I bought a 1994 Toyota Camry with 60k miles off an old family friend over the summer. Older lady, drove the car a few hundred miles a year and had no problems at all. I bought it for $1200. In the last 6 months I’ve put around 2 grand into repairs, many of them standard especially for an old car that hasn’t been run all that much.
I’m at the point where it feels like I’m putting 400 into this vehicle every other month,
new alternator, and serpentine belt. Transmission flush. New control arms. New battery. New spark plug, and wires (full tune up because it wouldn’t start) Lots of $40-$50 misc parts that just gave out. New exhaust (old one had a few holes and wouldn’t pass inspection)
I’m not very knowledgeable about cars whatsoever, not sure if it’s worth keeping up with these repairs, I feel like they have to slow down eventually. I’ve repaired or replaced what feels like every part of this car (I’m being a tad sarcastic)
At what point should I throw in the towel here, is it worth keeping up with these repairs hoping they eventually slow down. Or should I just quit while I’m ahead
My friend’s algorithm for replacing a car is:
If you spend 50% of a year’s worth of car payments on repairs, two years in a row, it’s probably time to get rid of it.
For example, if your car payment would be $400: $400 x 12 = $4800. If you spend $2400 in repairs two years in a row, it’s time to consider letting it go.
That doesn’t count wear/maintenance items. Brakes/tires/fluids/wipers are all routine maintenance items, and don’t count. Learning how to do your own maintenance is *well worth* the effort. Youtube is an excellent resource.