As it stands the 75 is currently laid up on my driveway and I am driving my partners Rover 25 for work in the mean time.
She isn't going anywhere at the moment due to lockdown and being on maternity leave so it's not putting her out.
As for how I proceed... Stressed isn't the word!
I haven't had a chance to do the engine flush yet, I was hoping to do it on the weekend just gone but some things came up.
I think if it comes to it, I'm probably not going to attempt dismantling the engine and fix it myself.
As much as I love tinkering and getting my hands dirty, beyond oil, filters and spark plugs I really don't know what I'm doing so I would probably wreck it.
My partner and I have had a few discussions about possible solutions and we have toyed with the idea of replacing the old girl but I am struggling to let go.
This is where the stress is coming from.
We were just about ready to use some savings coupled with a loan and buy something nearly new that will last us a good while.
However, I'm not sure I can justify spending big money on a nearly new car when I could fix mine for (maybe) cheap and get a few more years out of it.
The problem I have is I am a new father with a 4 month old daughter, and I am at a strange time in my life where I don't want to spend my weekends out working on a car anymore, I want to be spending time with my family when I am not in work.
I guess the easy solution is to just take it to a garage and pay them to fix but the allure of a newer car with little to worry about is hard to just write off.
I am also questioning whether it is sensible to keep ploughing money into my car which is now 16 years old (I know she's young by 75 standards).
I can't help feeling like there's plenty of life left in her but the jobs list seems to be growing by the day and I don't wish to use my time fixing her anymore, for the reasons stated above.
Jobs currently needing doing on her:
- Inlet Manifold Gasket needs replacing (I think this is my source of a significant coolant leak)
- Engine flush and oil change (possibly twice!)
- If the above doesn't sort my engine woes, more intrusive surgery may be required!
- Rear suspension arms upper and lower to replace (due to corrosion)
- Rear subframe to replace (due to corrosion)
- Rear shock absorbers to replace (advisory on MOT)
- Bodywork needs a good going over as she is showing her age a lot now
- All four wheels need refurbishing
- My DAB roof aerial has died again so need to drop the headlining and replace that for a second time
I am really struggling to decide what the best solution is here.
I do love my 75 and have a lot of memories attached to her, but I also need something reliable for work. Turning up at a customers site in a car making this racket really isn't good for business!
I had even briefly considered leasing a car - something I have always detested the idea of - but once I saw the sort of drab and mundane cars that were common on lease websites I quickly wrote that idea off.
Some of you may have seen my thread a few weeks ago where I bought a Jaguar XF and I was ready to part with the 75. That fell through as the Jaguar was very crispy underneath...
But it also taught me that if I were to replace the 75, I would not be doing so with a car older than a few years as I don't wish to be fixing cars anymore. I can just about tolerate keeping my partners 25 as a tinkering toy but not the main car of the family.
These Rover 75's really get under your skin don't they
