A thorough inspection by a very compentent mechanic would probably come up with a laundry list of needed repairs that may vary in length unless the previous owner was just downright religious about keeping the car fixed up. Good luck with that one.
I’ve performed inspections on many high miles cars of all makes and I’ve never run across one yet that did not need a short list of repairs at least and some that were beyond redemption. Many times these cars would also look, run, and drive fine but that’s just the lipstick on the pig.
Not A Problem . . . I Already Have. Please Help Keep The Myth Alive. Common Sense Tells Me That Perpetuating The Myth Helps Create Some Of The Most Over-Priced Used Foreign Cars And Some Of The Most Fantastic American Car Bargains.
CSA
The biggest myth is that there are American Cars. Mexico assembled Fusion, till this year with many Asian parts(transmission and electronics) is an example of your American made car. Come on CSA, get with the times my good man and don’t continue to follow the American car myth when Ford and GM are global with American divisions and cars made everywhere to satisfy import regulations in nations they wish to sell. Just like your Asian companies. We have Discussed this to point of over repetition.
For over 25 years I bought nothing but American cars…Yes…rational thinking took over and now I buy the best/most-reliable vehicle that fits our needs…And sadly for the past 20+ years…it’s been all Asian (American made).
Unless you are really strapped for cash, I can’t see the benefit of buying a car that old or with that many miles. If you can’t afford something better, this might be a good deal. If you can afford something younger with fewer miles, buy it instead.
BTW, now that the “foreign vs. domestic” debate has resurfaced, I noticed ABC evening news will have a story this evening about which car manufacturers support the most American jobs. It will be interesting to see which car manufacturer they highlight.
CSA, were all your cars actually made in the USA, or were they made in Mexico or Canada? My Honda Civic was made in Ohio. What’s more “American,” my Civic or a Mexican made Chevy?
Funny thing, I ran into one of my old managers yesterday. He’s retiring in a few days and was grousing that his 99 Camry threw a rod at 168k. He was hoping to drive it for a few more years after he retired. I didn’t press him for details, personally I would be happy to get 168k out of any car.
Note to Mike, I only put about 10k/year on my primary vehicle. I like to get a new/slightly used car every 8 to 9 years whether I need it or not. Although these days, I’m keeping my cars longer. As for the oil changes on my manager’s Camry, I suspect you are correct.
“personally I would be happy to get 168k out of any car.”
I wouldn’t…That’s HALF way through the average I’ve been keeping my cars…
I suspect he wasn’t keeping up with his oil changes!!
My 05 4runner now has over 170k miles on it…Nothing beyond fluids/filters and brakes and spark-plugs…Everything else is 100% original…runs like it was new…
"My 05 4runner now has over 170k miles on it…Nothing beyond fluids/filters and brakes and spark-plugs…Everything else is 100% original…runs like it was new… "
Mike, What Tire Pressure Do You Run ? That’s Absolutely Amazing !
Anyone who owns a car with 250 or 300k miles on it and who thinks the car needs nothing while performing only a few basic maintenance chores along the way does not properly understand the finer nuances of car inspections. A quarter million miles car does have problems, the owner just doesn’t know it.
As to CR, here’s why I consider them an aid but nowhere near the final arbiter.
They buy a car and test it on a track, with some tests apparently being performed by general office staff, guys who do the mowing around the track, etc.
Their input from car owners is limited to 6 months or 3k miles with no followup on complaints.
There’s no control on the percentage of car responses returned when compared to numbers sold, in relation to other makes, etc.
There are roughly 200 million passenger vehicles on the road. The number of respondents is somewhat over 1 million so this places the percentage in the .5 range.
Some tests are objective and some are subjective. (That’s CR’s words, not mine.)
“Anyone who owns a car with 250 or 300k miles on it and who thinks the car needs nothing while performing only a few basic maintenance chores along the way does not properly understand the finer nuances of car inspections. A quarter million miles car does have problems, the owner just doesn’t know it.”
I NEVER said that there wouldn’t be problems…nor did I say that I NEVER inspected or have it inspected for those problems…for the record I HAVE…
And very few if ANY problems ever arose until our vehicles had over 250k miles…And of those problems only ONE was somewhat major…The vehicles were given thorough inspections. Where as my last GM product…had MAJOR problems before it reached 100k miles…my sister-in-law Taurus’s had MAJOR problems before reaching 50k miles…
PM is the key to keeping a vehicle running well with few problems past the 250k mile mark.
"CSA, were all your cars actually made in the USA, or were they made in Mexico or Canada? My Honda Civic was made in Ohio. What’s more “American,” my Civic or a Mexican made Chevy? "
Whitey, you make a good point. Just like the question, “what do you consider an American car ?”, the two of us may have to wait a long time to get an answer from professed “American car buyers”.
Follow The Profit. More Than Half Of The Operating Profit (Some Say As High As 60% - 70%) That Honda Japan & Toyota Japan Realize Is Money Taken Overseas By Selling Their Cars (Japan & U.S. assembled) In The U.S.A. Bottom Line Operating Profit From American Cars Stays Here, At Home.
Critera: Look for American brands that have their profit centers based in the United States.
CSA
Just so I have this right. The “common sense approach” is; as long as the company that profits is an “American company,” buy the car. That means that a Chevy Aveo, manufactured abroad and outsourced to the US by GM and equal in quality to a Honda Civic (according to you) is more beneficial to the US than the Honda Civic manufactured in the US.
It’s OK to buy outsourced cars manufactured elsewhere compared to those made in the US as long as the “profit” which goes to it’s share holders even if the share holders of GM are a high % foreign investors and not for wages and benefits to the American workers who make the car. The wage earners should work at some other job and buy GM/Ford stock as a way to participate in the sales profit of “American cars”.
So a company like Lemforder which is a foreign owned subcontractor which was recruited to our state by our state officials and provides many jobs for local employment for providing auto suspension components for Ford, Nissan and others was not a good idea as the profit from the sale of those parts goes back to Germany.
It would have been better for our citizens to buy stock in an “American company” who outsources their products with their unemployment checks and allow the Koreans, Mexicans, Canadians, Germans and others, to benefit from the manufacturing of our cars.
All those who agree with this “common sense approach”. please raise your hand. As the lone obstainer, forgive me if I say I’m not quite there yet. :=)
Of Course You’re Free To Any Interpretation You’d Like, But I Will Continue To Buy American Cars.
It’s a good thing thing they are available, too. We have no Asian or European car dealers anywhere near where we live and in-stock parts are hard to come by. American cars are just about all you’ll see on the road here or in parking lots. I see that foreign makes are quite popular, just not here.
[sarcasm] Do you know your support of Ford and GM is supporting those corrupt greedy unions that are destroying America? You know, the unions Republicans seem to be so against? [/sarcasm]
Meanwhile, buying my American made Honda supports non-union American labor, which I thought was a conservative value.
