1996 Cadillac Coupe Deville. Runs good, has less than 100k miles. It has served me well for almost 3 years, but has had major problems the whole time. I think sitting in the former owners yard for a decade really took a toll on it. Here is a list of the current problems:
One of the headlights is broken
Burns oil
AC doesnt work
Brake lines should be replaced
Hood doesn't work
Security system sometimes locks the engine off for 3 hours
Engine overheats in bad traffic (can't drive to Chicago because of this) for unknown reasons (not short on coolant)
Gas cap and trunk sometimes pop open when starting the car (indicating the electrical system has problems)
I think the alternator is going bad
... And something new pops up every 3 months. Is this just because it's an older car, is it because it sat in the previous owners yard (literally the grass) for over a decade? I got it pretty cheap so I'm not too upset about it since it lasted me 3 years... Just really conflicted if it's worth to spend so much on repairs if a new thing is just going to keep coming up all the time.
1996 Cadillac Coupe Deville. Runs good, has less than 100k miles. It has served me well for almost 3 years, but has had major problems the whole time. I think sitting in the former owners yard for a decade really took a toll on it. Here is a list of the current problems:
One of the headlights is broken
Burns oil
AC doesnt work
Brake lines should be replaced
Hood doesn't work
Security system sometimes locks the engine off for 3 hours
Engine overheats in bad traffic (can't drive to Chicago because of this) for unknown reasons (not short on coolant)
Gas cap and trunk sometimes pop open when starting the car (indicating the electrical system has problems)
I think the alternator is going bad
... And something new pops up every 3 months. Is this just because it's an older car, is it because it sat in the previous owners yard (literally the grass) for over a decade? I got it pretty cheap so I'm not too upset about it since it lasted me 3 years... Just really conflicted if it's worth to spend so much on repairs if a new thing is just going to keep coming up all the time.
The best way to determine if your car is a junker is to look up the Blue Book value of the car and compare that to your recent and anticipated fixes. If the costs are equal or the cost to keep the car is greater than it's value, you might be better off getting a new(er) one.
In fair condition it's worth around $2700 retail. And it doesn't sound like it's in fair condition. And as a V8 it can't be cheap to operate. And life is to short to drive a car without AC.
If you got 3 years out of it you did fine. I would get rid of it
If you have to put that much work into a car and it's not a vintage beauty, then it's not worth keeping. It's cheaper just to get a new one. My dad's an mechanic and I wouldn't keep that car. In fact, I drove a couple like that. He kept them running, too. He's like Dr. Frankenstein. But I still had to get rid of them when they had only half of the problems that you've described.
Wow....'96. Get something with a CD player and A/C. The V8 will just drink gas all day for no good reason. Honestly, I wouldn't keep it even if it wasn't falling apart.
One of the headlights is broken
Burns oil
AC doesnt work
Brake lines should be replaced
Hood doesn't work
Security system sometimes locks the engine off for 3 hours
Engine overheats in bad traffic (can't drive to Chicago because of this) for unknown reasons (not short on coolant)
Gas cap and trunk sometimes pop open when starting the car (indicating the electrical system has problems)
I think the alternator is going bad
... And something new pops up every 3 months. Is this just because it's an older car, is it because it sat in the previous owners yard (literally the grass) for over a decade? I got it pretty cheap so I'm not too upset about it since it lasted me 3 years... Just really conflicted if it's worth to spend so much on repairs if a new thing is just going to keep coming up all the time.
The best way to determine if your car is a junker is to look up the Blue Book value of the car and compare that to your recent and anticipated fixes. If the costs are equal or the cost to keep the car is greater than it's value, you might be better off getting a new(er) one.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
[Primer] Krenko | Azor | Kess | Zacama | Kumena | Sram | The Ur-Dragon | Edgar Markov | Daretti | Marath
If you got 3 years out of it you did fine. I would get rid of it
Quoted for truth.
TerribleBad at Magic since 1998.A Vorthos Guide to Magic Story | Twitter | Tumblr
[Primer] Krenko | Azor | Kess | Zacama | Kumena | Sram | The Ur-Dragon | Edgar Markov | Daretti | Marath
Wow....'96. Get something with a CD player and A/C. The V8 will just drink gas all day for no good reason. Honestly, I wouldn't keep it even if it wasn't falling apart.