Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Automotive
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:01 PM
 
Location: Clovis Strong, NM
3,376 posts, read 6,074,568 times
Reputation: 2031

Advertisements

Seems like ever since I started driving, every vehicle I've owned has been a nightmare for me.
Don't know about everyone else, but I've acclimated myself to surviving without a vehicle for that reason alone.

-First vehicle was a '71 GMC 3/4 ton I bought used in 2003. Could've been an easy fix, but lack of money and/or electronic means of paying for components online at the time('03/'04 no debit/credit card at the time) to get a replacement wiring harness.
Caved and sold pickup for $500 a year later, then tried to buy it back 3-4 years later.
New owner told me to go kick rocks.

-Second vehicle was an '87 Bronco II that I bought almost immediately after selling the pickup.
Ran just fine until '06 after a smog test. The smog place might've had something to do with it, but no shop could diagnose the problem(was consistently in a "limp" mode).
After already riding my bicycle concurrently for a few years, I decided to just dump this thing and that was the end of car-ownership until just last December.

-Third/current vehicle is an '06 Jeep Liberty CRD(4 cyl Diesel).
After not having owned a vehicle since '06, I bought this one due to it having 4x4, a fuel-efficient Diesel with the future idea of burning B100 or some other bio-fuel.
Ran fine for four months until the beginning of April when the transmission wouldn't shift into 3rd gear.
Took it to an AAMCO in Lubbock under the thinking that the extended service plan would cover this(vehicle was originally bought with no warranty and this plan was added at purchase time.)
After dragging their feet for 2 weeks, the service plan wouldn't cover the repairs(torque converter went out, along with some internal electronic components) and now I'm left footing the $3500 repair bill.

Vehicle's still in the shop and I'm still making payments.

I made some threads earlier about getting trained/certified in auto-tech for my own benefit and got the atypical, "you're going to waste time/money on this. focus on some other life matter instead" garbage.
The way I see it, if I'm going to continue owning something with a motor, I'd rather learn to do it myself than deal with the "businessman first/mechanic second" mentality of shops and those that just go along with that mantra.

Or just accept that motor vehicles aren't meant for me and just stick to bicycles and guns.
At least I can work on both of those myself with relative ease and I don't have to worry about a catastrophic breakdown of either that wasn't seen before.
Many like to stress vehicle ownership like it's some sort of vital component to every-day survival.
But I just see it as an endless money-pit.

-RANT OVER.
Quick reply to this message

 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:09 PM
 
Location: In an indoor space
7,685 posts, read 6,156,745 times
Reputation: 5154
Having and using a motor vehicle is an expense period.

Now that I'm forced to get a car is not something I totally look forward to regarding expenses of such though I like to drive.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:24 PM
 
Location: San Antonio, TX USA
5,251 posts, read 14,132,550 times
Reputation: 8227
Your buying **** vehicles with out doing much research. When you buy 25/30 year old vehicles that are cheap you have to know they will have issues. Even the most basic internet search about the Jeep CRD would have given you all the info you need to stay far away from those.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:25 PM
 
Location: Clovis Strong, NM
3,376 posts, read 6,074,568 times
Reputation: 2031
Quote:
Originally Posted by lol-its-good4U View Post
Having and using a motor vehicle is an expense period.

Now that I'm forced to get a car is not something I totally look forward to regarding expenses of such though I like to drive.
It is, and some people tend to forget this when they preach the "advantage of car-ownership" to others.
Stress-inducing and heart-popping at the same time.

As for times when I need a car, rental does just fine.

As for buying "---- vehicles" this is exactly the type of attitude I deal with when it comes to those that stress car-ownership on everybody.
All vehicles have problems regardless of how good everyone says they are and you're going to get gouged one way or another.
Most "good" vehicles suggested to me are usually ones I have no interest in whatsoever.
But that isn't really saying much since I was never much of a car-person(in terms of what's trendy or cool) to begin with.

If I want a reliable vehicle, I'd also want something simple.
Too many cars/trucks with flashy appeal and attitude that I couldn't care any less for.

Unfortunately some people just can't leave others well enough alone.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:35 PM
 
33,387 posts, read 34,636,740 times
Reputation: 20027
it sounds to me that you are buying cars for a price rather than condition. when you do that you tend to get the, lets say, lesser quality vehicles on the market. if you decide to get into car ownership again, the first thing you should do is have a mechanic check over the vehicle in question before you buy. spending a couple hundred bucks before you buy can save you a bunch later.

as to getting educated in auto repair, go ahead and do it. if you plan on doing it for a living, then get certified after finishing your education. my advice is to start at your local junior college and take a few classes to start. work them around your current schedule. education is never a waste of money imo.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:44 PM
 
Location: In an indoor space
7,685 posts, read 6,156,745 times
Reputation: 5154
Quote:
Originally Posted by bentstrider View Post
It is, and some people tend to forget this when they preach the "advantage of car-ownership" to others.
Stress-inducing and heart-popping at the same time.

As for times when I need a car, rental does just fine.

As for buying "---- vehicles" this is exactly the type of attitude I deal with when it comes to those that stress car-ownership on everybody.
All vehicles have problems regardless of how good everyone says they are and you're going to get gouged one way or another.
Most "good" vehicles suggested to me are usually ones I have no interest in whatsoever.
But that isn't really saying much since I was never much of a car-person(in terms of what's trendy or cool) to begin with.

If I want a reliable vehicle, I'd also want something simple.

Too many cars/trucks with flashy appeal and attitude that I couldn't care any less for.

