This is why I drive an older car....

[warrior queen]

My car is 34. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles that come with modern vehicles - no electronic control, no push-button windows or climate control, no satnav....
It's a standard, basic automobile.

Which is why, after shearing off the cable that locks my auto gearbox into gear yesterday morning, I was able to simply remove the handle and selector guide from my gearstick, I was able to get my car going again - which I would not have been able to do in a more modern vehicle.

I did that. Me, female, non-mechanic type person.

Ok, so for the next couple of days I have to be super-aware that I have no safety between reverse and drive gears (DO NOT KNOCK GEARSTICK WHILE DRIVING!) but I am still mobile.
Repairs will cost me 20..... that's the cable cost, and a friend is doing the 1/2 hour work it will take to replace the part on Sunday

I like having a car I can save $300 in autoshop repair costs!

 

[warrior queen]

http://i1122.photobucket.com/albums/l521/fial68/Mobile%20Uploads/2015-10/20151016_112706_zpsngomvehj.jpg

This is my gear change atm....

 

[ms_ann_thrope]

Who needs airbags...

 

[JohnnySavage]

I have to put a new thermostat in my hoopty this weekend (because living in Communist MoCo, MD, we have to get our engines sniffed every year and mine failed).

They come in 180F or 200F models. I don't really understand the difference but the man at the store will tell me, I'm sure.

 

[bronzeage]

My car is 34. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles that come with modern vehicles - no electronic control, no push-button windows or climate control, no satnav....
It's a standard, basic automobile.

Which is why, after shearing off the cable that locks my auto gearbox into gear yesterday morning, I was able to simply remove the handle and selector guide from my gearstick, I was able to get my car going again - which I would not have been able to do in a more modern vehicle.

I did that. Me, female, non-mechanic type person.

Ok, so for the next couple of days I have to be super-aware that I have no safety between reverse and drive gears (DO NOT KNOCK GEARSTICK WHILE DRIVING!) but I am still mobile.
Repairs will cost me 20..... that's the cable cost, and a friend is doing the 1/2 hour work it will take to replace the part on Sunday

I like having a car I can save $300 in autoshop repair costs!

Geriatric car disease is a terrible thing.

 

[warrior queen]

Geriatric car disease is a terrible thing.

Lol
This car cost me $900.... with 4 new tyres and a year registration (meaning I paid zero for the car itself).
It has faithfully started every single day, has safely carried me about 100,000 km around the country, and has cost me less than 1/4 what a newer car costs in maintainence and upkeep over the same time-frame.
What's not to like?

 

[bronzeage]

I have to put a new thermostat in my hoopty this weekend (because living in Communist MoCo, MD, we have to get our engines sniffed every year and mine failed).

They come in 180F or 200F models. I don't really understand the difference but the man at the store will tell me, I'm sure.

He probably won't have a clue.

As a general rule, the engine control program is intended to give the best performance and lowest emissions at temperatures around 210F to 220. The radiator should be able to hold pressure up to 248F before steam forms in the cooling system. The thermostat only controls the minimum temperature.

Depending on how new your car is, the computer can detect if running temps are too low and set a fault code. That will make you fail the emissions test, even if the measured emissions are ok at the moment.

 

[smoothg103rd]

You need a new ride.

 

[JohnnySavage]

He probably won't have a clue.

As a general rule, the engine control program is intended to give the best performance and lowest emissions at temperatures around 210F to 220. The radiator should be able to hold pressure up to 248F before steam forms in the cooling system. The thermostat only controls the minimum temperature.

Depending on how new your car is, the computer can detect if running temps are too low and set a fault code. That will make you fail the emissions test, even if the measured emissions are ok at the moment.

So the 180F one?

 

[JohnnySavage]

I might get the oil changed as well. Might as well go all out. I think the last time the oil was changed was back in 2010.

 

[warrior queen]

I have to put a new thermostat in my hoopty this weekend (because living in Communist MoCo, MD, we have to get our engines sniffed every year and mine failed).

They come in 180F or 200F models. I don't really understand the difference but the man at the store will tell me, I'm sure.

