Classic car bought. What could possibly go wrong?
Discussion
Hello all,
I m Seb, French, living in Ireland, and currently proving that middle age, petrol and internet auctions should probably not be allowed in the same room.
I have bought a classic car.
Not a sensible car.
Not a practical car.
Not a car recommended by accountants, spouses, therapists, environmentalists, or anyone with a functioning understanding of consequences.
It is currently sitting somewhere in Europe, waiting for me like a financially ruinous Labrador with wheels.
I m flying out to collect it on July 31st, and then I ll be bringing it back towards Ireland while documenting the whole sorry opera: the purchase, the collection, the road trip, the fuel bills, the importation, the maintenance, the inevitable repair invoices, and every unexplained noise that makes me briefly consider religion.
Now, a normal person would simply reveal the car.
But where is the fun in that?
The idea is simple:
Every day, I ll post one cryptic clue.
First, you have to guess where the car is,.
Then, you have to guess the brand,.
Then, if your anorak is powerful enough, you have to guess the exact model,.
The full reveal will happen on July 31st,, when I actually collect the thing and the consequences become legally, emotionally and financially mine.
What I can say for now is this:
It is a classic.
It was not bought with logic.
It may drink more than a rugby club on tour.
It will probably make my wallet produce a small whimpering noise.
And no, I have not fully explained the situation to my bank account.
After the reveal, the plan is to document the honest reality of classic car ownership: what it costs, what breaks, what surprises you, what makes you grin like an idiot, and why buying old cars is completely irrational, deeply inconvenient, occasionally terrifying, and absolutely magnificent.
I ll probably keep this one for around 9 12 months before moving on to another classic, because apparently I have decided that one bad idea is not enough.
So if you enjoy old cars, bad decisions, road trips, repair bills, petrol fumes, and watching a grown man justify mechanical recklessness as emotional healthcare, come along.
Also, feel free to guess what it is.
Wrong answers are encouraged.
Sensible advice will be read, appreciated, and then almost certainly ignored.
I m Seb, French, living in Ireland, and currently proving that middle age, petrol and internet auctions should probably not be allowed in the same room.
I have bought a classic car.
Not a sensible car.
Not a practical car.
Not a car recommended by accountants, spouses, therapists, environmentalists, or anyone with a functioning understanding of consequences.
It is currently sitting somewhere in Europe, waiting for me like a financially ruinous Labrador with wheels.
I m flying out to collect it on July 31st, and then I ll be bringing it back towards Ireland while documenting the whole sorry opera: the purchase, the collection, the road trip, the fuel bills, the importation, the maintenance, the inevitable repair invoices, and every unexplained noise that makes me briefly consider religion.
Now, a normal person would simply reveal the car.
But where is the fun in that?
The idea is simple:
Every day, I ll post one cryptic clue.
First, you have to guess where the car is,.
Then, you have to guess the brand,.
Then, if your anorak is powerful enough, you have to guess the exact model,.
The full reveal will happen on July 31st,, when I actually collect the thing and the consequences become legally, emotionally and financially mine.
What I can say for now is this:
It is a classic.
It was not bought with logic.
It may drink more than a rugby club on tour.
It will probably make my wallet produce a small whimpering noise.
And no, I have not fully explained the situation to my bank account.
After the reveal, the plan is to document the honest reality of classic car ownership: what it costs, what breaks, what surprises you, what makes you grin like an idiot, and why buying old cars is completely irrational, deeply inconvenient, occasionally terrifying, and absolutely magnificent.
I ll probably keep this one for around 9 12 months before moving on to another classic, because apparently I have decided that one bad idea is not enough.
So if you enjoy old cars, bad decisions, road trips, repair bills, petrol fumes, and watching a grown man justify mechanical recklessness as emotional healthcare, come along.
Also, feel free to guess what it is.
Wrong answers are encouraged.
Sensible advice will be read, appreciated, and then almost certainly ignored.
Moderator edit: no social media promotion please
Right, first of all, thank you for the early guesses, encouragement, corrections and mild abuse. This is already going better than my financial planning.
To BobCD: thank you. Owning three French classics means you clearly understand both beauty and pain, which makes you exactly the sort of emotionally damaged person this thread was designed for.
To Restoman, who “really has better things to do”: entirely fair. So do I. And yet here we all are, watching a Frenchman in Ireland try to turn poor judgement into content. Nobody is innocent.
To Sebring440who corrected “petrol” to “alcohol”: also fair. Although in this particular case, petrol is likely to be the more expensive addiction.
So far we’ve had:
• German, in Holland, V8
• W12 in Holland
• Alfa SZ in Poland
• Jensen Interceptor in Belgium
• Galaxie 500 XL in Zurich
All excellent guesses. Some more financially terrifying than others.
But it is time for the first proper clue.
