Considering retiring my MM this year...

[Aonghus]

Hey all, I am interested in your opinions.

First, some information, and I know for many of you this is heresy...

My MM is a daily driver, and has been for 5 years. It has 105,000 miles on it. I have taken it cross country repeatedly, commuted in it, slept in it, eaten in it, lived out of it, by necessity.

Inside, it needs a makeover, the drivers seat is tired, the carpet is worn through from my heel (after destroying multiple floor mats), there are various dents and scratches and such. the finish on the door handles is peeling in spots..

Outside, it needs another makeover. The paint has gotten dull from being exposed to rain and sun and such. There are scratches. Various door dings, and the back bumper is so chipped up from various douchebags in the 5 hitting me, that Im sure the car needs a complete paint job.

Mechanically, this thing is tired and in need of serious service, the list includes new belts, all new ignition coils, and Im sure there is alot more... Bare minimum to keep her just running indefinitely is 3k. The car is probably worth 5k as is, on a trade in.

Well, my financial situation should improve in the next year or so, and I have thought about trading it in on a truck... but it isnt worth much on a trade, and I simply LOVE this car. The combination of power, performance, style and comfort are simply irreplaceable. The only thing I can think of built in the last 20 years that comes close to matching it for less than $100k are the last full size Impala SS, and the recent STS-V, neither of which are still produced.

So I have two questions for you guys who share my love for this ride.

1. If I don't give it up, buy a truck outright (instead of trading the MM on it), retire this bad dog from daily service, and decide to drop 15-20k into restoring it and modding it up when I can afford it... who would you entrust that to? This isnt a project that Im comfortable taking to a dealer (although I might for the stock mechanical work), or the corner mechanic or body shop...

2. In the event that I do trade the MM in, I will eventually replace it with anther full size muscle 'vanity' ride. If you had your choice of ANY full size muscle car to choose from, would you trade your Marauder in for anything? If so, what would it be?

So far the only rides I would even consider would be the STS-V, a 60s Impalla SS, or an Olds 442...

But then again, a true antique is awful conspicuous on the freeway, and draws even more attention than the MM does...

Thoughts?

[Marauderman]

It seems you have answered your own question from reading your"feelings".

My opinion is to start fix'n things one at a time --not such a big $$ hit all at once......then over time the whole fix will be done and your on your way again...cause that's what you really want to do--- it shows...........

[RoyLPita]

2 words.....................FIX IT.

[Granite]

Fix it bro!

[J-MAN]

All the items that you mention that need repair/fixing didn't happen overnight. Sounds like she's been ridden hard and put away wet too many times. 100k isn't many miles for a well maintained vehicle, I've got 140k and none of your problems. Sell/trade it, buy another low mileage when finances improve. In the future fix things that need attention and don't let them pile up on you.

[Ozark Marauder]

why restore it? It's only original once, just keep it running, do the engine, then the seat, the rest is your memories, like you said, "I simply LOVE this car."

[Hadamustang1]

I live in Seattle.. I got a really good Mech. Has a shop in Bellevue. He lives in Bothell. You should have him look at it then make a long term plan to fix it up.. PM me for more INFO..

[Mac-MerC]

we have limited edition cars so u should keep it.......... but if u were gonna trade for another car... if it was me i would get the GXP G8.... thats just me... their a beast.
the caddies are nice also

[CBT]

2. In the event that I do trade the MM in, I will eventually replace it with anther full size muscle 'vanity' ride. If you had your choice of ANY full size muscle car to choose from, would you trade your Marauder in for anything? If so, what would it be?

Full sized? A 1967 Super Sport Impala, triple black, with a 427.

[Blackened300a]

Fix it! You may regret it if you let it go.

[LordVader]

As others have said, your mind is leaning toward the "fix" column as mine would be. I have a few issues and they are adding up, but I still would rather fix it than trade it in. I might buy something else to add next to it, like a '87 Buick GN. After all it only comes in "Black".

[rayjay]

Follow your heart on this one. I retired mine from DD status coming up on 2 years ago and have not regretted doing so.

[LeoVampire]

You have to decied for yourself what ever is in your own heart about a car that has been good to you and treated you well!

I have had some cars that I apreciated but never loved so they got sold and I did not care about them after they were gone. Didn't mind handing over the keys for someone to barrow it.

But this Marauder there is an honest to goodness Love for and I have a hard time knowing a strainger gets in her @ the dealership just to do an oil change. Do a walk around every day just to make sure all is well.

So would I part with MY Marauder HELL NO! But you have to ask yourself do I Love it enough to keep it and care about it enough to have her looking like new again down the line.

No one can answer that but YOU!

[LSp8]

The only car I would trade my car in for (if it were necessary) would be another MM. Low Mileage and maybe a different Color combo. A car that I fell in love with is the 09 G8 GXP and it's about as rare as our cars are. The wise choice would be to keep what you got and buy a beater to get around in or get the truck you want and keep the MM as a weekender. I retired mine from DD too after 11 months of ownership. Start off getting your mechanical crap fixed first and then move on to the interior (new seat/carpet). Once your baby is running like a champ then take care of the paint/body work. Now you'll be ready to do your mods.

[tbone]

They only built 'em once. FIX IT!

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Sell it and buy another Marauder with lower mileage and in much better condition. That is the only financially sensible option. A good paint job alone will cost half of what it would cost you to buy a much nicer condition Marauder in the first place.

[babbage]

^^^ Keep it and buy another Marauder. Then you can have both! :)

One to drive daily - one to restore - then you can alternate every 5 years.

[justbob]

Personally I would work out a reasonable APR on a visa with set payments and do ALL the work at once on one payment. It is very frustrated building over long periods of time, only to have to replace things you allready replaced before you even finish the rebuild. Good luck.

[stevengerard]

I think Stranger has a good suggestion, if you really like it that much then maybe look into what a better kept MM would cost you used. You probably don't owe anything on this car so take your time and look for a better used one. In this market all cars are cheap. as others said it sounds like you know the answer. Look at my sig, I have a 442 and it just doesn't compare to the MM. It is a whole different experience and if I had to give either car up it would be the MM. But.... the MM is faster, more reliable, safer, more comfortable, more convenient and on and on. Of course if you have the money there are a lot of nice cars that are cheap - you can find nice Cutlass convertibles for under 10k and you can find nice MMs for that much or 0% financing on a ton of new cars. Really it's what do you want from your car.

[Big Black Beast]

If you've been through that much in that car, I'd fix it. 100,00 miles of memories is alot and if you sell it, you will (may) regret it someday. Alot of people sell cars and then want to try to buy them back, even years later sometimes. You should buy something inexpensive to drive, and fix up the Marauder as time & money allows. You know this car and what it needs. Buying something else is like starting over w/ no guarantees.

[Kennyrauder]

Don't even think of a 87 Buick Grand National. GM JUNK!!!!!!!!!!!!! Trust me I bought one brand new. I gave up in year 3. $ 6000.00 in warranty work. Paint fell off the car. 4 rear main seals . Brake booster at 15 K, cruise fried at 25K.Rear axle pinion seal. The car was pretty & fast. The diff on that car would bounce around & had real crappy brakes. I loved it when I bought it but grew to hate it big time. That was my last GM buy. Ford ever since , with NO regrets.