Crossfire content... and help save my Puma :)

[JAC]

So far this year I have been pretty much inundated with work, and things don't look like they are going to get any quieter in the near future. This has unfortunately put the Puma on the back burner, my free time has been spent either with the family, or out driving rather than dismantling.

I have been obsessing over a 2 seater for a while now, and have been looking at things like Boxters, SLK's and Z4 but I really didn't come accross anything that "wanted to be mine" (if that makes any sense?). Well, out of the blue, I came accross the Crossfire at a price that was silly not to go and take a look, so I drove for 4 hours to check it out and when I tried it, I had to bring it home. I didn't even show it to my "better half" until I got it home, which is very dangerous!!

The Crossfire is a car that seems to be either loved or hated by everyone (except those that don't even know what it is ), and the descritpion of the Coupe by Mr Clarkson did not help them much. A friend had the SRT-6 a few years ago, and it was quite a beast. I would also have been looking for and SRT-6 years ago, if it wasn't for the fact that they didn't do a manual (I am not a great lover of the Mk1 SLK automatic gearbox). The normal Crossfire is basically an SLK320 in disguise (although I feel it handles a lot better).

This one is the Crossfire Special Edition, which was basically a base model with SRT-6 wheels, a few Chrome bits and not much more. Oh, and it was availible in a selection of colours, as long as that colour was red This, however, makes it a little different, as the guess is that only around 600 were made, and as far as I can find, this is the only one that has been imported into Spain. It's actually crossed the Atlantic twice, it was built in Germany (Karmann), sold in Florida and exported to Spain.

It is definitely not the fastest or sporties car I have owned, but it is just relaxing to cruise at 70mph, knowing the car is on tick over Maybe I am getting old!!!

Anyways, here is my new addition to the family:

Now, the save my Puma part...

Although, suprisingly, the wife didn't give e a hard time for the Crossfire, I am getting a little grief over the Puma. Until now, I used it whenever I got chance, and although the project hasn't progressed much, it was getting used.

Now however, it will be sitting in a garage (which I will have to rent, as it lost its parking space), waiting for me to get some free time and energy to start putting my thoughts into action.

My "Financial Director" can't see how this will be productive in the short or medium term, and wants me to cut my losses on the inversion. (Actual words were not quite as pleasant )

Usually I would claim that it is my current project and put it in the garage with my "partner in grime", but we currently have 4 vehicles in there that "in process".

I am actually sort of in agreement with her on this one, which makes it kind of hard to argue the point, but I really don't want the Puma to go anywhere :-(

So... Any original and convincing reasons that can help with "Save My Puma"??

Look at her... isn't she worth saving...

 

[TGPlayer1]

Firstly, thumbs up on the Crossfire. I've always had a soft spot for them and love the exhaust note. Plus it's a good way to go fast in a cheap, good looking car.

As for the Puma, tell her you wouldn't get much money for it if you sold it so it's better to hold on to it and sell it in the future when they are worth a lot more k:

 

[The Arch Bishop]

So much better looking than a Mk1 SLK - it's aged a lot better than the Merc!

Very nice indeed and looks to be in tidy condition too.

 

[JAC]

Thank guys. It has 36k on the clock, which is part of the reason it was a deal I couldn't pass on. When I got the Carfax report, it came with the US history also, and although it had been registered in 06/2006, it didn't get sold until late 2008 showing 9 miles on the clock.

It was imported by a place that rents luxury cars, which was actually an awesome place, they have cars I have only dreamed of seeing, in fact, it is supposedly one of the largest private collections in Europe (and definitely in Spain) with over 300 classics and rare cars. Lamborghini's, Ferrari's, Rolls Royce's, Bentleys, Deloreans, Corvettes, even a couple of Ford T's and and Fire Trucks, all for rent (drool!!)

To be honest, I think the last car anyone would have rented would have been the Crossfire, which was obviously the case as it had only done 4k since it was imported in 2012.

Anyway, the only issue with the car was that the back window is partly unstuck (common for these), but they have offered to fix it free of charge when their body work guy gets back from holidays. He even gave me a year's guarantee and paid for the transferral if the documentation without me even asking.

I couldn't be happier, well, except for the Puma issue...

@TGplayer1, I have considered that, but the maths don't work in my favour. I could get around 2000€ for the car now (used cars are expensive here). If I waited let's say, 5 years (when it officially becomes a classic here), maybe I could get 5 or 6k for it (if I am lucky and they do actually go up). I am looking at 60 to 100€ a month for a garage, plus around 150€ per year for tax and test (obligatory here even if it is parked up), so it would cost me at least 5 grand to store it for 5 years.