ever gone through a phase when you are sick of your charger?

[don duick]

what do you do when you don't seem to care about your car anymore but you do not want to sell it in the fear you will regret the sale
-cover it
-  stop driving it,
- advertise it for a stupid unobtainable price
- paint it another color
- wait till you start liking it again
- think of modifications or customising
- pull it apart and start over
- look for inspiration from other chargers
- start using it as a daily driver and leave it parked anywhere unattended
- is this one of the reasons why they end up in barns
- look for another hobby
- start to panic that you have a compulsive obsessive disorder
- hope it gets smashed in a situation beyond your control {without getting hurt of course}and collect the insurance
- park it in your front yard and let the grass grow around it to give it a neglected look just to see how many people will knock on the door asking if you want to sell it with them thinking they made a discovery of a lifetime and found a bargain
- do something ridiculas to it like plastic hubcaps, mudflaps with reflectors. towing mirrors. bolt on a huge metal sunvisor , paint it with a brush. polish the tyres, the usual 70 s grandpa sort of stuff
ok we are overboard now. what would you do?

[Baldwinvette77]

I did, for like 40 minutes i think, about 2 days ago, it was weird... but now im back to obsessing over it 24/7 

[Ghoste]

I tried to leave the hobby once many many years ago and deeply regretted it shortly after.  I understand how you feel and sometimes I do get, not sick of the car but needing a break.  When that happens I have other interests to fall back on.  It always returns to cars for me though.

[Cooter]

It's like a marriage. ..there will be times you feel like quitting and you have to press on. Real car guys know this 'depression' and know ways around it.

[don duick]

wow fell better already

DARLING STOP PAINTING THE CAR!

[tan top]

  yeah  , the only time in almost 25 years , was  when I was doing the nut & bolt resto / rebuild.
  was luckily enough or unlucky enough depending on which way you look at it , to be able to do every thing my self , only things I did not do , was  engine machining , chrome plating , fitting tires & balancing .

took  just over 3 years  ,
 but still not done , to how I want really ( engine / braking ) , ( lack of dough) plus always find stuff to change      
I worked on the charger  every night after work  , ( well almost every night  )  for 2 to 3 hours at a time ,   that was after doing day job of  the same type of work ( body & paint , ) for 10 hours day
every Saturday would work on the charger for another 10 hours  , sometimes 15 hours if it was going ok ,   sometimes would get peed off , throw a few tools around , & just  walk away , especially if one too many mig splatters finding their way in my ear    down back or inside boot ,   or got too much bondo dust in eyes ,  rubbing bondo , with a long block & 40 grit  in the height of summer & your sweating your nuts off is something not to be missed  ,
almost every sunday for another 10 hours  
then as if I never had enough of this damn charger ,  booked  weeks holidays too from work  , then proceeded punish my self &  worked on the charger every day for 10 -15 hours a day    

had to stick to it & take 3 years out my life , other wise would of been on going , lifes too short 

[myk]

It's like a marriage. ..there will be times you feel like quitting and you have to press on. Real car guys know this 'depression' and know ways around it.

This right here.  There are ups and downs, but if you really love your "engagement" then you'll see it through regardless of how you feel.  Personally, I may be "sick of it" from time to time, but ultimately I know that this car is one of the more noteworthy aspects of my life...

[Dreamcar]

Let me start with before I had my Charger:

7 years ago, I bought, dismantled,  and restored a 71 Datsun 240Z (my second dreamcar after a 69 Charger). I then sold it and told myself I would never do body-work again and I was tired of the constant "gremlins" that I had to fix. Besides, my wife and I were about to have our first child, so even the "toy" car had to have more than two seats. I didn't buy another toy, but a sports sedan as our second daily driver...six months later, I desperately wanted a "toy" car again. 

I then sold the sedan and bought a 2005 Mustang GT...reliable, four seats, great aftermarket support, and not rare so I could drive it in the winter and not care (snowy, cold Ontario Canada). The perfect mix between "toy" and daily driver. However, I got tired of getting my eldest in the back seat every morning to go to daycare, and a second child was now on its way. So, I sold it and got another sedan... six months later, I desperately wanted a "toy" car again.

