Might be quiting DSMs...

[TSi Kid]

Alright so im 17, have three jobs and am in the top 1% of my class in highschool, not trying to brag im just giving background to my story. I bought this 91 tsi awd talon realizing that because of the age i'd have to do some work but i fell in love with it.

However this car has only brought me problems. I replaced the turbo because the one on it was bad and shortly after my car overheated and blew a head gasket because the mechanic didn't replace any of the coolent. One week after i got it running again the clutch went out. Because of funds it sat in my front yard for about a month and a half. I found a friend that showed me how to do my clutch and the one we got from autozone was the wrong one and went out 3 days later. After all my woe's it ran perfect for about 2 weeks.

Then one night after going to the races, no i didn't race, i came up to a stop light and my car was engulfed in smoke. My oild return line had somehow snapped, i had replaced it 3 weeks prior, and leaked out a large amount of oil(my oil gauge is broke). I just learned today from my dads friend that there is a hole in cylinder one in my head and i have to replace it because it is leaking all my oil and smoking(this hole was caused from my incident on the freeway).

I honestly dont know what to do now. I love my car so much and don't want to get rid of it but i seem to have the worst luck with my car

 

[rock1t]

it's a dsm. it gives you a love hate respect for the car.

 

[JusMX141]

Just because one girlfriend cheats on you or lies to you, do you give up on girls and become a homosexual?


You bought a car that's older than you are...you're going to have problems. If you're truly loyal to the brand you'll not give up so easily- these cars are amazingly powerful and quite reliable when built properly.

 

[Achelea]

Lots of DSMers have a thought of selling their cars.

Several follow through.

But they regret it afterwards.

They come back. They Always Come Back.

To be serious however, These cars are tough cars, but they tend to be rather picky. The way I'd do it is to spend the first year or two catching up the maintenance. and checking what needs fixing. And only start doing upgrades when you have All the maintenance caught up. Then follow the supporting mods.

Personally, I've replaced hoses I just replaced cause apparently fuel lines don't take coolant too well. And replaced them again cause I didn't get dealer bits. Annnd now the SAME hoses need replaced AGAIN... Screw it, I'm getting Dealer hoses. u_u ((Turbo and oil coolant lines off the thermostat))

 

[GSXtacyAWD]

it's a dsm. it gives you a love hate respect for the car.

It's kind of we hate to love them at times!!!
Thats how it is for me and this is only the first one for me..

 

[dsmdeliveryboy]

Dude that doesn't sound fun, but some of the things that happened to your car could have been avoided.. You just need to keep up on the maintenance and you'll be fine, a car that is old is going to have problems. And I can tell you that probably every person that has owned a DSM has wanted to sell it because they can be such a pita but thats the fun of it, thats how you learn your way around the car. It takes true dedication to keep fixing a car over and over again even if they are the same thing.

 

[elfroggo]

Get a daily driver if you have room for the car and keep working on it.

It seems like it's not even the car's fault half the time, yeah it's old, but just reread what you typed to us.

Didn't check for coolant after turbo swap.
Installed the wrong clutch..
Either bad parts or bad oil return line install.

These are all good lessons that you're learning from working on the car.

 

[Benshooter]

The only issue that couldn't have been avoided was the clutch going out the first time.

You need gauges! At least a temperature and oil pressure gauge. They go for $30 a piece or cheaper and it's good insurance (or assurance, depending on how you want to look at it).

Yes, most people who catch the bug come back sooner or later. I did. When I was your age I had a 92 N/T and it made me really want a talon. I knew I couldn't aford the upkeep on it so I waited a few years. Now might not be the best time for you to own a performance car if you can't afford to put a clutch in it.

 

[Zack Huffman]

I'm 17, have a job and am in the top 50% of my class in high school. I'm trying to brag, and I'm giving background to my story. I bought this 91 tsi awd Talon realizing that because of the age I'd have to do some work, but I fell in love with it. So much in love with it that I am now thinking of getting rid of it because I don't want to spend any time learning how to fix it or actually fixing it.

