[Porsche-O-Phile]

Well, I'm mulling over my "fun car" options in wake of the spontaneous combustion of my 951 a couple of weeks ago and in a way, I suppose it's for the better (it simplifies things a bit for me in the vehicle department). However, it has gotten me thinking - what should be my vehicular goals for the coming months/years?

As some of you know, I bought my first P-car several years back and fell in love with it from Day #1. I still have it - it's my "Slate Grey Metallic" '85 944 which I subsequently sourced a (rare) Callaway turbo conversion kit for and have quite a large pile of parts in the garage for - waiting to be installed and turn my "ordinary, boring" early 944 into quite a unique machine. The $$$ I'm likely to see from insurance settlement on the 951 and from parting out the remains could potentially give this project a real serious boost and push it well along on the road to completion - including a nice paint job and a few other "big ticket" items I figured I'd be waiting at least a year or two to consider.

Problem is, in wake of the 951 inferno, I just can't get excited about it anymore. I realize that all that effort, time and excitement can just go "poof" in a matter of a few seconds, whether by fire, impact by SUV-driving-idiot-on-cell-phone, thieves, errant meteors, whatever. When you get right down to brass tacks, even if I fully see through the completion of my Callaway 944, it'll still be "only" worth a few thousand bucks as far as most people are concerned. I'll literally have tens of thousands of dollars into it when complete, and I'm not sure I want to risk taking another humongous hit like that. . .

So here's my dilemma. The wife and I both need our "daily driver" cars. That's already addressed (I have the M.B. SLK for me, which performs flawlessly in that role, and which I greatly enjoy and will keep for the foreseeable future in that capacity). I'd also like to pare down my fleet to a reasonable size that's not so hard to maintain - probably one "fun car"/toy, at MOST one for the wife and one for me. Most likely though, I want to get to three vehicles - two daily drivers (one for her, one for me) and one "fun" car that we both enjoy.

I've pretty much decided I'm selling my 85.5 944 (the red one which I rescued and subsequently restored) and can probably get somewhere in the $3,000-ish neighborhood for it, maybe a little more if I'm lucky (944s don't fetch that much $$$). I'll also sell my motorcycle (I figure if I'm having a streak of bad luck that's bad enough to have vehicles burst into flames while I'm driving them, it's probably best to avoid getting on motorcycles for a while - possibly a few years). I probably can get another $3,000 or so for that. So the question then becomes - do I complete this Callaway conversion/restoration I started years ago (and have amassed a lot of expensive parts for), or simply sell my first love as-is and take all the $$$ from the sale of ALL the vehicles (the Callaway 944 included) and go buy a 911 or something that's a bit more "turnkey", right out of the box? Or do I gut it out, stick to my guns and finish what I started and what was my dream from the last few years and which (when completed) will yield me one of 30-odd Callaway-converted 944s in the entire world? To the right person, that's a heck of a lot more interesting as a conversation piece than an "off-the-shelf" 911, and I certainly could be proud of it since it would have all my blood, sweat and tears in it, but ultimately - is it worth it?

I've always said "that silver 944 is my 'keeper' and will go to my nephews when I'm ready to die (hopefully at least 50 or 60 years from now)", but I'm really wondering in wake of recent events if I can say that anymore.

To complicate matters further, I've also got a lead on a '73 914 for cheap that I could fix up a lot more easily (and cheaply) than either a 944 or 911. I've always liked the 914 - inexpensive, quick and ride like they're on rails. For the $$$ I have to invest, I could build a HELL of a 914 and have cash left over. Or I could do most of my Callaway 944 conversion, or I could buy most of a 911 - stock, no modifications. If I get a 911, that's it for ALL the other P-cars. Even my "first love" would probably have to go, all my 944-specific tools, extra parts and Callaway bits. I could probably net a pretty penny for all that stuff (enough to either buy a 911 outright or significantly defray the cost of one), but I just don't know.

What say you all? Keep the Callaway dream aliave or chuck the entire prone-to-explode-into-flames mess and get a 911?