Quote:
Originally Posted by cfg83
Jammer -
(staying off topic, sorry ... ) I think this forum has a much higher ratio of DIY car folk than the general populace. In order for a used car to be affordable, you either need to have an honest mechanic *or* the skillzz to do your own repairs. I have the former but not the latter.
But there is one more difference between today and yesteryear. Fifteen years ago I would not have considered getting a used car because I knew I was a sucker for whatever a dishonest repair dude would say. Today I can go to an internet car forum *devoted* to my car and get the honest skinny on how to keep my car happy. This still won't save me from getting ripped off, but I am in a much better position when I can tell the mechanic in detail what I want done.
CarloSW2
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Good points.
And it reminds me of something. I was actually raised as a kid with the advise from my father, who worked for Chevy, that a NEW car/truck was always much cheaper to drive than a used car which likely needed repairs and had often left dad stranded in far away town in his younger years. I guess that is where I got some of my buying habits from. I can recall my own father telling me about all sorts of tricks some criminal type mechanics did to him- Gosh he had one story of a guy just trying to cheat him on a couple pints of oil- The mechanic held his thumb in the dipstick as he measured the oil and my dad caught him red handed pulling the dipstick out with his thumb on it (engine still hot too). I realize most mechanics are good honest folks, it's the bad apples I am speaking of. As you say a good honest mechanic can be a lot of help in keeping a used car on the road at rates a person can pay and still have money for food.
I was in a position to get a much larger car such as a Malibu or Impala, but I seen no sense in driving a car that I feel is bigger than I need, and I purposely wanted the most fuel efficient car I could get from GM- I pretty much was locked into buying GM because of all the discounts I could get. Any Hybrid by GM was way too expensive. I could not buy an imported car due to the fact much of my family would dis-own me and not let me park my car in their driveways (GM Retirees and workers!) So after I decided on GM, it turned out the Cobalt XFE was GM's only car with mileage close to 45 MPG (37 EPA, sticker said 44 was possible- I can not argue, the EPA ratting has proven very spot on)- I only hope I can get above 50MPG after I make the first oil change. Today I still have 44.4MPG, and that seems to be my best for the time being.
About my wreck that all started with a needed repair I could not do, nor get, done by my Dealership' that sold me the truck! Their head mechanic at the Service Department told me to bring the truck in while the brakes were acting up- which was impossible to predict and I never had the oppertunity to get it in as it was displaying the ABS Fault Warning:
I do like the idea of going to internet forums for advise on fixing cars. But, I must tell you, I had a problem with my previous 2005 Chevy Colorado 4X4 pickup truck that I could never fix! -- For 2 years I was getting alerts that said "ABS BEAK FAULT" and often my braking would sound like metal on metal, but not all the time. Neither my dealership (it was an intermittent problem and they never seen it bad) nor the internet could advise me how to get the ABS brakes to work right. Finally after several trips to the dealership, on a sunny day I was driving up a well known road and my brakes went OUT on me! I had no time to shift down, time was up, I hit the 90 degree curve going about 40MPH which is way to much for the truck with it's high center of gravity to handle- I turned, the truck went straight, hit a hillside knocked off my eye glasses and smashed my windshield then I was blinded and the truck starting flipping upside down and rolled over and over- I was FINE, I thank GOD, and the seat-belt work perfect on me and held me upside down just as if I was still driving securely in my seat. The passenger side got crushed FLAT along with the topper, and the front in.. shesh the damage was major..... AND IT ALL STARTED WITH A NEEDED REPAIR ON MY BRAKES THAT I COULD NOT DO, NOR COULD MY DEALERSHIP DO. I had no idea how serious the problem was. I almost sued GM but at the time I believe they were in Bankruptcy. I was just happy the police did not fault me and my insurance payed off good and did not raise my rates as far as I can tell.
After that wreck I opted for a small car because I drove a 4X4 for all the wrong reasons. I was one of the guys that changed. I used to get 17MPG, and now I get 45.4MPG in a car with a low center of gravity which is much less likely to flip as easily as large pickups do..But people can argue large vrs small cars and trucks as to which is safer all day. It would all depend on what kind of accident was involved in many cases.