$3000 car challenge bay area

[Lionel]

What's up with this 2CV thing. It's a terrible car. I guess it comes from people that never rode in one.

[Lionel]

Can a Subaru with 150K miles be trusted ? There are a few out there. Some in manual which is probably a hard sell.

[jerk]

'\

What's up with this 2CV thing. It's a terrible car. I guess it comes from people that never rode in one.

unless you've got a sexual fetish involving channeling a gallic blacksmith- i can't imagine wanting to own one of those things. they're "easy" to work on the way a 1952 BSA is "easy" to work on. i know for a fact that in order to do anything having to do with the wheels, hubs, and brakes on those things you need some horrible proprietary "quarante-quatre" wrench. i got stuck outside of Berlin when these POSs were still in widespread use- in one with Swedish girl I was trying to become the future ex husband of- and i swear there wasn't one of these fuking tools in the entire country of Germany. i hate the 2cv with a passion reserved for no other product of France. Hell- one of the best cars I ever owned was a bad ass Citroen CX that looked and drove like the Batmobile if the Batmobile was a speed boat.

To reiterate- a 2cv was easy to work on when the French Farrier union was still an important part of De Gaulle's coalition..in the Bay Area in December 2019- your local garage would have an easier time doing the brain transplant the idiot owner needs than doing anything more demanding than inflating the tires on one of those things...

on the plus side- the car does bring out Thomas' contrarianism at its best- and my absurd and absurdist ire at its worst-

Lionel- you should really get one. i hear you want to avoid anything pre 1948....but the model made from 1949 to 1992 seem to be pretty good.

[Lionel]

in the Bay Area in December 2019- your local garage would have an easier time doing the brain transplant the idiot owner needs than doing anything more demanding than inflating the tires on one of those things...

I knew this thread would bring the best out of you. lmao.

[Trevor]

Is it even possible to find a working Tacoma for this price? I've been searching for a truck to keep at the house to run and grab stuff (like wood pellets, yard tools, occasional lawn mower). Nothing seems to exist in that price...with a manual transmission I should add.

[Lionel]

Is it even possible to find a working Tacoma for this price? I've been searching for a truck to keep at the house to run and grab stuff (like wood pellets, yard tools, occasional lawn mower). Nothing seems to exist in that price...with a manual transmission I should add.

Did not see any Tacoma so far. Not that I need that.

[sailor]

A 3k Subaru will have a blown head gasket. Buy a old minivan doesn’t really matter which brand for this application. At 3k they will be a bit abused but have an inspection and you should find one with a solid drivetrain.

Can a Subaru with 150K miles be trusted ? There are a few out there. Some in manual which is probably a hard sell.

[Trevor]

I miss being able to find an S10 or Sonoma, stick, 2WD, for 1k that would last just over a year with no real maintenance. I blame cash for clunkers.

[Lionel]

A 3k Subaru will have a blown head gasket. Buy a old minivan doesn’t really matter which brand for this application. At 3k they will be a bit abused but have an inspection and you should find one with a solid drivetrain.

The one I saw stated re-build engine.... Will check this out.

[NYCfixie]

Can a Subaru with 150K miles be trusted ? There are a few out there. Some in manual which is probably a hard sell.

Having owned 2 Subarus each with more than 105k (and a few family members with them as well), you need to check a few things on any 4 cylinder from the past 25 years:
- Was the timing chain replaced at 105k as per maintenance schedule
- Was the head gasket replaced and/or inspected recently for anything over 100k (this can be a $3000 repair for a $5 part and affects all Subarus)
- What is the condition of all CV boots (also an issue on almost any AWD car or SUV)
- What is the condition of all suspension bushings

If these issues have all been sorted Subarus will last until 210k when all this stuff will need to be checked again. And then it will last until about 315k....and so on.


Our current 2009 Outback Limited with 104,750 has a blown head gasket and needs a timing chain as part of the 105k service. It barely gets driven these days - maybe 3k a year in and around Boston - so we are just going to live with until the spring and get something new or not own a car for the foreseeable future.

Our previous 2000 Outback blew the head gasket at 75k and was still under warranty so they replaced it, replaced the water pump, and replaced timing chain all under warranty (we always have the 7 year/100k warranty). We only got rid of it in 2009 because my wife hated the bigger 2010 model so we found a new leftover 2009.

