Do i sell it. Do i fix it. Oh i just dont know anymore. :(

[RyanRs]

I feel like i am near the end of a long relationship that just isnt working out.. 8 years long to be exact! I've got to know my mr2 more any other car or person i've ever met and i do have an emotional attachment to this car. However, in 8 years i think shes only been fully working once and for a total of about 12-15 months! ok she spends a lot of time getting upgraded and waiting for funds for parts, but she does spend equal amount of times parked up with running issues, overfuelling at idle, hesitating on boost on cold nights etc etc. Now the most recent problem (which has left her confined to the garage for the past year!!) is an engine failure of some kind.. possible cracked block, poss sunk cylinder sleeve (still to be diagnosed the actual cause of problems).

I now have a new BMW, 2011 330d m-sport convertible with an ultra rare spec, its white, fully loaded spec, 19" wheels, red dakota interior with paddle shift,pro idrive,panio wood trim etc.. its beautiful but its also expensive and costing me most of my 'fix the mr2 budget'

I look at the mr2 and think, shes had her time, shes leagues below the bmw in terms of tech and flashyness and then think i could be a good 10 grand better off if i stripped her and sold off the parts. But then again as i think of prices to put the parts up for sale for, i then also start to think about the time it took for me to acquire some of these parts, how rare they are, how i will never be able to get them again if i was to do another mr2 project. I also think about how close i got to completing the project, it would likely be done now if the engine had not have broken.

My major issue is the pursuit in a career that i have wanted to do for years.. To be an airline pilot. I already have a PPL pilots license so im only a commercial ticket away from getting a job however that commercial ticket is the best part of £80 grand. Selling the mr2 AND the bmw would get me a nearly 1/2 of that money. However, there is other complications and will i ever get the other £40 k that i need!? im worried that ill sell everything that i enjoy and waste years of my life in persuit of something that ill never get. My current job pays well but its miserably boring and mind numbing.

Ahh i really dont know what to do.. It breaks my heart to see the mr2 stuck in the garage , on axel stands, engine half out and getting covered in dust / cobwebs.

What does everyone here suggest?
x

[slipping clutch]

Find out what is wrong with the motor first before you make a decision!

[danjama]

Sink everything in to becoming a pilot if that's what you really want. I know it's easier said than done though.

I have similar aspirations but no way of getting the sort of funds for my PPL at the moment. If i had the means, as it seems you do, I would go for it.

You could buy one hell of an mr2 on an airline pilot salary.

There is also the option of selling your BMW and putting the money into fixing the mr2 once and for all.

[ashley]

Picture where you could be in 3 years time...then follow your heart.

If that picture is as a pilot without an MR2 and it doesn't make you feel sad then you know the answer.

If you'll forever be gutted at not following the two through to your perfect vision, then you know the answer.

Not an easy choice, and one I've contemplated a lot in the last 2 years...

[QUOC2008]

A life of not following your dreams is a life of regret...

A life of forefilling your dreams is a life of no regrets and life will be a rewarding experience

If you try and fail you will still have no regrets as you can say truefully you tried your best and life will will still be fully rewarding.

To live life in regret is the worse experience you can have in life

Think of a life with no kids or wife or family or friends... and then tell your self i could have been...

[juliankv73]

/\/\ what he said, there are many in life who me amble along, pushed or fell into decisions and situations that defined the path they led.

Regret has no friends, it is cancerous, destructive and demoralising. It can sit dormant or gnaw at you, your achievements, aims or ambitions. To allow it into your life, is to accept an unhappy life.

Many people I come across in mental health will tell you that depression is like regret, or fear. Fear (of trying or allowing ourselves to be held back), prevents us from trying and that stifling, overwhelming cloud that paralyses us when they succumb to regret, regret of what could have been, should have been and the wasted moments with people, or opportunities that past us by.

Many people try and fail, but it's the manner in which they pick themselves up in the face of uncertainty and walk in that defines them.

