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Well I've reached the point where my car, my first car that I've had for 12 years, might need to go.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/venbT0E.jpg)
This is either a very difficult decision or a very easy one and I'm just clinging on to the idea of having a car/holding on to my first car. The car is a 2002 Mazda Protege with 105,000 miles. KBB value with good condition is $3300. However this car needs some mechanical work, and an estimate I got from a mechanic totaled 1700.
Brake pad/rotor + labor - 320
Catalytic converter - 700
2 oxygen sensors - 400
labor - 200
I have not gotten a second opinion, but going on the repairpal website, this estimate seems within reasonable limits, if at the upper end of them. It seems inevitable I would have to pay a large sum to get the car fixed, and one complicating factor here is that a bad catalytic converter can be caused by problems elsewhere, so simply replacing the cat will result in having to buy a new cat soon enough.
On top of that, I've already put $1800 into the car this year in repairs. These were the first major repairs in this car's life though, so in theory, with all these new parts, nothing else will go wrong for a while.
I live in a city where public transport and zipcar are easily accessible. I signed up for zipcar and have taken a few rides using it. It is much more of a hassle than being able to walk out my door and hop in my car. That being said, I wasn't driving the car much, and in fact was only refilling about once every 2 months.
All necessary errands are within walking distance and basically everything except going home can be done with public transport.
Put the car up on craigslist the other day to gauge interest and have gotten 20-25 emails back, so clearly it wouldn't be hard to sell.
So that all would seem like a strong case for selling the car. Yet I haven't pulled the trigger yet, probably because I practically can't see myself without the car, and the convenience of having it right out in the parking lot is awesome.
So, TL, what do you think?
Poll: Fix or Sell?Sell (10) 77% Fix (3) 23% 13 total votes Your vote: Fix or Sell? (Vote): Fix
(Vote): Sell
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TLADT24920 Posts
hmm it really depends on how attached you are to it on top of everything else. You make a good point with how changing the parts means no further changes anytime soon so that's a plus but seeing as public transportation is readily accessible, you're still able to get around anyways and you're looking at hefty sum for repairs too. I say you should sell it before you do any further repairs (and its price will go down in the upcoming years anyways) and just plan around public transportation in the meantime.
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If you wanted to repair it yourself (none of those fixes are very hard) you could do it quite a bit cheaper. You could probably find serviceable O2 sensors at a junkyard, or even buy them fairly cheap off the internet. They might be in annoying places, but usually they just come off with a deep dish socket/wrench and a screwdriver to pop the connector off. The rotor I'm assuming just needs to be regrinded, you'd have to find somewhere local to do that. Changing brake pads is really easy, I think the first time I ever did it it probably only took me 30 minutes. The catalytic converter will be pricey regardless since you can't get those second hand.
Honestly you really can't actually damage much in any of these repairs other than breaking sensors...which apparently don't work. Also if he says you need a new catalytic converter it might be bad O2 sensors mucking things up. Honestly I wouldn't even worry about it unless you need to do emissions or still have problems after putting new O2 sensors in.
If you've kept oil/water in the car there shouldn't be any problems with the engine either, engines are surprisingly durable pieces of equipment when you keep them lubricated and at the proper temperatures.
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Bearded Elder29902 Posts
Repairing it won't be efficient at this point, especially if he already hit 12 years. Just sell it man.
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It's a question of its Utility vs Cost to you. Though, in the USA, it's utility is always quite high, so don't take that calculation lightly.
But repairs + fuel + insurance will run you how much over the next 12 months? Work that out, then work out how much replacing the expected utility you'd need from other transport sources would end up being. That'll give you most of your answer.
If you do sell, I'd also sock away however much money it would cost you to "go home" twice. Though the $1800 you put into it already is a sunk cost, so it doesn't matter to the calculation.
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You just looking for excuses to dump that shit.
Fix it, and love it, like you always have. follow what your stomach tells you, and your hearth, not what your wallet says.
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I just punted my 18 year old Jetta, was far worse off than this (Minnesota Winters ftw!). I would say salvage what you can in current value and buy a different car if you really need it. I just went back to public transit because I never used the car I had anyway.
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I made this decision recently, with a similarly aged vehicle, though my total costs were more like 2500 than 3500. My decision was to keep it and foot the bill.
Reasoning?
If I sold it, I would only be 500-1000 up after repairs and profit. This would leave me -2000 after buying a new one. The "new" car could be very close to having its own problems, which could run another 2k. The idea that I knew my own car's driving history, for the most part, and wouldn't know the new car's was the deciding factor. That is, I was out 2k regardless of whether I got a different car, but who's to say the new car didn't have something horribly wrong with it that wasn't repaired?
