What To Do With My Old Car?

Question

I have a 2001 Honda Civic LX 146,000 miles, body definitely has a few dings and dents but it's nothing I can't polish up and make decent. Went to the Honda dealership and they told me I needed to do this to my car:

Replace front motor mount (broken) $225
Replace leaking seal under timing belt (likely crank seal - would require opening up engine compartment) $655
Replace leaking oil pan gasket ($340)

Ok, I knew that my car was leaking oil before because every time I went under there, there was always oil all over the place so I'm pretty sure they were not exaggerating here. I didn't know the front motor arm was broken. These prices so far are total including parts and labor. These are recommended to me as the most critical things to get done. It's $1,220 total (not including tax). I'm estimating my car to be worth not more than $5,000 in it's current condition after checking out Craigslist and Kelley Blue Book online.

Now for some more work to be done:

Rec major (dirty brake fluid, engine air filter, etc)
Rec both front lower control arms (bushings broken) and then 4 way alignment

Ok, I knew the front control arms were leaking and needed replacing. These are not cheap. On top of this, some of the lights inside the cabin have gone out so when I look at the tachometer at night some of the number are hard to read and some of the temperature dials no longer illuminate.

I have never had the clutch replaced and I know that's at least $850 probably and it's gotta get replaced at some point. My car is worth about $2,200 straight up trade in for decent condition according to Kelley Blue Book.

Should I opt for the bare minimum options above and hold off on the rest later when I can afford it? Sort of a half-way option, until I can afford a better car? Or should I just do a trade in for a 2009 Subaru Impreza with 25,000 miles on it? Or should I just bite the bullet and make my beloved Civic whole again

Answer 1

donate it to good will

Answer 2

The dealer is not the best place to have these repairs done. The dealer is just about the most expensive place you can go.



Try taking it to an independent mechanic for an estimate. An independent mechanic could be up to half as much as taking it to the dealer.



Or



Trade it as is and take what you can get. You won't get top dollar for one in need of these repairs though.



By the way, I thought only American cars leaked. I thought the Japanese makes never leak, broke down, and last forever. Sorry, couldn't help it.

Answer 3

Do what you can afford. If you can afford the Subaru I would go for that because it'll need a lot less repairs and your Civic is bound to have more things go wrong with it because it's getting up there in mileage and age.

Answer 4

Go for the trade in. With 145,000 on the clock the Civic, however much you love it, won't get any better.

Answer 5

make your beloved civic whole again.i own an accord.and it's been very dependable.my car is a 1995.and still going STRONG!!

Answer 6

Sell parts off it you can make more money than if you sold the car whole.