Well, as some of you know, things haven't been going very well on the financial front for me. In fact, they've just about bottomed out.

Last Friday my RX-8 was repossessed by the credit union. I have until this coming Friday, May 8th, to come up with a bit $1120 + the costs incurred by the credit union in having the car repossessed (I'll try to find out what those are on Monday).

What does this mean? Well, for one, I'm looking for any opportunity to make some cash fairly quickly. My Access Port is obviously up for sale (it was a job explaining what I needed to do to remove it from the car), and I'm definitely eager to do any mechanical or PC work folks need done.

I do have another car, she just doesn't run. I need to swap the engine in my RX-7 and hope the spare sitting out in the shed fires up when the swap is done.

Obviously I wont be able to lead any drives until I have running car again (whether I can pull the money together to get Ruby back, or simply have to get Rose back on the road).

I've already spoken with everyone who has paid memberships and assured them that I'll either refund their memberships as soon as I'm able, or extend their memberships for a period equal to the suspension of drives.

Unfortunately my contract at MS ended with the worst possible timing, and the few interviews I've been on have resulted in the hiring manager asking "What happens in 2 or 3 weeks when someone offers you more money?" They don't seem to care that I'll talk to them first, and allow them time to find a replacement, nor do they seem to understand that in the current economy, the likelihood of another offer coming along is rather low.

As frustrating as the current situation is, I'm trying to remain positive. My father pointed out that I've not really been on the right path. Since I was 2.5 (according to my folks) I've been fascinated with figuring out how stuff works, and with going fast. So I'll be enrolling in Bellevue College's (formerly Bellevue Community College) AS Engineering Transfer program, and moving on to UW when the time comes. My folks are helping with tuition and providing a roof so I don't need to make near as much as I was prior to a few greedy bankers crashing the economy into the proverbial toilet. I still intend to do the drives as soon as I have a running car and funds to insure and fuel it. But I'm also planning to learn the skills necessary to design the cars of the future. Maybe I'll get to help with a future Mazda Rotary.

Long story short, I'm in a bind. If I don't come with some funds quickly, my car goes to auction. The proceeds of the auction will be applied toward the remaining principle on the loan, and I'll still be on the hook for everything else, and I still owe more than dealers are getting for 04 RX-8's.

Again, no matter what happens, I'm not calling it quits on the drives, but there may be an extended break.

 

Hi Kris,

That's really sad, I'm sorry to hear it. I know how important the drives and the driving spirit are to you. No matter what happens you'll get back in the drivers seat of an RX8 again if not now in the future.

I think it's great though that you're going to try a new direction. The college degree will definitely help get you the opportunities you want.

 

Sorry to hear about your troubles. Good luck!

 

let me know when you are a student at UW, depending on the timing, i might be able to help you with a part time job as a student, which is limited to 20 hours a week during school time and full time during breaks, though you might make a heck lot more out of student jobs so, this might be a moot point, but its there none the less.

Adam AKA Ducky

 

Wow Kris, I hate to hear about good people getting screwed by the current times. I defiantly agree with the new direction and a degree will help out greatly once everything gets back on track.

Cant wait to get back on the roads again.

 

Thanks, guys.

 

Update?

 

yeah, what's going on?

 

Any news Kris?

 

Sorry I've been gone. I had to take some time to reset emotionally and intellectually. Thanks to the generosity of some great friends I came close, but not close enough, to putting together the funds necessary to get my car back. So I've been working away on my RX-7, trying to get her back running so I have something to drive between now and my next RX-8. It's slow going, but I am making progress. While I wait for tools to come in, I've been working on the rear-end. I've had an LSD sitting under the car to replace the stock open diff, and finally got that and the stabilizers swapped. I still have the stock springs from Ruby, so I'll see if they'll fit on Rose. I hope so, that should make a great upgrade to the 22 year old suspension. Of course, I had to be stupid today. I was draining the radiator and trying to wrestle a jack under the jug I was collecting (most) of the coolant in when the jack tipped over and squished my fingers. The darn thing is made for semi-trucks and weighs in excess of 30 lbs, so the tip of my middle finger has a nice deep purple crescent on it. I can type okay and bend the finger, so I'm sure it's just bruised, but no more work today.

I did have a 1 day gig working on the conversion of a WaMu branch to a Chase branch, which will bring in a bit of cash to help the project along. I'm still looking for any other gigs, but my new focus is returning to school and getting that engineering degree. That doesn't mean I'm giving up on TWR. On the contrary, I plan to apply what I learn to developing some TWR parts and kits to offer in addition to the driving events. The available classes for summer session don't look like there's enough to keep busy, so I may also take a welding class.

So what does that mean for the drives? Well, I still need to pull apart my spare motor and see what parts need replacing. Hopefully the hard parts are fine, but I'm not holding my breath. Once I have parts in I can rebuild the engine and find a shop crane to rent or borrow to swap motors. Then comes reassembly. If the hard parts are good I should be back on the road before the end of June and I'll be able to lead the Whidbey Island run. If the hard parts need replacing, it'll all hinge on funds.

I'll make more regular updates now that I've dealt with the fact that I'm not getting Ruby back.

 

That's what friends are for

 

Still have the access port? I am interested email me with the price you want for it

 

Glad we could help out Kris. Keep us up to date on how the 7 build is progressing.

edit: and how school is going.

 

^ +1!!