Kitcat Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Do people buy and enjoy these charming little devices long term? Or are its great strengths eventually overwhelmed by its numerous impracticalities? In other words, do people usually have a 7 fling & then move on? How long have people owned their 7's? Is your continued ownership just inertia or are you still using and having fun with it, at least occasionally? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevet Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Yes. I'm in my 10th year (with a two year break in the middle - small matter of moving from UK to here). The trouble is they are addictive, and there is nothing else quite like them. Even with various age related problems (back, wrists), I still can't wait for a dry day and an open road. I only wish I had got into them at 21 rather than 41! It's numerous practicalities are evident in week one - the good news is they don't really get any worse :jester: Unless, like me, you are adding pounds as well as years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xflow7 Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 I don't think there is a "typical" ownership scenario. There are people who have had a 7 for 20 and 30 years with no signs of every selling it, and there are people who buy one, enjoy it for a couple of years, and then move on either because it wasn't what they imagined, or they got it out of their system. And of course there are people who have one for a while and then find themselves in some personal situation that demands that they part with it. Different strokes... I've had mine for about 5 years and while I'm not currently thinking of selling it, I also can't honestly say that I might not decide to at some point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnCh Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 6 years and counting. -John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowss7 Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 7 years for me. I don't think anything could ever give you the same thrill. You wear this car. I tell people that to turn left you just turn your head a little and the air pressure turns you. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MHKflyer52 Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 I would have to say that we due have long term relationships with our little cars. My first ride and drive of a Seven was in the summer of 1968 in Collage Station Tx which gave me the bug but life, family and money kept me from owning one until I built my my car in 2005. The Seven that I drove back then still belongs to the same individual who I have been friends with since then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxologist Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 u gets STDs, u still want to have sex, right?:cuss: :ack: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solder_guy Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 u gets STDs, u still want to have sex, right?:cuss: :ack: not the same! :crazy: Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al N. Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 Jon- I was really LOL on that one. Not that I know from experience or anything. I agree there are different types of owners. Probably as many as there are types of cars. Some folks think they want to get one and then fall out of love in the first few years...just look at the number of semi-recent cars we've seen on the second hand market. Then others fall in love and stay there. Some, like Tony V., are tempted by a newer better looking model (his Elise), but keep on pining after a Seven. Obviously, I think the majority of folks who chime in here regularly are the long term type. I was truly an early 911 fan (66-73) before I had my first ride in a Se7en. 3 years later I bought Orange. And this will be my second anniversary. And unless some financial hardship forces me to sell it, I will have it for a very very long time. -Al P.S. I documented my first year or so of ownership pretty well at my blog: gardenstatesevens dot org slash wordpress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davemk1 Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 I've only owned my Birkin for about a year and a half but I can't imagine being without a Seven. I've owned some fun cars in the past, A Volvo 1800ES, a 1966 Lotus Cortina, and a 1976 Mazda RX3, and these were all fun but everything feels like a truck compared to a Seven. I can imagine a different Seven but going back to a "real" car seems unlikely. Time will tell. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redbaron Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 I completed my Rotus in 1992 when I was at the tender age of 62. Now some 15 years later and at age 77 I still have it and enjoy driving it immensely. For me there is something therapeutic about those "wind in your face" drives that relaxes me and causes me to smile both internally and externally. I built it as a cruiser not a racer but the modified Ford 2.3 liter turbocharged and intercooled engine provides spirited performance, much to the surprise of the local Mustang and import sports car crowd. I plan to keep it until the old joints don't allow me to get in and out of it any more. I have even given thought to ultimately attaching six handles on it and using it in lieu of a casket when that time arises. Sort of adds a new dimension to the definition of "long term relationship" doesn't it? Red Baron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted May 13, 2007 Author Share Posted May 13, 2007 Red: As a 60 year old, you give me hope! I still have 2 years to try to find funding, then many more years of continuing to not act my age (I sold my Evo in '05). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slngsht Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 The thing that makes this car a long term affair for me (been wanting one for years, have owned one for 2+ years). I'll own it for as long as I can drive it, and when I'm done, I'm sure someone in my family will enjoy it. EDIT: Forgot to say what "the thing" was :lol: The thing that makes it special is that it is the ultimate tinker car. Unlike most modern go fast cars, this is actually a pleasure to work on. I see endless possibilities of doing stuff to it (somebody stop me :willy: ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 Oh Yes! a long term relationship is possible. I am at 9 years (in the UK) and I was in the US for 6 of those just selling after all that time to move back to PA. But the deal with the management is I have the funding for the next one I f I could have imported the one I have it would have been first in the container. Its never too late and you only live once right. A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scannon Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 I have had my SV for 1.5 years, just finishing it now and have only driven it a few, way too short times (still waiting for that pesky assigned VIN to arrive) without plates. I can already tell this is a keeper. The grins are ear to ear everytime I fire it up. My history with keeping cars is not good, I've owned 299 of them so far and until my current Miata the record was just under two years. Most lasted a few months. I've had the Miata for 8 years now and don't see me selling it anytime soon. As far as using the car for a coffin, I have long dreamed of having myself freeze dried when I die, strapped into the Miata with a smile on my face and have car and corpse launched into space in the direction of a certain star in the Southern Cross now officially named Kepler's Yellow Miata. Of course, I will have to win the lotto or a big lawsuit to be able to afford that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew7 Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 My car situation is a little different, its a family heirloom. I wanted a pure sports car, it had to be unique, a convertible, and I wanted to build it. I never heard of a 7 before 2 years ago. I've never sat in or driven any seven but mine and only seen 2 in person. My dad was retired and I'm on sabbatical so it was the perfect time. I seen "Uncle Ron's" book and we started building in a one car garage and 7 months later it was finished, well mostly. The car is great but those 7+ months of memories building are priceless. Every nut and bolt, every welded bracket, all the arguments from a left brainer and a right brainer and every compromise we made is in the car. All the laughs we had during the build, I can't tell you how great we felt lighting up the R1 for the first time. If someone wanted to trade a loaded CSR or any exotic for mine I wouldn't do it. If I had to put it in order, The house, the wife's wedding dress and diamond go first, then the car, then the kids. Its right up there with pictures and home movies. I want to encourage all fathers to build a project with your kids, no matter how old they are. Dad proudly tells everybody "take 150' of tubing and (4) 4x8 sheets of aluminum, weld and rivet them together and this is what you get." He wants to build his now but wants a hard top maybe a series 4? This hobby is to much fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drew... Posted May 16, 2007 Share Posted May 16, 2007 I am at 16 months and cannot imagine a scenario that I would sell the car (short of financial ruin). After many years of dreaming of a se7en I was finally at the tipping point and asked a friend (non-gearhead) about it. I was asked three questions: 1. Could you sell it for a profit after building it? Answer: Maybe with the right buyer, (not likely) 2. Will it appreciate? Answer: Not likely. 3. Would your Godson enjoy it after your gone? Answer: I finalized the order the next day! As andrew 7 said "its a family heirloom" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderbrake Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 I have had mine for 3 1/2 years, and have enjoyed every minute. I will keep it as long as I enjoy it, and can get in and out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roll a 7 Posted May 22, 2007 Share Posted May 22, 2007 7s have been known to outlast wives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slngsht Posted May 22, 2007 Share Posted May 22, 2007 7s have been known to outlast wives. :hurray: roll a 7 is back Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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