2003 Mazda6- how much should I spend on repairs?

juliacav320

Hi there-

I have about $1200 of work to be done on my 2003 Mazda6; front struts and new EVAP canister plus labor costs. I'm sitting at 141k miles now and the car is in fair/good condition. It's been in a few minor accidents, has some dents but the frame and the inside of the car seem to be doing ok.

I think I could sell it in my area are about $2800-$3000.

Anyways- I'm wondering if anyone has any insight if it's worth continuing to put $1k-$2k a year of repairs into the car. Since September I've had to do new brake pads, a new brake rotor, 2 new tires, and now this.

I drive 16k-17k miles a year.

Any advice?

Thanks so much!

Kirstie_H

Well, one consideration is whether you can sell it in the condition it's in, without doing the repairs. Also, if you're putting $1k-2k per year in repairs, that's still less than the average car payment. You mentioned brake pads, rotor, and tires - well, those are all wear & tear "maintenance" items that have to be done on every vehicle from time to time, and that should be in your budget every few years no matter what type or age vehicle you own.

However, there's also always the point at which repairs start getting very costly - like the engine or transmission goes. Figuring out when to dump it before that happens is mostly just luck, and if you have the budget to sell it and buy something else now, it might be a good time.