Transport a car that's not worth transporting?

"Joe" > wrote in message
...
> "dwight" > wrote in
> :
>
>> My son. The Boy.
>>
>> When I bought TFrog back in 1993, we came home with two cars - my wife
>> also picked out a '93 Escort GT, a sweet little scooter in Cayman
>> Green.
>>
>> She really liked that car, but gave it up when she bought her '99
>> Mystique. The little GT became my son's first car. He promptly trashed
>> it.
>
> Clue number one.

We gave him that one.

>> For my daughter, two years younger, I bought the Princessmobile, a
>> pretty (but quirky) '88 LX convertible. After two fender benders, she
>> gave it back to me and moved on to a '99 Escort coupe that we bought
>> from her cousin, who was relocating cross-country.
>>
>> Meanwhile, my son took it upon himself to buy his own car, the
>> Anti-Car, a $500 Plymouth Horizon that spewed oil everywhere it came
>> to rest. That car quickly racked up more than the purchase price in
>> repairs, and was eventually hauled off for scrap.
>
> Clue number two.

It was his money to throw away. I thought he learned something from that
episode.

>> Spin the wheel. Wife moved on to a 2004 Escape, daughter picked up the
>> '99 Mystique, and son bought the '99 Escort just before he moved up to
>> the New York area. And promptly trashed the car.
>
> Clue number three.

Yeah, but again, he bought it. Sure we gave him a great price, but he did
have to make payments on it.

>> Now it sits in a parking lot in Tarrytown. It's been sitting there for
>> many months. The Boy is moving BACK down here to the Philly suburbs,
>
> Hopefully not back to your house...

The Boy already has an apartment lined up. He and his Lady are moving down
here, and I'm more than happy about that! With my wife, daughter, dog, and
three cats, it's just me and six females. It'll be great to have him around
more often.

>> and now we have to do something about the Escort.
>
> Now let's pause for a second. Why do you have to do something about the
> Escort? There are several options you may not have considered. One
> involves fire. Another one involves theft.

Well, like I said, I don't really know what-all is wrong with the car, but
it's in better than decent shape. Just guessing, but I'd put its value at
about $2000 to $2500 (maybe). If it's a bad battery, GREAT. If it's a
starter or alternator, no problem. If it's a transmission overhaul... well,
it ain't CFrog. Once I see it, I may be able to diagnose the thing.

>> Looks like Dad's going to have to drive up to check it out and see
>> exactly why it's not running. Barring anything major, I'll have it
>> transported down here ($500-$600?). Beyond that, I'd donate it to a
>> local junkyard, just to clear the paperwork.
>
> I must question the assumption that the car has to come back. To do
> things proper, why not just have The Boy contact a local junkyard up
> there to pick it up? You could mail the title (if he doesn't already
> have it) and be done with the whole thing. If the title is gone, that
> leaves the options I alluded to above.

No, Boy owns the car and holds the title. Selling it to a local junkyard (or
donating it) may still be an option worth considering. We'll see.

>> I have failed as a father. My son really doesn't understand cars and
>> the notion that they always need attention and money thrown their
>> way...
>>
>> dwight
>
> Nah, he's just not a car guy. As long as he's not in jail, you've
> succeeded as a father.

Okay, there's that... But there are three things I could spend all day
talking about: cars, football, and photography. (Hmmm, imagine a shot of a
pretty girl throwing a football from a speeding Mustang convertible...)
>cough< Sorry, where was I?

Oh, yeah. The Boy has grown into his own skin (he's now 27) with his own
interests and pursuits, none of which is among my three. He's a really neat
kid, so I can overlook his automotive transgressions, and I'm more than
happy to step up and see that these things are taken care of.

dwight

"WindsorFox" > wrote in message
...
> dwight wrote:
>> My son. The Boy.
>>
>> When I bought TFrog back in 1993, we came home with two cars - my wife
>> also picked out a '93 Escort GT, a sweet little scooter in Cayman Green.
>>
>> She really liked that car, but gave it up when she bought her '99
>> Mystique. The little GT became my son's first car. He promptly trashed
>> it.
>>
>> For my daughter, two years younger, I bought the Princessmobile, a pretty
>> (but quirky) '88 LX convertible. After two fender benders, she gave it
>> back to me and moved on to a '99 Escort coupe that we bought from her
>> cousin, who was relocating cross-country.
>>
>> Meanwhile, my son took it upon himself to buy his own car, the Anti-Car,
>> a $500 Plymouth Horizon that spewed oil everywhere it came to rest. That
>> car quickly racked up more than the purchase price in repairs, and was
>> eventually hauled off for scrap.
>>
>> Spin the wheel. Wife moved on to a 2004 Escape, daughter picked up the
>> '99 Mystique, and son bought the '99 Escort just before he moved up to
>> the New York area. And promptly trashed the car.
>>
>> Now it sits in a parking lot in Tarrytown. It's been sitting there for
>> many months. The Boy is moving BACK down here to the Philly suburbs, and
>> now we have to do something about the Escort.
>>
>> Looks like Dad's going to have to drive up to check it out and see
>> exactly why it's not running. Barring anything major, I'll have it
>> transported down here ($500-$600?). Beyond that, I'd donate it to a local
>> junkyard, just to clear the paperwork.
>>
>> I have failed as a father. My son really doesn't understand cars and the
>> notion that they always need attention and money thrown their way...
>>
>> dwight
>>
>>
>
> Iffn it's that bad why not just rent one of those little rampy things
> from U-Haul and drag it back yourself? Hopefully he will have employment
> lucrative enough to keep him in a new car every 5-7 years.

