Best used car???

[rklettke]

Hey, my car broke. $1200 to fix it. Not paying that much. I want to spend about $500-$800 on an old car. Any suggestions on which kind of car to get in terms of easy to work on, reliable, lasts long, isn't generally a piece of $#!^? I'm looking for something in the mid-late 80's.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Going on 2 week trip tomorrow, I'll check back when I get home lol.

[dougbfresh]

Here's some advise-save more money for a good car. A $800 car will be a money pit.

[carsandcycles]

What do you have now? What's wrong with it? What makes you think an 'unknown' different car will get you very much further than you are already? Why would you listen to any of us?

What I'm trying to say is that whatever someone throws out here (as far as advice on a vehicle) is next to worthless without knowing a lot more facts and conditions that only you know about yourself and your resources.

[KA9MOT]

http://most-expensive.net/car-in-world

Seriously, I disagree with what Doug had to post. I do agree with carsandcycles.

I have driven allot of other peoples junk. I drove a $400 Bronco II for years. My oldest boy drives a 1990 Ford F-150 he payed $600 for that will probably last him for years, but it is old, rusty and few chicks want to ride with him.

I purchased a 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan for $400, drove that rusty, beat up van for almost 2 years, and finally traded it straight across for a very nice 1995 Ford F-150 Supercab 4X2.

Do your research. Make sure yo do your homework. Most cheap cars are junk and you may spend months looking for your best deal. The thing is, with your budget, you can't be picky. Make your best deal, even if it is something yucky like an Import.

What is wrong with your current car? I can't imagine any repair costing $1200 if you did the work yourself.

[jg12gauge]

Try a subaru they are are some of the toughest cars around.

[Saltmine]

Beefy, I don't know where you have been hiding, but cars have gotten expensive to repair.

Example: A ten year old Ford Taurus needs a transmission....$2400 installed. A Dodge Intrepid tosses a timing chain....$1500 to repair it or $4500 for a replacement engine.
A Chevy pickup smokes a transmission.....$1800, you install it yourself. A Hyundai pukes an engine....$1200 for a guranteed used engine, a rebuilt is $2200. A clutch job on a Toyota....$1500.. if you do it yourself.....$2500 at a shop.

Lordy, Lordy...a "good" used car? If it runs, and moves under it's own power it's worth $500-$600. Needs work? $400... A good running used car with a dependable engine and drivetrain...$3800...easy.

[olddog]

Well, in a way everyone is correct. It does cost a bunch to repair cars today, and it gets more difficult to work on them every day. However on the other hand many cars, if treated right, will run 200K - 300k miles.

In 03 my 92 Crown Vic had 155K miles on it. It was always garaged with decent care taken. It looked as good as a 2yr old car. I planned to drive it a couple more years, but a hail storm made it look like it was attacked by ball peen hammers. Insurance gave me $3500 for it so I let them have it. Honestly had I decided to sell it the day before the storm I would have let if go for $1500, as I had considered it. If I didn't have as much debt at that time I would have sold it for that price. Judging from another modular I disassembled with 105K miles on it, that car should easily went another 100K miles.

So I do think you can pick up a $1500 car and drive it 6 to 8 years with relatively little expense. You have to pick them right, treat them right, and have a little luck too. When you can do that, why spend $2000 to fix one, especially if you know it has other major problems coming up?

[KA9MOT]

5 speed manual transmission just went out on my 1995 Ford f-150 (300,000 miles).

$350.00 for transmission with 75 k on it. Guaranteed for 90 days.
$25.00 core (because I want to tear the old one apart, these Mazda 5-speeds are junk so I want one I rebuild in the garage for the next time.
$129.00 for new clutch kit.
$10.99 for new rear main seal (it was leaking).
$200 Labor because I am no longer able
$27 sales tax.

$749.99

A far cry from $1200

Let's price out a transmission for a 2004 Grand Caravan:

$325 Used transmission @ http://www.bradsmegacenter.com/
$50 fluid and filter.
$50 threw it in there because we may need extra parts
$200 to Will for labor because he busts his butt and needs the bucks.

$625

Buy the $750 transmission because it only has 43,000 miles http://www.robertsonsusedautoparts.com/ plus the stuff listed above:


$1050

In all cases, subtract Will's $200 if you insist on doing it yourself but Will's kids are gonna go hungry.

Salty, I don't know where you've been buying your parts........but you've been taking a beating.

OH BY THE WAY: That 10 year old Taurus?

$500 with 70,000 miles on it http://www.robertsonsusedautoparts.com/ ...again Will is gonna want his $200 to keep the kids fat.

I firmly believe that no used vehicle is worth putting a rebuilt or new major part (tranny, Engine, rear end, etc) unless you rebuild it yourself.

BTW, I could have rebuilt my transmission for $500.......and ended up with a $500 used transmission.

Cut that greedy Mechanic out of the equation and your good to go.

I find all of my used parts on http://car-part.com/index.htm

[KA9MOT]

Originally Posted by olddog

Well, in a way everyone is correct. It does cost a bunch to repair cars today, and it gets more difficult to work on them every day. However on the other hand many cars, if treated right, will run 200K - 300k miles.