However, this car has only brought me problems. I replaced the turbo because the one on it was bad. Shortly after, my car overheated and blew a head gasket because the mechanic didn't replace any of the coolant. I didn't want to swap a turbo on my own so I paid someone else who didn't know what they were doing either to do it for me. One week after I got it running again the clutch went out. Because of funds it sat in my front yard for about a month and a half. I found a friend that showed me how to do a poor job installing my clutch and the one we got from Autozone was the wrong one and went out 3 days later. After all my woes it ran perfect for about 2 weeks, but I always beat on it like I'm in the Indy 500 every time I drive it.

Then one night after competing in street races, no I didn't race very well (or beat anything fast), I came up to a stop light and my car was engulfed in smoke. My oil return line had somehow snapped (I had replaced it 3 weeks prior) and it leaked out a large amount of oil (my oil gauge is broke). I just learned today from my dad's friend that there is a hole in cylinder one in my head and I have to replace it because it is leaking all my oil, is running on three cylinders, is dangerous and is smoking (this hole was caused from an incident while racing on the freeway).

I honestly dont know what to do now. I love my car so much and don't want to get rid of it but i seem to have the worst luck with my car

Fixed.

No offense intended, but do you really think we can't read between the lines? Most of us remember what it was like when we were 17, and believing you are so much different than I was is tough for me. You are lucky to own a turbo car with a healthy aftermarket and good community support at such a young age. When I was 17, the first DSM I've ever owned hadn't even rolled off the assembly line yet. My first car was doomed to always be a turd, yours need not be.

Keep up with maintenance first and foremost. Take the time to learn the right way before you do anything to your car. Be patient, don't get frustrated and quit just because things seem to not be going the way you had hoped. Every bad experience should be a chance for you to learn something important really well. If you give it a fair chance by trying this and you still want to sell the car, then you know you won't regret not having it anymore.

 

[Calan]

Most of us remember what it was like when we were 17

Speak for yourself. That was over 25 years ago for me, and I can barely remember last week.

BTW - Agreed ^^.

 

[kp116]

Keep the car. The dsm "game" can be tough at times but that doesn't mean give up. Your going to have to start learning about these cars and start fixing everything yourself. There is a wealth of knowledge on the internet and I am sure there are plenty of dsmer's willing to give you a hand. I have only been in the game for a few years but in that short time I have learned so much and continue to learn new things about these cars everyday!

 

[highlandgst]

not sure if this is the same kid ... but 4chan - Banned

 

[crimsondragon]

Alright so im 17, have three jobs and am in the top 1% of my class in highschool, not trying to brag im just giving background to my story.

Must be an extremely small class.

 

[Gasolinebaptism]

May say he has 3 jobs, but it's illegal to work more than 20 hours a week in highschool.

Hey man, we're all dogging on you because you made a couple stupid mistakes, think very highly of yourself but are ready to give up at the drop of a hat, after the monster you created.
You a car guy or not?

 

[TSi Kid]

i added the beggining to show how little free time i have, honestly not to brag

its not that i just paid someone to fix my car.(this was my second car and neither of my parents like cars) i didn't know what to do so i paid someone to actually teach me what to do(it took me and my friend 3 hours after work to do my clutch the final time) i love my car but its the financial situation that has got me in a bind. I LOVE working on my car, i couldn't count the times ive called off work to have my friend show me how to do something on his.

I'm want to keep it, i would rather have my talon not running outside then to have a dd thats something i don't care for. I don't know how i'll get the money or the time but i really wana find some way

You bought a car that's older than you are...

you have no idea how often i tell people that

i'm proboly just guna grin and bear it for the while, and work on it when i can. I just hate putting finacial strain on my parents

Must be an extremely small class

i'm going to college to be a nuclear engineer and have a full tuition waver i'm not dumb, just don't have the knowledge i need

 

[Carter_95RS]

I wasnt aware that it was illegal to work over 20 hours a week in school...
I worked 35+ hours a week from the end of my sophomore year and through the rest of high school. Oh well, i made money to buy my dsm, money well spent.

