Me again... 19 Year old going for a Chim...
Discussion
Milky400 said:
Why are you driving to work? 2 miles is an easy cycle, or when weather is bad a good walk with a brolly. As said above the car will soon be dead if you're only driving I that short distance, even your 8 mile trek isn't good. Get a bike, and wait a couple of years then think again.
At 19 years old, don't waste every penny you have on a car, been there and done that and i do regret it somewhat. Admit it as a good few years ago but just my opinion
Whatever you choose to do, enjoy it, I have recently discovered how short life can be.....
I would cycle, but I just would not feel safe doing so, 70% of my route is a windy, rather narrow National speed limit road with no foot paths what so ever, I have lost count the amount of times I have seen cyclists nearly being knocked off as there not seen till the last second around corners. Also a lot of tractors and horses.. D:At 19 years old, don't waste every penny you have on a car, been there and done that and i do regret it somewhat. Admit it as a good few years ago but just my opinion
Whatever you choose to do, enjoy it, I have recently discovered how short life can be.....
Sorry, fella, but I agree. A 2 mile daily commute will do so much damage. Not just to the plugs etc, but to all sorts of engine components. Also, if your commute is a lot of stop/start in traffic you will soon come to hate the Chimaera clutch. It is a lot heavier than the one in your Saab.
And the comments about maintenance costs are true too - I spend far far more maintaining my Chimaera per mile than the Saab or my diesel Audi. Audi gets one service every 20,000 miles and new tyres every 30,000. Only cost on the Saab, which isn't used as much, has been a new battery.
Chimaera needs something almost every month. It's not unreliable, but at 15 years old and a performance car, it just has regular niggles. Last week it was a split drive shaft boot, a small oil leak, new front brake disks and pads, 6000 mile service. Next week it will be back in to find a squeak from the rear, a rattle from the front, change the other two drive shaft boots, and get the screen washers working again.
And the comments about maintenance costs are true too - I spend far far more maintaining my Chimaera per mile than the Saab or my diesel Audi. Audi gets one service every 20,000 miles and new tyres every 30,000. Only cost on the Saab, which isn't used as much, has been a new battery.
Chimaera needs something almost every month. It's not unreliable, but at 15 years old and a performance car, it just has regular niggles. Last week it was a split drive shaft boot, a small oil leak, new front brake disks and pads, 6000 mile service. Next week it will be back in to find a squeak from the rear, a rattle from the front, change the other two drive shaft boots, and get the screen washers working again.
MC00K said:
I would cycle, but I just would not feel safe doing so, 70% of my route is a windy, rather narrow National speed limit road with no foot paths what so ever, I have lost count the amount of times I have seen cyclists nearly being knocked off as there not seen till the last second around corners. Also a lot of tractors and horses.. D:
In that case I'd keep the Saab for commuting and not risk the nice sportcar on my daily commute, either. Being a single fibreglass shell rather than detachable panels on a frame, any decent impact would result in a write-off or nearly write-off the car and leave you without transport for several months... You'd probably grow to hate it on such a short commute, anyway - cold running, ventilation, creaks and groans on a cold car definitely not a strong suit of the TVR.
I think you are insane, admirable, but insane. Presumably you would have to fit a black box to the Chimaera in addition to forking out over £2000?
That's like caging a wild cat.
I couldn't justify that insurance outlay for a Chimaera, regardless of how old you are - they're good cars but they're no Ferrari..
Good luck if you go through with it.
That's like caging a wild cat.
I couldn't justify that insurance outlay for a Chimaera, regardless of how old you are - they're good cars but they're no Ferrari..
Good luck if you go through with it.
ackbullchang said:
This won't help, but if you've got a few k burning a hole, sack off work for a year and go travelling. Best thing that you can do at your age(assuming that you like women, beer, parties and different cultures!).
Leave the TIV for a few years, or use for track only.
He's right, because you won't do it when you're 24 or 29, and you will wish you had. I finished uni at 20 with debts and commitments and went straight into the workplace. Missed the chance to travel. Regret it. Most I did was a 4 week drive around Europe that summer. Leave the TIV for a few years, or use for track only.
I hitched round Europe and across North Africa when I was 19. That was two years after I'd bought my first car, which was a Lotus 7. I simply had to have one. From the moment I first saw Patrick McGoohan driving one in the opening shots of The Prisoner I knew that nothing else would do, and that there was no way I could wait until I was older.
Go with your heart, but choose one and drive it with your head....
Chilli
Go with your heart, but choose one and drive it with your head....
Chilli
MC00K said:
I posted a while back that I was determined to get a Chim as my next car once I have my 1 years NCB, that is now only 3 months away and I still have not stopped browsing the classifieds everyday.
