Long time, no post.

First, and most importantly, I want to apologize to Tom and Aaron for not delivering on my end of their respective transactions. It was a lapse in my ability to prioritize, and I feel like an asshole because of it. I have refunded them 100% for the items they purchased, but I still feel like it severely damaged my reputation; which was only exacerbated by disappearing from the forum.

Speaking of disappearing from the forum -

I have always loved to modify cars. There was something about taking things apart, making them better, and making them my own that was hugely satisfying. That was on full display with the CL (which I miss dearly). It may not have looked like much to others, but it was my car, and it was a great drive. Most of what made it special was that there were very few off-the-shelf parts; you really had to stretch your imagination to complete projects, and I found that to be the most fun of it all.

This Thursday marks the one year anniversary of the supercharger/blown motor fiasco. That was probably the lowest day of my automotive life. After that occurred, I had no drive, no desire to care for any car, much less the FR-S. I saw it as an appliance. I'm still trying to recover from that episode. I'm not sure what I truly want to do with the car, which is why nothing has been done. It's amazing how much money you can save my not constantly fiddling with things.

But that's only half the story. The FR-S is unlike any other car that I've owned. Obviously, it's RWD and it has a flat-four. But the biggest difference is the aftermarket. There are parts all over for this car. Some would love that. It was something I wished for when I had the CL. But after 2+ years of ownership and seeing the community expand, I've come to the realization that it's very difficult to stand out in a crowd when you own this sort of car. I'm not saying I'm an attention whore, but when you're at car shows and you see countless BRZs and FR-S' and they all have the same modifications...it's just a major turn off for me - which in itself is ironic, considering my screen name references a Civic.

And that brings me to where I am today. I just don't know what to do with the car. It's an internal debate that I have day in and day out. I go to sleep thinking that I've finally made up my mind, and I wake up thinking that my decision is horrible and spend the rest of the day mulling it over. It's not fun. What makes it worse is the fact that I absolutely love driving this car. I've posted one part out thread on FT86Club, only to take it down a day later; and I almost did it again this weekend.

I've always prided myself in making thoughtful decisions. If there is something that I want to do or purchase, I push it out of my head and reevaluate a week later. If I kept thinking about it over the course of the week, then it's a good decision, in my mind. If I didn't think about it, how important is it to me? That didn't really happen with the FR-S. Yes, I put the deposit down long before the car was on US soil and had time to think about it, but I finalized the deal the same day I test drove it. It was an impulse buy. I see that now, and I should have seen it then. But it's a decision I have to live with, and it is why I am having such a difficult time deciding what to do with the car. Do I part it out and sell it? Do I toss the supercharger on it again and hope for the best? Do I go a little more crazy and really make it my own? All of these decisions cost money, and I'm trying my best to not make another expensive mistake.

On a more lighthearted topic, with the help of Tyler, I picked up a wagon back in March.


IMG_20140310_064131 by civicdrivr88, on Flickr


IMG_20140302_204203 by civicdrivr88, on Flickr

It's an '03 IS300 Sportcross. It had 193k miles on it, but it's in pretty good condition. It has Megan lowering springs on stock struts (blown), IS350 wheels, tints, Pioneer AppRadio 3, and old Soundstream (I think?) speakers. I have Fortune Auto coilovers sitting in the garage that I purchased back in April, I just haven't gotten around to installing them. It's a pretty comfortable car, but 23mpg on the highway is a killer. I've got long term plans for it, but I need to figure out what to do with the FR-S before I start on this one.

Oh, and I moved out of the house and into an apartment in an effort to save even more money. Going from ~1800sq ft down to 853sq ft is tough, but I didn't need all that space. I do still have a garage though. It's somewhat large, but nowhere near as big as what I had before. It also has a 5x12 storage room off the back of it for more storage. Of course, I can't fit a car in the garage at the moment because it's overrun with various parts for cars I don't even own anymore.


IMG_20140711_101844 by civicdrivr88, on Flickr