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My old ass car was on its way to death. It's in a limited coma. I don't drive much because my specialization/profession means I don't need to, and my wife does the rest because of other very time consuming household duties I took on. K.
We've got an interesting set of decisions to make, the wife and I. We share joint expenses via card/bank transfers but keep self-expenses separate. Yes the line sometimes blurs but it isn't a point of contention. She also makes a good deal more than me. She's also been talking about getting a bigger vehicle for herself (seems set on SUVs; I hate the things).
While I'll at least get an estimate, I'm sure my old thing is near or at junking (or donating if some place really wants to take it; there have to be those). A couple years ago, I was told about how brake lines, discs, etc, were all within five or ten thousand miles of death. That was 800 miles ago. (I really don't drive much; don't have to). Well, the brakes went, which was its own story. Got myself back safely. But it's not driveable, at least beyond reversing it up the driveway to be towed. There were at least 1-3 grand repairs piled up when I was told about other crap; didn't get the extra work done given the car's prospects. I wouldn't want to fix everything. I'd just want to know what it'd cost to keep it on the road safely for maybe 2-5k miles, depending.
The choice seems to be buying bad-money-after-goodtype repairs, over-paying massively for a used car from someone else, buying a new car that's mostly going to sit outside, or take up a close family offer (you should have worked the who out by now) to buy someone's 35k mile Subaru Crosstrek for 12k. Not the car I want, but **** that. I need it to work and to go. I'm not compensating. Preliminary investigation tells me the deal is quite good. The money stays in-family. And....and...I really do save money.
But....BUUUUT... beyond basic crap like Blue Book, are there some properly good review sites, deemed properly good by people who legitimately know what they're talking about? I may have already made up my mind, but I want to get a sense.
I'm talking consumer-oriented, not car expert oriented. Power is good but non essential. Sturdiness, cost of repairs, and reliability. That's what matters. Also it can't look like a literal dildo.
My old ass car was on its way to death. It's in a limited coma. I don't drive much because my specialization/profession means I don't need to, and my wife does the rest because of other very time consuming household duties I took on. K.
We've got an interesting set of decisions to make, the wife and I. We share joint expenses via card/bank transfers but keep self-expenses separate. Yes the line sometimes blurs but it isn't a point of contention. She also makes a good deal more than me. She's also been talking about getting a bigger vehicle for herself (seems set on SUVs; I hate the things).
While I'll at least get an estimate, I'm sure my old thing is near or at junking (or donating if some place really wants to take it; there have to be those). A couple years ago, I was told about how brake lines, discs, etc, were all within five or ten thousand miles of death. That was 800 miles ago. (I really don't drive much; don't have to). Well, the brakes went, which was its own story. Got myself back safely. But it's not driveable, at least beyond reversing it up the driveway to be towed. There were at least 1-3 grand repairs piled up when I was told about other crap; didn't get the extra work done given the car's prospects. I wouldn't want to fix everything. I'd just want to know what it'd cost to keep it on the road safely for maybe 2-5k miles, depending.
The choice seems to be buying bad-money-after-goodtype repairs, over-paying massively for a used car from someone else, buying a new car that's mostly going to sit outside, or take up a close family offer (you should have worked the who out by now) to buy someone's 35k mile Subaru Crosstrek for 12k. Not the car I want, but **** that. I need it to work and to go. I'm not compensating. Preliminary investigation tells me the deal is quite good. The money stays in-family. And....and...I really do save money.
But....BUUUUT... beyond basic crap like Blue Book, are there some properly good review sites, deemed properly good by people who legitimately know what they're talking about? I may have already made up my mind, but I want to get a sense.
I'm talking consumer-oriented, not car expert oriented. Power is good but non essential. Sturdiness, cost of repairs, and reliability. That's what matters. Also it can't look like a literal dildo.
My best advice is to get a subscription for Consumer Reports. They'll tell you the faults and plusses of just about any car.
Plus they'll let you know about recalls or to put it one way: "I wish somebody had told me about this piece-of-shit before I bought it"
Note..My friend bought a 2016 Kia and then learned that the recall notices would fill a book...especially the power windows.
My old ass car was on its way to death. It's in a limited coma. I don't drive much because my specialization/profession means I don't need to, and my wife does the rest because of other very time consuming household duties I took on. K.
We've got an interesting set of decisions to make, the wife and I. We share joint expenses via card/bank transfers but keep self-expenses separate. Yes the line sometimes blurs but it isn't a point of contention. She also makes a good deal more than me. She's also been talking about getting a bigger vehicle for herself (seems set on SUVs; I hate the things).
