When do decide to replace a car

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:

docwyte wrote: I usually replace cars because I'm bored with them before they wear out on me.

^ this I am in the process of selling the longest ownership experience I've had with a toy car (5yrs) and that was only because I really enjoyed driving it and nothing else popped up to take it's place. Since I jumped over the w2w racing cliff my priorities have shifted to pining after small increases in performance at great cost. Now all the "other" toys look like assets that need to be liquid pronto. As an aside to that... What do you suppose an attractive, middle-aged mother of two with a small sustainable income can fetch on the open market?

I'd calculate it out as a multiple of the net after all expenses (maybe 5x-10x depending on visuals) - and working out a value in the extra two - if they're big enough to start working - perhaps in a domestic capacity.

As far as cars - when I get tired of looking at them or when something intrigues me more. Throwing some money at what I already have/know tends to be cheaper than buying somebody else's surprises and deferred maintenance. If I like the car enough I'll even take on rust.

It's time to get rid of a car when the cost to repair(R) exceeds the cost of a replacement car that you'd be at least as happy with(N) minus the street value of the vehicle as-is (S) plus how much you'd pay to not have to go through the trouble of changing cars (C) which may be a negative value.

If R>(N-S+C) then replace.

GameboyRMH wrote: It's time to get rid of a car when the cost to repair(R) exceeds the cost of a replacement car that you'd be at least as happy with(N) minus the street value of the vehicle as-is (S) plus how much you'd pay to not have to go through the trouble of changing cars (C) which may be a negative value. If R>(N-S+C) then replace.

Dude, this guy wins the internet

One other factor: It costs around $750 to change from one two-grand car to another.

Time and supplies needed to sell the old car ($20-$250).
Sales tax on the new car ($100 or so).
Title and Registration for the new car ($80 or so).
1 effective extra month of insurance ($100 or so).
An air filter, new plugs and wires, new brake fluid, new oil and filter, new windshield wipers, some grease for cables etc ($150 or so). Inspection sticker ($15-50 depending on state).

93EXCivic wrote:

dculberson wrote: No shortage of used '93 Civic parts out there.. the seatbelt should be a $10 - $20 fix and take about an hour. I had to do the ones in my old CRX and it was super easy. Bought junkyard belts and they were bolt in and go.

I would be a bit nervous about replacing them with old ones...

If the warranty thing works out then that's great! But really the material doesn't degrade and if the mechanism works fine I don't see why a used seatbelt would be a problem. It's better than a broken one, that's for sure.

The correct answer of course is that you need a 6 month rotation. You never get bored that way!

There in lies the problem. Honestly the only two problems that really worry me are the seatbelt and the leaking trunk. And it seems like the seatbelt still grabs when you slam on it. It just needs help to roll up.

Leaking trunks are often caused by water coming in at the tail lights. Urethane or silicone at the top of the light housing will most likely solve that issue.

The water drains around the trunk rail into the light and into the trunk. It's amazing how much water can accumulate.

racerdave600 wrote: The correct answer of course is that you need a 6 month rotation. You never get bored that way!

This board has 117 people Ultradork or higher. My proposal is that among us we donate $500 to a pool. GRM collectively buys 10x $5,000 cars, some of the heavy hitters (Miata, E30, P71) and some others that we all wanted to try and we rotate, through the list. We each keep a car for a month and then pass it on to the next person in line. We could even be recruited to write our opinions, trials & tribulations, whatever for the website. Could work.

Hey, that's my car-of-the-month-club idea!

Other things you'll need:

A meeting place to exchange cars once a month and draw your new key out of a hat.

A fleet insurance policy to cover all of them.

A penalty car for breaking one of the dozen. I suggest a complete toilet of a mid-90s G.M. sedan.

Individual or collective garage space and time to work on the cars. Dues for repairs and maintenance.

An annual vote on which cars to sell and what to buy to replace them.

chaparral wrote: Honda has a lifetime warranty on seatbelts. Go to a dealer, and they will change it. Free. Ron Bouchard Honda in Fitchburg, MA did exactly that on my '91 CRX four years ago.

I came here to say that too.. but if it is any other color than black it will be replaced with a black one most likely

I have already made up my mind of ridding myself of my current neon. Just a matter of having $$$ to replace it. On a side note, I think I will put it in the classifieds for $500 with all my spares(14 wheels, door, transaxle) perfect for some form of crap-can.

In reply to 93EXCivic:

When it is too rusty to fix... My Wife's 1992 Maxima has reached this point. Left rear wheel house rusted out, right rear on it's way. Right rocker panel rusted through. And with only 247, 000 miles.

when the fixed car will no longer satisfy me.

I drive a car until it is undriveable.. that usually involves rust or a wreck..

The only car I ever "gave up" on was my NG900. After replacing the transmission.. the starter went.. after replacing the starter, the waterpump went.. after replacing the waterpump.. the alternator died, broke the serpentine belt, and wrapped it around the waterpump and alternator into a big huge mess...

I called a junkyard and had the car towed away. They gave me 300 for it

In CA we don't have rust, so not likely that a car will rust out from under me. I haven't owned many cars; 6 -only one was sold (it was a temp car,) one was a nonstarter project that I gave away after it sat in my courtyard for a few years and another was totalled. The three remaining is my IS300 I've had for 11+ years, the other is an LS400 I bought in April of 2011 and gave to my dad, the Celica is a yet to be started project. I always thought I'd keep the IS forever but I find myself giving some serious thought to getting out of the IS300 and into an XK8 after the XK8 thread popped up but it probably won't happen.