What do I do? Stuck in the street

Maintenance/Repairs
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1

Hey there,

So, I am looking for some creative (and cheap) solutions as to how I rid myself of a car while getting maximum value for it. I am really conflicted on what to do, perhaps you could help?



Car- 1998 Subaru Forester (manual trans, 180,000+ miles, engine in great shape, body so-so, interior so-so



Problem(s)- EGR valve and catalytic converter are shot, a $1500 dollar repair. On top of that, I just discovered that I can’t get the car into gear. The clutch pedal is completely loose and goes to the floor w/o resistance, I just mash the gears if I try to shift. I replaced the clutch less than 20,000 miles ago and it worked fine until the hot weather. The longer I would drive it, the looser the pedal would get, but it would return to normal if I left it overnight and started it up in the morning, but alas, now it won’t shift at all…

Needless to say, it’s hard enough to sell a car that won’t pass emissions, but one that doesn’t drive either is almost hopeless.



My thoughts so far:

- scrap it for a couple hundred dollars

- repair the clutch and try to sell it (will I recoup the costs)

- pay someone to drive it in the river

- post on craigslist and hope for the best ($750?)

- it doesn’t qualify for cash for clunkers as it gets 25MPG combined



Any ideas?

Thanks for taking the time to read this and reply, many thanks!

Michael

2

Check the clutch master cylinder, as I suspect that the fluid has leaked out. If it is dry, you can refill it in the short-term with brake fluid, but bear in mind that there is a leak that has to be fixed for the long term.

If the clutch master cylinder has sufficient fluid, then I would suspect that the master cylinder itself and/or the clutch slave cylinder is in need of replacement.

3

depends on your time frame, cost of insurance and if you can leave the car where it is until you decide…if it was my decision…fastest, easiest and most cost effective method to get rid of it…

4

Well, I have some time, but I can’t figure out what the most cost effective approach is as I don’t know that I would recoup the cost of any of the repairs, know what I mean?
I don’t want to fix it and sell it for less than the repairs.

5

you have already made one choice…