Car repairs-any formula for repair vs ditch?

[ysi]

Bought car $6000 drove 50,000 miles one brake job.

Spent $1400 last wk for front end springs rods shocks ball joints struts-architectural elements in other words.

They wanted another $1400 for the back end which I declined.

The good news is the clanking wrench sound is gone, the groaning left turns are gone, the bouncy buggy is gone, and when I get in the car it is noticably higher off the ground.

When do you trade in the car instead of repairing?

[tskeeter]

The answer depends on a lot of factors.

For me, the answer is, when I become concerned that the car is going to leave me sitting at the side of the road when I need to get somewhere. Now, if the car won't start because I haven't replaced the battery in 8 years, that's a small lack of maintenance issue. If the transmission starts to act up or a good mechanic is telling me the engine is making expensive sounding noises, that's the time. It also depends on the mileage. If the car has 70K miles on it, I'm more willing to fix it. If it has 170K miles on it, and it needs more than a few hundred dollars of repairs, I'd get rid of it.

One rule of thumb that some people use is when the repairs start to cost more than payments on another car, it's time. This one is kind of hard, because $1,500 worth of repairs in a single month would be more than a car payment, but could be the only repairs in a 12 month period. Problem is you just don't know when the next repair will be and how much it will cost. And the probability of expensive repairs goes up after 100K - 150K miles.

Another factor is the make of car. Does that brand of car have a reputation for years of dependable operations, or is it a brand that frequently has a long list of problems after 50K miles?

So, it kind of comes down to two answers. Guess. Or, ask a trusted mechanic if they would spend that kind of money on the car, if it was their car. But, you need to bear in mind that a skilled mechanic can do a quick repair at the side of the road while the same problem will cost you a $100 towing bill. If the mechanic says, I would put $400 into this car, but I wouldn't put $500 into the car, it's time to get rid of the car.

[DVM gone riding]

any time I think the engine might blow or the trany need replacing I think it is a good time to get rid of the car. If you think at 1400 you can get another year or two out of it I would do it but I wouldn't put another 1400 into it. I just spent 500 for totally routine maint on my car but it is worth 24000 so it really depends on value. My truck needs new brakes and it will get them to the tune of another 700 (not planned for) but I know the engine in that truck runs forever and the trany was replaced before I bought it so I am not to worried for another 30000-50000 but after that I will be considering replacing it, I also only put about 5000 mi on it per year.

[sapphire12]

I think there is also a rule about if the repair costs what the car is worth, then ditch it.

[muttleynfelix]

It depends on the car and what is wrong with it. We just repaired a car with 170k miles after it was declared "totalled" after an accident because DH could fix it for less than $1000. DH bought the car new, had done every bit of work on it, and we knew exactly what the problems were and could fix it. People told us we would regret fixing it and we don't. It runs just as good as it did before the accident, it only looks a little more ghetto.

If I were concerned it wouldn't get me where I was going, then I would look at getting something different, but after shopping around trying to decide if we were going to let them take the totalled car or fix it, it became real obvious what you get for your money in the under $5k isn't a whole lot. We'd just been car shopping for an SUV (took us 6 months) and knew we didn't want to go through it again a month later. Especially on a tight time table.

[Deleted]

Been in the car business for 30 years

My rule of thumb is.....

No matter how much you spend....100, 700, or 3000 that money is gone. It will never be recoverable

So with that in mind....why spend 2500 to repair a tranny on a unit that is worth 1500?

Bite the bullet....buy used...not new.....and IF you have to finance, no more than 36 months

Let some other dope pay the first year or two of depreciation.....

And make sure you have YOUR mechanic check the car before finalizing the deal

And NO, you dont need to pay for all the extra's that way

Only thing i would recommend to SOME is the extended warranty....and that is ONLY if major repairs would be a financial burden

[Wisconsin Beth]

May 3, 2011 15:17:10 GMT -5 ysi said:

When do you trade in the car instead of repairing?

When I no longer feel the kids or myself are safe in the vehicle, it'll get replaced. I really don't like my Dodge Caravan but I expect to be driving it for at least 6 more years, barring me winning multi-millions in the lottery...

[phil5185]

Spent $1400 last wk for front end springs rods shocks ball joints struts-architectural elements in other words.
They wanted another $1400 for the back end which I declined.

But watch for over-repairing - I've found that as I approach 150,000 to 200,000 miles every routine service comes with a list of 'recommended' replacements. Obviously everything on a 200,000-mile car is 'worn', but that doesn't mean 'worn out'. And be especially careful of the fear-mongering the front end components - "you'll lose control, you'll go off the road, your children will all be killed".

