A follow up to "Help!!!"

[Fendamonky]

Hi everyone, several weeks ago I posted my first thread about the problems I have been having with my 2004 RX8. I received many replies and lot of help, and I was very grateful for that. There really is not much to update, as we still are trying to figure out if the car simply has electrical/coil issues or needs a new engine completely.

I would like some more opinions today. Simply put, my parents have volunteered to put a brand new engine into the car for me, which of course is extremely generous, or just buy me another car for $5000. This is all assuming, of course, the the final verdict is that I need a new engine.

What I would like to know - if this was your situation, would you go for installing a new engine or scrapping it and buying a different car? If you were not part of the original thread, here's a brief description of the car - Body is in perfect shape, 98k miles on it, transmission good, cat converter good, new starter/battery/air filter, tires good, essentially everything else on the car is in great shape. It's just the engine. After all I have been through, as much as I would love to take my parents up on their offer to install a new engine (which would essentially be like having a new RX8), I am scared that this car is still too high tech for me to handle, and it might still be prone to other problems frequently and not be reliable. I love the car dearly, it really is my dream car, but as I stated before, I am single, know nothing about taking care of cars myself, and have some serious health issues that would keep me from even being able to learn to do things on it myself. (Of course I would maintain it religiously, with oil changes etc) I would just have it done professionally, like any car I would own.

So, in your opinion, if you were me in my situation, should I go for it and replace the engine or get rid of it for something more reliable (and boring!). It goes without saying what I WANT to do, but I also want to be responsible and realistic about my ability to manage this car if it is going to continue to have problems. I will say this - I drive very little, I am a writer and work from home, and the most miles this car would ever see would be an occasional road trip to Charleston, 3 hrs away. So a new engine would last me several years. The last car I had I only put 90K miles on it in 7 years.

Thanks again in advance for any opinions.

[Nicole]

Hi everyone, several weeks ago I posted my first thread about the problems I have been having with my 2004 RX8. I received many replies and lot of help, and I was very grateful for that. There really is not much to update, as we still are trying to figure out if the car simply has electrical/coil issues or needs a new engine completely.

I would like some more opinions today. Simply put, my parents have volunteered to put a brand new engine into the car for me, which of course is extremely generous, or just buy me another car for $5000. This is all assuming, of course, the the final verdict is that I need a new engine.

What I would like to know - if this was your situation, would you go for installing a new engine or scrapping it and buying a different car? If you were not part of the original thread, here's a brief description of the car - Body is in perfect shape, 98k miles on it, transmission good, cat converter good, new starter/battery/air filter, tires good, essentially everything else on the car is in great shape. It's just the engine. After all I have been through, as much as I would love to take my parents up on their offer to install a new engine (which would essentially be like having a new RX8), I am scared that this car is still too high tech for me to handle, and it might still be prone to other problems frequently and not be reliable. I love the car dearly, it really is my dream car, but as I stated before, I am single, know nothing about taking care of cars myself, and have some serious health issues that would keep me from even being able to learn to do things on it myself. (Of course I would maintain it religiously, with oil changes etc) I would just have it done professionally, like any car I would own.

So, in your opinion, if you were me in my situation, should I go for it and replace the engine or get rid of it for something more reliable (and boring!). It goes without saying what I WANT to do, but I also want to be responsible and realistic about my ability to manage this car if it is going to continue to have problems. I will say this - I drive very little, I am a writer and work from home, and the most miles this car would ever see would be an occasional road trip to Charleston, 3 hrs away. So a new engine would last me several years. The last car I had I only put 90K miles on it in 7 years.

Thanks again in advance for any opinions.