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When to call it a day?

bjoehandley

NAXJA Forum User
Has anybody ever decided to give it up on an older vehicle?
I'm reaching that point with my '98 XJ between the issues that have been popping up every time we get it running and rocker panel rust and thinking of selling it before I have to renew the plates.
 
It's no easy task daily driving a 20 plus year old vehicle. They get finicky whether we like it or not.

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Luckily, I no longer use it as a daily and it hasn't even been used as a winter daily since spring 2015 arrived. It rarely gets driven, mainly due to issues that keep popping up once we get something fixed. This last time is was complete brake failure that we still haven't fixed, and may need to change calipers and master cylinder, if not power booster too at this point. It's received a new engine bay fuel line (rotted out at the connector under the floor!), tires, radiator, water pump, tune up (cap, rotor, wires, 1 plug that had been an issue at the time), new headlights, belt, front wipers and shocks are in the garage. We're usually busy dealing with Mom when I'm not working and Dad is doing that full time basically so he doesn't have the chance to get out and work on it unless someone can keep an eye on Mom (my Sister is now a Mom herself as well as going back to work after the holidays). Main reason it seems to be in this situation is that we've had to go down while Mom has been in the hospital and automotive work in general comes to a stop, even in scale (models and R/Cs) and we don't always have time to work on it when the weather is decent, which was not really the case in Northern Illinois for most of 2019, it was either raining or oppressively hot and the garage isn't suited to be wrenching on a SUV that needs to be on stands in. It almost needs to go to somebody who will have time and the space to wrench on it.

I'm kinda at the point where I would rather put the insurance and registration money (about $700 a year, combined) away to get something else that is AWD and be safer to take my now 2 month old Niece around compared to the XJ and my Dad's '06 Town and Country (which is nearly as rotted as my XJ is?!) and can be used by Dad when I'm not using it. Dad had me take his T&C to the dealership it, the 200, and my Sister Challenger were bought at and I asked a few questions about the 300 AWD, like the availability in general (especially w/out the S package, not a fan of the blackout trim on the 300), if they can still be had with the flex fuel capability (the 3.6l in my 200 LOVES E85), ect.
 
When I no longer have the money, time and patience to maintain the vehicle, that's when I know I have to give up.

Big thing for me is time right now, don't have a garage that I can work in and I think the brake failure spooked me worse than I thought it had. I'm just not wanting to put money into it unless I could do more than just the basics to get it running long enough to break again. If I had the funds that could get a big enough spot to tear it apart and have the tools and money to fix things right and have the rust repaired, that would be a different story, I just don't.
 
Big thing for me is time right now, don't have a garage that I can work in and I think the brake failure spooked me worse than I thought it had. I'm just not wanting to put money into it unless I could do more than just the basics to get it running long enough to break again. If I had the funds that could get a big enough spot to tear it apart and have the tools and money to fix things right and have the rust repaired, that would be a different story, I just don't.

It must be very frustrating on your part.
 
Due to an unfortunate circumstance in our lives, my XJ has received an temporary reprieve as we now will have time to wrench on it....once the weather improves, that is. Still need to see what failed, but if it was line related (we did lose one when it was last revived in 2016 and had to fabricate a repair), I did find this a while back, luckily mine is a Non ABS rig, so unless I'm somehow able to get a restoration kicked off, these parts would outlast the body!
 
The manner in which you’re using the vehicle is as much the cause of the problems and any other. That is, the lack of use is accelerating rust/corrosion of all parts (including fuel and brake lines), body parts (rockers), and will accelerate other issues too (battery failure, sensor failures, wiring corrosion, the list goes on).

Vehicles that are used sporadically need a protected place to sit/be stored (dry garage). Moisture, elements, weather all deteriorate them as they sit.


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The manner in which you’re using the vehicle is as much the cause of the problems and any other. That is, the lack of use is accelerating rust/corrosion of all parts (including fuel and brake lines), body parts (rockers), and will accelerate other issues too (battery failure, sensor failures, wiring corrosion, the list goes on).

Vehicles that are used sporadically need a protected place to sit/be stored (dry garage). Moisture, elements, weather all deteriorate them as they sit.


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That wasn’t the original intent, unfortunately, Mom’s illnesses and weather had gotten in the way of repairs since I had another car to drive plus the truck was parked on the lawn in the back yard a couple times, which just made the rust worse. I do live in Northern IL, rust happens here anyway (Dad’s ‘06 Town and Country is nearly as bad, but does run and stop at least :rolleyes: ) The fuel line was rotting out at the connector between the main line and line running up to the rail and those connectors are the only parts that aren’t stainless or rubber/plastic and has been getting blasted with snow/salt from the left front tire for nearly 2 decades, so it’s not shocking. The rockers were starting to bubble in 2012 when I bought my daily as well, so that would have happened sooner or later anyway.
 
Well, I called it a day................

The city left a note on the door saying it has to be gone by this Thursday and While we were starting to try and repair the brake problem (hard line failed coming through the right front fenderwell), I discovered water had been sitting in the passenger foot well and was frozen (now melted) and mold. We can get around it being a safety risk for a while, but mold now makes it a health risk, and one I don't and especially Dad does not need to be around. I spent much of today clearing stuff out of it (found way too many plastic model kits that I had chucked into it!) Dad and I will continue clearing our remaining stuff out of it and maybe pull things like turn signal lenses, tail lights, ect since those tend to get destroyed at you pull it yards around here before being reused.
 
Bummer.

Offer it up for free to someone in your local chapter?
 
The local yard picked it up today right before I went on lunch from work and I canceled the insurance while on that break. We took the plates (had that letter/number combo since mid ‘95!), grill and bezel was well as all the marker and third brake lights off it before calling the yard. The money from the yard and back from my insurers going into the tune up on the 200 Sedan I now daily. It hit 100k a couple months ago, so it’s time for plugs on that and I want to swap in the P.U.G. Lower Intake and MSD coil packs onto to it while I’m at it and don’t have those yet, just the RPM Motorsports intake tube that is also a resonator delete and works with the OEM airbox.
 
It would be a real sad day to watch my xj taken off to the boneyard. In someways about as bad as having a favorite 'best friend' dog put down.

After 20 years, spending tons of money on it to keep it going and numerous cuts, scares and bruises i just can't part with my xj.
As problems arise, i don't let them linger and fix them one by one soon as possible.

A couple years ago when i discovered extreme rot with the 1/4 panel bottoms i fixed it before it became worse.
That was when i declared my xj a fair weather driver only.
 
I had it nearly 17 years, so itdoes feel like I had to put it down and all this got kicked off by the city about 6 weeks after Mom passed away after 5 days in the hospital that proceeded years of medical issues and then having to take her off life support, this is still hitting hard.
 
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