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cybrfire

cybrfire

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Just some thoughts ramblin through the empty head tonight, Are newer cars worth the investment?

I'm thinking after 91 or so. Think Insurance, payments, repairs that are somewhat costly compared to the older vehicles that we seem to hold so dear. Some of the repairs, I could do, don't have time. Don't have a diagnostic computer to attach it to.

My wife Drives a minivan and every time it goes into the shop for some crazy thing that has happened to it, its expensive (again, compared to the old goodies)

Granted, the newer stuff gets good mileage, How far do you have to drive to offset the difference! She drives it to and from here and there in a small town. So I don't think mileage is the biggest concern here. Course you get one of these diesels, they can do pretty well.


Let me here it from the Brotherhood!
 
cybrfire said:
Just some thoughts ramblin through the empty head tonight, Are newer cars worth the investment?

I'm thinking after 91 or so. Think Insurance, payments, repairs that are somewhat costly compared to the older vehicles that we seem to hold so dear. Some of the repairs, I could do, don't have time. Don't have a diagnostic computer to attach it to.

My wife Drives a minivan and every time it goes into the shop for some crazy thing that has happened to it, its expensive (again, compared to the old goodies)

Granted, the newer stuff gets good mileage, How far do you have to drive to offset the difference! She drives it to and from here and there in a small town. So I don't think mileage is the biggest concern here. Course you get one of these diesels, they can do pretty well.


Let me here it from the Brotherhood!
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A new vehicle is an appliance, until you modify it. As far as service, depends entirely on which vehicle.
For insurance purps, my Burb is a "RV".:D
 
True, unless you are buying off the show room floor, its kinda a crap shoot as to what you will have. Quite frequently, just somebody elses problems. Personally I like the older stuff that I guy/gal can drive and when somethings wrong with it, You have an ability to diagnose, and repair as needed. Seems the newer vehicles aren't built as well and with the intentions of not being driven for that long or in some instances not repaired at all but rather discarded and go back to the dealer for another pile!
 
I won't buy brand new, but used just enough that the original owner took the hit on the depreication. I bought my wife an 03 grand prix in 04 for half the price and an 06 trailblazer with 9k on it for $15k off of blue book. Only way to do it. Granted, she will have to keep the trailblazer and run it into the ground several times (or back it into trees, whatever come first :D).

I think the peace of mind of her in a newer vehicle is worth it. But, I do have the benefit of late model GM experience. They really aren't that hard to work on. Parts may cost more, but as long as you do it yourself, you will come out ok.
 
ryan22re said:
I think the peace of mind of her in a newer vehicle is worth it.quote]

So far I haven't experienced this peace of mind. It's one thing after another. We take care of it, it gets serviced pretty regular. She has been stranded 2 times and I have been stranded once in it. Now I guess we are throwin some more at it so we can be stranded again later.

Sorry guys just ranting about it and blowing some steam.

I'd much rather buy her a 1987ish suburban and be able to replace pretty much any component for the next decade and never have to worry about it.

Like I said just rantin.
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second thought, if I could drop in a 500 caddy and make it AWD, I'd probably like it alot better!:haha:

Somebody photo chop that!
 
cybrfire said:
Somebody photo chop that!
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Do you want a picture of your nice clean motor or my old rusty motor? :p:

Seriously though, my mom totalled her last ('96 or '97 model year I think) Ford Windstar at 130,000 and it was still going very strong and we then bought a new (2000 model) Windstar and it now has a hair under 210,000 miles on it and still going very strong. My '93 fullsize blazer blew up a motor and transmission as well as numerous other spendy pieces and when I sold it it had a grand total of less than 90,000 miles. Sure, it was newer than '91, but none of the parts that went boom were IFS or fuel injection related.

Then again our '94 suburban that we sold is owned by a guy two houses down and has just shy of 300,000 on it and is still running strong. :doah:

If you're not buying new, it depends on how the vehicle was treated before you had it. Research it and make sure it doesn't have a bad overall record, then sign the check and hope for the best.

...or build another crew cab. :D
 
Is a new car worth it? Absolutely....IF you can keep yourself from messing with it or trading it in after a couple years for the new body style, or in my case, the AWD turbo option. If you can get something that you will keep until its dead, its worth it. Otherwise, get something thats a year old and let the first owner take the hit.
 
The van she has now was bought in 2001. It is a 97 Dodge Grand Caravan LE or SE, can't remember. It hasn't been that bad really, I just kinda hate the idea of being locked into something like that. I'm a DIY'er at heart but just don't have the time to swap transmissions in the thing. Nor do I want to. I'm sure we'll keep it and drive it tell the wheels fall off. Dependability has left the building long ago.

I guess at this point it'd be a waste to get rid of it. Hopefully the worst parts are over.
 
If you are thinking smaller, Buy an older Honda Accord. I can talk you through any repairs, and I can get you the parts real close to dealer cost. May even ship them for free.
 
I'm 16, and haven't been around long enough to get in depth into the workings of these computer-controlled vehicles of today. I feel much more comfortable knowing every part of my truck and how it works along with ways to fix said parts if they fail. Not to mention being surrounded by all that solid steel is a pretty good feeling as well... so the oldies (but goodies!) are definitely the way to go for me. K.I.S.S. all the way...
 
