I could have bought a race ready CSR for the same budget. Or even a brand new AB performance Sabre!
Anybody else ever had days like this?! I daren't tell the missus - she'll kill me!!
Off to the pub to recover now....
Tough day today, i've just sat down and added up the final cost of the Mk Indy build. I knew it was going to be a bit more than normal as
i'd chosen some higher spec parts but it was certainly more than i had ever initially estimated!
I could have bought a race ready CSR for the same budget. Or even a brand new AB performance Sabre!
Anybody else ever had days like this?! I daren't tell the missus - she'll kill me!!
Off to the pub to recover now....
Yep, know exactly how you feel!
I had a big tidy up at home the other day, and filed all lingering paperwork away. Worryingly, I have almost managed to fill a lever arch folder with
all receipts for my build thus far, and there's still some more to go. Admittedly this does include odds and sods such as packs of nuts, bolts
and fastners etc., but I know I'm going to get a massive shock if I was to ever sit down and tally everything up exactly.
Just remember the famous words "Yes dear, it only cost £10 from eBay...." 
Noooooo.... you must never do this. This the path to disillusionment and true unhappiness and also the certainty that in knowing this information,
the true boss of the household will somehow find out and then even greater unhappiness.
I do wonder, given the difficulty of passing IVA and the cost of kit builds, I am assuming that fewer numbers of kits are being built than before but
those that are being IVA'd are of higher quality.
, will the resale values gradually start creeping up of well finished ones?
There is an alternative, don't add it up (with no intention of doing so) and think of an acceptable number to quote and say "although I have not fully added it up yet".
Always the way, Unfortunately materials and parts are costing so much more these days...
The other day i compared our latest car build to a couple of years ago, and same items are costing nearly twice as much, especially raw
materials.....
Building cars is becoming much more expensive!
quote:
Originally posted by Twin40
Tough day today, i've just sat down and added up the final cost of the Mk Indy build. I knew it was going to be a bit more than normal as i'd chosen some higher spec parts but it was certainly more than i had ever initially estimated!
I could have bought a race ready CSR for the same budget. Or even a brand new AB performance Sabre!
Anybody else ever had days like this?! I daren't tell the missus - she'll kill me!!
Off to the pub to recover now....
The upgrades,just tell her bargains from ebay..and you needed them.
And did you add up the number of hours spent charged at a reasonable rate as well? 
Keep all the receipts in a nice folder, But never ever add them all up.......
quote:
Originally posted by Twin40
Or even a brand new AB performance Sabre!
quote:
Originally posted by Twin40
Tough day today, i've just sat down and added up the final cost of the Mk Indy build.
If asked by the wife - the cost is between £9000 - £10000, the reality is .....
My good friend set me up a spreadsheet about 2 years ago, it immediately went to £9200 when I added a few bits n bobs, . then decided not to bother,
about a year ago I added some more bits to it, and got scared at £12000.
Havent looked since, bit like deadlines, dont care how much it costs now Im in here, and dont care when I finish.
And yes ! - It would of been a thousand times easier to buy a IVA registered car and let someone else take the hit. But most of the guys here dont
build cars for the driving thrill, its for the sake of building them surely ?
Once the little Fiat is done and sold to Poland, it will become an old V twin motorbike. This month alone I have spent £200, and I need to pay for the
4-1 collector next month, cars,boats,aeroplanes,foreign homes, they are all money pits....
Stop counting, if its a small box in the post its a tenner, if its a big box its £100 - thats all the wife needs to know, mine now doesnt ask (or
care)
I am at a guess hovering around £13000 ish, and my garage still looks like the scrapheap challenge.....enjoy the frustration of building lol
Oh - And the £190 I spent on the loom last month.....
[Edited on 7/3/13 by T66]
We had a couple of customers once who shared a boat. When discussing costs in front of the wives the agreement was we would always knock a nought off
the end. That way if one of the respective wives still hit the panic button, they realised that it really was a bit too expensive.
Try it ... It worked for them.
quote:
Originally posted by plentywahalla
We had a couple of customers once who shared a boat. When discussing costs in front of the wives the agreement was we would always knock a nought off the end. That way if one of the respective wives still hit the panic button, they realised that it really was a bit too expensive.
