10 yr old, $5,000 cars

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I got a 2012 Ford transit connect with 179k In July. Body and interior with partition and shelving in very good shape plus. The bad, engine had a weak hole and tranny that never had been serviced. Found a Focus engine with 7k for $600 and rebuilt tranny for $1400, new ball joints and front brakes and rotors and still with a reasonable local mechanic came in at 6k. With reasonable OCI should outlast me. Great dog hauler and grocery getter to help my elderly parents. Can pick up a wheel chair lift for around a grand for it if needed.
Some vehicle platforms have some major components that are common to many. The 2.0 Focus engine is in 10 cars and small SUVs so are available cheap. To have repaired the head-bad valve would have cost around $400 so why not a lot fresher engine?
 
"Buicks"

Ok, not the Brand per say, but the "pre-owned Retiree transporter"

Folks are correct as most people with well maintained vehicles do not sell as frequently. Normally the best well maintained vehicles coming to markets are from those that can no longer drive. That is why you see so many "old Buicks" or other old Caddys, PT Cruisers, Towncars, etc puttering around 15-25 years after manufacturer. I am about to add Camry to that "Buick" list. You know they were not likely trashed, likely "halo"-like retirement cars, and babied to a lesser extent. These folks knew they were not trading in in 5 years so they took care of what they had because they had to make sure it outlasted them.


Otherwise, you have to find those "under-valued" cars. Cars that are not popular but had good, reliable engineering and materials choices. They tend not to be 4WD or a truck... those values hang up there unless there is a fuel price issue, they will not be the Camry/Accord reputation (but not a Achy-Breaky-Chrysler either). I would say something like the Mazda6 as a under-valued car.
 
I find Saabs very cheap now. They were never popular and most people now don't want a car whose manufacturer no longer exists.
 
Originally Posted By: FutureDoc
"Buicks"

Ok, not the Brand per say, but the "pre-owned Retiree transporter"

Folks are correct as most people with well maintained vehicles do not sell as frequently. Normally the best well maintained vehicles coming to markets are from those that can no longer drive. That is why you see so many "old Buicks" or other old Caddys, PT Cruisers, Towncars, etc puttering around 15-25 years after manufacturer. I am about to add Camry to that "Buick" list. You know they were not likely trashed, likely "halo"-like retirement cars, and babied to a lesser extent. These folks knew they were not trading in in 5 years so they took care of what they had because they had to make sure it outlasted them.


Otherwise, you have to find those "under-valued" cars. Cars that are not popular but had good, reliable engineering and materials choices. They tend not to be 4WD or a truck... those values hang up there unless there is a fuel price issue, they will not be the Camry/Accord reputation (but not a Achy-Breaky-Chrysler either). I would say something like the Mazda6 as a under-valued car.


When I was shopping for my beater car to pick up until we figure out what minivan we want, I tried to find a "grandmas car". Every one I found was in bad shape mechanically. They were all low miles and most were in great cosmetic shape, but had not been maintained. No oil changes or 10-20K miles in between, trans hadn't been serviced etc.

Not sure if some elderly just don't care anymore, don't have the $ or what the deal is.
 
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Originally Posted By: Miller88
2006-2009 Focuses around here - yes two different generations - are selling for nothing around here. 100K miles for $3000 or $4000. I've spotted a few 5 speeds, I think eventually one is going to make a good supplement to my current Focus. What I really need is a truck, and even in poor shape those are not cheap.

A ten year old Caravan is a pretty decent pickup for the money... Comparing to a 2wd 4cyl ranger I think the towing specs are the same and its got more bed length, equal mileage. Kind of low on the "cool" factor though...

If I could sell the Focus for $5k I probably would, and jump into something with 40-50% better mileage, Cruze Eco's are getting cheapish here still in drivetrain warranty.


I need something that can tow my Jeep on a trailer. It's probably only got a year or two left before it's just not roadworthy any more.

For house work, I'm planning on buying a cheap trailer from HF and using the Focus or Jeep to pull around the building supplies.
 
If you know your car you can do well. In March I bought a 2006 Chrysler T&C for $1000. Brakes, shocks, struts and tires and it is good to go for $2000. Runs great, should last for another 10 years.
 
I usually don't buy anything unless it gets towed home, its a plus if I can drive it, we got my wife a 2002 Audi A4 quattro non runner for 2k a few years ago, got it towed home and I fixed it with my spare pile of parts at home, some new brake hoses, changed some fluids and timing belt and its mint, best part is we sold her old Audi for $3500 which was 3 years older and had more miles and made money on the deal since I got that car for $900 a few years prior.
 
Originally Posted By: JC1
Yes maintenance is key. What make and models are you referring to?
Maintenance is always the key.
 
Originally Posted By: Huie83
When I was shopping for my beater car to pick up until we figure out what minivan we want, I tried to find a "grandmas car". Every one I found was in bad shape mechanically. They were all low miles and most were in great cosmetic shape, but had not been maintained. No oil changes or 10-20K miles in between, trans hadn't been serviced etc.

