Am I mad ?

[Ikanpaul]

Hi all,I have a 2002 1.9d berlingo van nicknamed the Slug for obvious reasons, its nearing 200000mls has just passed MOT with no advisories and the body is tidy as is the interior, I use this van daily and have found it reliable,I have always spoilt it with regular oil changes , filter change s, gear oil changed once to syntrax much smoother changes when cold by the way , anyway to the point I have bought the Slug 2xstruts,2xwishbones,2xstrut bearings,2xeibach springs,2xtrack rod ends,2xmeyle lower ball joints to replace rubbish ones on new first line wishbones,new arb bushes,new spring catchers,new link rods , new driveshaft inner and outer boots,new driveshaft support bearing and lower engine mount ,new gearbox oil seals , 2ltr of castrol syntax gear oil plus other bits I cant bring to mind. My question is as title suggests is am I mad? , I can do the work ok but I know myself I will then go on to re-build back end , So do I leave the parts in the garage and sell the Slug as is OR waste money re-building it ????????

[ron]

As the old saying goes,better the devil you know.If it's basically sound go for it.A newer one will lose you more in depreciation. I think you really wanted someone to justify your madness.

[Ikanpaul]

As the old saying goes,better the devil you know.If it's basically sound go for it.A newer one will lose you more in depreciation. I think you really wanted someone to justify your madness.

Ok I WILL rebuild the Slug and post some pictures, work wont start on it for a couple of weeks as very busy at moment and need to use it daily,also garage is full as in proper FULL , so it will be a driveway challenge but may treat myself to some kind of po-up work shelter for the task as cold is ok but cold and wet I cant handle, thanks Paul.

[ron]

As the old saying goes,better the devil you know.If it's basically sound go for it.A newer one will lose you more in depreciation. I think you really wanted someone to justify your madness.

Ok I WILL rebuild the Slug and post some pictures, work wont start on it for a couple of weeks as very busy at moment and need to use it daily,also garage is full as in proper FULL , so it will be a driveway challenge but may treat myself to some kind of po-up work shelter for the task as cold is ok but cold and wet I cant handle, thanks Paul.

Good luck & do keep us posted.Give all nuts & bolts a dousing with WD40 a couple of time before you start.It'll have a couple of weeks to soak in.

[Gadgetman]

Yes, you're mad...

Just thinking about selling it is madness!

Oh, wait... that's a 1.9D... Never mind... ;-)

Of course it's madness!

[geoff]

You sound like me !!! .............. I'm all for pro active maintenance if I intend to keep a vehicle for an extended period and my reasoning is to do the work early get it out of the way and then sit back and just enjoy the drive for " X " number of years without touching it afterwards apart from oil and filters of course ..........

No you are not mad and yes carry on as you are, you obviously are quite happy with the vehicle, long may you rejoice !

edit : how about a pop up Gazeebo on the drive ???

[Jed Clampit]

Go on rebuild it just think of the satisfaction when it's done if you bye another what will go wrong with it 

[bikergraham]

If the chassis is ok and not too rusty i think i would have the tendancy to do a refurbishment,the main thing i think in this case is that its a car you know and its been loved,oil changes are the best thing to give the vehicle longlivety and dont forget these engines are very understressed.You wont get a lot for it if you sell it and then there's the cost of purchasing something else which will be an unknown and could turn out to be a turd anyway.Parts are very cheap and if you cant afford them new there are pleanty of vehicle recyclers about ,they are also very easy and forgiving to work on without the latest euro crap problems.Go on you know it makes sense.

[Ikanpaul]

Thanks for all of your replies,as bikergraham says these old diesels are very basic and understressed that you could call them reliably slow!. Having owned the slug for 7 years I know it inside out and know what to expect when work on it starts and I have a decent armoury of tools and cutting gear if needs be!.Its just that I am 50yrs old and it was concerning me that I hadn't grown up and maybe I should just buy a new/newer van,although then of course what would I have to do in my limited spare time , so its going to happen as I also get the feeling that these old buses need and deserve respect akin to some other vehicles like dare I press the keys VW !!!!!!!.

[geoff]

Bask in the comfort of knowing it inside out, anything less is underestimated !