Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

stickguy

Not to me

Mr_Shiftright

I'd need to see the repair order, but it sounds like a reasonable price. Depends of course on whether he got upper and lower control arm bushings, or just sway bar bushing, or 2 shocks or 4, or inner or outer tie rods or both, or what this "tune up" was and whether ball joints were addressed.

roadburner

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

You are leaving out the cost of plaid pants, white shoes, and white belt- all of which are necessary to fit in to the Town Car's demographics.

driver100

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Do you remember a friend was selling his 1997 Avalon with 180000 miles on it....for $1000?
He sold it but had to pay for the Safety test.
It needed new tie rods and brakes, and a few springs.....the bill came to more than $1000!
There is a lesson there somewhere!

oldfarmer50

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Do you remember a friend was selling his 1997 Avalon with 180000 miles on it....for $1000?
He sold it but had to pay for the Safety test.
It needed new tie rods and brakes, and a few springs.....the bill came to more than $1000!
There is a lesson there somewhere!

What's a safety test? Is that like an annual inspection down here? Is a seller in Canada responsible for fixing defects before sale? In the US it's buyer beware where many a buyer get a suprise when he goes to get his car registered.

isellhondas

oldfarmer50 said:

houdini1 said:

driver100 said:

stickguy said:

Driver, key point there. It can be cheaper long term to get one good car to have for a long period, instead of going through multiple cheap ones that don't last. Only problem is, you have to be able to ante up to get into the first one.

Stick, that is one of the big lessons I learned in life. Often, it is better to pay more the first time around. You get better quality and it will probably cost less in the long run. Chances are you will like it better and not want to get rid of it as fast. If it is something like shoes, they may even save you from expensive surgery or medical problems.

I understand, you can't pay $11000 for a car if you can only get your hands on $5000, but, if there is a way to do it I think it will all work out for the better.

There are many very good cars that are inexpensive. Some Kias, Hyundais, Hondas, Toyotas. These always hold their value very well. P.U. trucks as well.

Hondas, Toyotas and PU trucks usually command a premium price. That may make economic sense if they give better service than other brands but I have a hard time paying the same for a 150,000 mile Honda as a 50,000 mile Buick.

https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/ctd/d/2004-honda-accord-ex-skyway/6366816966.html

https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/d/buick-century-2003/6352554287.html

I might agree with you but that Buick looks pretty ratty!

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Do you remember a friend was selling his 1997 Avalon with 180000 miles on it....for $1000?
He sold it but had to pay for the Safety test.
It needed new tie rods and brakes, and a few springs.....the bill came to more than $1000!
There is a lesson there somewhere!

What's a safety test? Is that like an annual inspection down here? Is a seller in Canada responsible for fixing defects before sale? In the US it's buyer beware where many a buyer get a suprise when he goes to get his car registered.

You need a safety certificate when you buy a used car. This is usually provided by the seller, though if you clearly state "sold as is" then you can sell the car without a certificate, but you won't get a license until it has gone through a safety inspection. In this case, he should of sold "as is" or found out how much had to be done before selling it. He says had he known he would have given the car away....it would cost less.

driver100

isellhondas said:

oldfarmer50 said:

houdini1 said:

driver100 said:

stickguy said:

Driver, key point there. It can be cheaper long term to get one good car to have for a long period, instead of going through multiple cheap ones that don't last. Only problem is, you have to be able to ante up to get into the first one.

Stick, that is one of the big lessons I learned in life. Often, it is better to pay more the first time around. You get better quality and it will probably cost less in the long run. Chances are you will like it better and not want to get rid of it as fast. If it is something like shoes, they may even save you from expensive surgery or medical problems.

I understand, you can't pay $11000 for a car if you can only get your hands on $5000, but, if there is a way to do it I think it will all work out for the better.

There are many very good cars that are inexpensive. Some Kias, Hyundais, Hondas, Toyotas. These always hold their value very well. P.U. trucks as well.

