I've had this car for well over 2 years now
I am just needing it to last me another 2 weeks or so till I deploy. When I get back I decide what I want to do.
I have some options.
Option 1: For almost (from what I gather) $8,000 I can swap over to a new engine, replace the front bank O2 Sensor, and add in enough performance parts to put it at, or around, Stage 4 (still unsure of what the BHP would be though).
I still owe $3,000 on it though. Bought it for $4,500 with $500 down.
-A few weeks later I spent $140 to repair a line going from my radiator to my transmission line.
-About 1,500 miles later the turbo blew 2 hours away from base so I ended up adding another $1,500 to my base cost of the car on the loan to afford the turbo.
-Almost a year and a half later the idler pulley busted while I was driving during the winter to Illinois from New Jersey (about 800 miles), breaking in Dayton, Ohio, 300 miles from home. Spent $40 on the pulley and $120 on the water pump that I got from the local Saab dealership back home (the price I paid to not have to wait for overnight shipping for parts online).
-Just 1 month ago the O2 sensor went out. I was hard up for some money so I went with a Universal Front Bank O2 Sensor, about $50. (hard lesson learned there)
-500 miles from home, 2 weeks ago, the engine started acting up really bad. I replaced the Oil Pressure Sending Unit for $85, but was told that due to two spark plugs leaking compression, the sending unit still leaking oil, and the O2 sensor completely inactive, I would be better off with swapping the engine if I did keep this car.
In all I have put nearly $7,000 into this car in little over 2 years, not counting the $80 I spent for a larger intake air filter from K&N.
I hate putting the figures together but if I kept the car and performance tuned it after making sure all the mechanical and electrical problems are gone, I can easily get near the $15,000 mark. The two plus sides to this are that I would have pride in knowing I made the car what it is when it is finished and I have had the car long enough that I know a lot of what is wrong or quirky with it. Lucky for me, I have a stable and high enough income job that is doesn't bleed me dry with repairs, but it comes dang close.
Option 2: Sell the car as is and cut my losses. Doing this it would be worth $1,500 on a good day, especially since the idle is rough, it likes to die randomly, and the low engine oil pressure indication comes up every time you near idle RPM while driving or stopped.
Option 3: I could part the car out, which may get me a little more than above, but not likely.
Option 4: Talk to a dealer, use the car as a trade in, make sure the dealer takes over the remainder of what I owe on the car, and use my deployment money for a down payment and finance a newer/certified vehicle.
I think that is about it for it. Well there is one final option that I kind of like but it is still a lot of work, but the parts would be cheaper. My best friends sister is pregnant and needs a larger car for her growing family (After hearing I would be better off with an engine swap I ruled this one out because that would be cruel sticking an expecting mother with a car that has a short engine life span ahead of it). She has an older Camaro with a performance engine. Only problem being that it is more of a fair weather car. Man does it have some power going to the wheels though.
Any other ideas are appreciated though. I am more so torn between fixing it up and performance enhancing and tuning it, or using it towards a trade in on a different car. All I am doing as of right now is weighing my options so that I have a clear picture of what I want to do when I get back.