Not sure if some elderly just don't care anymore, don't have the $ or what the deal is.


It seems that 99% of transmissions never seem to get serviced.... grandma or not. You still need to be careful about about any used market.

Sure, "Grandma" could neglect service towards the end just as anyone considering selling a vehicle. My bet, the ones you need to be careful bout is someone else was using those cars in the interim if there was a sudden gap in the mileage/service. With the last few years of the economy, I am willing to bet that it was more prevalent. "Grandma" cars might have been used my unemployed cousin "Joey" to get around and maybe Uber some on the side. Everything for "Joey" was fine until that "repair" and then he dumped it for another thing to leach off of easily. Still. You might have had a fair amount of service but when the vehicle passes between "grandma's caretakers", records might be easily lost. No big deal in my book. If the condition looks good, then a Tranny service at 65-75K is not a big deal if it was supposed to be serviced at 50-60K. If the stealership upsold grandma on Syn, then 10-20K miles might not be a big OCI issue. I would rather see a single gap issue than a constant problem. Heck, most will have that quick-change sticker somewhere.

If the car is looking good, you can hopefully find a "pride in ownership". Chances are (not guaranteed) that it rolled over into maintenance as well.
 
Originally Posted By: bowlofturtle
Originally Posted By: ET16
I find cars in this range to be a great value. If they have been well maintained....


The problem with this should be, people who are driving 10 year old cars that are worth $5k and actually maintain their cars ARE NOT SELLING THEM.


Everything I own is 12-14 years old, paid for, garaged and well maintained. I don't really care what they are worth; they're not for sale, they serve a useful purpose of dependable transportation. Why should I sell a car for $4-5K and then have to spend $20K to replace it with something that is going to be worth $4K in another 10 years? Can you spell pockets with holes?

My daily driver Buick Lesabre has two tone heated leather 10 way powered seats, heated mirrors with turn signals built in, Onstar, satellite radio, a heads up display, factory chrome alloy wheels (replacement cost about $600 each IF you can find them), the HVAC is such that the driver can run the A/C while the passenger has the heat on, automatic headlights, rain sensing wipers, etc., etc., everything works, yeah, I really need a stripped down new $20K econo box.

There are cars selling for $50K that don't have the features my $5K Buick has. And yes, it runs like you would expect a BITOGERS car to run. I would imagine, like many BITOGERS, my pride is not in the year of the car, but its CONDITION. It is a 13 year old head turner, and not because it is ugly.
 
Originally Posted By: seanf
I usually don't buy anything unless it gets towed home, its a plus if I can drive it, we got my wife a 2002 Audi A4 quattro non runner for 2k a few years ago, got it towed home and I fixed it with my spare pile of parts at home, some new brake hoses, changed some fluids and timing belt and its mint, best part is we sold her old Audi for $3500 which was 3 years older and had more miles and made money on the deal since I got that car for $900 a few years prior.
I don't think that should count. If your labor (and parts) were to be assessed fairly, it would be multi-thousand dollar vehicle. I believe OP is talking about vehicle which you buy for $5K and then run for another 10 years with minimal repairs/maintenance. I don't believe a car like Audi AllRoad or Range Rover qualifies :)
 
In Ontario, one has to be really careful looking at anything past 10 years. There are tons for sale that I would classify as beaters, but very few in good mechanical condition as well as rustproofed.
As mentioned before, people that take great care of their vehicles and go through the trouble and expense of rustproofing them are not willing to sell that soon.
 
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I like to go even slightly older than 10 years when I shop for a cheap commuter. I am currently debating 7th gen Civics. 2001-2005.
It all depends on whether or not you're OK with doing your own maintenance though. If not.. Not recommended!
 
Originally Posted By: SLCraig
I like to go even slightly older than 10 years when I shop for a cheap commuter. I am currently debating 7th gen Civics. 2001-2005.
It all depends on whether or not you're OK with doing your own maintenance though. If not.. Not recommended!


With the condition my current Focus is in, I can't see myself retiring it until it has > 150K on it. As long as it doesn't turn into a pile of rust. 5.5 years, 67000 miles currently. Waxed with quality wax , sprayed with oil before each winter.
 
My 10 yr old Dodge 2500 4x4 still looks new, body , frame and engine, and still drives like new. While I plan on never selling it, its certainly worth more than $5,000. It has 89k miles and blue books at $25,000. I wouldn't sell it for a penny less.
 
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You can find a lot of e46 bmw's around for close to 5k, but if you are not willing to do some work on them then these probably aren't the cars for you, I love mine but I love to work on it also, find a 5 speed and the engines are bulletproof in these cars
 
Originally Posted By: Kira
I've seen the term used here...what does e46 mean? I assume it's an in-house body type code number like saying GM J-body etc.


It is.

An E46 is a 3-series of the model years 1999-2005.
 
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