While I'll at least get an estimate, I'm sure my old thing is near or at junking (or donating if some place really wants to take it; there have to be those). A couple years ago, I was told about how brake lines, discs, etc, were all within five or ten thousand miles of death. That was 800 miles ago. (I really don't drive much; don't have to). Well, the brakes went, which was its own story. Got myself back safely. But it's not driveable, at least beyond reversing it up the driveway to be towed. There were at least 1-3 grand repairs piled up when I was told about other crap; didn't get the extra work done given the car's prospects. I wouldn't want to fix everything. I'd just want to know what it'd cost to keep it on the road safely for maybe 2-5k miles, depending.
The choice seems to be buying bad-money-after-goodtype repairs, over-paying massively for a used car from someone else, buying a new car that's mostly going to sit outside, or take up a close family offer (you should have worked the who out by now) to buy someone's 35k mile Subaru Crosstrek for 12k. Not the car I want, but **** that. I need it to work and to go. I'm not compensating. Preliminary investigation tells me the deal is quite good. The money stays in-family. And....and...I really do save money.
But....BUUUUT... beyond basic crap like Blue Book, are there some properly good review sites, deemed properly good by people who legitimately know what they're talking about? I may have already made up my mind, but I want to get a sense.
I'm talking consumer-oriented, not car expert oriented. Power is good but non essential. Sturdiness, cost of repairs, and reliability. That's what matters. Also it can't look like a literal dildo.
Or, just buy a Toyota Corolla and be done with it!
Great cars.
Double or triple that price to have those repairs done in a shop. I think I read that the OP isn’t familiar with hand tools.Just about any vehicle you buy today will be over valued and I believe it will stay this way for a couple of years until we catch up from the Covid stall.
Dealers are doing Sticker +10% and +20%
Reports of $10k to $20K Dealer Markups Now Common Due To Vehicle Shortage - Your Options
Shopping for a new or used car? Be prepared to pay as much as $20,000 more than MSRP for a popular model. We break down the causes and make some suggestions for shoppers dismayed at dealer markups.www.torquenews.com
Used car prices are even worse.
If your current vehicle is basically safe (and not rusted out) and with a good engine, then 2-3 grand isn't much at all to put in it. If you could tell me the make and model, I could say if it's worth it or not.
I just put around $4100.00 in my 2004 GMC Sierra with 129,000 miles on it because the 5.3 engine is good for at least 250,000 miles. (brakes-tires-hoses-plugs-wires-slip yoke-power steering pump-Heater/AC blend doors- battery- ball joints- tie rods-torsion bushings- torsion link pins- control arm bushings - CV axles etc. etc.) All the parts came from A1 Auto with free shipping.
I do my own work and it took me about 5 days in between beers and golf.
What kind of car is your current car, and what really needs to be done?
'Brakes' can mean a lot of things, but if your brake lines themselves are good, there really shouldn't be anything killer expensive to fix with brakes.
Do you know a shade-tree mechanic that works out of his garage, or moonlights? Those guys, or a relative, are usually the best way to go, or even a neighbor that's a gear-head and hustles a few bucks at night and weekends.
The 'Big Three' Japanese manufactured cars (Toyota, Honda, Nissan), particularly Toyota & Honda, tend to last forever. Subie might too, I'm just not familiar enough with them. But as long as the body's solid, heat & air work, and it passes pass emissions, it's almost always the cheapest to keep them running. I speak from experience here. Then again, either I or my kid usually do the work if it's basic, and we've got guys that moonlight at their shops and can do the bigger stuff after hours..
Double or triple that price to have those repairs done in a shop. I think I read that the OP isn’t familiar with hand tools.
No offense meant!That's going a little far. We do work around the house, but not certain things where we don't necessarily trust ourselves. Like electric wiring or plumbing.
I definitely don't have the set-up or know-how required to do the work myself. It'd be a learning experience allright; a straight-up experiment. I'd have to work off written materials and instruction videos...
If you don't grow up in a DIY-heavy household, hang around with big car fans, or go into any sort of job/career that involves that stuff, you're not likely to end up being a person who fixes up their own cars.
No offense meant!
I came up in a single mother household and only developed an interest in how things work after becoming a teenager. Most DIYers will admit to multiple missteps before they got the hang of things.
EDIT: you can do worse than SUBARU/FUJI HEAVY INDUSTRIES
Oh, brake lines and other things. The entire underside has been rusting out (What I'm pretty sure is a heat shield, and then later what I'm pretty sure is a front right water shield, dragged and fell off). The point has been to drive it into the ground for a while. Book value is several hundred, and the repairs the guy suggested for keeping it longer-term would be thousands at least. That was two years ago. And there's some unexpected thing seemingly every year.
2000 Maxima that's been sitting outside.
As for "shade-tree mechanics"... no. Certainly don't have any mechanic relatives. As for finding one, I'd probably need word of mouth I can trust...
it'd sort of be like trying to head downtown to buy heroin: I'm not part of that world, so I'm at a greater risk of being a mark.
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