Only you know in your heart and mind, what you want to achieve, but the rub here is to balance your life too so you still need to live, have a a good work-home-social life so as not to become over stressed or overwhelmed in debt either.

Tricky, you know your own skills, abilities in this type of training etc.

You need to do some soul searching and make a considered decision

[dazzz]

You don't mention if you have kids to support?? House to pay for?? Current age??

If its literally a case of you spend 80k and get your commercial ticket, I'd do it.

The shell of the car isn't worth much. Sell all the expensive bits, keep the car, get pilots license, concentrate on being a pilot, come back to the mr2 at some point in the future.

[rgb]

sell it or throw it away cause it can become an obsession. ive just spent 3 grand on engine work and it still needs a respray but I am obsessed.

[craig]

MR2s are certainly a love/hate relationship. Lately, I've hated mine more than I've loved it, but I'd miss it if I didn't have it.

[nathan.z]

I use to want to be an airline pilot, then I looked into salary's. They just aren't what they use to be, budget airlines have driven these into the ground. Only the extremely experienced in the top airlines can still demand those wages. Always thought the best foot in the door was through the RAF for training before committing to commercial. Invest that 80K into property and reap the rewards for decades, fly planes on the weekend.

[QUOC2008]

Yeah that so true... my 1st mr2 na i was young and dangerous i blow the engine up. Then 2nd mr2 rev 2 turbo i thought i was a the drift king until the bus stop me then the 3rd mr2 rev3 turbo which is my pride n joy now has been in the builders n tuners for over a year now long... rare special parts from japan...etc so got myself a na mr2 mean while to have some fun... and got a evo x but noway as fun as a mr2, although the evo x is miles better in terms of performance and everything else.


Mr2 or cars in general is just a big boyz toy... break it... then buy a new toy

[2mad]

If your "current job pays well but its miserably boring and mind numbing." I vote follow your dream and become a commercial airline pilot

Its already been said, you could build a epic mr2 turbo on a pilots salary

Dont let a car or cars stand in the way of a life long dream career.

[QUOC2008]

yep you only get one change in life so go for everything you can and live life to your fullest... but be realistic in your dream and goals.

I had a old mr2 na when i was a student and it broke sold that, and now i got a monster mr2 turbo rev3 with a st215 engine aim for road and track with fast spool up... 445bhp

running my own 3 businesses... with a wife and kids to be and several houses...! to live in!

[al/c]

i,ve followed your build for a long time ryan,if it was me i,d get hold of T.B tim and get a new block off of him. then you would be sorted

[androo007]

There is no choice. If you think you have what it takes to become a commercial aircraft pilot, sack off the cars and do it. You can always buya better car later on.

Most people pay the 80k off after anyway so if you go in 40 k up you're on toa winner

[rev3gtturbo]

What is it about being a commerical pilot that makes it your dream job?

Thought about doing it myself quite a few times.

There is no guarantee that once you become a qualified commercial pilot that you will get work. So 80k+ spent on training becomes a big gamble that could have paid for a lot of other life experiences or you fulfill your dreams. Assuming you keep in good health, have you considered how many years pilot work you realistically need to pay off all your training costs on top of everything else before you actually start making real money?

Mate of mine, bored with his well paid day job, spent 100k doing it some years ago. He got qualified and either Boeing or Airbus type rated all in one year but couldnt get an airline job. Too many pilots looking for too few jobs at that time. For a while he became a flying instructor which does not pay enough to make a living. Not seem him for years so dont know if he got that dream job.

I have known others that have been very experienced pilots that could not get that lucky break before they got to an age where they gave up realistically getting a commercial pilot job. At least they had the pleasure of flying all those years.

The money that could be spent following your dream would pay for loads of flying in light aircraft, and you have the freedom of choice of where/when you fly (compared to a roster to some amazing places or some undesireable places, potentially in some really crappy weather).

As for selling yours cars to help fund it, when I learned to fly, those guys on the airline job trail all used to drive old cars as they needed all the money they could get for the training and food etc.

You may as well keep the old mr2 then and look the part!

