold . But having a classic or up and coming classic comes with all the bad as well as the good . I spend 2.5k on a respray 6 years ago ,I now have little rust bubbles on the roof and two on the back of the car I'm gutted . I'm the sort of person that looks at my car and thinks of all the things that need doing and I can't because of money problems . I suppose when you look at it in truth , most of us can't really afford to maintain and run a classic / fun car , but you struggle through . If mine was in a garage I would do the work as and when I could , out of sight out of mind !.ive seriously thought of selling over the past few months . We have the engine rebuild on the crock of s??t TSI to sought out , I would miss it terribly but sometimes it's needs must .

Edited July 25, 2016 by robrado974

[Cressa 43]

Well I'm glad it's not just me that ever feels this way.

Paying daft money for a car with no MOT, throwing money constantly at it and is less driveable now.

So, I feel everyone's pain in wanting to GET RID ... I'm probably fortunate I can shut the garage door and ignore the damage I did to a freshly painted rear bumper.

After over a year I've still not been able to drive it on a road.

Hang in there,

Or is it the:-

'Curse of a Corrado'

 

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

[Mystic Blue VR 10]

That's the thing with Corrado's, they're never finished! As they are old cars now there is always something to replace/fix. I'm sure it's the same with most twenty odd year old cars.

[1xshaunx1 27]

The best thing is when you've fixed things and cleaned rust up etc, 5 years later you need to start over again. As time just keeps on coming

[slashcann100 10]

Here here, mine spends more time broke than it does going to morrisons on a sunday, i get to morrisons quicker than anyone else though

[Erallus 10]

EJ, buying a house makes running a Corrado seem cheap believe me. You're very lucky if the missus is still happy for you to spend money on your hobby. I remember a complete financial lock down whilst the wife and I saved for our first house. Worth it though in hindsight

 

^^ This - I've bought a house last year, and I've not spent a thing on my Corrado for two years. Its sat for a year untouched. So I know its gonna kill me when I try to get it back on the road (looking like next summer now)

 

What you end up spending on a house dwarfs it. I've thought about selling, but then I end up looking for something else, nothing quite fits the bill.

 

Your lucky your misses lets you, as others have said, she at least understands. Think mine would have gone nuts

[mic_VR 3]

Currently putting an extension on my house, could've purchased many many corrado's for the cost....

 

... And as an added bonus, all the building materials in front of the garage has meant I've not been near Mincy, which has improved my mood towards the car no end! :lol:

[Riley 0]

I've come to the conclusion that Corrado's are a sh|t car. IMO of course.

[EJ Taylor 22]

Im glad i spoke to you all about it, i knew you guys would all share my pain one way or another.

 

Made me feel allot better about the situation reading all your similar stories and patients/Corrado loyalty testing issues. Sometime these car just have you emotionally exhausted, you commit your lifes earnings to something, for it to be sat in your garage since Sept/Oct last year, people who have spent less than 10% of that on something cherpy and fun have been going to every show and meet and track day and enjoying their car no end. Made you feel like shooting yourself. Ive missed so much this year already, cant help but feel like if i threw in the towel 2/3 years ago and had a financed and/or modern car i would be out there loving it every weekend.

 

So to my original point,

 

Dictionary definition,

 

Disease:

 

"a disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, especially one that produces specific symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury."

 

"a particular quality or disposition regarded as adversely affecting a person or group of people."

 

I guess the penultimate conclusion and answer to my original question with all the prior responses in mind is, YES. It is a disease.

 

-Its definitely a result of a disorder of structure one way or another.

-as far as specific symptoms go, you spend half your life trying to establish what each symptom could mean, or what it could be. Diagnosis becomes a daily part of life.

-It certainly affects individuals and, as proven, entire communities.

-We all transmitted it against our will, seeing one and being lured in by its charm.

-We all wish we could get rid of it, but for most of us we dont know how to go about such termination.

-Our family and friends have had to accept what we have, and how its affected us.

-It can be strenuous on you and your loved ones.

-We have all had to make sacrifices and life changes in order to still be here.

 

I wonder if there are similar agonies shared by other late 80's early 90's coupes,

 

Cant imagine what it would be like trying to maintain a Calibre or Celica, at least the Corrado's nice to look at, even with steam coming out the top, or a puddle underneath, or one window stuck down, or a wing that's fallen off etc etc.....

[Jim 1]

It certainly can feel like an illness, EJ. It's like you don't want the car any more, but you can think of reasons why you need to keep it - and whilst it's in your ownership you feel obliged to spend money and time on it. If it's any consolation I am sure there are owners of other marques who suffer from the same insanity, and that it's not just Corrado owners :)

 

At the end of the day, you're still young - can you chalk this up to experience, and vow never to make the same mistake again. I know once I'm done with the Corrado, there won't be another "tinkering" car, or even a car as old as this. Or.. it if is, it'll be something where the money I throw into it actually helps towards the value, like an actual appreciating classic. Seriously I spent 4k on buying my car 6 years ago, and have now spent in the region of 10-12k in the last few years - and I'd be amazed if it sold for 2k today.

 

Money. Pit.