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"There and back again... A petrolhead tale by Bruce Baggins" I've not really started a thread on here for a long time. My build threads are all years behind (sue me) and I'm guilty of not really participating much in the great RR community of late. I've been a busy guy. Life has, and continues to, change a lot for me and posting things on the great wide internet has taken a bit of a back seat for the past couple of years. Life does that. Well, I guess I just feel compelled to put keyboard to screen for once. Partly to address a pet hate of mine and partly to document a little adventure that some of you might even find mildly interesting. Possibly. Wind the clock back to a whole year ago (well, in a few days time, but who's counting?) and I spot this post in a good friends build thread: Oh. And earlier tonight...I bought this.   Didn't I say somewhere something about never wanting two projects?! Now, when I say good friend, I'd never even met the guy. For a number of years we'd been in touch about this and that. I think it started with a PM on here, I can't remember what about, then more PM's started to flow. Then a few phonecalls. I'm sure some of you know the sort of thing I mean? A strange concept to someone a bit oldschool like me where friends are people you meet, then get to know....but c'est la vie, I'm happy to embrace the idea of having friends who exist at the other end of a place called cyberspace. So, we now get that camerashy (I hope he doesn't mind me referring to him as James? That's his name after all) and I are friends of the virtual sort, pretty good friends in fact, but what has this all got to do with the title? A photo of a Porsche? Bilbo Baggins? WHERE IS THIS GOING??? Well, seeing the photos ^above^ suddenly sparked an interest in a car that had always been a firm favourite of mine, but never really registered as something that I could, or would, ever own. Suddenly I found myself wanting a Porsche. Not a 924, not a 944 (both of which I like) but a 911/912. A Beetle in a party frock. Funny how life goes. |
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When I then start to see him posting up photos like this:    ...I find myself calling the man responsible for my sudden Porsche fetish and we have a long chat. That's it, the seed has been planted and I suddenly find myself lusting, yearning for a Porsche. It's all James' fault. All of it! |
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Then I see the prices of current classic Porsches and it's like taking a freezing cold shower after dreaming all night about Marisa Tomei. I never knew they had risen to stupendously in price in such a short space of time. I'm not talking an increase, I'm talking a stratospheric launch into a completely different league. Way beyond my means!
I try to put the idea out of my head....I decide to rule out the notion of owning one of these cars, only for James to post a video up on my Facebook page.
This video to be precise:
I watched it. I watched it again...I watched it numerous times and I was back in love with the idea of getting a Porsche. It kind of summed up why I wanted one of these cars, something timeless, something beautiful and also something I could happily grow old with.
Time to start hunting.
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One thing I kept coming back to was the Black Sheep video. I was so impressed with the car, the owner, the video, that I looked up the guy, Julien, found him on Facebook and sent him a message congratulating him on such a great car, letting him know how much I loved the video and how it was a great bit on inspiration for me to get looking for a car of my own. A few messages back and forth, then a phonecall, he informs me he has a 912 project car he's thinking of selling. It's in Paris, it's in pieces, but it's all there except for the engine. €5,000 and it's mine. I get a small photo sent to me via email and I'm in love.  OK, so it looks a mess, be he assured me it's all there bar the engine and one rear window catch. So, I start to plot how I'm going to get £3,500 together ASAP. The thought of the car being in bits, all the way over in Paris? "If only you were nearer" didn't even cross my mind. I start ringing around friends to see if someone has a car trailer I can borrow. It looks like I may have found myself a Porsche. It's going to be a bit of a trek to collect it, but that's all part of the adventure to me. I ring James to tell him..... |
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At last, the story behind the erm, story.
Bookmarked.
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This is it?! This is where you leave me?! What happens next, more... I WANT MORE!!!!
Those Petrolicious videos have a lot to answer for!
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Still here? Blimey! So, Julien and I are in constant talks over Christmas about logistics, staying at his for a few days, what dates would suit us best etc... All the time I'm scrabbling every penny I can together to buy this thing. He sends me some photos showing how he's put some parts back together on the car to make it easier to transport:    A week later he informs me that he's had an offer on the car that he simply couldn't refuse. He's very, very apologetic, but I'm fine with this because I said all along that if someone else came along with the money first, not to wait for me. I'm gutted, but certainly not angry at Julien, he's been great all the way along and I didn't have all the money together, so only had myself to blame. We continue to keep in touch and are pretty good friends now. Even though we've never met. The internet does that.... Suddenly I hatch a silly plan. It's simple, it's been staring me in the face all along. I just need to convince James to sell me his car. After all, he is responsible for all of this, it's his fault I'm yearning for a Porsche, he's to blame for everything. Time to persuade him to let me buy his car. I phone James. The opening comment, "If only you were nearer". He laughs. My second comment, "SELL ME YOUR CAR" He stops laughing. |
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Despite thinking a few times that he was starting to give in, he remains resolute that he doesn't want to sell the car. I keep looking on eBay, Car&Classic etc...and can only cry at the prices these things are going for. Pretty much every other day I message James on Facebook urging him to sell me his car. If I'm not messaging him, I'm calling him and trying my very best to get him to break. It becomes a psychological game, a long distance banter of persuasion and bullying from me. A barrage of requests, pleading and demands. GUILT! That's a good one to try, make him feel guilty that he's already got a major project going anyway and he can't manage two of them at the same time. This means the Porsche is wasted and he should sell it to me. It doesn't work. I even make him a lovely keyring for his project, a compelte one off for his pride & joy. That'll soften him up a bit. I'm kind like that. Selfless.  Well, maybe with a slight, subtle hint alluding to something else?  Then I get a message, all is says is "Call me"  |
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I know the story, I'm still on the edge of my seat for updates  *n |
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Top grammar tips!
