The F-Body Performance Paradox

[camaro_speedemon]

I beg to differ.

I might only be 22, but my priority's have been "jump started" so to speak.

I have a family to take care of and I had to ditch the camaro for a family car. Have I lost the speed bug? Deffinately not. If anything, driving around in a slow *** Toyota made me realize how much I liked having a sports car. Not a day goes by when I don't dream of buying a C6.

Things may have changed in my life, but I don't foresee my hobby's changing anytime soon.

[95fbirdkid]

hell i'm only 19 and am already more interested in saving money to afford nice things (house, etc) down the road than dumping money into my car now.

sure some people will continue to dump alot of money and time into their fbodys (which are cheap) but imo these are the people that you will see with a nice car but living in a small home and w/o alot of other nice things.

in the grand scheme of things, souping up a car (not just fbodys) is very low on most peoples list of prioraties

[ellik]

Im about to turn 25, and I understand what you are saying. I dont think that Ive lost any interest in my car, there are just other things that take priority now.... like modding the house! My car is still my hobby, and while it is a money pit and I could trade it for something new and more reliable, im keeping it. big mods will come in time.....

[Tiago]

Im 23, pratically married, already graduated college , already bought my first home. Waited till after college to finally get that LS1, always wanted to build oen up so I did it. I wanted it and I could afford it so why not? I have fun wwith it. Turbo LS1, hummmmmm...

Some people have a real love for working on /building and racing cars,no matter how old they are, others just "tinker" and move on after some time ;)


I can't get enough of this stuff.
http://www.forcefedfab.com/images/PI...e/P3210019.JPG

[ravenp]

Stephan, I see what you're saying in a lot of people around me but I don't feel it.

I bought my Camaro at 27 when I was single and at the time had no knowledge or interest in modding it performance wise, but I quickly started making it look pretty and sound better [img]smile.gif[/img]

I was making good money and had little debt... I spent my money on anything and everything that made my life more fun, including RSP investments, clothes, clubbing, music, movies, my apt and the car.

It wasn't until I met my wife that I REALLY got hooked on modding the car. She introduced me to racing and together we started a local Fbody club that is now over 80 members strong in our modest town.

Since we met we have bought a sunfire to handle the grunt work, bought a house and financed a wedding/honeymoon. We are definitely more in debt now, but we're both very interested in having fun with our cars.

We just put a 355 and new rear end in her 84z28 this past winter and this coming I will be building a turbo for my car.

I think the differences between our views and the one you posted stem from a bit of irresponsibility on my and my wife's part. We're both big kids at heart and beleive that having fun is paramount. We also beleive that debt is okay [img]smile.gif[/img]

Personally I always know that there are cars out there faster and ones that will resell for more, but when I drive down the street or go to a show and get looks and compliments for the things i've done, it really makes me feel good about this hobby.

Driving this car is one of the most relaxing and enjoyable things I do when I have spare time and since these cars are what brought my wife and i together, and were in our wedding procession...we both plan to keep them forever.

I guess we're dreamers, but we're very happy with the direction we've chosen....

Good thread [img]smile.gif[/img]

[97chevycamaro]

Im 24, married with a kid. We have the 2 Grand Prixs {gtp mine, gt is my wifes} Our cars are nice but hardly a "status" car{11k for the gtp and 7k for the gt doesnt make us rich}. My Gtp has mods but Im actually to the point where im tired of the maintence on something fast, Im looking at dumping it for something brand new so i can worry about saving as opposed to where im gonna get money to fix my car when it breaks, 4-6 years ago i wouldnt have thought twice about having car payments and credit that equal more than 85% of my gross income{which i did}. I guess you grow out of it like you say. few years ago i had the cars with 10k+ in them but i sit back and realize i was broke, hungry and wearing the same clothes i did for years. Not to mention i had a stinky apartment with a couch and a bed. that sucked

['98 BlackBird]

I guess I did the exact opposite.
At 28 I bought my house.
At 29 I got the Firebird.
At 29 I started modding the firebird.
At 30 I still want to mod the firebird.
Unfortunately I cannot go out and get a car due to the fact that my budget wont let me. I have a mortgage, 2 car payments, bills, and a 10 year old daughter.
I enjoy the little V6 even though it's my wife's. My new passion is bracket racing. I really dont care how fast the car goes, as long as it is consistant and looks nice.

that is my thought from the over 25 crowd (by about 5 years)

[Xian]

Well, I'm 42, married for the second time, with kids, making a great salary but buried in credit card debt, medical expenses and child support. Got no money to spend modding my car, but one day I will. Just as soon as I get rid of these kids and get some more stock options!