My mother's 2001 Forester blew the head gasket at 85,000 but it was just out of warranty so Subaru would not cover it. She drove it another few years by just adding coolant and oil every few weeks.

If we do get another car in the spring, I might be done with Subarus as they are great until 105k, then they need a few thousand dollars of work but they will last until 210k when you need to throw another few thousand into them.

[Lionel]

Having owned 2 Subarus each with more than 105k (and a few family members with them as well), you need to check a few things on any 4 cylinder from the past 25 years:
- Was the timing chain replaced at 105k as per maintenance schedule
- Was the head gasket replaced and/or inspected recently for anything over 100k (this can be a $3000 repair for a $5 part and affects all Subarus)
- What is the condition of all CV boots (also an issue on almost any AWD car or SUV)
- What is the condition of all suspension bushings

If these issues have all been sorted Subarus will last until 210k when all this stuff will need to be checked again. And then it will last until about 315k....and so on.


Our current 2009 Outback Limited with 104,750 has a blown head gasket and needs a timing chain as part of the 105k service. It barely gets driven these days - maybe 3k a year in and around Boston - so we are just going to live with until the spring and get something new or not own a car for the foreseeable future.

Our previous 2000 Outback blew the head gasket at 75k and was still under warranty so they replaced it, replaced the water pump, and replaced timing chain all under warranty (we always have the 7 year/100k warranty). We only got rid of it in 2009 because my wife hated the bigger 2010 model so we found a new leftover 2009.

My mother's 2001 Forester blew the head gasket at 85,000 but it was just out of warranty so Subaru would not cover it. She drove it another few years by just adding coolant and oil every few weeks.

If we do get another car in the spring, I might be done with Subarus as they are great until 105k, then they need a few thousand dollars of work but they will last until 210k when you need to throw another few thousand into them.

Thanks great info !

[rowdyhillrambler]

For a $200 finders few, I will find you all of the sub $3k autos you want that are mechanically sound—it’s my wheelhouse. I will walk outside and snap pics of my driveway if you need proof.. and in TN we don’t teally have rust... funny how the market is just so different geographically. I never have a truck/hatchback that cost more than that.

Current stable
1984 Toyota xcab EFI-daily
1987 Toyota EFI single-weekly
1988 Toyota 4x4 xcab-daily
2004 Sprinter weekender
1988 Toyota wagovan cargo-just got it and sorting it out before it goes into rotation
1995 Chevy G10 shorty-parts hauler for the shop

[Lionel]

As I keep on browsing craigslist it's amazing how many V8 toyotas (land cruiser, Sequoia) are there at 250K miles.

[rowdyhillrambler]

Tundra with a V8 will be cheaper than any Tacoma-stay away from anything with the 3.0 V6.. they are cheap for a reason.

[Lionel]

An old Sequoia maybe fun and huge.

[j44ke]

As I keep on browsing craigslist it's amazing how many V8 toyotas (land cruiser, Sequoia) are there at 250K miles.

How old are they when they reach that number?

My Corolla made it to 250k but then succumbed to sudden episodes of explosive rust. One day, fine. Next day, why is there a shock absorber in my trunk? I sold it for $600 to someone who needed the motor which still ran just fine and started no matter what else was going on.

[Lionel]

How old are they when they reach that number?

My Corolla made it to 250k but then succumbed to sudden episodes of explosive rust. One day, fine. Next day, why is there a shock absorber in my trunk? I sold it for $600 to someone who needed the motor which still ran just fine and started no matter what else was going on.

I have seen a few Sequoia 2003 to 2005. Here is an example: NEW PRICE 23 Toyota Sequoia FOR SALE- $44 OBO - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

[j44ke]

I have seen a few Sequoia 2003 to 2005. Here is an example: NEW PRICE 23 Toyota Sequoia FOR SALE- $44 OBO - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

Huh. That looks like a good deal somehow. The kind of car my brother-in-law would buy for his 2nd daughter, the girl who destroyed most of the family cars.

[Lionel]

Yeah, I have a really found memory of our LX470 which was one of the cars we had for a couple of years prior to moving back to France. This thing was fantastic.

[j44ke]

Wonder if you could get it for $3500.