In my last post I said I was getting quoted around £2600, I then realised I had my dad selected as the main driver all this time...
BUT, after playing around a bit more I have managed to be quoted £2100 only thing being it is Third Party Fire And Theft.. If I was to do comprehensive I would have to fork out £6000. Personally I would be fine paying the £2100 and have it on Third Party insurance, but that's probably just because I'm too obsessed with TVR's to really care/think about the consequences.
My question to you is, is this really a sensible option? I am an extremely careful driver, I have to be as I have a black box fitted to my car but even if I was not to have the box fitted I know my limits and would only really put my foot down if conditions were right (if that makes sense.).
Getting a Chim would mean it would be my daily driver and be used on my 2 mile commute to work!
Would I be better getting a low mileage (say around 20,000) or a higher mileage Chim? I have heard that in some cases its better to get one that has been used a bit more as you know it has been maintained and has not sat for long periods of time.
Am I insane..?
No your not at all insane.In my last post I said I was getting quoted around £2600, I then realised I had my dad selected as the main driver all this time...
BUT, after playing around a bit more I have managed to be quoted £2100 only thing being it is Third Party Fire And Theft.. If I was to do comprehensive I would have to fork out £6000. Personally I would be fine paying the £2100 and have it on Third Party insurance, but that's probably just because I'm too obsessed with TVR's to really care/think about the consequences.
My question to you is, is this really a sensible option? I am an extremely careful driver, I have to be as I have a black box fitted to my car but even if I was not to have the box fitted I know my limits and would only really put my foot down if conditions were right (if that makes sense.).
Getting a Chim would mean it would be my daily driver and be used on my 2 mile commute to work!
Would I be better getting a low mileage (say around 20,000) or a higher mileage Chim? I have heard that in some cases its better to get one that has been used a bit more as you know it has been maintained and has not sat for long periods of time.
Am I insane..?
You're 19 years old and have the opportunity to own and drive a wonderful car.
You are only 19 once. If you put it off, do 'sensible' things, and then buy it when you're older, it won't be the same, because you won't be 19 any more!
I'm 22 and I'd have loved to have done something like this when I was 19.
You sound like a sensible, skilled driver. Get yourself behind the wheel of that car you really want, and enjoy very minute of it.
ackbullchang said:
This won't help, but if you've got a few k burning a hole, sack off work for a year and go travelling. Best thing that you can do at your age(assuming that you like women, beer, parties and different cultures!).
Leave the TIV for a few years, or use for track only.
Spot on.......Leave the TIV for a few years, or use for track only.
Something I regret not doing and had no interest in doing so at the time, but as you mature you do wish you had done things slightly differently.
zarjaz1991 said:
You are only 19 once. If you put it off, do 'sensible' things, and then buy it when you're older, it won't be the same, because you won't be 19 any more!
Au contraire, it'll still be the same. Bought my TVR just before turning 40 (I was 41 before it was properly on the road), seven years on I still get goosebumps when I start it up... Thing is when my first car that I just about could afford running got wrecked (I was in my 20s) it seriously impacted my life including my ability to start making a living for myself as a free lance journo. With hindsight, I'd better spent that money travelling and getting some real life experience.
Driving cars for enjoyment however is something you can do thoughout you life. People don't die or get to become doddering old wrecks at 45 anymore, you know.
Personally I think you'll put yourself off these sorts of cars for good if you get one now.
You live at home with mum and dad. It'll get used mostly for really crap commuter driving where it's at its weakest. It'll swallow a huge amount of your money just keeping it road legal in that you'll spend more just on insurance than most people spend keeping good (read high valued) examples in tip-top condition. You'll either be paying someone else to sort it for you lots, or you'll be lying in your dad's driveway doing it yourself when your mates are out having a social life.
Also, you're 19. You'll always find someone else who bought a fast car at that age and you'll put a lot of emphasis on that because it's what you want to hear. For every PH Hero there are 100 Zeros though, and the reason your insurance is so high is because the car can chew you up and spit you out.
I predict the experience will leave you with a sour taste in your mouth. Unless you're Senna reborn, I don't even think you'll enjoy driving it that much because the car will make you nervous and overwhelmed.
I personally think that the previous poster who is 26 did it right by buying an MX-5 at your age and enjoying its excellent RWD handling and benefitting from much more "normal" running costs. After a few years of that, and you've got your own pile of bricks you can upgrade to the TVR knowing what you're doing with sports car driving dynamics in general.
I don't want to dampen your enthusiasm at all, but there's nothing worse than seeing someone bite off more than they can chew, get sick of it, give up completely and just drive a Honda Accord for the rest of your life.
FWIW when I was your age (14 years ago) I wanted to upgrade to a better car. My dad told me quite plainly that if I could afford to run what I was planning to buy, I could afford to move out and stop freeloading off them. He had a point - just saying.
