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GUYS, my car died


monkeygirl
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So, SUNDAY, I was headed to down the freeway and my car died. Long story short, I threw a rod. I thought insurance would be covering the repair because I was under the impression the damage was caused by an incident last summer in which I damaged the undercarriage and a wheel by driving over road debris. But the insurance adjuster was at the repair shop when they had it up on the rack and it was determined that had nothing to do with it, so I'm on my own and am still pretty broke.

 

It's a 2006 Honda Civic DX 2 door with some body damage. The KBB private buyer value is about 2 grand but it's a Honda!

 

I have an option to buy a 2006 Nissan of some sort from a co-worker's niece for $700. And I know a guy who can replace the engine in my Honda and says he can find a used engine for me from 800-1500 bucks and will defer payment on labor but he has health issues and I don't want to push him on the repair

 

I really can't afford car payments right now

 

What would you do?

 

I'm leaning toward buying the Nissan and driving it while I deal with the engine thing, then selling one of them when it's fixed.

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I've been thinking about this since I saw that poor car on a flat bed truck. How good is the Nissan? I would ask to test it first or check on it. Transport is so important for you. I wish I had given you my car instead of my sister back in the day when it was a good Toyota. :(

 

Honestly I think the Honda has been mean to you for a little while and has bad jujus so I think maybe selling it for parts would be better and start clean on something else. That is also my brothers advice. My brother says try a Kia or Hyundai. He rebuilds Hondas of the same year as yours but he lives in GA otherwise he'd take your car on as a hobby. (this is the normal brother who is functioning and smart). HA!

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There is nothing quite like the anxiety that faulty car stuff brings on. I hate it so much. I know it's not cost effective, but starting several years back I got into leasing. I want to be driving cars with a warranty that are trusthworthy and safe. Its worth the cost to not have that anxiety.

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Searching for pricing I found this:

On some 2006–08 and early production 2009 Civics, the engine (cylinder) block may leak engine coolant, resulting in engine overheating. To increase customer confidence, American Honda is extending the warranty of the engine block to 10 years from the original date of purchase, with no mileage limit.

 

Tami got screwed by 4 years!

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I can if I wait and shop, but I don't know if I should. The Nissan has more problems than I'd thought-she wants $700 for it and it needs rear brakes, struts and control arms. It has 'some cosmetic body damage'. I haven't seen it yet, this woman and I have completely different schedules. The one guy I know who could replace the engine is really sick now-he may have lung cancer and can't handle the meds they have him on. if I can get my car to him, he has a place to park it and I could figure out what to do with it later. But he's in Redmond and my car is in Edmonds-at least 30 miles, maybe 35.

 

Tami got screwed by 4 years!-OF COURSE

 

'How much would you get for parts on the Honda?' NO idea

 

'My brother says try a Kia or Hyundai.'

Is this the same brother who poops on your parents' lawn regularly?

 

'starting several years back I got into leasing.'

You know, I hadn't even considered leasing! I'm going to look into this today

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Definitely don't go for Subaru. You're going to spend $1200 to end up in the same state you're in now, only with $1200.

 

You might also check Craigslist. I sold my old car last year for $750 and it had a good amount of life left in it. We just didn't need it and it was old enough (2005) that it wasn't worth much. The people who bought it were happy and I got rid of it.

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I would have given Tami my 2009 Yaris. It was in great shape. I just put new wheels on it, new struts and shocks and the engine was well maintained. And I would have had an excuse to go up to Seattle and take the train back instead of my dumb family who wasted a perfectly good car that got 39 miles to the gallon and felt like a roller skate goo goo car with a tiny turning radius.

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I have one more person to ask about buying my Honda. The guy who can fix it goes back to the VA tomorrow morning to get answers about what's wrong with him. He also wants it but I don't know if he has the money right now. I tried Carvana but they won't operate in my area and they won't take cars that don't run.

 

Spam, I'd have taken that Yaris and paid you in kitties!

 

Leasing requires a big down payment and great credit so I'm not sure it's good for me at the moment, but now that I'm 14 miles from work, I think this idea is stellar for the long run. But I may be moving to Florida this Spring so this may not happen here.

 

I'm leaning toward my co-worker's niece's $700 Nissan because it's the cheapest option right now. Still haven't seen it

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  • 2 weeks later...

