Money issue #1

Moving the car from its current location in Boston, Masschusetts to 40 miles west in the suburbs. For this I had estimated $100 - $150. Boy was I wrong.

My initial plan was to rent a Auto Transport from U-Haul, but given that I currently drive a 1999 Camry, U-Haul would not let me tow an Auto Transport with my Camry. So then I thought to rent a U-Haul pick-up truck with the Auto Transport, but their pick-up trucks are not set up to hitch to the Auto Tranport. I would have to rent a 10’ truck to tow the Auto Tranport. This priced me at $188, as long as I stayed within the 30 mile distance. For each mile over, it would be another $.50, plus I also had to cover gas. Awesome, not.

My next option was to use a towing service, but after calling and emailing a few places, I was priced from “eh, about $200” to $250. Hmm…

Luckily, my boyfriend was able to borrow a co-worker’s SUV that I can hitch an Auto Transport to, which U-Haul priced me at $49.95. So hopefully, by this Saturday I’ll have a 1968 Triumph Spitfire sitting in the driveway.

The Beginning

I started this project because I was aimlessly browsing craigslist and came upon an ad selling a restoration project car for $900. Before I knew it, I was handing over a check for $900, completely ignoring the fact that I knew very little about cars. (I did check out the car first to make sure that there wasn’t too much rust.)

Some background info that makes this project more interesting…

Car experience: Not much. I know how to check my engine oil level, tire pressure…hmm, I think that’s it. My car knowledge is limited to what I have asked mechanics or found browsing online. I am very willing and eager to learn about cars, so that should count for something. I do now know what a carburetor is – it mixes fuel and air together .

Restoration Experience: Does watching American Hot Rod count? The closest project I’ve done to this was restoring a 1970s Huffy bike I bought for $20 off craigslist, which took 2 weekends to complete. This project may take a bit longer.

Tools owned: Scant. I have an IKEA tool set that I bought to assemble my IKEA furniture. I’m banking on using my boyfriend’s tools, but even that’s limited.

The Car: The car is a 1968 Triumph Spitfire MKIII. I think it looks awesome. It currently turns over, and has been known to start, but currently does not since the previous owner was in the middle of fixing the engine.

To date, this is the biggest project I have ever undertaken. I love projects, but am more of a project starter than project finisher. So hopefully, I’ll stick this one out, manage not to burn a hole through my wallet, and end up with a cool looking car.