Car Repair Woes
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
United States
March 6, 2008 3:59pm CST
The trouble with owning an older car is that you never know what you'll have to replace next. We have a 1996 Chevy Lumina with 65,000 miles on the counter. Not bad considering that the 1994 Buick we have has 170,000 miles on it. We thought that the Lumina would be the better car for me to drive to work.
I began to notice a clunk in the rear of the driver's side of the car whenever I drove out of a driveway. Today I took a peek and found a bar was broken. When I got home I had my husband look at it. He could move the tire so we came to the conclusion that the bar attaches to the tire. Hubby called Midas and told them what is going on with it. They suggested that it not be driven but towed to them. They also gave an estimate, but not knowing exactly what it is, it wasn't accurate.
Hubby said he would drive it down tomorrow and we would leave it for them to fix. I need a car for the weekend because I volunteered to work a day for a coworker. There goes another chunk of change. But, it is necessary.
4 people like this
11 responses
@villageanne (8553)
• United States
6 Mar 08
I heard that! You know we purchased a 2000 Ford Windstar new. We put over 100,000 miles on it and never had a single problem with it until the transmission went out suddenly one evening. It was without a doubt the best vehicle we ever owned. Now it is sitting across the road from the house. WE need to sell it but have not as of yet put it up for sale.
Every used car we ever owned, we had trouble with it. We finally decided that for us, it was cheaper to purchase a new one than put all that money in constant repairs.
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
8 Mar 08
I have heard that this is a common complaint with ford vans - our ford aerostar needed a new alternator before the 100K mark because ford put the wrong size alternator in for the size of engine. I was told that was common too. I have lost confidence in most american car makes - sadly.
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
10 Mar 08
Hubby would love to buy a Honda or Toyota. They are more reliable. But, they cost more too.
@caramello (4377)
• Australia
10 Mar 08
Cars can have us with our hands in our purses far too many times, but it is (for us) our only way of transport as we live semi-rural. Just yesterday I said to my hubby in his car when we were out, there is a strange noise coming from the front end that sounds like something is about to fall off. His answer was..."it is an old car and these things happen!" He travels to work each day and takes almost an hour to get there, so fingers crossed! And yes for some cars are necessary.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
10 Mar 08
My hubby says I play the radio too loudly. It drowns out the noises the car makes and I should be listening for them.
But, I don't play the radio all the time. Sometimes you can't hear when something needs to be repaired, but you can feel it in the way the car handles. I hope that your vehicle pulls through for you.
@Thoroughrob (11742)
• United States
7 Mar 08
I know it seems like you are always fixing things, but yet it probably is less than paying alot of car payments. We have a 1990 truck with 162,000 miles on it and my husband drives it to work about 60 miles a day. He has a fit when things go wrong with it, but usually it is not too bad to fix, just time consuming.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
7 Mar 08
Hubby said he thought he could fix what was wrong with the car. The problem was he didn't want to lay in the mud to do it. Can't say that I blame him for that.
@matlgal (1686)
• United States
6 Mar 08
Car trouble makes me crazy. I guess it's just not knowing when or where or what might happen. I always weigh the Car payments vs car repair theory and I prefer payments, only because I know when and how much each month . I just want to know that when I get it in it's going to get me where I am going.
GOOD LUCK..... hope it goes well
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
7 Mar 08
I wish we could afford a car payment. With hubby out of work, money is very tight.
@jennybianca (12912)
• Australia
7 Mar 08
Yes, cars are a pain, but necessary. It really annoys me the amount repairs cost. What really gets me, is that I take my car in for a major service, & they make a point of checking everything & then presenting me with a big list. This is their clever way of getting more business by telling people that everything is urgent. Some people, like me, wouldn't know the difference between a minor repair & something critical. Fortunately, my hubby is an ex mechanic, & he does some of the repairs & service.
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
7 Mar 08
The repair place said that we needed something else done, but we are putting it off. Hubby said that it is something that is easily done without replacing the part.
@drew181818 (22)
• United States
7 Mar 08
My timing belt broke and it cost me around a 1000 to fix it, it just goes to show that any car will break at anytime.
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
10 Mar 08
Even newer cars can cost a pretty penny to fix and they sometimes do need repair.
@GardenGerty (160663)
• United States
7 Mar 08
Sometimes once you get those older cars set, though, they are really workhorses for you.I hope it works out that you are repaired economically and well.
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
8 Mar 08
I never owned a car, I don't even know how to drive.
I knew I could never be able to keep up with the repairs and even the insurance and gas
1 person likes this
@Modestah (11179)
• United States
8 Mar 08
I commiserate with you. last summer I had to replace some computer parts to the tune of $700 because a rat made a nest under the hood.
now the engine light is on and the heater is not working - I hesitate getting it looked at but know that I had better before problems get worse.
1 person likes this
@bluemars (952)
• Australia
6 Mar 08
I hear you and understand how hard it can be to own an older car. I was always worried on the road and almost felt like yeah any time soon it would just die completely on me. I couldn't help the negativity because it had so many problems and I just really expected the next bad thing. It is hard when you can not afford to get a decent car too. You basically have to put up with the crap your car gives you until that time comes. I think it is important to get the small things looked at though because sometimes those things can cause future more costs.
1 person likes this
@cortney09 (1345)
• United States
11 Mar 08
I feel for you. Our car is a 1992, so we have problems with it. At least nothing serious happened while you were in the car. I hope that it doesn't cost you to to much.