I got the 'Nissan'. it's actually a 2006 Hyundai Elantra and i bought it for $500. The mechanics I took it to told me I got 'a screaming deal'. It needs a timing belt soon, rear brakes, rotors, bushings and struts. But it's a 4 door, has a moon roof and pretty decent radio/CD player for what it is. I have my dead Honda parked outside my apartment and will still look for a good used engine and then decide which one to keep. But his little car is pretty decent! It drives sooo smoothly and doesn't make any noises.

 

Also, the mechanics told me about hyundai and kia and what they've done to improve so I know better now. The interior of this care feels and looks identical to my Honda

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Sell your Honda to a scrap yard. You can use the money to replace the parts needed for your new car.

 

Take your car to a place like just brakes. They may be able to work out a good deal for replacing your brakes. Also, I suggest you try to bring a dude with you. You'll find that a lot of mechanics will try to rip you off, just because you are a clueless (not saying you are) woman who they can take advantage of for commision.

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I'm SO glad you said that! I was thinking that yesterday and wondered if that was a dumb idea because i really still feel Honda> Hyndai, but the Hyundai's running and the Honda is worth more, even with a dead engine! The repairs will run about $1500 so anything I can get to defer that would be good.

 

My new friend who can fix cars def has lung cancer-they can't operate so he's due for radiation and chemo so I may just factor him out of all of this. Selling the Honda would also make the most sense in this area, too and i *just* got a flyer from my local Honda dealer about them buying used cars-they have 3 specific models they want running or not and mine tops the list. I'm going to go see what they'll give me for it.

 

This is the first thing in a very long time that's really gone my way. I SO lucked out on all of this; it could have cost so much more and been a much bigger hassle! I'm going to go with the notion that this will start the beginning of better things. THANKS for all the advice, I appreciate it! I don't think I would have bought this Hyundai without all the input here AND you've given me some good options for the future.

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Sell your Honda to a scrap yard. You can use the money to replace the parts needed for your new car.

 

Take your car to a place like just brakes. They may be able to work out a good deal for replacing your brakes. Also, I suggest you try to bring a dude with you. You'll find that a lot of mechanics will try to rip you off, just because you are a clueless (not saying you are) woman who they can take advantage of for commision.

I can hold my own on brakes. But thanks for the advice! You're absolutely correct and I think this is solid advice for any female, unfortunately. I've been a motorhead since I was about 14 and actually began my automotive 'career' selling brakes and turning rotors in a parts shop. I was an expert at mixing paint (art background and excrutiating attention to detail helped.) I also ran the parts truck for awhile and worked in a spring and shock warehouse for awhile. I know nothing about computer-run vehicles, though. Mechanical issues I know well enough to not get taken advantage of.

 

AND it's a toss-up as to what I fix first. I've had a timing belt go in my old Prelude while i was driving it-that was NO fun and this one is due in like 2000 miles. But brakes-even though it's a FWD are a little bit important, too

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I'm SO glad you said that! I was thinking that yesterday and wondered if that was a dumb idea because i really still feel Honda> Hyndai, but the Hyundai's running and the Honda is worth more, even with a dead engine! The repairs will run about $1500 so anything I can get to defer that would be good.

 

My new friend who can fix cars def has lung cancer-they can't operate so he's due for radiation and chemo so I may just factor him out of all of this. Selling the Honda would also make the most sense in this area, too and i *just* got a flyer from my local Honda dealer about them buying used cars-they have 3 specific models they want running or not and mine tops the list. I'm going to go see what they'll give me for it.

 

This is the first thing in a very long time that's really gone my way. I SO lucked out on all of this; it could have cost so much more and been a much bigger hassle! I'm going to go with the notion that this will start the beginning of better things. THANKS for all the advice, I appreciate it! I don't think I would have bought this Hyundai without all the input here AND you've given me some good options for the future.

------------

 

My brother-in-law had stage 4 colon cancer. The doctors were pretty much telling him that he would last about 6 months without Chemo and maybe 2 years with it. I highly recommend that you stear your friend towards taking a de-wormer, that has been proven to kill cancer. My brother-in-law is now cancer free, and his doctors are in shock that it is gone. He didn't tell them that he was taking the de-wormer.

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