Thinking about buying a beater car

[Shel_B]

Now I'm curious, what would you consider to be an ideal beater for you?

Something like this:

Toyota Corolla - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

2003 Toyota Corolla 145,000 miles. New tires, new battery. Runs good, never had any problems. No passenger front seat. Small crack in windshield. $750.

sfbay.craigslist.org

 

[dishdude]

Something like this:

Toyota Corolla - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

2003 Toyota Corolla 145,000 miles. New tires, new battery. Runs good, never had any problems. No passenger front seat. Small crack in windshield. $750.

sfbay.craigslist.org

Enjoy your Camry, it's there to serve you, not for you to serve it. Life's too short to drive around that old Corolla that doesn't even have a front passenger seat unless you absolutely have to.

 

[super20dan]

4 cyl camry would be my beater choice

 

[dishdude]

4 cyl camry would be my beater choice

Oh the irony...lol

 

[javacontour]

The car has less than 100,000 miles, there's not a dent on the body, although the paint can use a cleaning and wax, there's not a rip or a tear anywhere in the interior, no material is faded, the dash is perfect, and every knob, button, switch, gauge, and interior light works just as it came from the factory.

Compression is high and even, on a 6,500+ mile trip the car used about 4-ounces of oil at most, highway mileage was above 37mpg, and many tanks were kissing 38mpg.

The only repairs needed are a replacement for a turn signal bulb and a new battery for the key fog ... oh, one of the windshield wiper squirters is out of alignment ... it doesn't squirt quite where it should for best coverage.

That said, I've been convinced that getting a second car, a beater, is probably not the best idea right now. I appreciate all the suggestions.

I could see a beater if you had harsh winters.
Here in IL, for many years, I had two cars. A nicer car I drove on weekends and a beater. It also helped with mileage as when I got a car allowance (taxible) I just drove the beater and counted all of its miles for work. I was probably within 1% as there may have been a few days I needed to use the "good" car for work or the beater to get around one weekend. But on average, each car was used for it's primary purpose.
Today I expense my miles as the policy changed and I've been in the # of cars = # of drivers in the household status.

If I need a different car, I'll just rent one.
It was about $800 / year for tags and insurance for the beater come 2020, so I just cut it loose.

I still see my last beater at the customer site where I sold it to one of the security guards.

Security guards love the Panther Platform

 

[atikovi]

You buy a beater in order to preserve and not put a lot of mileage on your expensive, mint or valuable sports or specialty car, as in Porsche, BMW M, Mercedes AMG, GT-R, Supra, etc.

1) SF isn't the rust belt.
2) You already said you don't put many miles on the Camry, so what's the point?
3) An '11 Camry isn't a rare low production irreplaceable vehicle.

With that said, I'd still buy that beater for nothing else than peace of mind of always having a backup car. And if the Camry is as clean as you say, I'd take the beater out on rainy days just so I wouldn't have to wash the nice one as often. And it could be something fun to drive, like Miata, GTI, etc.

 

[dishdude]

You buy a beater in order to preserve and not put a lot of mileage on your expensive, mint or valuable sports or specialty car, as in Porsche, BMW M, Mercedes AMG, GT-R, Supra, etc.

1) SF isn't the rust belt.
2) You already said you don't put many miles on the Camry, so what's the point?
3) An '11 Camry isn't a rare low production irreplaceable vehicle.

With that said, I'd still buy that beater for nothing else than peace of mind of always having a backup car. And if the Camry is as clean as you say, I'd take the beater out on rainy days just so I wouldn't have to wash the nice one as often. And it could be something fun to drive, like Miata, GTI, etc.

Who needs a backup car? Download Uber/Lyft.

 

[atikovi]

Who needs a backup car? Download Uber/Lyft.

So if you have to run half a dozen errands one day, you want to wait around for a dozen Uber/Lyft rides to take you there and to take you back? Who has the time, not me.

 

[Nick1994]

Get out and see the world, take that bad boy on some day trips.

 

[1 SX]

I literally went through the same scenario with the same exact outcome.

 

[supton]

Who needs a backup car? Download Uber/Lyft.

I don’t think they exist within 30 miles of me.

 

[Lubener]

I'm not driving the Camry very much, and when I do it's mostly short (less than 3 miles) trips. I like the car and would like to keep it for a long time, so I'm thinking that a beater would be a good way to extend the Camry's longevity. Short tripping on our poorly-maintained roads can't be a good thing.

So, if the price were low enough (under 1k or so) do you think this might be a good idea? What do you look for in a beater? I've never owned one, although I have owned cheap cars.

(Never mind, I've been convinced not to do this)

Totally agree. Done it myself many years ago. The extra car also comes in handy when unexpected breakdowns occur. I have found the added expense for insurance and upkeep isn't that bad.

 

[PF52]

I'm totally onboard with the having-a-beater thing. I even loan mine to relatives when they come to visit but insist they can't rent a car of their own.

 

[javacontour]

Who needs a backup car? Download Uber/Lyft.

Some jobs require a car. Rideshare may work for some. For me, I have to be ready to hop in the car and go 200+ miles away on a call, so rideshare isn't going to work.

It will work for some, but not all.

 

[dishdude]

Some jobs require a car. Rideshare may work for some. For me, I have to be ready to hop in the car and go 200+ miles away on a call, so rideshare isn't going to work.

It will work for some, but not all.

If that's the case, I'll rideshare to National and rent a car. Keeping a spare car as a back up is silly.

 

[wpod]

Shel the Camry will most likely out last you and I.

 

[Dave Hess]

Keep you primary car and do the necessary maintenance, drive it another 200K miles.

 

[Blinker]

Something like this:

Toyota Corolla - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

2003 Toyota Corolla 145,000 miles. New tires, new battery. Runs good, never had any problems. No passenger front seat. Small crack in windshield. $750.

sfbay.craigslist.org

No passenger seat, sounds like someone was shot or stabbed in that seat. Moving along…just keep your Camry. A beater car is going to require repairs to keep it going.

 

[AlpacaBowl]

@Shel_B You've already got a beater car. Sorry if you're in denial but its the truth. This is just a sad thread you have started.

I fail to understand how driving on poorly maintained roads is going to diminish its value any further than just time and use alone. Regardless of what you do to this car, its going to outlast you.

I kind of agree with @dishdude , Ride share. Its going to be alot safer, cheaper and obviously easier than paying for Insurance, tires, parking and the general humiliation with driving around in a $700 deathtrap.
You're going 3 miles round trip... You could walk, bike, hitchhike, birdscooter this distance.

 

[AlpacaBowl]

Something like this:

Toyota Corolla - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

2003 Toyota Corolla 145,000 miles. New tires, new battery. Runs good, never had any problems. No passenger front seat. Small crack in windshield. $750.

sfbay.craigslist.org

That is embarrassing.