Sent another diesel down the road (sniff)

[redmondjp]

Well, I can hardly believe it, but I sold my '81 Rabbit diesel this past weekend to a good friend who has four other VW diesels (two Rabbit sedans, two Caddy pickups). It's been parked outside (underneath trees) at my neighbor's for the past year in their extra driveway, and was neglected while I drove/worked on the 720 all last year. Interior is completely removed due to leaky rear hatch seal, so it really helped to clear parts out of the house/garage (yes, I had VW seats in the unfinished master bedroom, which will need to get finished in the next few months due to our first baby due early next year).

So, with major house work needed to get done in the next few months before the baby comes, I really didn't want the Rabbit sitting there unused (and dirty, and moldy) for another year (or more, which is likely based upon comments from other young parents we know).

The hardest moment for me was when I fired it up (hasn't run in a year), and it started IMMEDIATELY, smooth idle, no smoke (was 75 degrees out), like it had been run just yesterday. Dang! None of my gas-powered cars even start that fast. It's hard to let go of a vehicle with that kind of reliability and simplicity. But keeping a 26-year-old car on the road as a daily driver takes a bit more effort than say, our 10-year-old low-mileage Civic (no major maintenance required for many thousands of miles, knock on plastic).

So now I've got to get the '96 Passat TDI back on the road (leaky IP seals most likely due to the ultra-low-sulphur diesel, and have to replace all the rubber hoses that the diesel got onto), after getting two '87 Civic sedans done for my in-laws. No rest for the wicked, eh?