Bought = purchased. Brought = relocated
Lose = misplace/opposite of win. Loose = your mum
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sb
Part of things
Posts: 725 
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it's like taking a freezing cold shower after dreaming all night about Marisa Tomei. A man very much after my own heart, but I am enjoying this tale! |
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Persistence is an amazing thing. I do feel sorry for James, I genuinely think I broke him! Anyway, I call him and anxiously wait to hear what he's got to say. Low and behold, he declares that if I really want it, I can buy the car. "SAY WHAT??" Yep - the car is mine if I want it? It's only taken 2 months of intense pressure, but it has paid off. Let me think about th...YES, I'll take it!!!! Time to continue scraping all this money together, to up the search for change down the back of the sofa, to economise where possible in order to maximise any money I can put to one side. After all, this could, COULD, result in me owning a Porsche. Canada is only just over <<<there anyway, no problem.  What could possibly stand in the way of this amazing plan? |
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Great story so far. Nice to hear from you in cyberspace Bruce, a man who always follows his heart.
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I start to do the sums and the enormity of what I've agreed to, what I've pushed and pushed for, starts to sink in. Not the purchase of the car itself, I'm half way towards that already, but the additional costs like shipping, import duty etc... Add to the fact that Waterloo (where James lives) is a fair way inland, getting a car from there to a sea port when it doesn't have an engine? That's not going to be stupendously easy. We talk pretty much twice a week but I don't tell him that I'm starting to panic. The costs have pretty much doubled beyond the asking price (absolutely no fault of James') and I'm starting to wonder where I'm going to find all this money? Then I realise two things: Even taking into account the missing engine and costs of shipping/VAT/duty, this is still a cheap Porsche. And also that I've never let distance or other factors get in the way of me buying cars before. Admittedly Canada is a little further than I've been before on any of my car buying adventures, but heck, I've always maintained that if you want something really badly, you can make it happen. I call James and tell to him expect a visitor. Not only am I going to buy the car, not only am I going to find the money, but sometime a bit later in the year I'll be flying to Canada to collect the car myself, in person. And as part of that, finally get to meet this guy who I've spend countless hours messaging and phoning. This was going to happen. Time to factor in even more money into the grand savings scheme. Time to plan a great adventure. I proceed to go to sleep most night dreaming of owning a Porsche. THIS Porsche to be precise:  Marisa Tomei has been replaced in my dreams. |
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Always wanted a Porsche - 912 version would do me fine  |
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Marisa Tomei has been replaced in my dreams. I know it's a lovely Porsche, but still... It's good to read the back story to how this happened too. |
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Fast forward 6 months of intensive saving, selling pretty much everything I can sell (including my lovely Mk3 Escort) to raise the money and spending hours too numerous to count planning everything, I finally book my flights to Toronto. Excitement level: Very high! I send this photo to James with the pretty accurate title of, "Sh!t just got real" It was really happening.  Around the same time I also send the full amount for the purchase of the car to James. He's been straight up front since the day he agreed to sell me the car and I felt confident enough in his description, photos and reassurances that it's worth it. Bank account much emptier, flight getting nearer, the anticipation starts to mount. I also book the shipping of the car from Montreal, the port recommended by the shipping company. Only a mere 400 miles to move the car to the port. That's virtually on the doorstep considering the scale of this purchase.  "If only you were nearer" |
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It was literally a matter of hours after James informing me of the money clearing for the 912, "It's *your* car now", that I spot an image on the internet and it throws everything up in the air. A complete bombshell out of the blue.
I had my heart set on the 912. The flight was booked, the car paid for, the shipping arranged.....everything in place. Then this, a single photo that had me questioning literally everything.
It's hard to explain when you have an addiction, and boy do I have an addiction! I wasn't going to back out of the deal with James, no way, he's a good friend and I was committed, but this single photo had me wanting to buy another car. Another Porsche.
Two bits of good news (for my bank balance and for my sanity) was that A) the car wasn't for sale and B) it was a 911, so would have been WAY out of my price range even if it was for sale. Which is wasn't. PUT IT OUT OF YOUR MIND BRUCE!
I'll not post the photo up. It's too upsetting for me to think about those days of being distracted from my goal of buying this 912 from James. From possibly jeopardising an amazing trip that I'd saved and saved and saved for.
Temptation is a dangerous mistress sometimes.
To be continued....
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Sorry MM, I've got to pop out now, but please, don't wait for me. Keep this stuff coming and I'll catch up later |
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HA I am laughing already from Baggins End.
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Your Porsche lust is exactly how i feel about Jensen interceptors and i would travel bloody miles to get one!
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[*]
[*]
Oh. And earlier tonight...I bought this. 
