I was climbing out from under my car for the 14th time while doing an oil change and valve clearance adjustment, when something my father said to me many years ago popped into my head. I was helping him put some baseboard in after remodeling a room when he stood up and said “The older I get, the lower the floor gets…” As I hobbled around the garage trying to walk erect again, I instantly knew what he meant. And yes, I know that I shouldn’t have to crawl out once if I was planning ahead, but tell me it’s never happened to you.

Maybe this whole 40 year old car thing is a young man’s game? Seems the older I get, the more I appreciate the car, and the less excited I am to crawl under it. Ironic…don’t ya think?

Periodically, on the forums, a discussion will start regarding lifts, and the general consensus is that once you have one, you won’t know how you lived without it. Which is another epiphany that I’m still waiting to experience. I have a ton of respect for the guys that work on our cars every day, and especially so after I finish some bit of maintenance I’ve been putting off for far too long. But I’m also jealous of them as well, mainly because I’ve convinced myself that if I had more time and more space, and a lift, I’d be doing a lot more maintenance and restoration on my car. It’s probably not true, but it’s how I lie to myself

I have finished a basement, remodeled a bathroom, and done my fair share of fairly extensive home improvement projects. What I’ve learned is that there are some things best left to the professionals…I’ll replace switches or light fixtures, and do some simple electrical work, but when it came to running circuits for the basement and tying them back into the panel, I hired a professional. I feel the same regarding some car projects. I would rather have someone with the knowledge and experience, not to mention the facilities and equipment, repaint my car, than try and do it myself. Others have produced excellent results in their garage, doing it the first time…I’ll just be honest and admit, that I know my limitations…and so, I’d hire it out.

I’m not sure what part of laying on my back on the cold concrete floor of my garage doesn’t appeal to me, but I have to really psyche myself up to crawl under the car lately.  I remember my first 914, and sharing a workshop with a buddy who had an old El Camino that he was restoring. We had enough space, we had unlimited compressed air, and considerably more energy than I seem to be able to muster now. That dedicated space was more than 30 minutes from my house, but I still found myself there almost daily, taking the car apart, and eventually even putting it back together. And yes we even resprayed the 914 in its original Alaska Blue Metallic ourselves in that space, and it came out pretty good. I dropped the engine there, rebuilt the suspension, and replaced the exhaust. I also made the cardinal sin of replacing the stock fuel injection with…gasp…a single carb! In my defense there was no internet then, and I didn’t have access to the opinions of the 914 community that I do now, but now I know better.  I was also 26 years old then, and if I wanted to work at that shop until 4 am, drinking cheap wine from a gallon jug, I could do that…and I did.

Nowdays the 914 is steps away in my 2 car garage, being squeezed by the wife’s daily driver, and a wife who doesn’t respect the centerline of the garage. There is scant space on the side or in front of the car, given the cabinets and clutter vying for floor space, and the thought of dropping the engine, and finding some space for that lump, along with the car seems unlikely. I often find myself on craigslist looking for one of two things: a lift that might be a deal too good to ignore, or a workplace close enough and cheap enough that I could do the work there and not worry about spreading out a little bit. Any type of commercially available space is cost prohibitive, and any type of cost effective storage typically forbids the type of work I want to do in it. What the world needs, or at least my corner of it, is some type of communal or shared work space that can accommodate a number of cars, and allow the costs to be shared….oh, and it should also have a lift! I know that such places exist, and many folks have worked out arrangements exactly as I’m describing, but I’m having a hell of a time trying to find something like that for myself.

I’m still looking, and if I ever do stumble upon (or start) a place like that, I hope that I have the energy and motivation to take proper advantage of it. The young man I once was certainly would, and I’d like to believe the old(er) man I am now would as well.

So is owning a 40 year old car a young’s man’s game? Well, No, and Yes. It helps to be young when you have to crawl under a car 15 times to do some otherwise simple task, but being an older gent is helpful when trying to appreciate an appreciating classic. Maybe that’s a metaphor for owning a classic car. And maybe that’s the motivation I need to crawl under there and start addressing those little oil leaks.