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I currently drive a 1993 Camry (yeah!) and it's not because I'm broke, it's because I don't care. The thing is cosmetically in good condition, has electronic seats and windows and other bells and whistles from the last century. But it's starting to show signs of being EOL, plus everyone's been hammering at the environment and stuff and apparently I'm a bad person for driving around in a 21 year old car. Unfortunately, it's worth even less than yours, and the exhaust is cracked and starting to make noise again. I had it welded together a while ago because replacing the whole thing would apparently cost $700 for some reason. $700 to repair a car that's possibly worth less than $700 (I checked with two mechanics).
So I'm thinking of dumping it and maybe buying a new one. I can do most of my errands by walking, and could take the bus to work and school which I already do. I don't use my car a lot, but when I do need it it's really handy to have. So I'd probably need a new car... but it sucks to have to spend thousands of dollars on a thing I don't even want or care about.
Hard to say what you should do, I myself don't know what I should do. It seems silly to dump money on something that's pretty much worthless, especially when you consider that you'll probably end up with more problems sooner rather than later.
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On September 23 2014 00:47 hp.Shell wrote:
The "new" car could be very close to having its own problems, which could run another 2k. ... who's to say the new car didn't have something horribly wrong with it that wasn't repaired?
I'm not sure how you buy cars, but you shouldn't just pick a random one without looking into its history with previous owners, and any repairs its needed. I kind of assumed Doodsmack would do a little research on any newer car he's looking to buy, if he wanted to do so after getting rid of his current car.
On September 22 2014 16:35 pebble444 wrote:
You just looking for excuses to dump that shit.
Fix it, and love it, like you always have. follow what your stomach tells you, and your hearth, not what your wallet says.
Strongly disagree. The car is 12 years old, has over 100,000 miles already, and he's sinking more money into it than the car is actually worth.
Doodsmack, get rid of it while there are still offers out on the table. It's hard to let go of your first car, but if zipcars/ public transportation end up really being annoying for you, you can always put money towards a newer car.
When it comes to possessions that cost money and make your life easier, you should deal with realistic and practical consequences of your choices. Is hundreds/ thousands of wasted dollars and the time and effort spent on getting your car repeatedly repaired worth you holding on to it for another year, until it dies and you're forced to make an immediate decision on what to do next? For me, it wouldn't be worth it. Your call.
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Thanks for the advice all. I should work out all the math, but I think I will want to use zipcar enough that I'd be paying 150-200 per month for it. Let's say I could manage to purchase a car and pay 340 per month for payment + insurance + gas. After 5 or 6 years the monthly car payments would go away, leaving me at 90 per month, and I keep the car for another 3 years. Total paid in this scenario is $23640, not including oil change/repairs/etc. Using Zipcar at 200 per month during the same period would total 19200. So yeah I guess you would really have to be using Zipcar at 300 or more per month for it to become smarter to buy a car.
Doing the repairs myself might be the only viable alternative to selling. But my mechanical knowledge is just about zero and I don't even know how to jack up a car and change the wheel.
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Calgary25951 Posts
Take this as an opportunity to learn how to work on cars doing basic repairs. You have nothing to lose but time and effort, and its a skill set that will forever help you.
I have zero mechanical knowledge but was able to do a bunch of work on my old car with Youtube. Everything ended up working and I didn't die driving it 
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I honestly don't see anything wrong with it. Nothing a little fixup can't fix
If you were to sell it, would you try to hide the fact it's messed up? Because if you didn't, you would get best around $1500 on your calculations
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Bearded Elder29902 Posts
On September 23 2014 02:21 DarkPlasmaBall wrote:Show nested quote +On September 23 2014 00:47 hp.Shell wrote:
The "new" car could be very close to having its own problems, which could run another 2k. ... who's to say the new car didn't have something horribly wrong with it that wasn't repaired? I'm not sure how you buy cars, but you shouldn't just pick a random one without looking into its history with previous owners, and any repairs its needed. I kind of assumed Doodsmack would do a little research on any newer car he's looking to buy, if he wanted to do so after getting rid of his current car. Show nested quote +On September 22 2014 16:35 pebble444 wrote:
You just looking for excuses to dump that shit.
Fix it, and love it, like you always have. follow what your stomach tells you, and your hearth, not what your wallet says.
Strongly disagree. The car is 12 years old, has over 100,000 miles already, and he's sinking more money into it than the car is actually worth. Doodsmack, get rid of it while there are still offers out on the table. It's hard to let go of your first car, but if zipcars/ public transportation end up really being annoying for you, you can always put money towards a newer car. When it comes to possessions that cost money and make your life easier, you should deal with realistic and practical consequences of your choices. Is hundreds/ thousands of wasted dollars and the time and effort spent on getting your car repeatedly repaired worth you holding on to it for another year, until it dies and you're forced to make an immediate decision on what to do next? For me, it wouldn't be worth it. Your call.
Nope. If you're buying _ANY_ car that is not purchased new, you always need to have in mind that you will spend X amount of $$ to do some repairs even if the car has perfect history.
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EPT
