i have a 1995 oldsmobile cutlass ciera with 120k miles on it. this past week, my transmission started slipping a little. i took it into a shop, hoping it just needed some minor tweaking, but apparently it's an internal problem. not terrible yet, but he said it'll get worse. the guy gave me an estimate of about $1400 to fix it. not cheap, but certainly less than getting a new(er) car.

i've driven this car for something like 4-5 years now, and this is really the first major issue i've had with it. does anyone have an idea what things typically start breaking on this type of car after 120k miles? basically, if i can expect to fix the transmission and drive around for another few years with a reasonable sense of reliability, that's what i'd prefer to do. but if i can expect other expensive things to start wearing out, it's probably time to start looking for a new ride.

any thoughts?

4/4/2009 12:06:07 PM

if you're mechanically-inclined, i suggest keeping it. but that would mean you having to do the labor when the stuff starts to fail. the things that will need replacing soon are but not limited to the water pump, belts, alternator, starter, battery, radiator, brakes, etc. all these are cheap, easy fixes but the cost can add up and if you've never replaced items before which, although may be easy 15 minute job to some, may take a beginner several hours to replace. you have to decide if you want to learn how to work on a car and if you have the time to dedicate to it and want to risk coming out to a car that may not start.
if you feel like you don't want to tackle any jobs like this or have the tools to do stuff you might want to go ahead and look into a new car. the way today's market is good deals can be had on new and slightly used stuff. the financial gurus recommend keeping a car for a minimum of 10 years (based on a new car purchase) to get your money out of it. good thing about that is with the quality of certain new cars produced today the problems you will encounter in 10 years or 150K miles in minimal.

4/4/2009 2:19:28 PM

your car is only worth about $1000 in good condition, its not worth it, put some lucas in it, get it shifting right, then find a sucker to sell it to

4/4/2009 4:00:40 PM

look on CL and call a guy that takes cars you others dont want
he will give you 250

4/4/2009 6:19:02 PM

^^

4/4/2009 6:20:21 PM

and dont tell him about the trans. just tell him you are looking for something else

4/4/2009 6:22:02 PM

demo derby prospect?

4/4/2009 7:20:13 PM

trade it in

4/4/2009 7:20:59 PM

demo derby it

4/4/2009 7:26:41 PM

doo it

4/4/2009 9:59:27 PM

fo shizzle

4/5/2009 9:03:04 AM

Quote :

"put some lucas in it, get it shifting right, then find a sucker to sell it to"

4/5/2009 9:48:01 AM

^

4/5/2009 12:16:22 PM

^^

4/5/2009 12:39:10 PM

^^^

4/5/2009 12:53:39 PM