Help/advice/wisdom needed...
 

Seeking some advice from the great minds on this forum…

Moving away for 3 years this coming summer, and will not be able to take the 3rd Gen. along. Kinda sucks, as I just got it back from getting a fresh reman installed, but such is life.

Anyway, seems I have a couple options, but not sure which one to take.

Option 1: Store car for 3 years in garage in Arizona (in-laws), whereas my brother-in law will drive it on occasion and have all necessary maintenance performed.

Option 2: Sell car now while it is still worth a decent amount, and hopefully save that money for the purchase of another 3rd Gen (LS?) or other sports car platform once I return from my 3 year trip.

I do understand that given all the money invested in this car, most of it is Non-recoupable (is that even a word?), but neither will the car be worth much more 3 years from now. So maybe it does make sense to sell now…
On the other hand, well maintained 3rd Gens are awesome cars, and something you don’t see everyday, and it’s a blast to drive (when I get the chance). So maybe I do hold onto it and look forward to enjoying it once I return…

So there it is. To sell or not to sell?... That is the question. :scratch:

Guide me forum

Mike

You know what you have so I'd keep the car and have it driven every once in a while. Our '89 TII that we purchased new sits for @ 6 months every year as it isn't driven in the winter and starts up with no problem in the spring. The only item that I'd be concerned with is the 3 years and how often the car will be used. At least in Arizona, depending on the area, the temp swings are unlike the east coast as you may see some below freezing temps, but far from the East Coast swings. I wouldn't fill the tank as the fuel may remain in there for quite a long time, so when fuel is needed, add some Marine Stabilizer.
Another expense would be the insurance that you'll need to keep on the vehicle and how responsible the brother in law handles the vehicle, a maniac behind the wheel or an average Joe that will take care of the vehicle.
Keep it and look forward the driving it again in 3 years,

I agree with you on the temperature fluctuations in Arizona as compared to Virginia. Plus the fact that it will be garaged is another huge plus.

As far as the brother-in-law, he is pretty anal retentive, so I am confident in his ability to care for the car. I'd maintain full insurance as normal in the off chance he has an accident, or if someone hits him while driving.

Obviously detailed instructions on proper warm up/cool down would be provided to him, but with the occasional driving that he'll be doing, would he "truly" need to perform fluid changes, such as Coolant (I use EVANS), Brake Fluid, Trans and Diff.?

Mike

I'd say no to the fluid changes, except naturally for the oil/filter change interval, 12 months max. Both our TII and Acura TL get an annual oil change as the TII sees maybe 2k/year and the TL 3.5k, and you'll be back in time for the 3 year brake fluid flush.

I say keep the car. I don't think that prices are going to drop much for these and saving the money from selling the car to by another one is tough no matter how frugal you are. You still get enjoyment from driving the car; just think how good it will feel driving it again when you get back.

Just the fact that I was willing to sell it, led me to the realization that I actually wanted to keep it. Not to mention all the posts I have read from other former owners stating how they wished they had never sold their 3rd Gen.

This 3 year hiatus may also build motivation (and funds) for a future "remodel" of the car. Which is a good thing, as I am sure she'll need it.

I gotta see if there are any good rotary shops in Tucson.

Mike

If You'd like to keep it in NoVA, I'd love to store it in my garage and drive it occasionally!

I think you're doing the right thing keeping it since you don't need to sell it. It's a beautiful car and I believe that 3rd gens are going to stay on their path of slow appreciation over the years.

I do appreciate the offer to store it in your garage while I am gone! But I think like TurboNut said, the temperatures in Arizona might be more favorable to "store" a car for 3 years. Hell, the Air force stores all their old aircraft at the BoneYard (no not a porno) just a few miles away from where the car will be, so if it works for the Air Force, it should work for me.

Hmmmmm....3 years to plan and save for future upgrades. Could be worth it to get away from her. FEED here I come!!!!

Mike

Feed? No 3 rotors?!?!

I don't know that I'd have enough money saved to go 20B, especially after getting a brand newish 13B just put in, but a new body kit and some paint would certainly go a long way towards motivating me.

Mike

Where are you PCSing to Mike?

You know you could totally just store the car for the duration, right? Give the car a good oil change, coat the engine internals with atf, drain the gas, put her on jack stands and disconnect the battery. Throw a cover on her and job done!

Hell, the thousands you save in insurance alone would equal many mods :)

I honestly don't recall paying a whole lot for insurance for the Mazda. I have USAA along with a multi-car discount, and think the payment doesn't register as being that much. I'll have to take a peek at my statements when I get home today.

We are PCSing to Europe, and while I "technically" could bring the car with me, it would be an out-of-pocket expense, and there would be no covered parking for her. Plus the winters over there are pretty bad. So taking it with us is pretty much out of the question.

After talking it over with a few guys on here, and oddly enough my wife pressuring me not to sell it, I think the best option is to get it out to Arizona, and have the brother-in-law care for it. Not to mention a pretty cool road trip back home to the East Coast after our PCS is over.

Mike

Dude, store the DD and take the FD!!! I was stationed in the UK. Whoever told you there is no covered storage is full of it!! You're married so you're entitled OHA. Take yourself off base and actually enjoy the culture and experience you'll gain by living off base. Trust me, houses in Europe have garages.