Hondas, Toyotas and PU trucks usually command a premium price. That may make economic sense if they give better service than other brands but I have a hard time paying the same for a 150,000 mile Honda as a 50,000 mile Buick.

https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/ctd/d/2004-honda-accord-ex-skyway/6366816966.html

https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/d/buick-century-2003/6352554287.html

I might agree with you but that Buick looks pretty ratty!

No doubt, but the Honda is $twice as much and has 2 1/2X as many miles.
The Buick should fit into oldfarmers equation very nicely. $2200, 60k miles. Should go at least 100k miles more if the ad is truthful - could get almost 50k miles per $1000, Tires look pretty good too.

driver100

A guy wrote a letter to the editor in the Tampa Bay Times today. He saw a car carrying truck with lots of used luxury cars on the highway in Florida....all with Texas license plates. Buyer Beware!

tjc78

oldfarmer50 said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work. At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

oldfarmer50

isellhondas said:

oldfarmer50 said:

houdini1 said:

driver100 said:

stickguy said:

Driver, key point there. It can be cheaper long term to get one good car to have for a long period, instead of going through multiple cheap ones that don't last. Only problem is, you have to be able to ante up to get into the first one.

Stick, that is one of the big lessons I learned in life. Often, it is better to pay more the first time around. You get better quality and it will probably cost less in the long run. Chances are you will like it better and not want to get rid of it as fast. If it is something like shoes, they may even save you from expensive surgery or medical problems.

I understand, you can't pay $11000 for a car if you can only get your hands on $5000, but, if there is a way to do it I think it will all work out for the better.

There are many very good cars that are inexpensive. Some Kias, Hyundais, Hondas, Toyotas. These always hold their value very well. P.U. trucks as well.

Hondas, Toyotas and PU trucks usually command a premium price. That may make economic sense if they give better service than other brands but I have a hard time paying the same for a 150,000 mile Honda as a 50,000 mile Buick.

https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/ctd/d/2004-honda-accord-ex-skyway/6366816966.html

https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/d/buick-century-2003/6352554287.html

I might agree with you but that Buick looks pretty ratty!

Who knows, might be a flood car with the windows not working but you get my point. Hey, for all I know a 150k Honda might run forever while the 60k Buick would nickle and dime you to death but for a cheapskate like me the Buick seems to be the way to get from A to B.

explorerx4

@oldfarm50,
This one is calling you.
https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/d/lincoln-town-car-1997/6371986416.html

stickguy

any car that can stand up to taxi and police duty has to be pretty darned sturdy.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Do you remember a friend was selling his 1997 Avalon with 180000 miles on it....for $1000?
He sold it but had to pay for the Safety test.
It needed new tie rods and brakes, and a few springs.....the bill came to more than $1000!
There is a lesson there somewhere!

What's a safety test? Is that like an annual inspection down here? Is a seller in Canada responsible for fixing defects before sale? In the US it's buyer beware where many a buyer get a suprise when he goes to get his car registered.

You need a safety certificate when you buy a used car. This is usually provided by the seller, though if you clearly state "sold as is" then you can sell the car without a certificate, but you won't get a license until it has gone through a safety inspection. In this case, he should of sold "as is" or found out how much had to be done before selling it. He says had he known he would have given the car away....it would cost less.

Wow, who would need an official statement to know that a $1000 car was "as is".?

tjc78

explorerx4 said:

@oldfarm50, This one is calling you. https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/d/lincoln-town-car-1997/6371986416.html

Love the 95-97 models.  Exec series, though  

oldfarmer50

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  


I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

oldfarmer50

explorerx4 said:

@oldfarm50,
This one is calling you.
https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/d/lincoln-town-car-1997/6371986416.html

Ouch! 184k miles? I'm cheap but not crazy.

tjc78

oldfarmer50 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work. At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort. https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

The latest ones were largely fleet only.  If you ever find an 08+ with heated seats and wood steering wheel you can almost guarantee it was not a fleet car.  

