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Originally Posted by jamesqf
Except that $1000 isn't all that much different, in terms of hours worked, from the $200 I paid for my first car. And $3.50/gal gas isn't much different from $0.70.
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This is true. Frank and nemo both brought up a good point, too. Something about spending one's money on bare necessities (sic), like wireless internet and the latest and greatest "smart" phone and video games. Suddenly, one has to cut back on luxuries, like cars.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jamesqf
I do somewhat agree about the hands-dirty thing, but the flip side of it is that there is just so much less to go wrong with today's cars - or maybe I should say the 10-20 year old cars of today - at least as long as you stick to Hondas, Toyotas, &c.
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Yah, but when something does go wrong with today's beaters, the beater usually stops running altogether. Back when I was a kid, the beater would run like garbage (due to the wearing out of those things you mentioned), but it would still run. As for the CEL - hey, the car still seems to run great, so let's just drive it into the ground! Heh... points. My first car was the last car I owned that had a rebuildable carb. And manually adjustable valves!