Try it ... It worked for them.
quote:
Originally posted by T66
Guys at work are briefed never to mention what Ive spent, or my secret sock contents.....
Just add up the hours of fun you have had + all you have learned = priceless.
I am only building a £250 Locost, except that after getting the petrol-head bug again, I have spent more than that on books.
By the time this is (if ever) finished it would have probably been cheaper to buy a Cateringvan, but no where near as much fun.
I started a spread sheet on an old PDA when I started
It gave up the ghost at £5K so I stopped counting as well
I was told I could be on the road for £8-9k. My spreadsheet is showing I'm up to £10.6k and estimate a final cost of £12.5k.
Remember not to include the 20% of the cost that seems to go on P&P!! 
The cost of a kit car, in strictly monetary terms, is patently stupidly expensive. But how much time did you NOT go to the pub during your build? This
is the true cost, and must be addressed when the Chief Financial Officer poses difficult questions.
I wouldn't mind so much if my car ever worked, but it never works properly and never will because I don't know what I'm doing. I am way
over $35,000 Canadian pesos. It is truly the most expensive mistake I've ever made by a long ways.
quote:
Originally posted by TimC
quote:
Originally posted by T66
Guys at work are briefed never to mention what Ive spent, or my secret sock contents.....
Why bring that into the thread?
Oh! S**t! I didn't think I had done bad, I only spent about £20 a week on average. Then I worked it out
I hate threads like this. I think I would still prefer MY own built MK to a Cateringvan, no really, honest!
Actually, the build is the fun part. Driving has not been as much fun as I had hoped.
Much the same experience, the cost doesn't bear thinking about. I'm awaiting the IVA so not quite there yet, but have killed a battery and
damged two tyres, lost a centre cap, need spigots, before even turning a wheel on the road. Total cost this week so far, £350. I'm not even going
to mention the new engine I'm building for a little more power.
When people ask I just say £--ish. I could have bought a Noble etc etc..but as mentioned at least I've got something to show for my money rather
than just a beer gut. Whilst I try not to have regrets, though in hindsight I would have done things differently.
I have a spreadsheet where I register all my spendings, big and small. The running tally is always accurate with the contents of my bank, wallet and
investments account. Thus, when I bought the kit, I made a special sheet for it to sum up those specific costs.
I bought all my kit in a box, at once, to spare me some grief getting parts and save on shipping. Right of the bat, I exceeded my budget on the main
box.
Then it has been tools I didn't have (dremmel, torque wrench that I never used, protective equipment...), consumables (drill bits, oils, greases,
...), insurance...
I know how much it is, the wife knows how much it is (it's my money, she doesn't care), with the IVA and import it will still be a bit
more...
But I don't care! I'm having loads of fun building it. I've learnt a lot about mechanics, my main goal. My kid loves the idea, the wife
(petrolhead) is more eager than me for it to be on a track...
Sometimes, the best things in life aren't arriving somewhere, they are the ride getting there.
Be happy!
HappyFather
quote:
Originally posted by RK
.
I wouldn't mind so much if my car ever worked, but it never works properly and never will because I don't know what I'm doing.
buy a part built, then even adding it up it seems like a bargain!
I think mine came out around the £5k mark all in.
quote:
Originally posted by HappyFather
I have a spreadsheet where I register all my spendings, big and small. The running tally is always accurate with the contents of my bank, wallet and investments account. Thus, when I bought the kit, I made a special sheet for it to sum up those specific costs.
I bought all my kit in a box, at once, to spare me some grief getting parts and save on shipping. Right of the bat, I exceeded my budget on the main box.
Then it has been tools I didn't have (dremmel, torque wrench that I never used, protective equipment...), consumables (drill bits, oils, greases, ...), insurance...
I know how much it is, the wife knows how much it is (it's my money, she doesn't care), with the IVA and import it will still be a bit more...
But I don't care! I'm having loads of fun building it. I've learnt a lot about mechanics, my main goal. My kid loves the idea, the wife (petrolhead) is more eager than me for it to be on a track...
Sometimes, the best things in life aren't arriving somewhere, they are the ride getting there.
Be happy!