If you're military than you're authorized to bring a car. If you leave the FD you'll be squandering an AWESOME driving opportunity!!! Replacing the DD there is cheap and easy, replacing the lost experiences will be impossible.

(Btw, I'm officially against you leaving the FD :lol:)

No longer in the military, so this PCS is strictly government related.

As we have been told, we are only "issued one permanent parking spot". Whether that parking spot is a garage, or covered parking area or a spot along the road, we won't know until we can talk to our sponsor. Even then we won't know for sure. We have to fill in paperwork detailing our family situation, and from there a housing board determines the type of house/parking we get. It sucks not knowing for sure until we get there, but it is what it is...

You are right about one car being shipped for us free of charge. Being a person who loves his cars, I am quite fond of my daily (2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT) almost as much as I am with the Mazda. So to remain somewhat practical, we are going to sell the wife's Volvo SUV, ship the Jeep and store the Mazda.

I can only imagine the amazing roads and places to visit, and how cool it would be to drive them while in the Mazda, but I do have to cram a wife and two kids in alone for the ride, so for that reason, the Mazda has to stay behind...:(

Mike

Well damn... that sucks :(

It does suck in a way, but on the other hand, I get to drive my obnoxious SRT on the Autobahn, and I am gonna do my damndest to get on the Nurburgring (spelling) at least once while on this PCS. :icon_tup:

Wife might even take delivery of a new "German made" sedan towards the end of our tour. Could prove to be fun.

So not all is lost.

Mike

You should consider selling the jeep there. Apparently they cost a premium in Germany.

Hmmm, never thought how much they'd be going for over there. I might have to look into that. But in all honesty, the warranty on the Jeep will run out just as we are about to leave to come back CONUS and that is when I am looking to put a Supercharger on it.

Of course a lot can change in 3 years. :nod:

Mike

Ill take it!

How much you got in that wallet? :lol:

Mike

Not sure if you need one or if it would fit (do you have a spoiler and is it stock)... but I have a barely-used car cover that I used when MY FD was in storage at my brother in law's house for a year or two...

https://www.rx7club.com/ne-sale-want...oiler-1074920/

Giving someone a cover helps prevent accidental oopsies in my opinion.

As for the car - keeping it or not...

I would say... Do you really LOVE the car? Is it something you feel you can't live without? If so, then keep it. Are you going to have more time to play with the car when you get back or less time? Do you think you will still want to drive that car when it's +3 more years older and other interesting cars have come out in that time? Maybe keep it then.

B

I do have a spoiler and yes it is stock, so I could use the car cover. I assume it breaths well, since it is from a reputable company. The only reason I ask, is just in-case the brother in-laws don't get around to driving it for a month or so.

I imagine the cover wouldn't present any problems, especially with the car being in a dry environment like Arizona.

Mike

I think the cover would suit an indoor storage location really well. I left my car for about 2 years in Maryland/VA while I lived in Seattle. The first year or so, it sat in my garage uncovered while I was trying to sell my townhouse (goooo housing crash!) and then I moved the car to my sister's house in Haymarket where it was also garaged for about another 6-8 months until I came back and collected the car. I didn't have any issues with condensation under the cover, but of course all garages and climates are different so I would always advise people with covers to check every few weeks to make sure it is working out well.

I am 100% sure it is a California cover and I think it's the same exact thing they sell now. It's just been so long. Anway, if you need a cover and want to pick one up in excellent condition - you should consider mine. :) My car was always extremely clean and the cover was never used outside or on a dirty car. Like I said, I put it on once... I took it off once 6 or 8 months later. It's basically new. I will go down in my basement and look on the cover and see if I can find a label/tag identifying the model. If you are interested, send me a PM on here.

Oh and to stay on topic, if you are storing for a long time, you NEED to make sure the humidity isn't bad in the garage or you will get problems with your car. They make buckets of stuff that will suck the moisture out of the air and you can put the bucket in the trunk and leave the windows up. Or if you don't have the bucket - I would think about leaving the windows down and hatch up for ventilation and then plugging in a cheapo 10 dollar box fan to circulate air. Leaving a light on in the garage can help with mold I think too. With the windows down your other threat is rodents though...

So I guess you have to size up the garage (humidity, presence of rodents, etc) and all that. Storing a car for a long time is a big pain. Your tires may be flat spotted too (and flat due to no air) plus dry rotted somewhat after three years. The physical flat-spotting due to sitting sometimes "rolls out" when you get the air pressure back up and go for a drive. After 3 years I'd probably just write the tires off anyway. New ones would be better right :)

The easiest thing overall if you ask me is just to get your car-sitter to agree to drive it once a month as long as you trust this person and keep track of tire air/fluids/etc. It's actually not good to just let it sit. Trust me after three years if it's not driven, you may have a long list of to-do items to get it back to 100%.

Did some looking in the basement, it's the "NOAH" material. I updated my ad here https://www.rx7club.com/ne-sale-want...oiler-1074920/ with more information about that material.

Between my two brother in-laws, and my uncle in-law, I think the car will see a drive at least once a month while I am gone. Good thing about the uncle, he is a car guy, so he already knows about the Mazda, and is looking forward to its arrival. So things "should" be good to go.

As far as the car cover....I'll PM you about that.

Mike