I don't really have an opinion, and lots of cool ones have been mentioned, so I'll go with the one my dad's dad spent the war in - the SBD Dauntless. According to Wiki, it sank more Japanese shipping than any other American plane during the war.

Sounds like you've hit the "take it somewhere" trifecta - no garage, angled surface, and old. Were I in the same boat, I'd probably take it somewhere too.

It is more hassle to do it yourself either with cars or computers, there's no denying it. I'm just young and silly enough to get a lot of satisfaction out of it.

Y'all's selections make my beer tastes feel a bit... bland, like I'd show up to Cars & Coffee to proudly display my '03 Camry.

/I don't actually own an '03 Camry
//Chrome's spell check likes "y'all's"

I watched helped a friend build a computer back in 2004, my sophomore year of college. It was all decent parts, and it was my only computer until last summer. Software issues came and went, but none of the hardware ever failed, and $70 worth of USB 2.0 adapters and extra RAM kept it going for the last year, when it was starting to really show its age. Now, it has MythBuntu on it, just for tinkering and fun.

When we replaced it, I priced out a Dell and an HP that would meet my needs, and then went to Newegg, Amazon, and Tiger Direct to see what it would cost to build a desktop to similar specs. Surprisingly, Amazon was the winner - better specs for $200 less than any pre-built machine. It helped that I got a student license for Win7 Pro, so that was only $40 instead of $200. I think that's the difference - if you run an OS you have to pay out the nose for, the price advantage of doing it yourself goes out the window.

Building your own computer is, in my mind, just like changing your own oil. You may be able to find someone else who will do it for you, at the same price you could do it (or less). But, you never know about the quality of the parts/labor they put in. Plus, for me there's a little bit of pride knowing I did it myself, and did it right.

One of the only times when added lightness is a downside to me - the added weight of the 4x4 components would be far outweighed (heh) by the abilities gained.

This for $11k, or the green Mercury for $4k? To me, that's a no-brainer. I'll take the Colony Park, please!

[youtube v241TF-cSzU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v241TF-cSzU youtube]

I was expecting this video...

I justify it to myself by buying synthetic oil and a good filter on sale at O'Reilly or wherever. Sure, Iffy Lube will change you for $19.95, but it's regular dino-juice and a cheapo filter. Similar quality oil and filter will be significantly more expensive than doing it at home. Having heard how certain filters won't play nice with the 4.0 in my truck, it's worth the extra ten-spot and my effort to do it myself. Plus, I can double-check and make sure the drain plug is in, and I know I won't round it off with my torque wrench.

Absolutely, keep these up. There may be some groans from expert wrenches, but for those of us who are still learning, these sorts of tips are invaluable.

May I suggest a post on all fluid changes, as well as brake jobs (especially drums), tire rotation, lighting replacement, and basic tune-up routines? Heck, I'll write up the plug/wire/coil replacement I did on the wife's MPV if anyone's interested. I took lots of pics.

I'd say it's a Nice Price at $3500. It'll never be a $100k rig at B-J, so a high-dollar restoration is out. I'd leave it exactly as-is. My commute is non-existent right now, but hopefully will be short in the future, so gas mileage isn't a huge concern. Style is what I want, and this has it in spades.

$3500, sell the wheels for $1k and pick up some D-windows... you've got a really slick old rig.