Maintaining Older Vehicles

[sherryinutah]

For the past year I've been  driving a 2000 Ford Windstar Van.  I  really like it because it has a V6 so it can get up and go.

It's time to renew my registration and pass a safety inspection.  I found out last week that it won't pass unless I put some $$$ into it.  I understand and accept that it's necessary to sink a certain amount of money into a vehicle that's 15 years old.

Do you have a good mechanic?

Do you drive a newer vehicle?

Are you a Do-It-Yourselfer?

How do you know when it's time to stop "sinking" money into an older vehicle?

I actually ended up getting a loan to pay for repairs so I can legally drive this van for another year.   

[potluck6]

my husband has a 1998 chevy truck it has needed work over the years he used to commute 90 miles a day back and forth to work .Will say chevy does makes good trucks.Now he's retired and it is resting well.won't have an expensive thing done. notworth it.

[pressman]

I have a 203 mercury sable  113,oo mi myhusband keeps it up when the transmission goes time tobuy a new car

[BlackSheepNY]

My brother is awesome with cars.  He drives a "modified" 1986 Toyota truck.  By modified, I mean, he turned it into a "rock crawler" to have some fun out here in Arizona (big tires and all).  However, we use it to drive around town and do what we need to do, too.

He's got an awesome 1970 Plymouth Duster that he restored and turned in to a racing monster that uses E85 gas.  He's always updating or changing stuff on this one.  It's followed him around since he was stationed in Hawaii when he was in the service.  He'll drive it only to car shows that are in our general vicinity because E85 doesn't get very good gas mileage, especially with a 440 engine in it, LOL.

My brother is the family's "go to" mechanic.  If anyone has questions or needs help with anything, they call him.  My son grew up just like my brother.  Loves to work on his cars, trucks and motorcycles, and does very well with all of them.  My son is what you call a "Stunter."  He does "tricks" on his motorcycles.  He's been scaring the cr@p out of me since he learned to ride a two-wheeler when he was 4 years old!  It's a rare occasion at our house that anyone ever even visits a mechanic outside of the family because between my brother and son, they've got it covered.

[oldbuddy]

I have a 2004 Nissan Frontier pickup that only has 75K miles and when it starts having problems it will go down the road. Until then, I just keep driving it.

[sdenimandlace1]

I have a 2000 Nissan Frontier,  lots of mile will driver till it quits running.

[BATISTAGIRL663]

i have a 1998 durango and i try to keep it maintained and up to date on oil changes and such --i love the old model of the durango and refuse to let it go !

[southernhorizons]

My vehicle isn't that old, but I need to get my brakes fixed, and a window motor fixed. I lost my regular mechanic, he moved South, so now I have to find a new one. It's hard to find a good mechanic nowadays.

[ancmetro]

   
      Have an oil change and they will give a safety inspection report telling you what is wrong with your vehicle.  Get a CARFAX to view previous vehicle problems. You can also pay for a complete vehicle inspection report.       
Fix some items and resell your vehicle. Do not wait until it gives up on you. Buy a newer vehicle...and do the same items until you get one with low miles. Then keep it for a while. "Do not forget: Do not keep your car until it gives up on you" because it can be very expensive to repair some vehicle problems!

[vg7405]

I have a 2001 Ford Escape, and I must say that I would rather spend money on my older vehicle than to purchase a new one. Besides, many of the recalls that the Ford Escape has had in recent years involves the newer models.

[jcalexis]

I used to drive a 1996 toyota camry. Almost every month I had to spend money repairing that car. then one day, the engine just gave up on me. I had that car for about 12 years.

[missplaymate618]

My father was a mechanic for over 38yrs, he still works on my car, I have a 1999 Ford Explorer with 230,000+ miles on it and it is still in great shape, I keep up with oil changes and maintenance on it. But if I have to spend money on something major on it I will probably just junk it.

[bremer51]

I got rid of  my 2001 Ram 1500 pickup this year.  It was starting to have more and more problems, so I traded her in for a newer pickup.

[BMaston12]

For the past year I've been  driving a 2000 Ford Windstar Van.  I  really like it because it has a V6 so it can get up and go.

It's time to renew my registration and pass a safety inspection.  I found out last week that it won't pass unless I put some $$$ into it.  I understand and accept that it's necessary to sink a certain amount of money into a vehicle that's 15 years old.

Do you have a good mechanic?

Do you drive a newer vehicle?

Are you a Do-It-Yourselfer?

How do you know when it's time to stop "sinking" money into an older vehicle?

I actually ended up getting a loan to pay for repairs so I can legally drive this van for another year.   

It soundsd like you have reached that point. It does make it nice to not have a car payment. But if you have a loan payment, you might as well have another car. Get a warranty on whatever you buy.  BMaston12

[vickysue]

We have a 1995 ford Windstar and it gets great gas mileage, would rather have a better back seat, also drive a 1993 Chevy diesel pickup. it has  150,00 miles on it and is just not getting broke in good. We have started looking for a different van now, I want one with bucket seats in the second row as when we take dad  with us anywhere I set in the back and I need a head rest., we will not buy a new vehicle as once you drive it off the lot it loses a lot of value.