Over the years, I've received good car advice on this forum and have posted car questions a couple times. Here's an update on our ongoing car "saga":
My wife & I have two "aging" cars with fairly high mileage. We have a 2003 Subaru Legacy (our family car) and a 1998 Honda Civic (which I often use). Here are their descriptions:
• 2003 Subaru Legacy -- has about 200,000 km (about 120,000 miles) on it
-- body in good shape, very little rust but lots of scratches
-- has had several costly repairs during 2009-2011 -- (new transmission, has had the clutch replaced twice) and there may be other things to go on it too such as a possible steering problem that my local garage has been monitoring for us.
-- MAJOR UPCOMING EXPENSE: Yesterday, I just learned that its cylinders are leaking oil. This is a major repair that could cost over $2,000.
-- it may also be in need of a major tune-up soon as it has been running roughly (misfiring) after starting it up, when it's very cold.
• 1998 Honda Civic
-- has 220,000 km (about 140,000 miles) on it
-- has had very few major repairs, mostly minor / regular maintenance
-- body is rusting more & more, especially bad around rear fenders. It has many scratches and/or paint problems (thanks to living in a big city)
-- its parking brake is broken -- which is a messy repair & could cost $500+
-- otherwise it runs very well & smoothly!
So, which car should we replace? as both are increasingly wearing out. I'm tempted to have the Subaru repaired as long as the rest of it will keep going and replace the rusting Honda, but it's a gamble either way. We also might have an opportunity to buy a 10-year-old car with low mileage (for a low price) from one of my wife's work colleagues, so that could be good.
At any rate, we need to do something soon & we certainly can't afford to replace both cars.
Thanks in advance for any thoughts and feedback!
I see you are a Toronto area guy ....foreign cars are big sellers in Toronto , much more so than here in Southern Ont . When I was in the car business up until a year ago , most foreign cars were a tough sell ( used ) around here . We always had to factor in the cost of a "safety check " in this province and it was usually outrageous .
To your question , I would unload the Legacy myself ....sounds like it has had ongoing issues and I'm thinking would be the most expensive to repair . Selling it in the Toronto area would bring you your best price ( we would regularly get quotes from Toronto on prospective foreign trade ins - especially Japanese vehicles ) . One tip : Get the car as CLEAN as possible inside and out as well as the motor . FIRST IMPRESSIONS ! We would get people trying to trade in a dirty car with the ashtray overflowing and then they would moan and groan about how low the money was ....d'ya think ? If a guy comes to see the Legacy and brings his wife , she will pick out each and every scratch and dirty area on the car . Guaranteed . So get it clean ! It will put money in your pocket .
One more thing , if the vehicle has any issues that you aren't fixing , address them immediately with the buyer ....no surprises . Get a car fax printout as to the vehicle history ( accidents ). It should be with the kit you have to buy from the licence bureau for $25 .
T
Rob,
My 1994 Dodge Shadow ES decided to do an engine freeze up, at just under 240,000 miles, with only a few minutes warning. It took the bank - - - twenty weeks!!???!!! to process a "Home equity loan Refinance".
I'd answer your question this way; Have the money ready, to replace the first car to go belly-up, while you are deciding which one to replace first.
( You know, of course, that:
"The car you decide to keep will die before the car you decide to get rid of" - "Murphy" )
:o
I'd ditch the Subaru - nice cars, but costly to repair. You're possibly looking at a rebuilt engine, although the "cylinders leaking oil" sounds like an odd way to say "needs rings". That could be the cause of the rough running, as it can foul the spark plugs. If it's bad, you should have blue smoke at the tailpipe, especially on shifts, and it can gum-up your catalytic converter, too.
As for the Honda, 140,000 miles is barely broken in, at least for the engine. Bodies can be pretty crappy, though. I had an '85 with well over 200,000 on it when the timing belt (nowhere near it's replacement time) broke. The rebuild for that particular engine with a broken timing belt usually involves pistons, valves and often the head, too. The body was pretty bad, so we simply scrapped it. My daughter had an '86 1500S and it had well over 400,000 on it when the body gave up.
Wayne
Thanks for this feedback. Still processing everything!
Cylinders leaking could simply mean valve stem seals that need replacing. I can replace those seals on my car with little cost and a few hours work, but, most mechanics would want to do a whole cylinder head recondition at the same time, and that would cost much money. Or, it could mean worn rings. Either way, it sounds like major engine work is in order, and thousands of dollars towards a car that isn't worth that much. I'd keep the Honda since it seems to be running well, and the rust and parking brake are minor issues compared to an engine rebuild.
Thanks for this feedback. Right now, I think I'm going to try to "nurse" the Subaru through the winter (by constantly checking & topping up its oil). Then we will probably buy a used car in the spring. I like this garage that we use but I'm still going to get a second opinion, just in case this repair job isn't as severe as the first garage says.
Here's the latest update on our car saga, which has been driving me crazy lately... (no pun intended!).
Two car experts have advised me to replace the Subaru. I've been doing some car research and shopping and I hate the pressure and sales tactics of the salespeople -- this really tires out (and stresses) introverts like me!
Our Subaru dealer has quoted "only" $1,750 to have this repair done while my local garage quoted me $3,500! In the past, the dealer has proven cheaper than our local garage, maybe because the dealer specializes so much in Subarus? (i.e. has the parts at hand, knows the car better since it's more specialized).
In any case, I'm now back to considering having the repair done at the dealer. Forking out two grand is still cheaper than paying approx $15,000 for newer used car. And the Subaru may be capable of reaching 300,000 km or more since we have been maintaining it well. It had a new timing belt put in last March and had it's transmission rebuilt at 155,000 km.