Do you see a pattern starting??

So six months ago, I bought a somewhat basket case 69 Charger, which allowed me to keep my other daily driver. However, now it's too cold (-40 with the windchill) to work on it (even in my insulated garage), so I find myself just buying parts but not being able to do any work. This is extremely frustrating. However, I'm thinking about it almost 24/7. I know that come the spring, and after the kids go to bed, I'll be able to go in my garage and "unwind" by working on my car. I know there will definitely be days where I will want to say "F#@* it!, I'm tired of working on this thing". But, I now realize that, being a car guy, I'm much happier having a "toy" car, even in a rebuilding state, and someday I'll have a nice driveable 69 Charger in my garage to drool over.

[nvrbdn]

this is exactly why my car took 15 years to finish.  i would work on it for a couple months and then it would sit for 6-7 months as a catch all. at one time i even thought of selling and the wife said  "you will not sell that car. it is your life. it doesnt cost anything to just sit, so leave it alone and come back to it when you are ready."  im glad she was there to stop me.  anything else that ive grown tired of, she says go ahead and sell it. but not the charger.   

[timmycharger]

not once since I bought it 17 years ago 

[Indygenerallee]

Been there, done that. Everyone goes through it (even if they don't want to admit it!!  )

[Dino]

As with most everything, when you are involved with it too much you get tired of it.  Clean up the car and cover it up for a while.  Don't think about it either, just leave it be.  When the flame gets rekindled you get back to it and if not you'll make a few bucks.

[cavemanno1]

Yes and i was stupid enough to sell her!Wish i had more brain or balls to keep her!

[Sublime/Sixpack]

There were times when I was tired of working on it, other times when I may have been
frustrated with it but no, never "sick" of it.

[ws23rt]

I'm one of those that was new to driving when these chargers were new. There are many memories of the street driving fun and all that went with it that give the hobby a nostalgia that most of you younger owners never went through.

On this topic----What I have come to realize is that fixing the car to what it was will not bring back the days of when it was new. It is great fun to remember those days but when the car is done and we take it for a ride the past does not jump back at us. It could be a bit of a let down and make us wonder why we spent all this time restoring the car.

This is a downer that passes just by accepting that memories are bigger than they were to begin with.  Let's leave them as they are and make new ones for later with our new old car  May they be greater than they are now.

[XS29L9Bxxxxxx]

No.

[TPR]

Nope. But I guess we're still in our honeymoon period!
TPR

[WHITE AND RED 69]

Not sick of it but I do get sick when I add up all the money I've spent on it. 

Just keep surfing this site, there are plenty of builds and modifications always popping up to inspire you to get in the garage or out on the road.   

[don duick]

mine was a basket case that took about one and a half years to assemble to the point of being a tidy daily driver condition. I spent an average of 4 hours a day mostly on bodywork and paint. 4 hours a day is plenty of time to get sick of looking at it. here in Australia complete going cars are very expensive {and don't usually sell} so the basket case route was the cheaper option providing you do the work yourself. buying a complete going car I think would be a totally different story. I would not have the patience or money for a complete and correct resto I sure do respect and appreciate them.

[six-tee-nine]

Hey Don,  i'm in the same boat. Here in Europe prices are crazy.
But not having a car on the road and looking at a load of work can be depressing some times.
I had my 69 for sale last summer but the moment I got emails and phone calls my stomach was up in my throat....

I kept the car wich actually boosted my dedication and I'm glad I did'nt sell.

[don duick]

yep you see your car differently when others take an interest and you feel like its getting stolen. glad to hear you kept it

[myk]

I love the Charger.  Live for it even.  Good times are taken with the bad, but in the end it's a life-long commitment for me...

[bill440rt]

Frustrated yes, even defeated at times, but no never "sick" of it.

[nvrbdn]

yep, i really agree with that statement. the word "sick" isnt the real feeling. the feeling of being overwhelmed or frustrated fits more than sick.

[XS29L]

Nope. I've owned '68 and '69 Chargers since I was 16 and I'm 48 now and never lost interest once.