In 03 my 92 Crown Vic had 155K miles on it. It was always garaged with decent care taken. It looked as good as a 2yr old car. I planned to drive it a couple more years, but a hail storm made it look like it was attacked by ball peen hammers. Insurance gave me $3500 for it so I let them have it. Honestly had I decided to sell it the day before the storm I would have let if go for $1500, as I had considered it. If I didn't have as much debt at that time I would have sold it for that price. Judging from another modular I disassembled with 105K miles on it, that car should easily went another 100K miles.

So I do think you can pick up a $1500 car and drive it 6 to 8 years with relatively little expense. You have to pick them right, treat them right, and have a little luck too. When you can do that, why spend $2000 to fix one, especially if you know it has other major problems coming up?

Us broke, wore out fat guys don't have $2000 to fix our cars. My old red truck is still pretty and tomorrow Will will be finished with it!

[olddog]

Originally Posted by Beefy's Bronco

Us broke, wore out fat guys .............

I resemble that remark to one degree or another. How come I'm broke, but I can buy enough food to stay fat?

[KA9MOT]

Ummm...Salty.......I looked for that Taurus transmission in the Kingman, Arizona area.

AA Auto Parts in Tuscon has the closest one to you...Your gonna have to take a ride....275 miles...It will be worth it.

$410 with 73K on it.

Your story just won't wash.

Oh yeah! I found it on http://car-part.com/index.htm

DAD GUM those people make me look smart! Us fat kids got to shop smart too!

[KA9MOT]

Originally Posted by jg12gauge

Try a subaru they are are some of the toughest cars around.

LOL! That's funny! LOL

[KA9MOT]

Here is a 1996 Pontiac Gran Pix. If you are not afraid of a road trip!

http://classifieds.outfitters.com/ad...p?advert=90506

Grammar and spelling errors are bonuses!

Here is a little something in your area:

http://portland.craigslist.org/clk/cto/1970501831.html

I can no longer walk, but I'd find a way before I drove something like that, but hey, it looks clean and who knows, it might be your kind of car.

Here ya go, It's BIG, BAD and BOLD! It's 4X4, in your area and only $700! Heck, If I lived there, I'd buy it! Plus he has receipts!

http://portland.craigslist.org/clk/cto/1970452582.html

$695 and a Muffler and you're stylin' and profilin'!

http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/cto/1970413356.html

All of that in about 10 minutes worth of research on the internet......I'll be waiting for that finder fee check to show up in the mail! LOL

[jg12gauge]

Originally Posted by Beefy's Bronco

LOL! That's funny! LOL

I have one thats a daily driver with 206,000 miles still going flawlessly. All ive replaced is the clutch. I also have subaru brat dune buggy that was pulled with over 250,000 miles it still runs also. It went through a transmission and clutch after 5 years of being a mudder but that was mainly because it was luging around 31s with stock gears which is terrible on a subaru. ceramic clutch = problem solved though. the only ones that werent good were the ea82 turbos and the older auto trannys werent great either. But once they came out with the EJ series turbos and CVT trannys they have been great.

[Saltmine]

Maybe I should clarify what I said. Not everybody buys a car with a manual transmission.
Not everybody has the ability to perform repairs on cars, or knows somebody who does, cheap.
Some people (the majority of the population have to rely on dealerships and garages to fix their cars)

Right now, the "door rate" at most dealers is over $100 an hour. Most independent shops charge between $50 and $100 an hour for repair and service work.

True, in some of the isolated, out-of-the-way places you can get labor quotes for less, but I'd be real Leary of somebody tearing into my car for $20 an hour. Even though I've been offered a six-pack or a case of beer for my services...when I was doing "side jobs"(No, a case of beer is NOT enough to even get me interested in looking at a car)
You have to use a little judgement when you are looking to hire somebody to work on your car...Just remember the old saying; "If you pay peanuts, you will get monkeys"

Sorry, Beefy, But it'll be a cold day in hell when I drive nearly 300 miles through Phoenix to pick up a Taurus transmission (with a 90 day guarantee), ESPECIALLY if it's "only got 73K on it"... 73,000 miles is usually about the time an AXODe transmission is all set to fail, big time. With amazing luck, that transmission might last long enough to exceed the 90 day warranty by a couple of days...Then what do you do? Go back and get another one? And spend another $400-$500, plus mileage, and labor to install another ticking bomb into a $300 car? Heck, we're already at $1200, and the car still won't move.
I know that by now, my customer would be demanding blood.

Another thing most people don't know is the fact that you can't drag the 'ol car under a convenient Oak tree and yank the engine or jack it up and pull the transmission out, on the ground, any more. The whole powertrain comes out the bottom, and without a lift to remove it, you'll struggle for days to get it out...And don't forget all of the broken parts you'll get along the way trying to get it out "the hard way"....

A friend recently took on a clutch job on a Hyundai Sonota. He figured, "it 's just a little four-cylinder with a five speed" He called me after fighting it for almost a week, and told me he bid the job too cheap, and along the way, he learned several new swear words, in English and Korean... Koreans are worse than Toyota when it comes to taking your money, and leaving you hanging. What are you gonna do? Send them a harshly worded letter? a lot of good that'll do, they're on the other side of the world...