My 1st year of ownership
Discussion
So I have almost owned my Chimaera for 12 months and though I would spend a little time to reflect on the ownership experience and costs.
First of all I have enjoyed the last year immensely. I have done some work on the car, paid a local specialist to do even more work for me. Driven almost 8k miles in all weathers all year round including 4k on a trip to Italy and back and a 450 mile round trip to the Ace Café just after I bought it. Apart from a hot start issue when I first got it and a few very minor running issues it hasn’t a missed a beat.
The excitement of going out for a drive and hearing it bark in to life is still the same as they day I picked her up and as a bonus even my wife adores it (phew!). There is a great deal of interest in the car wherever I go with it turning young and old people’s heads from 200 yards away and even the odd dog. I also know far more people on the street than I used to, admittedly they are only interested in the car! The car feels alive unlike most of the modern day performance cars which want to cocoon you away from the vibration/noise/smell and general driving experience. It can be a little hard work in traffic with the clutch being a bit heavy and isn’t keen on rough roads but on the whole is a pleasure to drive and pretty easy to live with. I have now developed a decent trust in the car and don’t think twice of driving the length and breadth of the UK at the drop of a hat ( hope I haven't just jinxed it).
Maintenance wise I think these are pretty simple cars. Yes I think there are times when a decent specialist is invaluable but most of the work can be done at home by a competent home mechanic. I had far more trouble maintaining my previous play car (Porsche 924 turbo) which was far more complex and temperamental. Costs of spares is decent and very affordable when seeking out alternatives. Having said that the amount of money which you need to put into a decent engine rebuilds is a bit scary!
So I bought this from a dealer last January, I had looked for a long time and this one fitted my fairly tight budget. I had always walked away from CAT Ds which this one is but I could just tell this car had been cherished for a lot of its life with paintwork and interior in fantastic original condition and with a very good chassis. I could see that it had had a rear quarter replaced but it all looked well repaired and nice and straight. I tracked down the previous owner via PistonHeads, Jules, who was an absolute gent who gave me the low down before I went to see it. It had 29k on the clock with very little in the way of history but the overall condition made me think it wasn’t far off. Having now done 8k miles with it using less than a litre of oil I can believe it hasn’t done much. Rear diff also shows little evidence of wear and the gearbox is A1.
When I got the car I did what a lot of new owners do and went a bit silly replacing a lot of stuff which probably didn’t need replacing but I knew I had a trip to Europe ahead and wanted it spot on.
• Hot start kit – First thing I fitted
• Lambda sensor - failed after 6 weeks MPG dropped to 19 from about 22/3 around the doors.
• Plugs, leads, distributor cap, rotor arm. Transformed the car from shunting terribly at 1500-2000 revs on light throttle to running perfectly.
• Tyres all round (Bridgestone RE002)
• Discs pads and callipers at the front.
• Discs and pads at the rear
• Clutch master cylinder – failed 3 days before the Italy trip, the little tinker.
• Slave cylinder (below 8 weeks after the master)
• Water leak from the timing cover (this one cost a bit). Was tiny dribble but didn’t fancy it blowing on the continent.
• Boot lid strut swapped for the correct one and hinge mounting repaired which had been ripped.
• New rocker cover gaskets
• New engine bay petrol pipes
• Engine oil and filters twice (Fuchs Pro race R 15w 50)
• New diff oil
• Gear oil checked.
• 2 new rear wheel bearings.
Jobs for 2016, some suspension work, the arms need refurbing and it could do with new shocks. I would also like a turbo because there is no getting away from the fact a 400 isn’t quick enough!
So I am writing this and thinking I hadn’t done much to it until I wrote it all down, but now I am starting to think maybe it wasn’t quite as good as I thought! Haha! It has cost me around 2.5k parts and garage bills in the first year and now totally understand the advice most of the members give on here to people looking for one. The number of times people have said buy one that is enthusiast owned which has had all the hard work done to it. Or another favourite “budget 2k bringing it up to scratch”, which is spot on.
