auto opinion

[mbossman2]

here's the situation...I have a 2000 Honda Accord with 100K miles on it...I am looking at a new rack and pinion unit (~$1000 installed) as it is leaking and according to the shop (non-dealer) the whole unit must be replaced.

My question:

Do I sink $1K into an $8k car with 100K miles on it or do I trade it in on a new/newer car?

My fear is I sink this money and another, more serious (read: another expensive repair) pops up...

suggestions?

[Hi Ho]

If It were my car I would probably fix it. Why? Because I have a 1990 Honda Civic that has 335,000 miles on it with an all original engine, transmission, clutch, and everything else except the CV joints. If it had a problem at 100,000 miles I would have been glad that I fixed it.

I also have a 1995 Civic that has 100,000 miles on it and it has never had a single problem of any kind.

It is a gamble though. You're right, it could blow up tommorrow, but if it lasts another 100 or 200 thousand miles I say it would be well worth it.

[HAL9000]

Have the mechanic look it over... if everything else is sound... do the repair... if things are looking marginal, consider the trade off.

[rjfvillarosa]

$1000 seems a bit excessive, recon units can be bought for around $200 to $250 and they take about two hours to fit.

[FLG]

Id do what hal said, have him take a look at it and see how other stuff is holding up before you do the job. 100k isnt alot on cars these days, especially with honda's, Hi Ho's civic is a great example of that. Heck i just got the transmission rebuilt on my Dodge Ram with 142,000 miles on it.

I help my cousin out at his shop, but i cant remember how mutch a rack and pinion was last time we did it. Ill talk to him tomorrow and see what a "fair" price would be on it, im pretty sure by then a mechanic on this forum would have already posted it though :)

[lil Jimmie]

$1000 seems a bit excessive, recon units can be bought for around $200 to $250 and they take about two hours to fit.

I dunno once you add in the alignment, proper system flush it's sounds about right, but I don't have a labor guide at the moment so I can't say as to how much time to bill for.

I'd have to go along with Hal unless you have been considering a new ride then it might be time to upgrade.

In most cases it's cheaper to repair most auto problems than it is to make payments and full coverage insurance.

Prices I'm seeing on reman racks on a LX with a V-6 is between $325 and $400 with the cores being between $120 and $200

Edit when I said it sounds about right I was thinking NEW rack so this might be what the quote is based on but I agree shop around and price the rack yourself.

[TwoRails]

Since I'm able to install racks, I'd spend the $200 - 250 and pop one in. If you don't want to mess with that, I'd suggest to shop around. $One grand sounds like a dealership price. Many independent shops charge what you could buy one for, which is $200 - 250. Even at $300, that would leave $700 for labor. Even at $60 - 70 hour labor, that's 10 to almost 12 hours labor charge. Waaay too much. Check around in your area and get some quotes. You may even want to contact your local BBB and other sources to see who is reputable in your area.

[glc]

Put a drip pan in your garage and keep pouring fluid in it - a grand will buy a LOT of fluid.

[thefultonhow]

On the question of fixing the car vs. getting a new one:

http://www.autoblog.com/entry/1234000370064970/

[HAL9000]

Put a drip pan in your garage and keep pouring fluid in it - a grand will buy a LOT of fluid.

Sounds like my old ghetto wagon... it had a leaky power steering hose... and I was just too lazy to change it... kept dummping tranny fluid (cheaper) into it.

[lil Jimmie]

Put a drip pan in your garage and keep pouring fluid in it - a grand will buy a LOT of fluid.

Boy I'm glad your PC advice is better than this :)

BTW Transmission fluid is not the same as power steering fluid, not a good idea unless you want to shorten the life of the power steering pump as well. ATF fluid is not designed for the higher preasures that power steering systems require. Also the refill/ drip pan method can run a pump dry and take it out as well.

I have used Lucus Power Steering Stop Leak and it has worked on a few cars. Might be worth a shot.

[bailey]

I would look at it my self, I have seen where some mechs will see it wet and maybe one drop of fluid and say you need a new one, if its just a very small drop and not really leaking you probly don't need one. yet

[lil Jimmie]

Bailey has a good point, is it leaving a small dime size spot, just wet around the seals, or is it pouring out? If it's pouring out the Lucus additive would be a waste.

[David M]

Fix it...those cars are capable of well over 200,000 miles. Thats cheaper than car payments.

[glc]

Jimmie, I'm used to keeping beaters running until they totally drop. I have not traded in or sold a car in many years - when I'm done with them they go to the boneyard.

[TwoRails]

Old cars (not talking classics here) are kinda like old computers: there always seems to be somebody that could use it, despite their limitations.

[lil Jimmie]

I have been guilty of doing similar things with my own cars, usually it's just to buy me time till I have the time do the repair, but I don't encourage it.

Had a cracked head on my S-10 with 150K in July, but I didn't have the time to be without transportation so I rode it out with some aluminum seal for 2 months. Once I got the time I flushed the coolant system and oil system and pulled the motor. Replaced all seals, hoses, thermostat, freeze plugs, reman head, spark plugs, clutch, O2 sensor (damaged by the coolant leak), rolled a set of bearings and new timing gear set. Cost me $1200 but would run around $2000 with labor. I should get another 150K out of it.

[bailey]

I'm betting GLC does the same thing with his computers as he does with his cars, LOL

[David M]

The only difference is glc fixes his when it breaks instead of junking it. How is that 486 running these days? :D

[thefultonhow]

Old cars (not talking classics here) are kinda like old computers: there always seems to be somebody that could use it, despite their limitations.

Yeah, except that a computer from the early 1990s these days is next to useless. A lot of the cars from the early 1990s are still going strong, because by then carmakers had by and large figured out how to build reliable vehicles.

[glc]

The 486 laptop is relegated to duty making bootdisks. You see, when an old computer breaks, I usually have the parts and tools to fix it. I don't have a source of free parts to fix beater cars, and I don't have the tools or location to do it even though I have the knowledge and experience (I was an auto mechanic in an earlier life). About all I do myself any more is tuneups and belt and hose changes - stuff like that - I don't even change my own oil any more.

[bailey]

and I thought I was getting old.
same here, I still keep a few of the old ones around, as long as they still work ok, I can't toss them out, I'll use them for the benifit of fixing others, making floppys and just running linux or for my ham radio logging or some other basic things that need to be monitored all the time on the internet, like echolink. or packet radio and radio teletype, or any other digital modes.
heck, I still have a working 486 laptop that runs dos on mobil packet.

[Byte 2.0]

Put a drip pan in your garage and keep pouring fluid in it - a grand will buy a LOT of fluid.


That keeps good clean fluid in the system.

[TwoRails]

Yeah, except that a computer from the early 1990s these days is next to useless. A lot of the cars from the early 1990s are still going strong, because by then carmakers had by and large figured out how to build reliable vehicles.But that's not counting computer-years. Like human years and dog years, there is a ratio between car years and computer years. So a 15 year old computer is like a 45 year old car ! :eek: :)

[bailey]

But that's not counting computer-years. Like human years and dog years, there is a ratio between car years and computer years. So a 15 year old computer is like a 45 year old car ! :eek: :)

that makes sence to me