Now THERE's an idea... Why didn't I think of that? I should get a trailer
hitch for Jean's Escape and drag that suckah back here.

I'll be the three of us could push it up the ramp. (Right.)

But time's up - they're moving March 30, and I want that thing gone by then.

And I was raised Presbyterian. We always pay full price.

dwight

"dwight" > wrote in
:

> "Joe" > wrote in message
> ...
>> "dwight" > wrote in
>> :
>>
>>> My son. The Boy.
>>>
>>> When I bought TFrog back in 1993, we came home with two cars - my
>>> wife also picked out a '93 Escort GT, a sweet little scooter in
>>> Cayman Green.
>>>
>>> She really liked that car, but gave it up when she bought her '99
>>> Mystique. The little GT became my son's first car. He promptly
>>> trashed it.
>>
>> Clue number one.
>
> We gave him that one.
>
>>> For my daughter, two years younger, I bought the Princessmobile, a
>>> pretty (but quirky) '88 LX convertible. After two fender benders,
>>> she gave it back to me and moved on to a '99 Escort coupe that we
>>> bought from her cousin, who was relocating cross-country.
>>>
>>> Meanwhile, my son took it upon himself to buy his own car, the
>>> Anti-Car, a $500 Plymouth Horizon that spewed oil everywhere it came
>>> to rest. That car quickly racked up more than the purchase price in
>>> repairs, and was eventually hauled off for scrap.
>>
>> Clue number two.
>
> It was his money to throw away. I thought he learned something from
> that episode.
>
>>> Spin the wheel. Wife moved on to a 2004 Escape, daughter picked up
>>> the '99 Mystique, and son bought the '99 Escort just before he moved
>>> up to the New York area. And promptly trashed the car.
>>
>> Clue number three.
>
> Yeah, but again, he bought it. Sure we gave him a great price, but he
> did have to make payments on it.
>
>>> Now it sits in a parking lot in Tarrytown. It's been sitting there
>>> for many months. The Boy is moving BACK down here to the Philly
>>> suburbs,
>>
>> Hopefully not back to your house...
>
> The Boy already has an apartment lined up. He and his Lady are moving
> down here, and I'm more than happy about that! With my wife, daughter,
> dog, and three cats, it's just me and six females. It'll be great to
> have him around more often.

Very good! It's real nice when they are visitors as opposed to
housemates. I'm sort of in the same situation with my prodigal stepson.

>>> and now we have to do something about the Escort.
>>
>> Now let's pause for a second. Why do you have to do something about
>> the Escort? There are several options you may not have considered.
>> One involves fire. Another one involves theft.
>
> Well, like I said, I don't really know what-all is wrong with the car,
> but it's in better than decent shape. Just guessing, but I'd put its
> value at about $2000 to $2500 (maybe). If it's a bad battery, GREAT.
> If it's a starter or alternator, no problem. If it's a transmission
> overhaul... well, it ain't CFrog. Once I see it, I may be able to
> diagnose the thing.

O-ho! So the title of the thread is a bit short of true! Now that puts
a whole different light on things. If it's worth that much, have The
Boy get it towed (at his expense, of course) to a local shop up there
and have it looked at. That's certainly reasonable seeing that it's his
car. If it's beyond hope, The Boy can simply sell the car for a few
hundred to the shop owner and be done with it. It it's fixable, you and
he can negotiate another "loan" for the repair. All without you having
to get out of your easy chair.

>>> Looks like Dad's going to have to drive up to check it out and see
>>> exactly why it's not running. Barring anything major, I'll have it
>>> transported down here ($500-$600?). Beyond that, I'd donate it to a
>>> local junkyard, just to clear the paperwork.
>>
>> I must question the assumption that the car has to come back. To do
>> things proper, why not just have The Boy contact a local junkyard up
>> there to pick it up? You could mail the title (if he doesn't already
>> have it) and be done with the whole thing. If the title is gone,
>> that leaves the options I alluded to above.
>
> No, Boy owns the car and holds the title. Selling it to a local
> junkyard (or donating it) may still be an option worth considering.
> We'll see.