Am I deluding myself?
Thanks,
Just remember the lower expenditure might not be the end of it all ...hate to be a wet blanket .....but with high mileage cars , things can go in bunches . Been there , done that . If it was me , I'd get something in writing as to what the dealer is going to do . You might keep that info to yourself and then go ask the garage what he would do ( given it's almost double ) . While you are doing this , go ask the dealer rep for the black book value of the vehicle , just to gather info . I'm sure you can make an intelligent decision once you have the facts .
T
The more I think about it , the more I'm inclined to give you the standard argument I made when I was in the car business . Since I was a salaried employee , the, it made NO difference to me how someone bought a car so I asked a lot of questions .
1. What about leasing a new one ? BEFORE YOU SAY " I don't like leasing " , check out your facts . If you buy a car and do a lot of driving , it depreciates like crazy and costs a lot for repairs as you are finding out . Do the math . It might be just as cost effective to lease a new one ....I don't know because I don't have your numbers in front of me . You are at a crossroads here and should check all your options .
2. Check to see what parts the repair shops are using . Chinese parts tend to be cheap ...they are also crap . Many garages use them .
3. Go on line , Google your car ...." repairs for ( your year ) Subaru . You might be enlightened , but try to discard the postings of habitual whiners and complainers ...you want real info .
Hope this helps . PM me if you want to talk more about specifics .
T
teejay Wrote:The more I think about it , the more I'm inclined to give you the standard argument I made when I was in the car business . Since I was a salaried employee , the, it made NO difference to me how someone bought a car so I asked a lot of questions .
1. What about leasing a new one ? BEFORE YOU SAY " I don't like leasing " , check out your facts . If you buy a car and do a lot of driving , it depreciates like crazy and costs a lot for repairs as you are finding out . Do the math . It might be just as cost effective to lease a new one ....I don't know because I don't have your numbers in front of me . You are at a crossroads here and should check all your options .
2. Check to see what parts the repair shops are using . Chinese parts tend to be cheap ...they are also crap . Many garages use them .
3. Go on line , Google your car ...." repairs for ( your year ) Subaru . You might be enlightened , but try to discard the postings of habitual whiners and complainers ...you want real info .
Hope this helps . PM me if you want to talk more about specifics .
T
Thanks, Teejay. Leasing is an option although I've heard that it's the most expensive way to run a car.
Good point re the parts -- I have a hunch that our Subaru dealer might be using after market parts, based on a comment that one of their mechanics once made to me. I work from home as a freelancer, so I don't want to stretch us too much financially (in other words, I don't feel as secure income-wise as I did as an employee!). Because I work from home, we're putting slightly less mileage on our cars. Having said this, we do run up a fair bit of mileage as most of our family & friends live in the Kitchener-Waterloo or London areas and we also like to take trips out into the country for hiking or to visit train places!
Right now, we're putting about 20,000km/year on the Subaru and about 10,000km/yr on the Honda. The Subaru is our main family car. One option might be to get the Subaru repair done and then replace the Honda Civic with a slightly larger (mid-sized) car later this year. Then, if & when the Subaru dies, we'll still have something substantial to drive. For family use and shorter trips, we could also use this car more and it could take some of the wear & tear off the Subaru.
Thanks for your feedback! I might PM you later on if I think of anything else to add.
Cheers, Rob
As Teejay suggested, I did some online research regarding the reliability history of the 2003 Subaru Legacy. Surprise surprise -- I found out that this model has a history of cylinder head gasket problems! I can post the links if you like.
Thanks.
Good , that's a start . Now you need to figure what the vehicle is worth and if it makes any sense to spend big bucks on it . I just took a look at Auto trader and a 2003 , 200k Legacy SELLS for about 3500 !!!!!! You can see what your's is worth , given it's condition ( I'm just telling it like it is ) . Now you have some numbers to figure out the next step . Decide if it makes any sense for you and your wife to spend , virtually , the value of the car on a repair . It might , it might not . I wouldn't but I'm not you and in your situation .
T
Rob I would say at least get one new or even newer car. Something like a awd Rav4 that you won't have to worry much about in the snow and have good reliability for a while.
I know the subaru crowd has many complaints about gaskets/seals leaking oil so pin pointing the problem would take time. Are you blowing smoke out the tailpipe? how much oil are you losing? Is your check engine light on? The misfire you said
Quote:-- it may also be in need of a major tune-up soon as it has been running roughly (misfiring) after starting it up, when it's very cold
sounds like a cracked Coil Pack, commonly happens in cold and/or wet weather. the pack could also be faulty, if you replaced it with a newer one that wasn't OEM (original equipment) recently then it might be the cause since they are built to OEM standards. what engine is in the Legacy?
I'm not a honda fan so I can't give good insight on them.
teejay Wrote:Good , that's a start . Now you need to figure what the vehicle is worth and if it makes any sense to spend big bucks on it . I just took a look at Auto trader and a 2003 , 200k Legacy SELLS for about 3500 !!!!!! You can see what your's is worth , given it's condition ( I'm just telling it like it is ) . Now you have some numbers to figure out the next step . Decide if it makes any sense for you and your wife to spend , virtually , the value of the car on a repair . It might , it might not . I wouldn't but I'm not you and in your situation .
T
Thanks, Teejay. Yes, with its high mileage, I realize it's not worth much. I'd probably only get $1,000 to $1,500 as a trade-in. Our Legacy's body and interior are in good condition, it's these annoying mechanical problems that are the concern.
Cheers, Rob