Clue #1 — Location
It is not in Holland.
It is not in Belgium.
It is not in Poland.
It is not in Switzerland.
The car is currently somewhere warmer than Ireland, where the sun is rude, the roads are tempting, and a leather interior in July becomes less “luxury grand tourer” and more “medieval interrogation device”.
That is all for now.
Country guesses welcome.
Wrong answers encouraged.
Sensible advice still likely to be ignored.
To BobCD: thank you. Owning three French classics means you clearly understand both beauty and pain, which makes you exactly the sort of emotionally damaged person this thread was designed for.
To Restoman, who “really has better things to do”: entirely fair. So do I. And yet here we all are, watching a Frenchman in Ireland try to turn poor judgement into content. Nobody is innocent.
To Sebring440who corrected “petrol” to “alcohol”: also fair. Although in this particular case, petrol is likely to be the more expensive addiction.
So far we’ve had:
• German, in Holland, V8
• W12 in Holland
• Alfa SZ in Poland
• Jensen Interceptor in Belgium
• Galaxie 500 XL in Zurich
All excellent guesses. Some more financially terrifying than others.
But it is time for the first proper clue.
Clue #1 — Location
It is not in Holland.
It is not in Belgium.
It is not in Poland.
It is not in Switzerland.
The car is currently somewhere warmer than Ireland, where the sun is rude, the roads are tempting, and a leather interior in July becomes less “luxury grand tourer” and more “medieval interrogation device”.
That is all for now.
Country guesses welcome.
Wrong answers encouraged.
Sensible advice still likely to be ignored.
restoman said:
restoman said:
I really have better things to do.
Next.
Oh Look! I'm in the minority . . . again Next.
All seems a bit pretentious.
Someone nobody actually knows asking a load of people he doesn’t know to play silly game of “gues what I’ve bought” and a load of people with nothing better to do are actually joining in.
Johnspex said:
restoman said:
restoman said:
I really have better things to do.
Next.
Oh Look! I'm in the minority . . . again Next.
All seems a bit pretentious.
Someone nobody actually knows asking a load of people he doesn t know to play silly game of gues what I ve bought and a load of people with nothing better to do are actually joining in.
Location? As a native French speaker surely the OP would be drawn to somewhere that doesn't present a linguistic barrier to negotiations. Switzerland and Belgium have been ruled out, so maybe France? Although Luxembourg is also delightful - I was there last week, on a quiet day for track activity at the Spa 24hrs.
GearShiftGuru said:
Right, first of all, thank you for the early guesses, encouragement, corrections and mild abuse. This is already going better than my financial planning.
To BobCD: thank you. Owning three French classics means you clearly understand both beauty and pain, which makes you exactly the sort of emotionally damaged person this thread was designed for.
To Restoman, who really has better things to do : entirely fair. So do I. And yet here we all are, watching a Frenchman in Ireland try to turn poor judgement into content. Nobody is innocent.
To Sebring440who corrected petrol to alcohol : also fair. Although in this particular case, petrol is likely to be the more expensive addiction.
So far we ve had:
German, in Holland, V8
W12 in Holland
Alfa SZ in Poland
Jensen Interceptor in Belgium
Galaxie 500 XL in Zurich
All excellent guesses. Some more financially terrifying than others.
But it is time for the first proper clue.
Clue #1 Location
It is not in Holland.
It is not in Belgium.
It is not in Poland.
It is not in Switzerland.
The car is currently somewhere warmer than Ireland, where the sun is rude, the roads are tempting, and a leather interior in July becomes less luxury grand tourer and more medieval interrogation device .
That is all for now.
Country guesses welcome.
Wrong answers encouraged.
Sensible advice still likely to be ignored.
An Alfa, from Italy.To BobCD: thank you. Owning three French classics means you clearly understand both beauty and pain, which makes you exactly the sort of emotionally damaged person this thread was designed for.
To Restoman, who really has better things to do : entirely fair. So do I. And yet here we all are, watching a Frenchman in Ireland try to turn poor judgement into content. Nobody is innocent.
To Sebring440who corrected petrol to alcohol : also fair. Although in this particular case, petrol is likely to be the more expensive addiction.
So far we ve had:
German, in Holland, V8
W12 in Holland
Alfa SZ in Poland
Jensen Interceptor in Belgium
Galaxie 500 XL in Zurich
All excellent guesses. Some more financially terrifying than others.
But it is time for the first proper clue.
Clue #1 Location
It is not in Holland.
It is not in Belgium.
It is not in Poland.
It is not in Switzerland.
The car is currently somewhere warmer than Ireland, where the sun is rude, the roads are tempting, and a leather interior in July becomes less luxury grand tourer and more medieval interrogation device .
That is all for now.
Country guesses welcome.
Wrong answers encouraged.
Sensible advice still likely to be ignored.
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