I suppose I am that enthusiast now and the car probably owes me more than it is worth but do I care? Not one little bit, I hope to own it for many years to come.
First of all I have enjoyed the last year immensely. I have done some work on the car, paid a local specialist to do even more work for me. Driven almost 8k miles in all weathers all year round including 4k on a trip to Italy and back and a 450 mile round trip to the Ace Café just after I bought it. Apart from a hot start issue when I first got it and a few very minor running issues it hasn’t a missed a beat.
The excitement of going out for a drive and hearing it bark in to life is still the same as they day I picked her up and as a bonus even my wife adores it (phew!). There is a great deal of interest in the car wherever I go with it turning young and old people’s heads from 200 yards away and even the odd dog. I also know far more people on the street than I used to, admittedly they are only interested in the car! The car feels alive unlike most of the modern day performance cars which want to cocoon you away from the vibration/noise/smell and general driving experience. It can be a little hard work in traffic with the clutch being a bit heavy and isn’t keen on rough roads but on the whole is a pleasure to drive and pretty easy to live with. I have now developed a decent trust in the car and don’t think twice of driving the length and breadth of the UK at the drop of a hat ( hope I haven't just jinxed it).
Maintenance wise I think these are pretty simple cars. Yes I think there are times when a decent specialist is invaluable but most of the work can be done at home by a competent home mechanic. I had far more trouble maintaining my previous play car (Porsche 924 turbo) which was far more complex and temperamental. Costs of spares is decent and very affordable when seeking out alternatives. Having said that the amount of money which you need to put into a decent engine rebuilds is a bit scary!
So I bought this from a dealer last January, I had looked for a long time and this one fitted my fairly tight budget. I had always walked away from CAT Ds which this one is but I could just tell this car had been cherished for a lot of its life with paintwork and interior in fantastic original condition and with a very good chassis. I could see that it had had a rear quarter replaced but it all looked well repaired and nice and straight. I tracked down the previous owner via PistonHeads, Jules, who was an absolute gent who gave me the low down before I went to see it. It had 29k on the clock with very little in the way of history but the overall condition made me think it wasn’t far off. Having now done 8k miles with it using less than a litre of oil I can believe it hasn’t done much. Rear diff also shows little evidence of wear and the gearbox is A1.
When I got the car I did what a lot of new owners do and went a bit silly replacing a lot of stuff which probably didn’t need replacing but I knew I had a trip to Europe ahead and wanted it spot on.
• Hot start kit – First thing I fitted
• Lambda sensor - failed after 6 weeks MPG dropped to 19 from about 22/3 around the doors.
• Plugs, leads, distributor cap, rotor arm. Transformed the car from shunting terribly at 1500-2000 revs on light throttle to running perfectly.
• Tyres all round (Bridgestone RE002)
• Discs pads and callipers at the front.
• Discs and pads at the rear
• Clutch master cylinder – failed 3 days before the Italy trip, the little tinker.
• Slave cylinder (below 8 weeks after the master)
• Water leak from the timing cover (this one cost a bit). Was tiny dribble but didn’t fancy it blowing on the continent.
• Boot lid strut swapped for the correct one and hinge mounting repaired which had been ripped.
• New rocker cover gaskets
• New engine bay petrol pipes
• Engine oil and filters twice (Fuchs Pro race R 15w 50)
• New diff oil
• Gear oil checked.
• 2 new rear wheel bearings.
Jobs for 2016, some suspension work, the arms need refurbing and it could do with new shocks. I would also like a turbo because there is no getting away from the fact a 400 isn’t quick enough!
So I am writing this and thinking I hadn’t done much to it until I wrote it all down, but now I am starting to think maybe it wasn’t quite as good as I thought! Haha! It has cost me around 2.5k parts and garage bills in the first year and now totally understand the advice most of the members give on here to people looking for one. The number of times people have said buy one that is enthusiast owned which has had all the hard work done to it. Or another favourite “budget 2k bringing it up to scratch”, which is spot on.
I suppose I am that enthusiast now and the car probably owes me more than it is worth but do I care? Not one little bit, I hope to own it for many years to come.
cool.
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