See above for obvious solution.

>>> I have failed as a father. My son really doesn't understand cars and
>>> the notion that they always need attention and money thrown their
>>> way...
>>>
>>> dwight
>>
>> Nah, he's just not a car guy. As long as he's not in jail, you've
>> succeeded as a father.
>
> Okay, there's that... But there are three things I could spend all day
> talking about: cars, football, and photography. (Hmmm, imagine a shot
> of a pretty girl throwing a football from a speeding Mustang
> convertible...)

Sounds like there's a fourth thing there...

> >cough< Sorry, where was I?
>
> Oh, yeah. The Boy has grown into his own skin (he's now 27) with his
> own interests and pursuits, none of which is among my three. He's a
> really neat kid, so I can overlook his automotive transgressions, and
> I'm more than happy to step up and see that these things are taken
> care of.
>
> dwight

See? You _are_ a successful father. And The Boy should be thankful to
have a Dad like you.

Now, considering that he's 27, he has a Lady, and he's got his own
apartment lined up, it's certainly reasonable that he take care of the
car without bothering Dad. Maybe bartering for money would be ok, but I
would draw the line at having to leave the house.

Michael Johnson > wrote in
:

> Joe wrote:
>> "dwight" > wrote in
>> :
>>
>>><snip>
>> Another one involves theft.
>
> Hey, even thieves have some standards. I'm sure it has been looked
> over and then pasted over by more than one person.
>
>>><snip>
>>
>> Nah, he's just not a car guy. As long as he's not in jail, you've
>> succeeded as a father.
>
> Very true. A friend of mine has spent $250k keeping his kids out of
> jail.

For that kind of money, they must've done some bad stuff...

Thank you... you have made my day.....

Promised one and only son a used but decent truck for graduating....
Couldn't find the right deal (he wanted a Ranger SuperCab 4X40, so I bought
a decent used F150... something could take back when I found the deal I
liked....

Enter a black '97 Ranger traded in at work (smallish town Ford dealer)....
Needed a bit more work than used truck department wanted but was basically
sound.

Now, I will admit that Dad seems to have the old F150 get borrowed on a
semi-regular basis and, of course, if Dear Old Dad notices something amiss
while driving the Ranger, it will be right when the truck goes back.... But
my 19 year old takes good care of his little baby and I don't mind chipping
in a few bucks for parts and showing how to fix those things...

At the very least, I am sure that my son is driving a safe truck and isn't
scrimping on repairs to make his mortgage payment... Our town is in a real
estate boom, right now, and he got into his own house early in the
landrush...

Joe wrote:
> Michael Johnson > wrote in
> :
>
>> Joe wrote:
>>> "dwight" > wrote in
>>> :
>>>
>>>> <snip>
>>> Another one involves theft.
>> Hey, even thieves have some standards. I'm sure it has been looked
>> over and then pasted over by more than one person.
>>
>>>> <snip>
>>> Nah, he's just not a car guy. As long as he's not in jail, you've
>>> succeeded as a father.
>> Very true. A friend of mine has spent $250k keeping his kids out of
>> jail.
>
> For that kind of money, they must've done some bad stuff...

Actually it wasn't that bad. It was just bad enough that spending a wad
of cash made a difference. If it had been worse there would have been
fewer options to spend money on.

"Jim Warman" > wrote in message
news:ipIMh.3993$x9.1578@edtnps89...
> Thank you... you have made my day.....
>
> Promised one and only son a used but decent truck for graduating....
> Couldn't find the right deal (he wanted a Ranger SuperCab 4X40, so I
> bought a decent used F150... something could take back when I found the
> deal I liked....
>
> Enter a black '97 Ranger traded in at work (smallish town Ford dealer)....
> Needed a bit more work than used truck department wanted but was basically
> sound.
>
> Now, I will admit that Dad seems to have the old F150 get borrowed on a
> semi-regular basis and, of course, if Dear Old Dad notices something amiss
> while driving the Ranger, it will be right when the truck goes back....
> But my 19 year old takes good care of his little baby and I don't mind
> chipping in a few bucks for parts and showing how to fix those things...
>
> At the very least, I am sure that my son is driving a safe truck and isn't
> scrimping on repairs to make his mortgage payment... Our town is in a real
> estate boom, right now, and he got into his own house early in the
> landrush...

There it is. My wife and I benefitted from some help from the previous
generation, and we're happy to pass it on. My own son doesn't know... no,
wait, that's wrong... isn't conscious of the maintenance required to keep an
automobile running and in good condition, so I step in to help out when I
can.