The fleet ones were usually ordered without those extras.  

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Do you remember a friend was selling his 1997 Avalon with 180000 miles on it....for $1000?
He sold it but had to pay for the Safety test.
It needed new tie rods and brakes, and a few springs.....the bill came to more than $1000!
There is a lesson there somewhere!

What's a safety test? Is that like an annual inspection down here? Is a seller in Canada responsible for fixing defects before sale? In the US it's buyer beware where many a buyer get a suprise when he goes to get his car registered.

You need a safety certificate when you buy a used car. This is usually provided by the seller, though if you clearly state "sold as is" then you can sell the car without a certificate, but you won't get a license until it has gone through a safety inspection. In this case, he should of sold "as is" or found out how much had to be done before selling it. He says had he known he would have given the car away....it would cost less.

Wow, who would need an official statement to know that a $1000 car was "as is".?

Most people want a safety certificate when they buy a used car. The bill to get it up to standard can be way more than the car is worth. They want the certificate...even for a $1000 car. You almost feel like saying.... do you also expect a 5 year warranty as well?

driver100

explorerx4 said:

@oldfarm50,
This one is calling you.
https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/d/lincoln-town-car-1997/6371986416.html

That seems to be quite the car....it would be great to have one of those if it really ran well. I bet the steering is really loosey goosey...Ford's usually have pretty vague loose steering, let alone with almost 200k miles on them.
Couldn't they straighten out the interior a little better:

And this kind of says it all;

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html


That Marquis de Sade looks OK....BUT, $7000?

I like the way he disguised his license plate:

venture

I don't know why, but signs like these crack me up.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

That Marquis de Sade looks OK....BUT, $7000?

I like the way he disguised his license plate:



I'd like this one even more.

https://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/d/2002-mercury-grand-marque-ls/6364635394.html



Wouldn't mind that old T-bird in the background.

qbrozen

oldfarmer50 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work. At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort. https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

That Marquis de Sade looks OK....BUT, $7000? I like the way he disguised his license plate:

I'd like this one even more. https://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/d/2002-mercury-grand-marque-ls/6364635394.html Wouldn't mind that old T-bird in the background.

"Only used for local driving [and only underwater twice]."

i think if i was selling a car in florida, stating how it survived the storms would be top of my description.

stickguy

I smell a business opportunity. Start a company, get bonded (or some such) and just go do inspections of used cars to certify they flood-free. Then sellers can tout the certification when going to sell.

oldfarmer50

K

qbrozen said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

That Marquis de Sade looks OK....BUT, $7000?

I like the way he disguised his license plate:

I'd like this one even more.

https://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/d/2002-mercury-grand-marque-ls/6364635394.html



Wouldn't mind that old T-bird in the background.

"Only used for local driving [and only underwater twice]."

i think if i was selling a car in florida, stating how it survived the storms would be top of my description.

That's always smethin you check for in Florida but this last time I don't think Tampa was that badly flooded. Tampa Bay emptied out after all. We could ask dino or driver where the damage was.

Mr_Shiftright

The lesson is that any car with 180K miles on it should be free. That's about the statistically predictive life span of a modern car. So it's not really worth anything at 180K. I like to think of cars like this as watching someone who is 85 playing a good hard game of tennis.

You just never know when.....

suydam

I think we sold my daughters Camry with 190k for a thousand bucks. It’s probably still running somewhere.

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

I smell a business opportunity. Start a company, get bonded (or some such) and just go do inspections of used cars to certify they flood-free. Then sellers can tout the certification when going to sell.

Those services already exist for buyers but that's an interesting idea. Do you think a buyer would believe any certification?

http://lemonsquad.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwyvXPBRD-ARIsAIeQeoFO-0ZIfMWoyMX7ylKdRuSZ-MSq9wvZG-GIQhjMVkRBZDOrRd-bO1waAklXEALw_wcB

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

K

qbrozen said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

That Marquis de Sade looks OK....BUT, $7000?

