quote:

Originally posted by roberth:
Fix them till they don't run no more.

That sounds like throwing good money after bad

Some vehicles have known problems that can be expensive. The longer you own a particular vehicle, the better you know it's idiosyncrasies. With good maintenance, the wear and tear is minimized which greatly increases its mileage and life. So at this point, it becomes harder to place a particular dollar value on the vehicle and the only thing left to condition of the frame and other major parts like the engine and drive train.

One of the biggest problems is SALT,..especially liquid salt. So it is important to wash your vehicle immediately after getting exposed or minimize your exposure to driving in these conditions. This leads to having a winter car for this use if possible while the other vehicles are parked for the winter.

Then there are the personal property taxes and insurance to consider when making a decision on new or repairing old nellybelle. I made this mistake by parking old nellybelle and exposing a good vehicle to liquid salt because I thought I would save money due to the insurance costs. WRONG

41

Here's what we currently own:

1999 Chevy Suburban w/115k miles (mine).
2000 Acura 3.2 TL w/185k miles (16 YO daughter's car)
2000 Ford Explorer XLT w/154k miles (oldest daughter's car)
2014 Hyundai Sante Fe w/32k miles (wife's car)

I'll keep the Suburban until it gives up the ghost.

I'm hoping the Acura will last my daughter at least through high school without any major repairs.

I paid $500.00 for the Explorer so every month we get out of it is money in the bank.

I've been paying extra toward the Santa Fe and should have it paid off at least a year early.

quote:

Originally posted by Aeteocles:
All hypothetical, of course. My daily driver is only 5 years old and likely only a 1/3rd of the way through it's useful life.

I encountered a person who needed $3k worth of brake work done on a ~15 year old BMW 740. He was the original owner, car has been mostly taken cared of, and him and the wife are mostly retired and basically drive around in their new-ish Lexus. The BMW sits in the garage mostly as the backup/spare car.

Damn, $3k worth of brake work? Jeez, what are we talking about, 4 rotors, 4 calipers, new pads throughout, and fresh fluid, all at the dealership? Oh wait, you are talking about a bimmer. I knew there was a reason we replaced Mrs. slosig's wheels before hitting 100k and the end of the BMW paid maintenance & repairs.

Me, I'll keep flogging my '03 Tacoma ranch truck.

quote:

If I were in his position, I'd just fix the brakes and continue driving the car. His wife, however, thinks its an eyesore and would rather get a new car.

Couldn't figure it out.

Ah, makes perfect sense. Mama doesn't like it and wants something different. No brainer - If you love it, fix it, keep it, and drive it yourself. If you don't love it, get it down the road, fixed or not depending on which makes more economic sense to you. Either way, put Mama in something she is happy with and move on. We all know the rule, if Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy...

ETA:

quote:

Originally posted by NavyGuy:

quote:

Originally posted by 46and2:
100,000 miles is nothing.

Yes, depending on the vehicle. I fully expect my 2012 Tacoma to last well past 10 years and well past 200,000 miles. On the other hand, I'm getting the itch for a new one since the floor mats are worn out.

Heck, I bought my first Toyota pickup with over 200,000 miles on it and drove it for years before selling it. Toyota makes a tough little truck.

I came home from work one day and saw a new station wagon parked in my driveway. Looked at the temporary sticker and saw my beloved future ex wife had traded off my 57 Ford that I had rebuilt from the word go, investing over $4,00. I went to the dealer and they had already sold my 57 Ford!!! I went to the DA to press charges, he would not go for it. I talked to a divorce attorney and got talked out of divorce.

She ended up making payments herself.

As a college student I was introduced to Vance Packard, an author who wrote books like "The Waste Makers", "The Status Seekers", and "The Hidden Persuaders". His thoughts have guided me through out life and I still read one of his books when I want to be reminded what life is all about.

I typically buy vehicles I know to be solid reliable vehicles. If and engine happens to need to be rebuilt at 400K miles but rest of vehicle is good, I'll pull engine and rebuild or replace it. If there are a host of other problems, I'll just replace the vehicle. Half a million miles on a vehicle is not really all that unheard of. Worst thing I ever did vehicle wise was finance a vehicle after not having a car payment for almost 20 years.

Depends on what that "old" car is. My 1997 Toyota Corolla will last another 10 years+. Has 184,000-ish miles on it now. To be fair, I only drive it approx. 40 miles/week now...one round trip to the airport.