[mjparme]

I just turned 30 and I agree with what Stefan wrote. Between my fiancee and I (getting married in October) we make just shy of 100K/year. Could I afford a Z28, SS or even a Vette? Absolutely.

However, buying a house is the first priority at this stage of my life. I have added a lot of parts to my car lately but nothing beyond relatively inexpensive bolt-ons. It is hard to spend money on the car now when it is already 5 years old and realistically probably only has another 40,000 miles of worry free life.

I had always said the same thing when I was younger. "When I am out of college and making good money then I will have a fast car!". Amazing how your mindset changes when you get older.

Don't get me wrong, I still would like to have a faster car. It is just fairly low on the priority list.

[ August 20, 2004, 05:12 PM: Message edited by: mjparme ]

[hou-tex-six]

Originally posted by Stefan:

Then the person hits about age 25, gets married

Theres your problem right there. I'm 25 and NO plans to get hitched anytime soon.

I see what you mean though, your priorities will definately change. Like Tiago said it really depends on the amount of your passion for it. Just because your priorities change doesent mean you have to completely scratch the car. Again comes down to how involved you are. If you are a bolt on parts buyer it will die off, if you're a little more hardcore then you are more likely to stay with it. I understand the importance of getting your "life" together, but if my life consists of mundane practical things then what's the real point?

Cp

[MTMike]

I just happened to think, this "Paradox" you speak of doesn't just apply to F-bodies.

Do you really think that a 19 year old who wears a visor backwards and upside down and drives a Honda Accord with a 5" exhaust and thinks it's fast will be doing that/driving that at age 30? (I'm sure there's nothing more humiliating than your own 6 year old laughing at your exhaust sounding like a fart)

A few enthusiasts will remain, but the majority that jumped on the bandwagon will give it when practicality and real-life priorities take prescedence.

Same thing happened to Muscle cars in the early 70's

-Mike

[ August 20, 2004, 05:28 PM: Message edited by: MTMike ]

[Merlin]

It doesnt apply to everyone because there are a lot of daddy's boys out there driving V8s in the 16-25 age range but I do agree.

[chas]

i am over 25 by a bit.

i mainly bought the firebird because it looks nice. i like rear wheel drive and american cars. the market is getting smaller every year. i wasnt interested in racing at the track or auto cross.

i am not against some performance mods, like intake and exhaust (since the stock exhaust is just going to rust off anyway). anything bolt on really (like 1le driveshaft) is likely. however, its unlikely i will be getting heads/cam. since the odometer has just hit 85k miles internal work seems just silly. mostly the plan is: if it breaks replace it with something better.

the next big plans are moving out of the townhouse and into a house with a garage perhaps. then one winter i might try swapping something bigger/newer into the 'bird.

i doubt i could ever convince myself to buy a $40,000 car. the way people drive around here, i would never take it out on the roads.

[ka50]

Originally posted by chas:
i doubt i could ever convince myself to buy a $40,000 car. the way people drive around here, i would never take it out on the roads.

lol, I second that... the worst are the cabbies... these mother****ers think they can do anything on the road heh. I rarely take bird up there.

But yeh, not everyone who turns 30 or whatever loses interest in cars. Like they say: some people smoke their money, some people drink 'em and some people spend them on their hobbies.

[Xian]

Part of the "problem" is that my car is already incredibly sexy and just about as fast as I can really get much enjoyment out of without killing myself or somebody else. Blowing away some little boy driving the rice burner that mummy and daddums bought for him is boring as he!!, x 1,000,000. I've done it so many times and anyway I've already proven my manhood to anyone who matters, so mods will be fun and I'll enjoy making them, but they're not my #1 priority.

But don't get me wrong: I love my baby and look forward to sinking some hard-earned $$$ into her, else I wouldn't be here learning how to get the most for my $$ and effort.