When my daughter complained about a slowly leaking tire, I checked out HER
car and was aghast to find metal poking through the worn treads. I ordered
up (4) new tires that day. Cost me a couple of hundred bucks, but I wouldn't
be able to sleep at night, knowing her tires were crap.

dwight

"dwight" > wrote in message
. ..
> "Jim Warman" > wrote in message
> news:ipIMh.3993$x9.1578@edtnps89...
>> Thank you... you have made my day.....
>>
>> Promised one and only son a used but decent truck for graduating....
>> Couldn't find the right deal (he wanted a Ranger SuperCab 4X40, so I
>> bought a decent used F150... something could take back when I found the
>> deal I liked....
>>
>> Enter a black '97 Ranger traded in at work (smallish town Ford
>> dealer).... Needed a bit more work than used truck department wanted but
>> was basically sound.
>>
>> Now, I will admit that Dad seems to have the old F150 get borrowed on a
>> semi-regular basis and, of course, if Dear Old Dad notices something
>> amiss while driving the Ranger, it will be right when the truck goes
>> back.... But my 19 year old takes good care of his little baby and I
>> don't mind chipping in a few bucks for parts and showing how to fix those
>> things...
>>
>> At the very least, I am sure that my son is driving a safe truck and
>> isn't scrimping on repairs to make his mortgage payment... Our town is in
>> a real estate boom, right now, and he got into his own house early in the
>> landrush...
>
> There it is. My wife and I benefitted from some help from the previous
> generation, and we're happy to pass it on. My own son doesn't know... no,
> wait, that's wrong... isn't conscious of the maintenance required to keep
> an automobile running and in good condition, so I step in to help out when
> I can.

Hopefully, there will be someone there to 'cut his bait' when you are no
longer around.

Dave

dwight wrote:
> My son. The Boy.
>
> When I bought TFrog back in 1993, we came home with two cars - my
> wife also picked out a '93 Escort GT, a sweet little scooter in
> Cayman Green.
> She really liked that car, but gave it up when she bought her '99
> Mystique. The little GT became my son's first car. He promptly
> trashed it.
> For my daughter, two years younger, I bought the Princessmobile, a
> pretty (but quirky) '88 LX convertible. After two fender benders, she
> gave it back to me and moved on to a '99 Escort coupe that we bought
> from her cousin, who was relocating cross-country.
>
> Meanwhile, my son took it upon himself to buy his own car, the
> Anti-Car, a $500 Plymouth Horizon that spewed oil everywhere it came
> to rest. That car quickly racked up more than the purchase price in
> repairs, and was eventually hauled off for scrap.
>
> Spin the wheel. Wife moved on to a 2004 Escape, daughter picked up
> the '99 Mystique, and son bought the '99 Escort just before he moved
> up to the New York area. And promptly trashed the car.
>
> Now it sits in a parking lot in Tarrytown. It's been sitting there
> for many months. The Boy is moving BACK down here to the Philly
> suburbs, and now we have to do something about the Escort.
>
> Looks like Dad's going to have to drive up to check it out and see
> exactly why it's not running. Barring anything major, I'll have it
> transported down here ($500-$600?). Beyond that, I'd donate it to a
> local junkyard, just to clear the paperwork.
>
> I have failed as a father. My son really doesn't understand cars and
> the notion that they always need attention and money thrown their
> way...
> dwight

sounds like my brother.... 44, and has wrecked or totalled every car of my
dads he ever drove, and wrecked or totalled every car he has ever owned.

and people asked me why he never drove my truck.....

oops.... I take it back, the Caprice wagon I left him and mom to use, after
I moved to Arkansas.... the deal was he finished paying it off..... ~
$1,000..... then I would sign it over to him.

it got repossessed......

my credit took the hit.

but if I would have left him, and my handicapped mom in Louisiana without
any transportation, I would have earned the SOB title that I have anyway.

now he drives a 1996 Lincoln Town Car his girlfriend bought him.....

just a matter of time before that Lincoln gets crunched.

Michael Johnson wrote:

>
> I would take a couple of cars tortured to death over time without a
> problem. Ours managed to total 5 cars in two years. Two of those
> five (one mine and one his Mother's) came in the SAME WEEK! Your's
> chooses to torture the poor vehicle over time while ours just puts the
> proverbial bullet in the back of their heads. The good news is that
> he now pays for his own car insurance and he is off our policy.

1977, I was 17

a friend of mine managed to wreck 2 cars , and 2 motorcycles in a 24 hour
period.

1975 Datsun Honey Bee..... car ran a stop sign on him

his Honda Motorcycle.... that was his fault

his Dads Kawasaki Motorcycle... car cut him off, and he landed in a soft
ditch

early next morning, he is driving his dads 1973 Chevrolet Caprice
convertible to work, and someone sideswipes him changing lanes.........

thats the record as far as one person in 24 hrs I am aware of