HappyFather
with the exchange rate today mine MK has cost about £11.000 :-|
Mine was about £5.5k when first on the road. That was keeping the build nice and basic though.
Stu
Ohhh.... and my husband told me £10,000 give or take
quote:
Originally posted by Heather
Ohhh.... and my husband told me £10,000 give or take
quote:
Originally posted by emwmarine
Noooooo.... you must never do this. This the path to disillusionment and true unhappiness and also the certainty that in knowing this information, the true boss of the household will somehow find out and then even greater unhappiness.
I've been keeping a budget sheet since day one and to try and offset nasty surprises filled it in with cautious estimates for everything i could
think of, eng I've already budgeted for IVA and a retest, 2 lots of trailer hire for those tests, registration fee, etc, etc.
I bought a part built, and put together most of the projected costs for the bits i didn't have by leafing through catalogs from suppliers, at the
moment I'm on just over 7k as a total cost with roughly half that actually spent. Wheels, shocks, clocks and electrics are the 'only'
bits i still need to buy but i don't have any illusion that the other little bits and pieces won't add up!
Hang on, is everyone saying that it costs MORE than £250?
quote:
Originally posted by Heather
Ohhh.... and my husband told me £10,000 give or take
You can't put a price on education, can you?
Wow what are you guys spending your dosh on?
My car was on the road for 9k that's including iva, registration, first years insurance and first tank of fuel. I've not scrimped on spec
either stack instrumentation, mnr reverse, new wheels, toyos etc. Admittedly I did a good bit of wheeler dealering with recouping money from donor and
some of the more expensive items I picked up second hand. I was actually disappointed I didn't hit my 8k target but reading this thread I'm
feeling happier now
You can't put a value on the enjoyment you get from it or the pride you get when someone compliments you on the car and you can turn round and say "I built it"
quote:
Originally posted by Confused but excited.
quote:
Originally posted by HappyFather
I have a spreadsheet where I register all my spendings, big and small. The running tally is always accurate with the contents of my bank, wallet and investments account. Thus, when I bought the kit, I made a special sheet for it to sum up those specific costs.
I bought all my kit in a box, at once, to spare me some grief getting parts and save on shipping. Right of the bat, I exceeded my budget on the main box.
Then it has been tools I didn't have (dremmel, torque wrench that I never used, protective equipment...), consumables (drill bits, oils, greases, ...), insurance...
I know how much it is, the wife knows how much it is (it's my money, she doesn't care), with the IVA and import it will still be a bit more...
But I don't care! I'm having loads of fun building it. I've learnt a lot about mechanics, my main goal. My kid loves the idea, the wife (petrolhead) is more eager than me for it to be on a track...
Sometimes, the best things in life aren't arriving somewhere, they are the ride getting there.
Be happy!
HappyFather
Can I get an Amen brothers?
quote:
my youngests Prom when she leaves primary school
The £7k my car cost me (detailed spreadsheet down to fasteners and postage, albeit in 2005) gave me a lot of the skills that were instrumental in
getting me to uni to get an MEng and into my job as an r&d engineer for a global turbocharger company. At every interview, everyone's wanted
to talk about it.
I think it was pretty decent value!
quote:
Originally posted by Heather
Ohhh.... and my husband told me £10,000 give or take
quote:
Originally posted by D Beddows
Dear god, has this 'prom' nonsense spread to Primary school now as well
quote:
Originally posted by 40inches
quote:
Originally posted by Heather
Ohhh.... and my husband told me £10,000 give or take
He TOLD you £10,000! Blimey! wonder how much it REALLY cost?
quote:
Originally posted by emwmarine
quote:
Originally posted by 40inches
quote:
Originally posted by Heather
Ohhh.... and my husband told me £10,000 give or take
He TOLD you £10,000! Blimey! wonder how much it REALLY cost?
My Rush has only cost 6.5K. I showed my wife the accounts to prove it. And it will be worth 22K. She is very happy.
My wife knows the real cost... Seem I'm one if the minority in that. Though I bought a bargain part built and most parts second hand bargains as
well. Cost to date is £1848.98 which leaves me £151.02 in the budget, plus tires, IVA and registration (these are agreed 'extras'. Good
news is I have very little left to spend so coming in on budget should be achievable!
I think total spend will come in at £3.5k