I like the way he disguised his license plate:

I'd like this one even more.

https://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/cto/d/2002-mercury-grand-marque-ls/6364635394.html



Wouldn't mind that old T-bird in the background.

"Only used for local driving [and only underwater twice]."

i think if i was selling a car in florida, stating how it survived the storms would be top of my description.

That's always smethin you check for in Florida but this last time I don't think Tampa was that badly flooded. Tampa Bay emptied out after all. We could ask dino or driver where the damage was.



Irma was on course for a direct hit in the Tampa area. In fact the path was supposed to go straight up I-75 and it would have hit us directly. However, it veered East after if got to Naples and headed up the center of Florida towards Orlando. But, shortly after doing damage in Naples it went from a category 4 to a category 1 hurricane. Tampa area lost power for a few hours, mostly just branches and leaves around. Not much structural damage. Buying a car is probably OK in that sense....unless they are bringing them in from other areas....like Houston.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

A work colleague of mine has a 2001 Lincoln Town Car. It has nearly 200K miles on it. He loves these cars and bemoaned their passing when Ford dumped them. Anyway, given he can’t buy a new one, he was forced to replace the bushings, tie rods, shocks, wheel alignment, and get a tune up on his. He said it cost him $1,200, which I thought was pretty cheap for all that work.

At least it sounds cheap to me. Am I off on this assessment?

Well let's see, bushings (depending on which ones) $500, tie rods $150 each, shocks (unless he has air ride) wild guess $500, wheel alignment $75, tune up (what is there to tune up on a modern car?) plugs & wires and a few filters $200. That's $1425 so yeah, $1200 is possible. Not a lot of exotic technology on those.

An 01 wouldn’t have rack and pinion steering so the suspension components are dirt cheap and practically identical to something in the early 80s.  

I know Panthers are highly ridiculed vehicles, but I still will say one of the best platforms ever made.   There is a reason they ran from 1979-2002 and then from 2003 to 2011 with little changes in between.  

I still dream of picking up a later Mercury Marquis LS with lots of bells and whistles. Plaid pants be damned. I could pull off that look. There's something to be said about comfort.

https://ocala.craigslist.org/cto/d/2008-mercury-marquis-71-miles/6344732146.html

Wouldn't mind that old T-bird in the background.


$5000 and 34000 miles on it. You should theoretically get at least 10 good years of driving out of this car.....why doesn't it ever work that way in real life?

At least he cleaned up the interior really nicely too!


Even has a Pine Tree air freshener!

imidazol97

I mentioned a car subscription service being tried in the Columbus area last week. The website is drivegermain.com.

There is a list of cars down the page in the button "Peek the Fleet." The subscription is $1000, but for those who want MORE, there's a $1400 Elite selection of vehicles. None of those offerings have been entered yet. You must be in the Columbus area to be allowed to join.

Perhaps there's a business opportunity here for other cities. Of course, it helps if you own a bunch of dealerships and can source your vehicles from there, whether they're new, demonstrators, buy-backs, used by the execs of those stores, or bought at auction.

roadburner

Mr_Shiftright said:

The lesson is that any car with 180K miles on it should be free. That's about the statistically predictive life span of a modern car. So it's not really worth anything at 180K. I like to think of cars like this as watching someone who is 85 playing a good hard game of tennis.

You just never know when.....

I sold my 193k 2004 X3 for $4,500.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

The lesson is that any car with 180K miles on it should be free. That's about the statistically predictive life span of a modern car. So it's not really worth anything at 180K. I like to think of cars like this as watching someone who is 85 playing a good hard game of tennis.

You just never know when.....

I sold my 193k 2004 X3 for $4,500.