 

[Benshooter]

May say he has 3 jobs, but it's illegal to work more than 20 hours a week in highschool.

Hey man, we're all dogging on you because you made a couple stupid mistakes, think very highly of yourself but are ready to give up at the drop of a hat, after the monster you created.
You a car guy or not?

Labor laws... Psshhhh! I was pulling 40/wk in HS. It's not that bad, but it plays hell on your sleep schedule and social life.

 

[Lofty]

i added the beggining to show how little free time i have, honestly not to brag

its not that i just paid someone to fix my car.(this was my second car and neither of my parents like cars) i didn't know what to do so i paid someone to actually teach me what to do(it took me and my friend 3 hours after work to do my clutch the final time) i love my car but its the financial situation that has got me in a bind. I LOVE working on my car, i couldn't count the times ive called off work to have my friend show me how to do something on his.

I'm want to keep it, i would rather have my talon not running outside then to have a dd thats something i don't care for. I don't know how i'll get the money or the time but i really wana find some way


you have no idea how often i tell people that

i'm proboly just guna grin and bear it for the while, and work on it when i can. I just hate putting finacial strain on my parents



i'm going to college to be a nuclear engineer and have a full tuition waver i'm not dumb, just don't have the knowledge i need

I've highlighted all the grammatical/spelling errors in your post, yet you're in the top 1% of your class? Please show us your intelligence and not type like an idiot. Now, all of these were your fault asides from the clutch. You should know not to run no oil pressure gauge in it. There, your DSM taught you a lesson. If it's rusty just part it out. If it's a super clean shell/you have some emotional attachment to it, keep it and swap out the engine. Regardless. Nobody needs to know you are at the top of your class, what does that have to do with anything?

I still think it's a small ass class.

 

[Carter_95RS]

^...+1.
...what he said.

 

[BigBeans]

i'm going to college to be a nuclear engineer and have a full tuition waver i'm not dumb, just don't have the knowledge i need

I call BS on the top 1%.

You have a free ride to college, but you can't even spell waiver.

 

[Benshooter]

i'm going to college to be a nuclear engineer and have a full tuition waver i'm not dumb, just don't have the knowledge i need

Post pics or you're full of it.

Hmm, three jobs, you don't have the money for a clutch, and you have to bum off your parents? That's pathetic.

I call BS on the top 1%.

You have a free ride to college, but you can't even spell waiver.

Beat me to it...

 

[Calan]

You guys are even more vicious than I inadvertently tend to be some times.

Not that I disagree... I would think (and hope) that the nuclear engineering field has higher communication skills requirements than that ^^^.

 

[Lofty]

Only reason I'm vicious is because I'm in highschool and grade snobs piss me off.

I don't have time to keep up with grades, I'm working on my car.

 

[Gasolinebaptism]

Indeed Lofty. I'm 16, still going to high school.. Kinda, I'm in a free ride program through my high school in which I'll graduate with my class, but for junior and senior years I only take classes at Columbia Basin College. I've taken this quarter off to work on my car.
I pride myself on writing, I nit-pick everything I do, I'm smart, passed a test and go to college. I had a 1.8 GPA. This kid sounds like he has a 3.9 GPA, and is currently enrolled in: Gym, Spanish, Integrated math 3/4, Art, Drama, and Elementary Chemistry.

 

[shsking11]

Whether your 1 percent in your class, who cares.

Fix your car the right way. Do all the maintaince and make it reliable.
That means changing your fluids every 3000 miles, replacing all your belts, doing a water pump.. etc.

These cars are 20 years old, they need tending to.

Don't give up hope, if you love your car as much as you say you do this should be an easy decision.

I'm 18, and i've made it through 3 dsm's already.
I love and loved all three that i've owned.
It's money well spent if you enjoy your car as much as most people here do.