Moral support really needed....

[Preston Brown <pbrown@econ.yale.edu>]

Hey guys.  I really need some moral support.

Over the past year and a half, I have enjoyed owning my 5000CST with my
girlfriend (and soon to be fiancee...).  It's now her daily driver, I got
a 97 Passat when I realized I wouldn't be able to get a 1.8TQ manual in
time.  Shameful, I know, but it's not a bad car either.  I have done
numerous repairs on the car since I got it (new wires, plugs, rotor, cv
boots, struts, brake pads, temperature sending unit, belts incl. timing,
ECV, front axle, etc).  Those things added up to quite a bit, but alone
they were 'manageable', and expected in fixing up a car after putting 30k
miles on it in a year, giving it a nice 115k.

Well, the sh*t hit the fan last week.  Driving to work, my girlfriend
heard a loud grinding in the rear when coming to a stop.  In her heavy
commuting traffic, it was impossible to not brake frequently.  When she
got to work she immediately went to monro (no!!) where things got
expensive.  The right rear caliper had decided that retracting was not one
of its jobs, and had pushed right through the break pad and destroyed that
whole break assemblage including rotor.  DAMMIT.  rear breaks need to be
replaced in pairs according to them (and Bentley unfortunately agreed) and
with their astronomical part charges it was over $600 for that break job.
I would have had it towed to my real shop but it was going to be $180 for
the tow so the price difference would have been much smaller.  I gave up.

I already knew my radiator had a hairline crack and ordered a replacement
from PDQSHIP at great savings.  That is going in today.  While they are in
there, they tell me that my mcyl is truly shot (and I agree, there is
break fluid caked all over beneath it), and I would have been OK if it was
just that.  But then the REALLY REALLY BAD NEWS:  the power steering pump
and rack are both shot.  I had suspected as much, as steering got heavier
over the past year and I thought something was up.  They said that the
seals in the rack were all ripped and dirt and stuff was in there.  GREAT. 
They wanted $800 for a new rack and steering pump installed.  After a
quick glance at blaufergnugen showed that the parts would near $500
shipped anyway, I figured that it was going to take about 5 hours of
labor, so while the price wasn't ideal, it was nearer to the money (ouch!)
than some others might have been.  I gave them the OK.

So, now I have shelled out nearly $2000 in the last two weeks for break,
rad., mcyl, rack, and pump.  I only paid $2500 for the car, so it doesn't
hurt quite as bad.  But well, you know... it still HURTS.  I haven't even
had enough money ever in the 'car fund' each month to CONSIDER performance
mods.

OK so now that I am over the sticker shock, and know I need a promotion
and a raise, what else is likely to sock it to me in the next year or two?
Besides the motor itself, which runs well but the lifters are NOISY!!  I
need a few virtual pats on the back saying, BTDT, and I sympathize...

Pissed at his 86 5KCST, considered selling for 5 secs, then rejected
notion...

---
 -Preston Brown
  preston.brown@yale.edu