A Simple Honest Question

[jnclem]

I did replace the radiator, thermostat and all hoses preemptively. The Valley Pan, water pump, VC Gaskets, plugs, and a number of other things had just been done. The brakes are fairly new, and all of the suspension, steering, and driveline components show no signs of problems. The alternator showed no sign of an issue until it froze up.

The one that has me so nervous is the chain guide issue. That's the one that is making me wonder if I want to stick with the vehicle or not. It is in prime shape right now to either enjoy or sell. And I did just add roadside assistance to my insurance for the first time in my life - so that is proactive I guess. :-)

I appreciate all the input.

[smokeyyank]

Originally Posted by jnclem

I did replace the radiator, thermostat and all hoses preemptively. The Valley Pan, water pump, VC Gaskets, plugs, and a number of other things had just been done. The brakes are fairly new, and all of the suspension, steering, and driveline components show no signs of problems. The alternator showed no sign of an issue until it froze up.

The one that has me so nervous is the chain guide issue. That's the one that is making me wonder if I want to stick with the vehicle or not. It is in prime shape right now to either enjoy or sell. And I did just add roadside assistance to my insurance for the first time in my life - so that is proactive I guess. :-)

I appreciate all the input.

The alternators are hard to diagnosis and sometimes they just crap out. In reality if all you have left is the tranny and chain guides. Those are both items you can be proactive with. The guides are something that you can do now and not worry about for a very long time. Yes, its a very intense undertaking, not cheap even to DIY, but once it's done you should get plenty of miles. Tranny is a toss up, but when you start having issues it's obvious. Worst case you can find rebuilds for about 3k. To do a service on them isn't hard and is about $200 for parts and fluid. At the end of the day though it's still a performance vehicle and will need more things than just a car. Really only you can make that choice of if it's worth the driving pleasure to trade some maintenance cost. Brakes are more, tires are more; everything is more but you get a hell of a lot more enjoyment out of driving it. Personally, if I was in your shoes I'd sell it, look at getting a 3.0 X5, 4runner or something more daily friendly. It's great vehicle but I wouldn't daily mine, would rather beat on my jeeps!

[jnclem]

Originally Posted by smokeyyank

The alternators are hard to diagnosis and sometimes they just crap out. In reality if all you have left is the tranny and chain guides. Those are both items you can be proactive with. The guides are something that you can do now and not worry about for a very long time. Yes, its a very intense undertaking, not cheap even to DIY, but once it's done you should get plenty of miles. Tranny is a toss up, but when you start having issues it's obvious. Worst case you can find rebuilds for about 3k. To do a service on them isn't hard and is about $200 for parts and fluid. At the end of the day though it's still a performance vehicle and will need more things than just a car. Really only you can make that choice of if it's worth the driving pleasure to trade some maintenance cost. Brakes are more, tires are more; everything is more but you get a hell of a lot more enjoyment out of driving it. Personally, if I was in your shoes I'd sell it, look at getting a 3.0 X5, 4runner or something more daily friendly. It's great vehicle but I wouldn't daily mine, would rather beat on my jeeps!

This pretty much describes where I am with the whole thing right now. I have decided to put 3 to 5 thousand miles on it, and see how we are feeling about it. If we are going to keep it, it has to be used in our daily lives. We don't have the room, time, or finances for a garage queen. The car is in such fine shape, I can tell already that I won't want to take it some of the places that I go in the Outback, even though their off pavement capabilities are about the same. I couldn't bear to get any brush scratches on this paint - etc. So, in the long-run, I will likely sell it to a good home. But I plan to enjoy it for a few months first.

[bcredliner]

I added all Dinan products available for the engine after the 'break in' period. I added meth and 150 shot of nitrous several years ago. I have driven it hard for 118,000 miles.

I have replaced the chain tensioner with the updated design but have not done the timing guide PM. I am aware I could have a catastrophic failure and the risk is higher because of mods. I do have a pre PM routine that I think is thorough if there is warning.