Years ago it was fashionable to try to sell shocks to a customer every 10,000 miles - Sears was finally sued over it, now people drive 200,000 miles on the original shocks (at least I do).

[midjd]

May 3, 2011 15:35:53 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

The answer depends on a lot of factors.

For me, the answer is, when I become concerned that the car is going to leave me sitting at the side of the road when I need to get somewhere. Now, if the car won't start because I haven't replaced the battery in 8 years, that's a small lack of maintenance issue. If the transmission starts to act up or a good mechanic is telling me the engine is making expensive sounding noises, that's the time. It also depends on the mileage. If the car has 70K miles on it, I'm more willing to fix it. If it has 170K miles on it, and it needs more than a few hundred dollars of repairs, I'd get rid of it.

One rule of thumb that some people use is when the repairs start to cost more than payments on another car, it's time. This one is kind of hard, because $1,500 worth of repairs in a single month would be more than a car payment, but could be the only repairs in a 12 month period. Problem is you just don't know when the next repair will be and how much it will cost. And the probability of expensive repairs goes up after 100K - 150K miles.

Another factor is the make of car. Does that brand of car have a reputation for years of dependable operations, or is it a brand that frequently has a long list of problems after 50K miles?

If the mechanic says, I would put $400 into this car, but I wouldn't put $500 into the car, it's time to get rid of the car.

I agree with this. I don't think there's one simple formula that will work for every situation - the age/make of the car, how much money you already have in it, what it's worth, and the probability of expensive future repairs are all factors.

OP, in your situation, I'd probably keep the car - it sounds like your issues have all been fairly routine (no blown gaskets, leaking oil, etc.). Alignment, shocks, and those types of things do need to be replaced after a certain number of miles If the problem was the engine/transmission, my answer would be different. I would think your car still has quite a bit of life left.

[tskeeter]

Based on your description of the symptoms, ysi, I don't think repair work was done that the car didn't need. The bouncing was caused by worn out struts. The clanking was caused by either worn out sway bar bushings or worn out sway bar end control links (could be referred to as rods), most likely both. The left turn groaning was caused by a worn out strut bearing plate (these are sometimes plastic, which will wear). Some higher maintenance cars also need ball joints after about 100K miles. Considering the condition that it sounds like the front suspension of your car was in, replacing ball joints wouldn't be unexpected. Since the ride height changed significantly, the new springs were probably in order, too. This car must have a ton of miles on it to need the springs replaced. Or you've been really loading the car down with all your band equipment so you can get from gig to gig.

With these repairs, the front suspension should be in good shape for the next 30K - 50K miles, or so, unless you routinely over load the car.

$1,400 does sound like a bit much for the rear suspension. Although it varies from car to car, rear suspensions are frequently less complicated than front suspensions. (If the car has rear struts, rather than shocks, the rear suspension is almost as complex as the front.) If you are experiencing a floaty feeling after going over a bump, you should consider rear shocks or struts, depending on what you car has. After rear struts/shocks, I'd be hesitant to do more work on the rear suspension unless there was obviously something else wrong, such as a broken spring or clunking from worn out sway bar bushings.

[Tiny]

I'd say you need to know your car and your budget.
With the car I currently have (10 years/67K city miles) I'm willing to spend up to 2500 in a year to repair it. Over the last 10 years I haven't had to do much maintenance to it since it's so low mileage. I'd probably spend between 3K and 4K a year if I took a car loan for a new (or used car) so for the time being it's cheaper to fix my old car. For the next 3 or 4 years it makes some monetary sense to do this. After that I may be less inclined to sink alot of money into a 14 or 15 year old car ...

[ty]

May 3, 2011 16:03:34 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

May 3, 2011 15:17:10 GMT -5 ysi said:

When do you trade in the car instead of repairing?

When I no longer feel the kids or myself are safe in the vehicle, it'll get replaced. I really don't like my Dodge Caravan but I expect to be driving it for at least 6 more years, barring me winning multi-millions in the lottery...

lol ;D

[ysi]

Thanks, everyone. My car is a 2000 Ford Taurus-it looks good. Bought for $6000 at 54,000 miles, currently at 105,000 miles. I did the repair work at Tuffy's. None of us know for sure who is reputable and who isn't-for example my mother swears by them, because the guy at the counter seems nice :-)

I drove it for 2yrs with all these front end problems, but the left-turn groan was getting louder and all the time. I told them when I dropped it off that I dont want to hear about tires they're new, brakes they've been done, maintenance light its been on for 3yrs related to air control issues-I am here for the front end.

I still have a throaty growl coming from the back so I know there is repair work needed there. I hear the throaty growl when I load down the trunk for example. Interesting that the same structural issues are a different sound in back.

The guy threw so many car terms at me on the phone and then the final estimate was such a shock.

