Looking to buy a used...

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NavyVet88

NavyVet88

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Something.

I want to buy a beater and fix it up as a project. Not a hot rod or sport tune application, but just to better my experiences mechanically.

What do you reccomend as a good cheap/beater type of vehicle that someone like myself can get decent experience in repairing? I know that's a broad question because any vehicle can be a beater depending on condition and such. I guess what I'm asking is, what would you recommend I look for maybe in a particular type of vehicle? Small truck? Compact car? Any particular motor or type of motor? Etc.

Ive never done a head gasket or timing belt/chain, or pretty much any kind of "deep motor work" and I wouldn't mind being able to learn a thing or two in that area.
 
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To be honest, both of the vehicles in your sig cover the gamut of "experience". On one hand, you have a relatively complex, electronically controlled Honda (while still not crazy complex), and on the other hand you have a pickup that was in production almost unchanged for 30 years. I can't think of two better vehicles on which to practice wrenching skills.
 
Originally Posted by 14Accent
To be honest, both of the vehicles in your sig cover the gamut of "experience". On one hand, you have a relatively complex, electronically controlled Honda (while still not crazy complex), and on the other hand you have a pickup that was in production almost unchanged for 30 years. I can't think of two better vehicles on which to practice wrenching skills.

That ford ranger looks like a great place to start. If not your current one you can find them extremely cheap with a burnt transmission which is how I got my b4000. Bought a cheap junkyard transmission, turned it into the first major thing I did on a car and a great learning experience.
 
Buy a Jeep from the 1990's with a straight 6 and manual transmission. Good vehicle for repair experience with plenty of parts support. You should be able to find a driver quality 4 wheel drive for near a grand.
 
Originally Posted by 14Accent
To be honest, both of the vehicles in your sig cover the gamut of "experience". On one hand, you have a relatively complex, electronically controlled Honda (while still not crazy complex), and on the other hand you have a pickup that was in production almost unchanged for 30 years. I can't think of two better vehicles on which to practice wrenching skills.


That was a consideration at first, but both of them run great right now and I don't want my lack of experience to mess with that and end up bad.
 
Originally Posted by sloinker
Buy a Jeep from the 1990's with a straight 6 and manual transmission. Good vehicle for repair experience with plenty of parts support. You should be able to find a driver quality 4 wheel drive for near a grand.


This has crossed my mind as well especially since there are a lot of them on the used market around here.
 
If you've never done a timing belt, I think you would rather start with a 4 cyl timing belt as opposed to a V6. I've changed timing belts on a Honda Civic and Toyota Sienna and the V6 was more of a pain and needed extra time and patience.

Do you want a car to get you stumped from the beginning or start small and get into more larger issues as you develop skills and confidence? I'm sure there are some issues on some vehicles that could drive a person insane.
 
You do know how to double the value of your Yugo, don't you?
Fill the tank.

Seriously: Since you don't want to jeopardize your running vehicles (smart) I suggest selecting a 4 cylinder version of whatever you find when the time comes.
Considering parts affordability/availability is also smart.
Selecting a car with a running engine would be smart because you can skip having to deal with possibly a bad fuel pump, weird stale gas, clogged injectors.
Maybe one with a carb?
How good do you want the body to be?

With all the "kits" now being offered by parts suppliers I'd consider a Volvo 240, 740, 940. They have the 4 cylinder engine so you can see stuff easier.
The kits cover suspension, fuel delivery, brake hardware.
 
Look for an older VW Golf, Jetta or Beetle with a 2.0 slow and 5 spd stick. Super easy to repair, plenty of parts cheap and a drive train that is as reliable as anything on the road.
CV axles, timing belt/tensioner/water pump, starter/alternator, tune ups are child's play, in fact nothing on these cars is difficult inc the clutch. they are very corrosion resistant too.
Believe it or not the Beetle is an outstanding little car and the only car that ever gets positive comments from strangers. I pull up to the drive up window in a real nice car and it doesn't get a look or a word but the little Bug always gets " oh I like that car", the bloody thing is a 100% chick magnet, go figure. Jeremy Clarkson loves the thing.
 
Thanks for the input guys! My dad had a Mazda b3000 years ago that he bought with 60kish miles on it. Was still running decent when he sold it a few years ago with 338k on the clock. It's roughly the same setup as my ranger motor and all I may look at something like that or an s10. If a VW bug surfaced I will check that out too.
 
Pick an older car (that isn't rusted) that was common and sold in great numbers so that parts are readily available. It will be easier to learn on as the systems will be a bit less complex than newer cars. Good luck.
 
1970s-2006 2WD full size GM truck, 1970s-1996 2WD full size Ford truck, or 1970s-1993 full size Dodge truck. Stick to simpler configurations such as 6 cylinder base model 2WDs. These have a lot of room under the hood, great parts availability for their age, and not a lot of complexity. Avoid things like IFS 4WD and a lot of electrical features.

Compact trucks are worth a look, but things are tighter under the hood. Personally, I really like the pushrod 4.0s in my older Fords, but there's definitely less room than you find under the hood of an older full size truck. Something like a 4 cylinder Nissan Hardbody might be a good option. An EFI Lima 2.3 Ranger from before they went to the dual spark plug head (1985 to 1990 or so) would be great, and even the dual spark plug head ones aren't really complex...they are slow though.

A downside to trucks is there is a higher entry fee for any that are decent enough to fix up.

https://bham.craigslist.org/cto/d/birmingham-1996-nissan-xe-hardbody/7096434848.html

https://bham.craigslist.org/cto/d/birmingham-94-shortbed-chevy-1500-short/7095186264.html

https://bham.craigslist.org/cto/d/bessemer-1982-gmc-truck/7090913284.html

https://bham.craigslist.org/ctd/d/birmingham-2000-mazda-b2500-ext-cab/7090467013.html

https://bham.craigslist.org/cto/d/talladega-1992-ford-150-flareside/7095091477.html

https://bham.craigslist.org/ctd/d/tuscaloosa-1993-ford-ranger-splash/7090695604.html

https://huntsville.craigslist.org/cto/d/taft-1993-ford-ranger/7088628887.html
 
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