How do you decide between fixing the current vehicle or getting another one?

[GardenStream]

We have a 1999 CRV with about 200,000 miles on it. I like it just fine and I feel it's reliable. DH took it in to get the oil changed and was told that it needs $2500 worth of repairs (new exhaust, radiator is leaking, new tires and an oil pan leak or something like that). Of course, DH could do some of the repairs himself. The vehicle is only worth about 5K to begin with.

DH wants to cost it all our and talk about our options tonight.

[philomom]

I'm at that point, too. Both my old cars needed nearly 3,000$ worth of worth last year. But I'm so not ready for a car payment again.

Good luck. 

[stardogs]

Same here - I keep putting off our 7500 mile check because last time the car was in for service it was $900 and they pointed out about $900 in more stuff that would be needed soon (new brakes, new tires, etc.).  The car, a 1999 Subaru Impreza with 160,000 miles, is only worth about $2500 right now I think.  We don't feel like we can handle a car payment though, so we'll likely just keep doing the repairs vs buying the 4Runner I've had my eye on for the last 2 years. :P

[crazyms]

If the car is overall in good running condition and still suited your needs (space, being comfortable, etc) then I'd keep it. My dh works on our vehicles and does pretty much all of our work for us. That saves us a lot in mechanic work so it is cheaper for us to work on vehicles than some. I prefer to keep an older vehicle and do the repairs because my car is new enough to have the safety features I need, it is cheaper to repair, it costs less on tag/taxes and insurance, it's not as likely to be stolen (lol), and once a part is replaced it's done with. We do regular maintenance and if repairs need to be made we usually buy parts that carry a warranty on them. Then once replaced that part is brand new and won't need work again for quite some time. We end up slowly rebuilding the vehicle this way but it works for us. I honestly feel a brand new lot car isn't worth the money. It's just so expensive and with resale value it's a good possibility a 2-3 year old car could be bought for less than you'd still owe at that time on a brand new one. A used car is a cheaper to buy but then it is still used and you don't know what may possibly be wrong with it and run the risk of having to make repairs anyways. Plus with either of those options we'd have to pay more on tag/taxes for the vehicle and our insurance rates would go up also not to mention the note. I hate bills and the idea of raising the monthly budget by $300-500 for a vehicle just stresses me out. I'd rather keep my older, good condition, well running vehicle and make repairs as needed. JMO though.

[ilovemygirl]

If you did the suggested repairs how confident would you be that the car would still give you a few good years? If you think it will then fixing is probably best but if you're unsure I would probably consider looking into something else. 

[GardenStream]

I forgot to update on this.

DH and I discussed it that night. As I expected, he had already called our car dealer and discussed getting a new/new to us vehicle. Even our Honda dealer told DH that he was crazy if he got rid of our CRV because of it's issues. He actually told DH that he would be willing to buy it for his MIL in it's current condition for $4K.

Anyway, DH drove the CRV home from the shop having nothing other than the oil changed and checked it our for himself once he got home. He decided that none of the problems were pressing enough to fix immediately and he'll do most of them himself when the weather warms up a bit.

I'm thrilled with our decision.

[heatherdeg]

Excellent for you guys. In the interest of people that might search for this thread, for us it comes down to: are the repairs that we have to do annually going to cost more than a car payment?  So, if I had to throw $1500/year into my vehicle to keep it on the road (obviously that's notsomuch the case to do THAT much work annually, but...) that comes out to $125/mo.  If I have enough down payment money & trade-in value to make the payment on a new car lower than that, it makes sense to buy a new car.  But otherwise, it might not.  For instance: if the repairs are actually inhibiting our ability to keep our JOBS or have a similar impact on our household, well, then that's not such a cut and dry issue--ya know?

We have a 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan (bought used) and a 2007 Hyundai Elantra (bought new--don't ask, long story, but I would do it again under the circumstances).  So I'm looking down the road at where the next car will come from and hoping that it will be another 10 years before I have to deal with it.  :D  We have already mentally prepared ourselves to replace the transmission on the van (they are a notorious problem) and make sure to do our preventative stuff.  Neither has a payment--so it's not like I can say "Okay, well, what can we afford for the same payment".  And we didn't have payments on them, so there was no "okay, we're done paying for them so let's bank the payment into a new car fund".  But those would be the best options for people who are dealing with a payment ending soon!