I finally said Lets just do the front end-how much? Then I said, Nope still too much, what else can we remove from the list?

We removed "alignment" but I noticed the final bill after the work was done included a charge for "2 wheel alignment customer declined 4-wheel alignment." That left me feeling ripped off, yet my estimate from Sears for a fraction of the work done was $800 so I don't really feel too bad about the $1400-they tossed in a free oil change lol

[Deleted]

I'm sure I've just royally jinxed myself, but in 26 years of driving, I've never had a repair/maintenance job that was more than $1500. In fact, I can't even think of any that were even that high. Lots of brakes, batteries, belts, exhaust, and such and I suppose if I combine it with something like getting new tires at the same time, then maybe. But normally it's more like 3 or 400 here and there. I guess that's why I'm totally not concerned about driving used cars.

I have a 95 Tercel with 185K that I've had since 96. I'd probably be lucky to get $600 for it, but DH likes to use it for his commuter and it saves miles on the newer (2000) car. If I got told it needed $1500 in work I'd haul it to the junk yard and get the scrap metal price.

[phil5185]

2000 Ford Taurus

Our family has god luck with them, sis buys new, drives about 120,000 - bro buys them from her for himself and his daughters, drives them another 100,000. They've put over 200,000 on 3 of them, one must be about 20 yrs old now.

They are front-wheel drive, so the drive wheels do both the steering and the pulling. The rear axle is a 'dead' axle (like a trailer axle) no differential, etc, not much to go wrong. When you got the new rear brakes they would have serviced the rear bearings.

[BeenThere...DoneThat...]

...this is another "case by case" basis question for me... I love my one car and keep fixing it... but as they say, "one's man's junk is another man's treasure"...

[muttleynfelix]

I'm sure I've just royally jinxed myself, but in 26 years of driving, I've never had a repair/maintenance job that was more than $1500. In fact, I can't even think of any that were even that high. Lots of brakes, batteries, belts, exhaust, and such and I suppose if I combine it with something like getting new tires at the same time, then maybe

You just have not done everything at once. A year and a half ago we put nearly $1500 just in parts in our car. DH did all the labor. New clutch, new brakes, new...well just about everything but tranny and engine. We overhauled it so that it would drive good once we had the baby. (I say we, it was a joint decision, but DH did everything on it). Drove awesome, then stupid 80 yo woman went turned the wrong way down a one-way street and into me. So, DH ended up fixing it. It still drives good, just looks ghetto now.

OP - I would be more concerned about everything because it sounds like you let some things go. Once that happens then you are setting yourself up for more problems. Don't let things on your vehicle go. If you get too far out of alignment, they can't always get it back. Also if you are constantly out of alignment you are going to wear your tires out quicker.

[midjd]

May 3, 2011 18:15:02 GMT -5 ysi said:

Thanks, everyone. My car is a 2000 Ford Taurus-it looks good. Bought for $6000 at 54,000 miles, currently at 105,000 miles.

That was my first car! I drove it for 6 years with no problems, sold it to my dad, he totaled it last year (it was still running fine). They are pretty good cars, just make sure you keep it aligned from now on! ;D

[tskeeter]

I still have a throaty growl coming from the back so I know there is repair work needed there. I hear the throaty growl when I load down the trunk for example.

ysi, to me, that sounds like a wheel bearing going out. What makes me think it is a wheel bearing? You describe the noise as a growl and you hear it when the car is loaded (which puts more pressure on the wheel bearings). I'd bet the growling changes in pitch a bit when you speed up and slow down, too. This isn't a "when I get around to it" type of repair. Fix it now.

Replacing a wheel bearing should not be too expensive. I see the parts (a rear wheel hub assembly) are less than $50 from aftermarket suppliers. I'd guess less than two hours of labor. Assume $125/hour for labor, so about $300 or so should do the job. Or, if you are reasonably competent with a wrench, this is something you could do yourself (looks to be mostly bolt in the new parts). There are several sets of instructions for this job on the internet you can check out (start with Taurus forum web sites). With a bit more looking than I did, you might be able to find a how-to that includes step by step photos of the process.

If you don't know much about how your car works, you really should consider taking a basic auto mechanics class. From the sounds of things you have deferred safety related maintenance (front suspension and steering) for an extended period of time and may not have understood the potential consequences if a tie rod end or ball joint failed while you were driving.

[ysi]

Thanks, it helps to describe sounds and have someone translate them into specifics.

There should be a "sounds like" dictionary. Just think of all the sounds people describe. For example, have any of you ever heard the "blood sloshing like a wash machine" in your chest? The sound a hearing aid makes when the batteries are low? so forth and so on. I would enjoy reading such a book.