Updates and Reflection...

[BlackWidowSS]

Hey everyone!

So tonight I was at work and things were VERY slow, and I was having a conversation with one of my co-workers about my Camaro and the VA and how much things have changed since I got hired on at the refinery, and it got me thinking about how this site helped me out! So, I logged back into LTXTech and went and read through all of the posts related to the repossession of my Camaro and everything that the community did for me, and then the comments and concerns afterwards. With that said, I have some more time before the end of shift and wanted to give a little bit of an in depth update to you all as to where I am at with finances, the Camaro, and the Shootout...

First of all, I want to apologize for being so detached over the last few years. I won't lie, Facebook and work have distracted me from the forums and what I used to use the forums for, I have been using groups on FB. I know some of you have seen me there in the past. I recently dropped off of the grid on those as well due to unfortunate circumstances which I will outline later in this post. I would also like to apologize in advance for the length of this post, but I feel that you all deserve a real update, and I have failed to do that as of late. I will work on that. So with that said, I will start at the beginning.

If any of you would like to refresh your memories on any of the old posts, here they are for quick reference:

http://ltxtech.com/forums/showthread...an-LTXer/page5

http://ltxtech.com/forums/showthread...-Thread/page27

http://ltxtech.com/forums/showthread...the-air/page12

Now, when I was hired on at the refinery, I was in a rather bad place. Due to the generosity of the members of this site and the American Patriot group, I had possession of the Camaro and had begun plans to fix her up. When I saw my first paychecks, I became moneystruck and started letting my mind get a bit carried away. Plans for a crotch rocket, and major mods started, and it caused a bit of controversy regarding the donations and my intentions. So I would like to touch on how things ended up thus far.

The position I was in on the day of my hiring at the refinery was bad. Due to my eviction, and dropping out of school added with my early separation from the military, I was in a MASSIVE amount of debt...I owed 6k to the VA for tuition reimbursement and BAH reimbursement, 4k to the apartment complex for rent and late fees and lawyer fees, 8k to a unsecured personal loan that I was unable to pay after separation from the military, much more. These tanked my credit. I focused on the Camaro payment and paid it off, but it still wasn't running well enough to drive. It sat in Denver for some time and we learned it had broken valve springs, so I chose to slow down on trying to repair it and focus on some other aspects of my finances. This prevented me from making the LTX Shootout that year as promised...for that I apologize, but I needed to slow my roll and focus on priorities. I made a deal with the bank to begin using the Camaro as collateral to pay off some of the debts on my credit, so I made some calls, and got some settlement offers, and paid off the money I owed to the apartment complex, along with a few other odds and ends on my credit like medical bills and an old credit card. Once my credit came back up I severely needed a good, reliable daily driver, so I got the bank to agree to give me a loan on a truck...a 2010 Silverado Z71. My VA Disability FINALLY came through, but because I owed the VA money, I didn't see a dime of the back pay or monthly payments. They only rated me at 20%, which was CRAP, and the back pay went straight into the amount owed...there was still a balance left, so they withheld the monthly payments until it was paid off...but its done. Since then I have lost a large portion of my hearing in my right ear and have tinnitus, so Im now at 30% Disability and still fighting with the VA, but I am seeing my disability checks now. Also been dealing with some personal issues with PTSD, depression, anxiety, etc. I got a puppy which has MASSIVELY helped me with some of these, but I am seeing people at the VA for the rest.

At this point I had a reliable DD, my credit had improved, most of my debts were paid, etc. I had almost nothing left to pay on the Camaro...so I made the choice to refinance it again, and use that money to get her back up and running good. I converted to the Torqhead 24x...new cam...higher compression...suspension upgrades...tranny upgrades...new rear end...new hood...new spoiler...new rims and tires...new interior splayed main caps. I did quite a bit of work to the car...We were feeling confident she would break 475 RWHP all motor on pump gas...I fired her up, we got a basic street tune in, and I made it a whopping 1 mile before I lost oil pressure. Lost the #4 main bearing. This was a result of poor machine work at a local machine shop...but the shop that discovered the problem would not testify for me in the court case, so I lost the battle and was not only out the $1500 I had spent on the machine work the first time, but the $1700 it took to fix it at another shop...and unfortunately it didn't fix it, I still lost the motor. This happened earlier this year, and it literally sucked every bit of motivation out of me that I had. I tore the motor back down to see what the damage was and have a plan for fixing it, but I was so upset and demoralized that I just stopped where I was, quit contributing in groups, and dropped off the grid....which brings me to the next paragraph.

