The prior owner of the
Mustang, Jeff, was the kind of owner you hope to buy a car from. He
religiously had all the services performed at the proper intervals,
fixed things when they broke or wore out and kept up the appearance
of the car inside and out. It was obvious Jeff cared for the Mustang
but, while he was fond of the car, I don't think he was a "car
guy" to the extent that I and most of my friends are. This
became apparent the first time I opened the hood. Though taken care
of mechanically, the engine bay reflected disinterest; everything had
a heavy coating of dusty grime that was simply the result of it
never having been hosed down. Out of sight and out of mind to the
casual car owner but almost offensive to someone like myself who
enjoys the sight and feel of things mechanical. I think I had the car
less than four hours when the engine compartment was squeaky clean
once again.
Providing excellent care and
being fanatical are two different things. I will classify myself in
the latter to some extent but I'm hardly a toothbrush-in-the-crevices
detailer. I like everything neat and tidy throughout along with
functional harmony. As my new ownership turned from days to weeks I
found a few things wrong with the Mustang.
In Earl Swift's stellar book
Auto Biography he follows the
complete life of a 1957 Chevrolet wagon through each of its owners.
Swift recognizes that there are several stages in the lifespan of a
typical vehicle. Paraphrasing, it is something like New, Slightly
Used, Showing Wear, Slide Into Dereliction and Junk. Vehicles are
much like the "broken window" theory with houses and
neighborhoods; when a window is broken and left unrepaired the slide
towards ruin accelerates. I've often looked at older vehicles in a
truly sad state of repair and wondered what caused such wanton
neglect? There is a time in every vehicle's history that it was shiny
and new and the delight of the individual who purchased it. Over
varying spans of time the owners will slowly lose interest in their
expensive purchase allowing it to succumb to the elements, use and
obsolescence. As all cars have become both more reliable and more
generic I wonder if they have also rendered themselves more
disposable?
The
Mustang showed a few signs of the early stages of owner indifference
despite the general upkeep. One item that incensed me was a failed
clip on the lower seat side trim. Jeff had told me he snagged his
pant leg on the piece one day and pulled it loose. Though perhaps not
a conscious decision he had chosen to live with this detached part
for years, not days. This clip would also become my nemesis; more
about it in a future installment.
Leaving
work one day after a heavy rainstorm I noticed water dripping onto
the passenger floor mat from under the dash. Most owners would have
reacted with anger or disappointment in seeing this, likely
suspecting the previous owner of selling them a car with a
troublesome issue. Since I had read everything there was on the
internet about these cars prior to buying one I instantly knew what
the problem was: a clogged drain grommet in the cowl. Still, I had
to wonder how long Jeff may have lived with that leak (or had I been
the 'lucky' guy to first experience it?). Removing the clog was very
easy but led me to another item shown in the photograph above: the
cabin filter.
The
cabin filter has become a standard item on nearly every car these
days, yet few people seem to know they exist; my Mustang's prior
owner being one of them. This filter cleans the air coming into the
interior, or 'cabin', of the vehicle. Most are hidden from view and
some are quite difficult to access. Fortunately, Ford's engineers
made it easy to access provided you knew where to look. Though most
dealers are aware of their existence and eager to sell replacements
the typical corner garage often is not. My Mustang, having long been
out of warranty and no longer a regular visitor to a dealer service
department had obviously not enjoyed a filter replacement for years.
I could not, however, get too upset with the prior owner as even 'car
guys' don't often think to check these for servicing.
Lastly,
there is a piece of plastic trim in the trunk that spans the width of
the car and covers the rear access to the taillamps. This piece was
loose and I found that the plastic screw pins that were to keep it in
place were broken. The car had once had bodywork done to the rear
bumper and I found the broken screws bodged in place with some black
goop. Replacements were easily obtained from Ford and cost a few
dollars. Being in the auto body repair business myself this last
issue was the most infuriating. The owner had entrusted his car to
professionals to do good work and they failed him. I suspect he had
no idea that a few plastic screws were the problem (in fact, the ones
they had tried to use were not the correct ones).
Singularly,
these issues are small and not a big deal. Once they are allowed to
accumulate, however, the total can rapidly begin to diminish the
owner's enjoyment and interest in the vehicle. This is how the
downward slide begins and any owner should remain vigilant to keep
their machine in good form.
For
myself, these minor annoyances provided a good way to become more
intimate with the car. A few minutes one afternoon installing a twenty dollars worth of new parts made the car better and provided me with a
sense of accomplishment. Used car purchases are rarely perfect. The
best we can do is to find the best example possible and be ready to
curtail any further diminishment of quality.