Unfortunately some people just can't leave others well enough alone.
Reliability is something everyone mostly wants and it being simple well with the electronics/computer(s) that make up a car these days that will prove tough to find. I do agree with doing the research as already mentioned on any car. Also the budget one has plays into this as well.

I'm looking/interested at car models that unfortunately have a high possibility of me having to get their plastic intake manifold replaced eventually. This is part of the research I've done for myself.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:47 PM
 
Location: Clovis Strong, NM
3,376 posts, read 6,074,568 times
Reputation: 2031
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbohm View Post
it sounds to me that you are buying cars for a price rather than condition. when you do that you tend to get the, lets say, lesser quality vehicles on the market. if you decide to get into car ownership again, the first thing you should do is have a mechanic check over the vehicle in question before you buy. spending a couple hundred bucks before you buy can save you a bunch later.

as to getting educated in auto repair, go ahead and do it. if you plan on doing it for a living, then get certified after finishing your education. my advice is to start at your local junior college and take a few classes to start. work them around your current schedule. education is never a waste of money imo.
Easier said than done when it comes to the first paragraph.
The yellow pages are chock-full of shops, but it's all a matter of filtering it down to a decent person that will actually be straightforward.
As far as vehicles are concerned, I'd much rather stick to Diesel and a manual transmission with a 4x4 if it could be found. Sad thing is that most off-road capable Diesels that are reliable are the plethora of ginormous, over-equipped pickup trucks that would probably get stuck in most places my Jeep Liberty would sail through with ease.
That said, I'm stuck with this vehicle and don't want to destroy my credit any further so I'll keep the above approach in mind for next time(doubling up on payments and plan on getting it paid off in 2-3 years time).

Ditto on the education.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 04:59 PM
 
Location: Grosse Ile Michigan
30,702 posts, read 79,372,236 times
Reputation: 39415
It varies. Sometimes you find a crappy car that provides great service, sometimes you buy a purportedly reliable car and have nothing but trouble. My son bought a 2003 Saturn Ion for $500. It is a Cobalt, or the same for all intents and purposes anyway. It is a complete POS. However it has somewhere around 225,000 miles on it. May put on it be him and it has given him very little trouble. It does need some repair, but so far all things he can let go for now until they break completely. Even if it dies tomorrow, he will have paid something like 12 -15 cents a mile for using it (excluding gas and insurance which you need for all cars). We have had purportedly reliable cars that were nothing but constant trouble and other POS cars that were constant trouble. You can do research and improve your odds, but it really makes no difference. If you get a bad one, relaiability ratings do not help you pay for the constant repairs, and if you get one rated as a POS, you will cry all the way to the bank if it gives you no trouble at all.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 05:16 PM
 
Location: Clovis Strong, NM
3,376 posts, read 6,074,568 times
Reputation: 2031
Quote:
Originally Posted by Coldjensens View Post
It varies. Sometimes you find a crappy car that provides great service, sometimes you buy a purportedly reliable car and have nothing but trouble. My son bought a 2003 Saturn Ion for $500. It is a Cobalt, or the same for all intents and purposes anyway. It is a complete POS. However it has somewhere around 225,000 miles on it. May put on it be him and it has given him very little trouble. It does need some repair, but so far all things he can let go for now until they break completely. Even if it dies tomorrow, he will have paid something like 12 -15 cents a mile for using it (excluding gas and insurance which you need for all cars). We have had purportedly reliable cars that were nothing but constant trouble and other POS cars that were constant trouble. You can do research and improve your odds, but it really makes no difference. If you get a bad one, relaiability ratings do not help you pay for the constant repairs, and if you get one rated as a POS, you will cry all the way to the bank if it gives you no trouble at all.
Personally, I'm entertaining the idea of getting a low-CC motorcycle, along with a 70s-era carbureted/manual transmission pickup, as a sort of back-up vehicle for any future mishaps of the Liberty.
They seem to be at my level when it comes to self-repair and the ownership costs are relatively easy to deal with.
Not to mention I've had my motorcycle endorsement since '06 and need to use that thing some day.

Another big thing that would help me in my "self-repair/self-sufficiency" endeavors when it comes to vehicles is getting a bigger place obviously.
Apartments are kind of unfriendly/unsupportive of working on vehicles in parking spaces/car-ports.
Quick reply to this message
 
Old 04-25-2013, 05:33 PM
 
Location: Grosse Ile Michigan
30,702 posts, read 79,372,236 times
Reputation: 39415
Quote:
Originally Posted by bentstrider View Post
Personally, I'm entertaining the idea of getting a low-CC motorcycle, along with a 70s-era carbureted/manual transmission pickup, as a sort of back-up vehicle for any future mishaps of the Liberty.
They seem to be at my level when it comes to self-repair and the ownership costs are relatively easy to deal with.
Not to mention I've had my motorcycle endorsement since '06 and need to use that thing some day.

Another big thing that would help me in my "self-repair/self-sufficiency" endeavors when it comes to vehicles is getting a bigger place obviously.
Apartments are kind of unfriendly/unsupportive of working on vehicles in parking spaces/car-ports.
My brother's dream car is an older pick up with a straight six, no ac, crank windows, manual door locks and seats and manual three speed transmission (or maybe he said two speed, did they make two speed?)

Easy to work on simple motor with lots of room under the hood, not much to break.

My dream car on the other hand is either a Falcon F7 or a Tesla S. (Well there are a bunch of others too, but those are two of the options).
Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


 
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:
Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Automotive

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top