Youve seen my 96 Blazer Kert, it looks clean on the outside but i have fought bugs and all sorts of other things on it since I bought it. Some broken parts are obviously my fault(busted sway bar mounts) But I chased emissions codes and sensor failure for the better part of 2 years. When you have to either throw parts at it and hope it fixes it or get it hooked up to a machine and someone else throws parts at it, it can get agrevating quick.

Im plannin on my next DD to go back down to around 91 ish where things are so bad. Still have fuell injection but not a cluster-**** of sensors everywhere. Im probably not going to buy another S-series, after this thing im sick of working on cramped stuff. Im goin back to fullsize
 
We have a 2003 Impala . One bad lock cylinder which may have been my heavy keychain , one bad electric fan , one worn out delco battery . Thats about it in 86 thousand miles , besides the hit and run .

No electrical gremlins , no comouter issues , no drivability or engine concerns . All I do is change oil , filters , and brakepads . Hell its on the original sparkplugs .
 
cybrfire said:
The van she has now was bought in 2001. It is a 97 Dodge Grand Caravan LE or SE, can't remember. It hasn't been that bad really, I just kinda hate the idea of being locked into something like that. I'm a DIY'er at heart but just don't have the time to swap transmissions in the thing. Nor do I want to. I'm sure we'll keep it and drive it tell the wheels fall off. Dependability has left the building long ago.

I guess at this point it'd be a waste to get rid of it. Hopefully the worst parts are over.
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Like I said previously, it depends on the vehicle; Caravan is not a good investment. You have to get your ear to the ground as to which vehicles are a good product. '73-91' full size are great just because there were relatively few changes during almost twenty years.
 
Go buy a gently used toyota. I bought a 99 CPO Lexus ES300 back in 01 i think. CPO= used with a real warranty. The 1 single problem I've had with it in all this time was minor sensor trouble and it was covered under warranty. Lexus will take care of you like no other and I got it for a song.

Sure, I have no clue how to work on it but I don't have to. It doesn't break.

It's never left me stranded. I do all my own maintenance (brakes & rotors are remarkably cheap for this car) and have no worries.
 
If you are looking for an econo car, do not get a newer Sentra! I had 36k miles on mine (2002) and was on wheel bearing set #4! All dealer installed under warranty. I had a few other probs too, like the stereo wouldnt work if it rained, and the tranny made noise going into 3rd gear, but the dealer could never replicate these probs so I had to deal with them until I sold it.
 
I say if you aren't interested in impressing anyone, and only concerns are economy, cost, warranty, and lack of repair (meaning you aren't actually doing the work) go with a Kia or Hyundai. Reliability seems to be quite good, and if as already mentioned, you can keep the vehicle for the entire warranty period, and don't mess with it, it will pay for itself definitely over the lifetime, compared to something that gets worse mileage. I think a second vehicle is a necessity with one of these, a small car isn't real practical for long trips, large families, and if it DOES end up in the shop, it's not a problem for you to get around. (more expensive cars will likely give you loaners)

I'd much rather have a car for a commuter or grocery-getter that I don't care about, so when/if it does get totalled (which has already happened to me once, get GAP insurance, no question) I don't care, and am not out any money, or very little. A more expensive car will typically be repaired rather than totalled due to replacement cost.

I've known a fair number of people with the "newer" Hyundai's and Kia's, none have had reliability issues.

A $200 (or so) monthly payment is worth it IMO for upward of 36MPG city/freeway (manual trans all the way in a gutless econo-box) and piece of mind knowing it SHOULD work flawlessly for quite some time, and even if it doesn't, or when it starts to get old, someone else has to do the work and pay for it, not me.

You quickly ratchet the price up if you start adding options though. Absolute base model is the way to go, or you might as well start looking at Toyota's, because the price starts to get comparable.
 
as far as something like van goes, a 95-2000 ford, dodge or chevy van does not hold much value wise,

say 4500-6000 for a decent caravan, so you are placeing a car in the same ball park as a nice quad, but asking far more from it.

I think the comfort, drivability and use make up for the maint that is needs along the way.
 
dyeager535 said:
I say if you aren't interested in impressing anyone, and only concerns are economy, cost, warranty, and lack of repair (meaning you aren't actually doing the work) go with a Kia or Hyundai. Reliability seems to be quite good, and if as already mentioned, you can keep the vehicle for the entire warranty period, and don't mess with it, it will pay for itself definitely over the lifetime, compared to something that gets worse mileage. I think a second vehicle is a necessity with one of these, a small car isn't real practical for long trips, large families, and if it DOES end up in the shop, it's not a problem for you to get around. (more expensive cars will likely give you loaners)

I'd much rather have a car for a commuter or grocery-getter that I don't care about, so when/if it does get totalled (which has already happened to me once, get GAP insurance, no question) I don't care, and am not out any money, or very little. A more expensive car will typically be repaired rather than totalled due to replacement cost.

I've known a fair number of people with the "newer" Hyundai's and Kia's, none have had reliability issues.

A $200 (or so) monthly payment is worth it IMO for upward of 36MPG city/freeway (manual trans all the way in a gutless econo-box) and piece of mind knowing it SHOULD work flawlessly for quite some time, and even if it doesn't, or when it starts to get old, someone else has to do the work and pay for it, not me.

You quickly ratchet the price up if you start adding options though. Absolute base model is the way to go, or you might as well start looking at Toyota's, because the price starts to get comparable.
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well said;)
 
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