I replaced the thermostat a few weeks ago.
$17-50, and I did it myself.
I need to do the oil pressure sensor..... bought it yesterday for $13-00 and it will take about 5 minutes....

Everything under the bonnet is easy to get to. I don't need to remove 23 things in order to do a 5 minute job.
I look at modern cars and cringe.

 

[bronzeage]

Lol
This car cost me $900.... with 4 new tyres and a year registration (meaning I paid zero for the car itself).
It has faithfully started every single day, has safely carried me about 100,000 km around the country, and has cost me less than 1/4 what a newer car costs in maintainence and upkeep over the same time-frame.
What's not to like?

It's a balancing act. A 1981 car does not have the elaborate computer controls found on a new car, but it still has them. What it also has is a 32 year old suspension bushings, timing chain, and the lot. That is where the simple older car will cost you.

 

[warrior queen]

You need a new ride.

No, I don't.
The value is going up.
The louvres alone are worth 3 times what I paid for the car

 

[warrior queen]

It's a balancing act. A 1981 car does not have the elaborate computer controls found on a new car, but it still has them. What it also has is a 32 year old suspension bushings, timing chain, and the lot. That is where the simple older car will cost you.

I have records that came with the car..... All the drive train, suspension, etc was fully redone 2 years before I bought it.
There is no computer management system in this vehicle.... it is not fuel-injected.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

I love a can-do attitude.



I remember years ago my friend and I got into an argument. He was seduced by the "it's just for the kids" argument on seat belts. He thought it was common sense to pass a law that kids had to be buckled in. I told him that he would be next and he thought that it was an idiotic idea that government would tell an adult what they had to do in their own car.



Guess who was right.

 

[smoothg103rd]

No, I don't.
The value is going up.
The louvres alone are worth 3 times what I paid for the car

That car is going to clunk out on you one day. Mines well junk it now.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

That car is going to clunk out on you one day. Mines well junk it now.

It should be dug up for scrap?

 

[Adre]

I hear you, but having just taken a 2000 mile road trip I'll choose mine over yours for comfort, safety, and speed.

 

[warrior queen]

That car is going to clunk out on you one day. Mines well junk it now.

In the time I've had this car, one of my friends has been through 3...
All hers were bought new.
She's blown engines in two and had a small bingle in the third which made the car a write-off! (And by small, I mean she was rear-ended at 50km/hour - and her car was written off because it would have cost too much to fix!)

 

[bronzeage]

I have records that came with the car..... All the drive train, suspension, etc was fully redone 2 years before I bought it.
There is no computer management system in this vehicle.... it is not fuel-injected.

I would be very surprised if you don't have electronic ignition with timing control. In the US, 1981 was the year computer controlled carburetor systems were used on every vehicle sold.

 

[warrior queen]

I hear you, but having just taken a 2000 mile road trip I'll choose mine over yours for comfort, safety, and speed.

My car still does 160km/hr if I put it flat out.
But why? Speed limits mean the most I can legally do is 110....
And honestly....the seats in this thing are so big and soft, it's like travelling in an armchair!

 

[thør]

I would be very surprised if you don't have electronic ignition with timing control. In the US, 1981 was the year computer controlled carburetor systems were used on every vehicle sold.

There were no computers in the carb systems for Toyota Land Cruisers sold in the US up until after the 1987 model year.

 

[warrior queen]

I would be very surprised if you don't have electronic ignition with timing control. In the US, 1981 was the year computer controlled carburetor systems were used on every vehicle sold.

Electronic ignition is not the same as having a computer that controls every single function of the car....
To replace my ignition system in total would still be a shitload cheaper than any modern car.

 

[Adre]

My car still does 160km/hr if I put it flat out.
But why? Speed limits mean the most I can legally do is 110....
And honestly....the seats in this thing are so big and soft, it's like travelling in an armchair!

If I wanted a plush armchair I'd stay home. I'm talking supportive for eight hours straight, punching the pedal and blowing past a long line of semis in seconds flat, and being able to survive a headon with a concrete abutment if necessary.

 

[warrior queen]

My Mum replaced her spare ignition key a few months ago. She drives a 2013 car.
The key cost her $230!
My key cost me $4.