Are You Flying a "Beater?"

I bought the cherokee not long after I soloed because I was
really worried about the rentals.

And no I don't skimp on safety. Cosmetics, yes. Safety and
comfort, no.

In the first year of ownership, I took these steps (in this order):
complete rebuild and recover the front 2 seats.
shoulder harnesses for the front and new seat belts in the back
hoerner wing tips
belly strobe (the plane, not me)

In the next couple years:
intercom (had the original A/B switch)
replaced the iffy narco with TKM
replaced the ok narco with SL30
new VOR/GS head (old one didn't work)

Last year
new ASI
overhauled VSI and AI
repaired the wind-up clock
replaced Bendix on starter (under warranty)

This year (so far...)
checked rigging (rudder *way* out of alignment and tension on cables)

Does it need paint? Yup. But that can wait. Does it need a new
interior? Not really. It's in surprisingly good shape (headliner almost
immaculate, no problems with any of the side panels). I just hate it.
It's the original barfy, 1969-era vinyl with fake plastic wood.

I use the same rules for the car and the airplane. Safety issues are
fixed immediately. Comfort, real fast (think summer in the
southwest -- fix that AC in the car NOW!). Cosmetics? Not even
under discussion for the time being.