I sold my 69 Plymouth with 160k miles on it for $100 and the steel it was made out of was probably used in your X3.

oldfarmer50

Just came back from the auto show and though I was disappointed that they didn't have an 18 Mustang to look at there were some gems.

driver100

The grill actually works on that blue model.

ab348

I had no idea they were assembling those in Marysville.

explorerx4

I think I read somewhere not too long ago there is 30k in trunk money available on those.

iluvmysephia1

That Acura NSX is not selling for $56,000 but...$156,000?

graphicguy

My Acura dealer had one. They had it for a couple of months, but eventually sold it for the sticker price. It wasn’t $156K, though. It was $120K something, though.

carnaught

But, on that NSX, holy carbon fiber Batman.

jmonroe

explorerx4 said:

I think I read somewhere not too long ago there is 30k in trunk money available on those.

That may be true but then the Carbon Fiber Roof may not include the SiriusXM antenna. 

jmonroe

driver100

iluvmysephia1 said:

That Acura NSX is not selling for $56,000 but...$156,000?

For $56000 I was going to consider it....for $156000.....forget it.

Don't forget clocks go back an hour tonight....in most places.

tjc78

So here is a quick story about driving aids... 

We took the kids to a members only event at the local Aquarium and we were done around lunch time.  I had to drop an old cable modem off at the Comcast store.   While there I decided to stop into Wegmans (Stick knows the center it’s in)... the place is pure bedlam.  I leave the wife and kids in the car and while walking into the place a brand new (and I must say gorgeous) white 5 series nearly hits me while standing to cross the street into the store.   Driver’s head buried in her phone while the car stopped itself.  She sat there stunned for a second then flipped me off.  Nice.  

oldfarmer50

iluvmysephia1 said:

That Acura NSX is not selling for $56,000 but...$156,000?

Actually, if you look farther down it's listing for an even $200k.

Here's one that will make you feel better...and smarter.

jmonroe

tjc78 said:

So here is a quick story about driving aids... 

We took the kids to a members only event at the local Aquarium and we were done around lunch time.  I had to drop an old cable modem off at the Comcast store.   While there I decided to stop into Wegmans (Stick knows the center it’s in)... the place is pure bedlam.  I leave the wife and k

We took the kids in the car and while walking into the place a brand new (and I must say gorgeous) white 5 series nearly hits me while standing to cross the street into the store.   Driver’s head buried in her phone while the car stopped itself.  She sat there stunned for a second then flipped me off.  Nice.  

Next time, walk into the side of the car and refuse to move until help arrives. Then limp the worst limp you can muster up.

After the dust settles in a few months, maybe even a year or 2 depending on your limp, tell us about the new 5 Series you bought with the court awarded settlement money.

jmonroe

murphydog

tjc78 said:

So here is a quick story about driving aids... 

We took the kids to a members only event at the local Aquarium and we were done around lunch time.  I had to drop an old cable modem off at the Comcast store.   While there I decided to stop into Wegmans (Stick knows the center it’s in)... the place is pure bedlam.  I leave the wife and kids in the car and while walking into the place a brand new (and I must say gorgeous) white 5 series nearly hits me while standing to cross the street into the store.   Driver’s head buried in her phone while the car stopped itself.  She sat there stunned for a second then flipped me off.  Nice.  

That is the crazy part, 15 years ago you would have got a wave and an "I'm sorry". Not any more, usually I see a finger and more. Sad reflection of where we are going...

Mr_Shiftright

roadburner said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

The lesson is that any car with 180K miles on it should be free. That's about the statistically predictive life span of a modern car. So it's not really worth anything at 180K. I like to think of cars like this as watching someone who is 85 playing a good hard game of tennis.

You just never know when.....

I sold my 193k 2004 X3 for $4,500.

Not to me you wouldn't.

Mr_Shiftright

I just read where a rutting moose in Alaska destroyed a Toyota Prius by butting it repeatedly. What can we learn from this?