I'll second that!
Laura G. and Nigel
-----Original Message-----
From: Douglas Braun & Nadia Papakonstantinou <dougbert@rcn.com>
To: spitfires@autox.team.net <spitfires@autox.team.net>;
mrgrdnr@ix.netcom.com <mrgrdnr@ix.netcom.com>
Date: Thursday, May 27, 1999 8:50 AM
Subject: Re: Mark 3 Value - was 1500 vs Mark2
>
>I think that you are over-analyzing the purchase decision. Murphy's law
>says that shortly after you buy the "optimum" car and drive it home,
>something totally unexpected, that you could not have detected beforehand,
>will break or stop working.
>
>My rationale would be to pick the model you like, and find one with the
least rust.
>Over several youears, the gas, insurance, parts and work you do on the car
will probably
>exceed what you paid for it, so don't worry too much if you could maybe get
>it a couple of hundred bucks cheaper.
>
>All that said, the Mk IIIs are supposed to have the best engines, and no
annoying
>smog gadgets, and are good-looking. So, if the Mk III you saw isn't too
rusty, go for it.
>The rust in the floorpan is common for two reasons:
>
>1: Brake fluid leaks down into that area and removes the paint. The fix,
of course,
> is to rebuild the master cylinders if necessary, clean up any existing
mess, repaint
> the floorpan if necessary (e.g. with Hammerite), and keep an eye on the
situation
> over time.
>
>2: The original carpet padding was some water-absorbent organic material
(jute?) that
> held any water (or brake fluid) that leaked down there for any reason.
The fix is
> to get rid of all that junk and use only synthetic materials. The
carpet set I
> have now is synthetic, with a closed-cell foam padding, so it absorbs
zero water.
> Also, if the car is being stored outside for any length of time, you
should remove
> the front carpets and pull out the rubber drain plugs on each side.
>
>My car has had a bunch of rust in the driver's side floorpan in the past,
but
>the floorpan still seems pretty sound. Keep in mind that when an exterior
part
>of the car rusts, the rust falls off so you never see all of it at once.
But on the floorpan you do, and it can look scarier than it really is.
>
>
>Doug
>'72 Spit
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