Good luck if you go along the airline job route.

[RyanRs]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Its such a hard decision taking the plunge with the airline ATPL training as i will have so many big decisions to make other than just selling the cars. One of which is quitting my current job and committing to a 18 month long full time 'Away from home' integrated course. The job i have currently does indeed pay well, its about the starting pay of a Easyjet 1st officer and it was a hard job to get. Basically i'm a fuel tanker driver for Esso and i am with what many class as the top tanker employer -a company called Hoyer. Now i am in the tanker game and working with Hoyer It is easier for me to get another tanker job on similar pay if i needed which makes me think that if i do decide to take the ATPL plunge, whilst waiting for that dream airline job to come along, i should be able to go back to the tankers and back on my old salary. (something i will discuss with my employer and driver trainers of other fuel companies)
The pilot thing is something i have wanted to do for most of my life, I have always been a bit of an adrenaline junkie but also been a bit of a geek too. Confined to an office i feel like a caged animal, Out on the road all day in a truck driving the same routes, doing the same deliveries day in day out - i feel like a monkey! A combination of the two + a bit of danger and excitement, in my eyes = Airline pilot! Ill be out and about not confined to a cage, doing a job that a Monkey Cannot! do! Its exactly me. Infact the only job i can think of that's better is an Astronaut but thats never gonna happen.

I do own my house, but my mortgage is nothing when split with the missus (less than £300 pm) so 18months out of work is not going to get me repossessed. Unfortunately its a new mortgage so i cannot secure any training loans on the house.

Tbh i had given up with the pilot ideas and i was going to get a couple more houses and rent them out instead but that was until recently when onboard a thomson flight i got chatting to the captain for a good half hour @ 35k ft !! I basically told him how it was a dream that i have since lost faith in, scared of taking the plunge with the debt and putting everything at risk, having got my PPL and barely using it.. i told him as it was basically -not trying too suck wang to make a friend in the industry if you get me.. He asked me how old i was, what i do for a living, seemed to like my story and invited me back to the cockpit when we landed. Whilst in the cockpit he said that with his help i could be in a job by the time im 33 and my kind of aptitude could get me in a captains seat before im 40! Turns out this captain is also a specialist training captain and runs a company dealing with interview and simulator skills preparation for professional pilots with pending job interviews / skills assessments! He has a good few contacts and many many years experience. with this he gave me his card and wants me to call asap.

I know theres the possibility he could be just advertising his company to get some business but i can read someone's bluff and i will make it clear that i could end up on the street (ok i wouldnt) if i take his advice and its bad.

But anyway back to the MR2... I have the same opinion as a few have suggested. IF i sell and follow my dream I could potentially have a much better car (or mr2) later on. meanwhile if i dont sell it , it may sit for another 2-3 years whilst i loose all interest in it completely and lose any resale value. I think i should sell the mr2. Perhaps ill use the £10k that i make from it (hopefully)as a deposit to get another property to rent out, then ill go search for my ATPL loan. ?? seems like a better use for my money.

[nickg07]

Are you really gonna get 10 grand out of the car?

Getting 5 or less is such a low number in the scheme of things that is it really worth binning it instead of leaving it in the garage for when you have more money?

if the car is in genuine good shape, would you be able to buy another in x amount of years in the same or better condition than the one you have now?

Its easy to say buy a better car...harder to do once you give up your possibly already good car.

[nitrodave]

i was in your position a few years back. I owned a 200sx which i poured my heart and soul into, didnt spend a fortune on it, but spent a lot of time getting it just how i want. I sacrificed social time, caused relationship issues etc... but i loved it to bits!

after 7 years someone on the 200sxOC made me a random offer which i would have been made to refuse. I accepted and sold it, and although i have a tiny bit of regret, i learned that getting emotionally attached to a car is rather unhealthy.

Since selling it i have bought many other fun cars - including the rev3 turbo i have now - most of the cars i bought since then were all done and specc'd up. No regrets selling the 200sx now!