$2100- Torrent Repair

[Eugene]

Just spent $2100- on wife's 06 Pontiac Torrent for body structural repairs, new floorboards, center control column repair, and under coating.

The front floorboards were rusted through. From the bottom up about 6" the center control column was corroded/completely deteriorated.

$2100- is about 1/2 of Kelly BB value. The Torrent only gets driven about 3000 miles a year. Hopefully it will last the wife another 10 years.

Putting the 03 Ford Expedition if for structural repairs and rocker panels.

Less expensive to repair vehicles than to purchase another used one.

[lyle11]

That must’ve been a really popular model. I thought you were having some problem with flood damage.

I really hate spending money on cars. But about 11 years ago I had a breakdown (fuel pump) in a 10-year-old Malibu. I was 120 miles from home and had two dogs in the car. I didn’t have much choice but to get towed all the way home and it cost almost $700.

I live in Northeast Ohio, but about six times a year we drive to Wisconsin where I own an 80 acre inherited farm and it’s a 700 mile drive one way. So I have to have at least one good car and I get nervous once it gets 6-7 years old, especially after my experience with the Malibu. If I didn’t have the farm, I don’t think I’d have a car newer than five years old and I’d just rent a car for a longer trip.

Anyway, in May 2019 I attempted to trade in a 2011 Corolla on a 2 year old low mileage SUV. They offered me $4500 for the trade. I decided to just keep going with the Corolla which my wife used to get back-and-forth to work. Flash forward to March 2023 and my wife gets in an accident and the Corolla is a total loss. The other driver was at fault and had Geico and they gave us a little over $12,000 for the Corolla. (We bought it for just over $11,000 in 2013).

I looked for a 1-3 YO used car but couldn’t find one. Very limited selection in what I was looking for. So we bought our first new car since 2000. I hated to do it but the $12,000 made it easier. I decided to get one of those cars with a lot of safety features. Last thing I want to do in my remaining years is be responsible for anybody getting hurt or killed so I’ll do anything I can to avoid an accident. There is so much traffic on the road now, any time of the day it seems. (Does anybody work anymore or do people just drive around all day?)

This car has that feature that is supposed to automatically brake to avoid a rear collision. One of these days I should test it out with an empty plastic garbage can to see if it really works. It also has a very good visible indicator if there’s a car in your blind spot and if you were to attempt to change lanes with a car in your Blindspot, a very aggravating audible alarm sounds that you can’t ignore. It steers the car and keeps it centered in your lane as long as there are lines on the road. The especially nice thing is it has the feature when you’re in cruise control that slows the car down to keep the same distance from the car in front of you. Not sure if it will completely brake to stop but, if somebody pulls into the lane in front of you, you’d have to be asleep to not notice the dramatic slow down of the car.

One thing about the 700 mile drive is that I spend a lot of time in cruise control, but always ready to hit the brake. Might be sciatica, but I would get this ache going down my right leg. Never get it except on these long drives. With this new car, the leg ache has disappeared. I think it’s because I can relax a little bit because I know the car will slow down automatically if a car slows down or cuts in front of me. So I’m thinking my right leg is more relaxed thus no aching.

I am 66 years old and I’ve been driving on roads since I was 12 years old. We did that out in the country in the 60s and 70s. In all that time I have never taken a car in to have my oil changed at a dealer or an oil change store. I always did it myself mainly because I just didn’t want to bother with it more so than being terribly frugal. So I thought with this car, I’ll finally start taking it to the dealer for the oil change. I asked and was told that I could change the oil myself. It doesn’t void the warranty but to keep receipts I guess just to make sure you’re putting on the proper filter and oil that meets the specs. I bought the car through Costco so the dealer is 33 miles away. This is the easiest car oil change I have ever seen. The spin on filter is positioned on top of the engine in full view open side pointed downward to drain. There’s even a little catch basin around the oil seal. The drain plug is very easy to reach. I just couldn’t justify driving 66 miles to get an oil change when I can do it myself so easily.

The interval for oil change is 6000 miles. So why is it 6000 when synthetic oil is designed to last 12,000 and 15,000 miles unless you’re driving on dusty roads? I suspect it’s so the dealer can get you in and make some money off you. Just seems like oil change intervals should’ve gone up with new synthetic oils. I changed it at 6000 miles and will continue to at the recommended interval, I was just surprised going 23 years since buying a new car that it wasn’t more like 10,000 miles between oil changes based on newer technology.

The other thing that’s new to me is new tires that don’t come with free rotation. I’ve read a few things online about tire rotation and opinions are all over the place. The recommended rotation interval for this car is every 6000 miles. Seems a little much to me especially if I have to pay for it. So I guess I haven’t really decided what I’m going to do there. I might just have them rotated at 10,000 miles. This car will be driven 90% on the highway so I’m not really sure how much more of the front tires will wear than the back. I’m sure they’ll wear more but it’s not like I’m driving locally all the time turning a lot per mile driven. It does have a display that shows you the air pressure in each of the tires which is nice.

Anyway, since you brought up car repairs, I guess I got a little off track. I like the idea of getting everything I can out of a car. But since I do all that highway driving especially through the Chicago area, is nice to have those safety features especially when you get older.

[Eugene]

I have never taken a car in to have my oil changed at a dealer or an oil change store. I always did it myself mainly because I just didn’t want to bother with it more so than being terribly frugal.

I have the local mechanic's shop - not some kid, but a mechanic - do the lub/oil jobs. The oil change and lub job is a bit more expensive than if I did it myself. But, they have the vehicle up on a lift, conduct a safety inspection and provide you a report.

Last service on my wife's 06 Torrent, the mechanic showed us photos of the structural damage.

I used to use Cheap as my first name. Now I use Frugal be cause is sounds like I have a bit of class.

[lyle11]

To me, cheap is not paying your fair share. Frugal is being smart and getting the most for your money.