Here is where I currently stand. The current loan on the Camaro will be paid off by this March, but this time I have no plans to refinance. I make enough now to work on her without getting a loan, and the debts on my credit are almost gone, so there is no need to refinance again. The crank was recoverable and has been turned, and is good to go. The motor is all torn down, cleaned up and ready to start over. I trashed the block...couldn't trust it anymore. I am getting another untouched, unmolested LT1 block, and taking it to my buddy in Denver along with all of my parts for the motor. He is going to have his guy do all of the machine work on the block, then he is going to assemble the motor for me, and put a 3 year, 35,000 mile warranty on the motor. The car itself is currently sitting at his shop in Denver with a new SS hood, and an AggreSSive spoiler and CME Valance on it awaiting paint. He is going to charge me for parts, and machine work on the motor, then $400 to assemble and blueprint it all. HOWEVER, I am in no rush. I am focusing on paying the Camaro off first...then I have a trailer I bought for the Camaro that I will focus on paying off after that. Should have both paid off before May 2018. Once that is all done, I will focus on paying off my truck and any other debts I have over that summer. Once winter 2018 rolls around, I will have enough money to have the motor and paint done and get her going again and looking good.

I know this is taking a LOT longer than I had mentioned in the previous threads, but I still have the car, it has been nowhere near being repossessed, nor has it even seen a late payment since you all helped me! I did have her paid off, but had the opportunity to use her to improve my credit and my financial situation...so I did. I don't regret it one bit because it put me in a better position in the end, and now I am about to finally own her for good! I have hopes to make the Shootout in 2019, but that is tentative at this time because I am focusing on paying off debt first. I plan to update and post on this site a bit more, and keep you all informed of the progress.

Now, with all of that out of the way, I am looking for suggestions. I had talked with Popo once upon a time about how to repay the LTXTech community. A few ideas were mentioned, but nothing came of it...so now I would like to ask for y'alls opinions and ideas! What do you all think would be a good way to repay this community for what y'all did for me? I had considered contributing to the site financially by paying some fees, or starting up a fund to help others who have a situation like I had, but that might be a slippery slope as others stated in the older posts. So what ideas do y'all have? What would benefit the community the most?

Once again, thank you ALL for everything you did for me, and I haven't forgotten!

[popo8]

Welcome back! Its nice to see u getting back on ur feet. I admit, I have wondered several times what ever hapnd to you... the car... ur issues, etc.

Im sorry for all the negatives you have faced, but as they say... "what doesn't kill u, makes u stronger," & its clear you have gotten stronger and in a better place thru it all.

My 2c on "repaying" the site or those that helped u ... do that by making urself Whole again, and by making sure u never end up in the "bad place" uwere b4.

Let those that contributed to helping u just see and hear from u occasionally to let them know the help was not in vein and that u made good with the kickstart u were given. That's all...

Thanku again for updating us... glad to hear things are getting better...

Im not only an LTXtech member... Im also the Owner.

[SSlowBoat]

welcome back man, get back on your feet and get the car back to its glory.

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[Camaro96]

Welcome back

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[BlackWidowSS]

Well, there has been a change of plans! I just left the bank.........with the title for the Camaro in my hand! It is officially finally paid off and 100% mine!

[Fastbird]

Really good follow up man. That doesn't happen nearly enough and it's awesome to see someone come back and say "Hey, this is how things played out." Really like how you've got your prioritizations on things, you're looking at them (from my perspective) in the best way possible. Glad you got out of that dark place........I can personally attest that it's no fun to be in.

And congrats on getting the title in hand!

[The Batman]

Awesome news!