I put in a new headliner 5+ years ago (still in great shape), bought new headlamp, turn signal, and running light lenses (rear lenses still in good shape), and just put new MB Wheels all around. I'm looking for the best option for a paint job, but for now, I'd like to get it clay barred, maybe rubbing compound, and a good wax job. All this work is waaaaaaaay less than a car note for a newer car.

My rule of thumb for when to replace is when, for three months running, repair expenses for that month exceed what car payments would have been on a replacement.

For decades my operating plan was to acquire & keep as long as financially responsible, my own favorite passenger cars to supplement my other rigs.

A couple of the very best cars I ever had in these decades, were a 1949 Cadillac 62 turtleback Sedan, a 1953 Buick Special 2 door business coupe, and a 1955 Buick Roadmaster. They were all nearing 15 years/100k when I acquired them. They all served me very well for most of a decade themselves. They all were resold for far more than I paid. They all were OEM originals owned by responsible adults. None required anything beyond normal maintenance.

In my region, it's getting hard to find driver quality 50s-era big iron without much higher purchase cost these last 20 years.

A friend recently had to replace his 1985 Bonneville at 325k, t-boned by a knuckle dragger....

best replacement he could find was '95 samo-samo, 95k on it and $1700 from the retired pastor that was proud of it for so long.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: signewt,

If you don't know much about the new stuff, just visit some mechanic shops and ask them what they feel are the best used cars, they will know and usually be honest with you.

This does not include dealership mechanics always, you have to pick and choose.

Is it classic, iconic or have some family attachment? I would really have to look at it hard. But new with payments? No way, fix the bugger and drive it until the wheels fall off.

Here ya go,

My brother is of the repair and rebuild mind set.

He bought an older Volvo. After maybe countless hrs of replacing parts, touch up painting, a bit of body work, etc, etc. He had a pretty nice set up.

Along comes this dizzy dame and rear ends him.

Guess what the insurance company will give him. Yup, shit for all his time and effort.

Bob

I drive a 2002 Ford Focus with 263,000 miles on it now. It's nearing the end of it's service life but the engine seems to be running just fine. If a $2300 transmission repair pops up, I may simply buy another one with around 100k on it and go from there.

I do it until I feel they are taking too much of my time. On our Prius, I started seeing signs that it was going to be troublesome in the electrical department and we got the hell out before that happened. It wasn't battery related, just interior electrical gremlins that started to appear.

On the Explorer that preceded the Prius, when I started having to change sensors and crap all the time I decided I was done. It had half the mileage of the Prius and I probably dumped 5x the money into it.

quote:

Originally posted by rbert0005:
Along comes this dizzy dame and rear ends him.

Guess what the insurance company will give him. Yup, shit for all his time and effort.

Bob

THAT.....is my biggest fear about my Corolla. Won't get diddley-squat for it.

quote:

Originally posted by erj_pilot:

quote:

Originally posted by rbert0005:
Along comes this dizzy dame and rear ends him.

Guess what the insurance company will give him. Yup, shit for all his time and effort.

Bob

THAT.....is my biggest fear about my Corolla. Won't get diddley-squat for it.

Insurance is part of the game - keep you buying new stuff and increased insurance costs.

quote:

Originally posted by jimmy123x:

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:
Depends on my financial status.

$2500 in one-time repairs is still better than $600/month for 60 months for a new car.

OTOH, if I'm in a position to afford a new car with the attending warranty, I'm all for avoiding the hassle of repairs. Especially when there are likely more on the horizon.

This is where I'm at logically. It also depends on the situation. If for example everything else mechanically looks like it is fine, then perhaps I'd spend $2500 on it...Like a ford powerstroke truck with 130k miles and just the tranny goes bad, but everything else is solid I'd fix it.......but if it looks like the first shoe to drop out of many. I'd get rid of it and buy new......I'm at that point now.......I have a 2008 expedition with 93k miles, had it since new, maintained it, and no issues.... but probably going to get a 2018 because I'm simply tired of it.....I can afford a new one and the 2018 is new body style so wth.

My 1999 F150 has been a frequent flyer with repairs lately.
But I've also had 13yrs without a truck payment!
It's been in recently for all new brake lines from the booster & front calipers and earlier a new fuel tank & fuel pump and fuel filter both repairs costing $650 & $725 respectively in the past 8 months.
I now have an ideler pulley bearing screaming.
But at $500-ish per month for a new - newer truck payment, it's cheaper to repair than buy new.
My truck is not a daily driver anymore.
At 18yrs old with 144,000miles it's not the mileage but rather the corrosion of parts that I'm dealing with.
My plan is that until it costs me $250 a month to keep it on the road , I'll continue to repair it.

But to sell it it has to be in running order.


Photo from this past Oct.