I have a 2001 Subaru Impreza RS that I've had since new, just over 14 years now. While it's getting a little dinged up, a little rust is forming, etc, I've decided to keep it for a few more years simply because I don't want to have a car payment to deal with. Also because there really isn't anything out there that I've fallen in love with. My Impreza has been my buddy for a long time and it fits me well. I really don't want a different car just yet.
So the decision was made to spend some money on it to get a few more years out of it, also to make it worth a little more when it comes time to sell it down the road. $2k later and it has new brakes, new struts, new tires, a new front wheel bearing and alignment, and the car feels good again. Yes, $2k is a lot of money but since a new car loan would probably run me $500 a month nowadays (ugh), I decided four months worth of payments to get two or three years out of a car would be well worth it.
Driving home from work on Tuesday (only a week after buying the tires), a relatively short commute of about 7 miles or so, the engine developed a tapping noise. I kept the revs low and the gears high for the rest of the way home, only a few minutes of driving, but by that time it turned into a louder knocking. Initial diagnosis is either a skipped timing belt, or more likely a spun bearing which Subarus are known to do.
*deep sigh*
It's going to the shop hopefully on Monday for an official diagnosis. Now I just need to figure out how much more I'm willing to spend on it.
So the decision was made to spend some money on it to get a few more years out of it, also to make it worth a little more when it comes time to sell it down the road. $2k later and it has new brakes, new struts, new tires, a new front wheel bearing and alignment, and the car feels good again. Yes, $2k is a lot of money but since a new car loan would probably run me $500 a month nowadays (ugh), I decided four months worth of payments to get two or three years out of a car would be well worth it.
Driving home from work on Tuesday (only a week after buying the tires), a relatively short commute of about 7 miles or so, the engine developed a tapping noise. I kept the revs low and the gears high for the rest of the way home, only a few minutes of driving, but by that time it turned into a louder knocking. Initial diagnosis is either a skipped timing belt, or more likely a spun bearing which Subarus are known to do.
*deep sigh*
It's going to the shop hopefully on Monday for an official diagnosis. Now I just need to figure out how much more I'm willing to spend on it.