My old 1994 Honda Integra VTi-R has served me well for 15 years. It’s done 298,000 kms and the engine is still rock solid. Externally it has scrapes and dents left by a multitude of blind muppets who I guess are driving by touch and using the cars on the road as some sort of navigational braille. They also feel it’s okay to not stop after hitting a car and take responsibility for their ineptitude.
As much as I love cars I still think of them as a functional item and although completely not designed for hauling heavy cargo, I’ve still used the Integra as a utility vehicle.
The first time I used it as a ute I carried seven 3m long hardwood sleepers and 10 bags of concrete in it. I don’t think it was having much fun that day.
Here is just a tiny portion of the stuff I’ve carried in it.
20kg Bags of Lucerne (I had two in the front passenger seat as well)
Offcuts from a demolition fence
Hardwood sleepers recycled from someone’s garden renovation.
3 metre long hardwood Pallets
Bits of wood from a glass manufacturer company. (The camera angle makes it look like it’s sticking out way more than it really is)
This obviously takes a toll on the suspension. The car was due for new shockies and springs anyway simply due to age as it’d been a while since I’d had them done. So I bought the parts for just under $900, watched a few youtube videos and with the help of a friend put in new springs and shocks on the front and rear saving myself over $1000. It was long overdue and the car no longer scrapes on speed bumps and when going up sharply inclined driveways!
The rears were in really bad shape. The old shocks didn’t even spring back after compression and the rear bump stops were non existent. I’m usually really good with non cosmetic maintenance of my vehicles which is why my car is still purring along. This however probably should have been done 6 months ago.
Large sheets of cardboard to use as mulch.
Another lot of hardwood pallets. This time after the suspension had been upgraded so the drive home involved no tyre rubbing !