You live at home with mum and dad. It'll get used mostly for really crap commuter driving where it's at its weakest. It'll swallow a huge amount of your money just keeping it road legal in that you'll spend more just on insurance than most people spend keeping good (read high valued) examples in tip-top condition. You'll either be paying someone else to sort it for you lots, or you'll be lying in your dad's driveway doing it yourself when your mates are out having a social life.
Also, you're 19. You'll always find someone else who bought a fast car at that age and you'll put a lot of emphasis on that because it's what you want to hear. For every PH Hero there are 100 Zeros though, and the reason your insurance is so high is because the car can chew you up and spit you out.
I predict the experience will leave you with a sour taste in your mouth. Unless you're Senna reborn, I don't even think you'll enjoy driving it that much because the car will make you nervous and overwhelmed.
I personally think that the previous poster who is 26 did it right by buying an MX-5 at your age and enjoying its excellent RWD handling and benefitting from much more "normal" running costs. After a few years of that, and you've got your own pile of bricks you can upgrade to the TVR knowing what you're doing with sports car driving dynamics in general.
I don't want to dampen your enthusiasm at all, but there's nothing worse than seeing someone bite off more than they can chew, get sick of it, give up completely and just drive a Honda Accord for the rest of your life.
FWIW when I was your age (14 years ago) I wanted to upgrade to a better car. My dad told me quite plainly that if I could afford to run what I was planning to buy, I could afford to move out and stop freeloading off them. He had a point - just saying.
I can't believe I'm hearing all this... This lad is 19, he's fallen in love with an iconic marque, he wants one desperately, he's a sensible young man, not a wannabe boy racer, and all he's hearing is 'no, you're too young, give it a few years, buy something more 'sensible' get some rear wheel drive experience first'....
FFS some formula 1 drivers got into F1 at 19... the average age of a combat soldier in Vietnam was 19, and most of the Spitfire pilots in the battle of Britain were the same age too... At 19 I was probably more sensible in many ways than I am now.... I hitched round Europe and across North Africa when I was 19, on my own, slept in the desert, lived with a family in Algeirs, got mugged on the Spanish steps in Rome...
As Bob Dylan said, I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now...
Just because we're older, we think we know more and we can't possibly be wrong.. well that's b
ks ..
Chilli
FFS some formula 1 drivers got into F1 at 19... the average age of a combat soldier in Vietnam was 19, and most of the Spitfire pilots in the battle of Britain were the same age too... At 19 I was probably more sensible in many ways than I am now.... I hitched round Europe and across North Africa when I was 19, on my own, slept in the desert, lived with a family in Algeirs, got mugged on the Spanish steps in Rome...
As Bob Dylan said, I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now...
Just because we're older, we think we know more and we can't possibly be wrong.. well that's b
ks ..Chilli
ChilliWhizz said:
I can't believe I'm hearing all this... This lad is 19, he's fallen in love with an iconic marque, he wants one desperately, he's a sensible young man, not a wannabe boy racer, and all he's hearing is 'no, you're too young, give it a few years, buy something more 'sensible' get some rear wheel drive experience first'....
FFS some formula 1 drivers got into F1 at 19... the average age of a combat soldier in Vietnam was 19, and most of the Spitfire pilots in the battle of Britain were the same age too... At 19 I was probably more sensible in many ways than I am now.... I hitched round Europe and across North Africa when I was 19, on my own, slept in the desert, lived with a family in Algeirs, got mugged on the Spanish steps in Rome...
As Bob Dylan said, I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now...
Just because we're older, we think we know more and we can't possibly be wrong.. well that's bks ..
Chilli
I agree entirely and made much the same point above.FFS some formula 1 drivers got into F1 at 19... the average age of a combat soldier in Vietnam was 19, and most of the Spitfire pilots in the battle of Britain were the same age too... At 19 I was probably more sensible in many ways than I am now.... I hitched round Europe and across North Africa when I was 19, on my own, slept in the desert, lived with a family in Algeirs, got mugged on the Spanish steps in Rome...
As Bob Dylan said, I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now...
Just because we're older, we think we know more and we can't possibly be wrong.. well that's b
ks ..Chilli
The lad sounds like a sensible driver, he's set his heart on owning and driving an iconic car, and he can fund it himself.
He should go for it.
19 is a great age to do it.
zarjaz1991 said:
Some people do have a natural ability and it just needs the driver to realise they have skill but lack experience, and also to understand the power and limitations of the vehicle they are driving. Some can do that at 19, others cannot do it when they're 49.
But the statistics are overwhelmingly in favour of the survival chances of the latter. Gassing Station | Chimaera | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff