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OK, regular visitors to this page know that my daughter has my treasured '96 Semi-Aero out west while on an internship. As far as I know, the car has been fine, she's had the oil changed and put new tires on it. She's coming home soon --I'm heading out west on biz/to ski, and we're driving back east in a coupla weeks. Then she'll revert to her '95 CS that I've used for the past 8 months.
So the issue I'm wrestling with is this:
She will probably be off on another short-term internship come May and it's unlikely it will be nearby. She;ll need a car and I'd rather she have her own and not mine again. I's likely she will be once again in a place without a nearby Saab indy. (The closest one on the gig she's leaving was an hour away, the next closest was 3 hours.)
So do I go through the '95 thoroughly and really bring it up to snuff, which will run a grand or so (brakes, exhaust, hoses, all filters & fluids, governor seals, H2O pump (original & making noise), belt/pulleys/tensioner, shocks/struts, PS hoses, spare DI, plus a bunch of smaller stuff) and send her off in that 173K mile known quantity? (The fuel pump and DI have ~50K on them, heater core is 6 months old, radiator is 3-4 years old. I have questions on the head gasket, but need my indy's input.) Even if I had him do the head gasket, the car would be good to go for well under $3 grand. The new tires she bought for my car will go on hers and I have more wheels/tires in the garage for my car. The '95 will still be a bit of a beater, but it would be running well with most variables dealt with. Car presently uses only a little oil, runs well, most stuff works OK.
OR. . .
do I drop $5-7K (max affordability) on a used something that can be more easily repaired and will theoretically last longer? She needs carrying capacity/hatch to move herself around for the next couple of years and some added utility for her work would be nice (enviro science field work) that can involve some sketchy unpaved roads. Candidates include: Suby wagons: Impreza/Forester/Legacy, Honda CRV, Toyota Matrix or RAV4, Ford Focus wagon or Escape.
I'm not interested in leasing (throwing money away, IMHO), and although it's doable, I'd really rather not lay out the cash for replacement car.
And no, I'm not inclined to give her my car, sell hers, and get another car for myself. That is another option, though. I'd just rather keep my car a while longer.
OTOH, there's more peace of mind with something newer and more readily repaired. That's worth something, but whatever we'd get would be less of a known quantity despite the age of her 9K.
I can argue this either way, so all thoughts and opinions are welcome. Thanks in advance!
, Sun, 23 Jan 2011 20:41:42
, Mon, 24 Jan 2011 10:02:48
, Sun, 23 Jan 2011 18:57:40
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