When to call it quits on a vehicle..

[def90]

So... I have a 2006 Dodge Dakota that I bought used, had been previously owned by a small town maintenance dept in Southern Colorado. Had clutch rebuilt a year ago November, paid somewhere around $1800. This past August the clutch went again, the repair shop said that the pilot bearing sleeve was shot and that a replacement part wasn't available so they had a machine shop make a new sleeve, repair was around $1800. End of November had a vibration in the front, thought it was a wheel bearing as I had one replaced before under similar circumstances about a year and a half ago, at that time they notified me that my front suspension was shot and needed ball joints, tie rod ends, bushings and so on, I skipped on those repairs for the time being, well the shop this time says that the suspension parts are the source of the vibration so I rebuild the front end, another $2800. Now this week my clutch goes again, this time it's the slave cylinder. They get it in the shop and confirm the slave cylinder in their words destroyed itself and let shards of plastic and metal go in the transmission housing, guy says he fished most of it out via a magnet but recommended pulling the transmission to get the rest of the pieces. Well they pull the transmission and are telling my that the pilot bearing sleeve is shot as well as I need the clutch rebuilt again as well as u-joints.. price right now is $1300 just to get it put back together with a new slave cylinder with no other work just to get it on the road.

Problem is my payoff balance is $3100..

At what point do you walk away?

I have $4600 in it from the last 4 months, need to put another $1300 in to it just to get it back to driving condition for who knows how long, I'm guessing the shop wants another $2800 to do everything they say it needs.

Do I just say fuck it, pay off the $3100 which puts me at $7700 in to the thing and just walk away and get a new truck? Or suck it up, spend the additional $2800 or whatever and hope I get another 6 months out of it?

[Martinjmpr]

That's a tough call but I'd vote for "stop throwing good money after bad." Pay off the loan and see if you can sell what's left for parts. From its history it seems that this thing is only going to cost you more money the longer you keep it.

In the past when I've had to finance an older vehicle, I've always tried to pay them off as quickly as possible, especially if they were older, so I would never find myself in the situation you're in: Owing money on a vehicle that needs costly repairs.

And next time you buy a vehicle - see if you can pay cash and have no payment.

[Jer]

That's a tough call but I'd vote for "stop throwing good money after bad." Pay off the loan and see if you can sell what's left for parts. From its history it seems that this thing is only going to cost you more money the longer you keep it.

In the past when I've had to finance an older vehicle, I've always tried to pay them off as quickly as possible, especially if they were older, so I would never find myself in the situation you're in: Owing money on a vehicle that needs costly repairs.

And next time you buy a vehicle - see if you can pay cash and have no payment.

The last sentence of this post is the most important in this entire thread. Car payments serve only to make the entity lending the money a profit on your dime. There's reason why people who are financially independent don't drive new cars as they're building their wealth.

Save, pay cash, save more, buy a little better with cash when you can afford it and need to. I see stories all the time of people with aging cars that need large repairs and still owe boat loads of money on them and I cringe. They don't think of what could (and likely will) happen down the road and only want that instant gratification of a new (even if just new to you) car. They do all sorts of mental gymnastics to figure out how to get the monthly payment to fit their income and this is the absolute wrong way to go about vehicle purchasing and why sales people work so hard to get you focused only on the monthly number... it's how they make the most profit. Who do you think pays for that profit?

Don't worry about "rebuilding" your damaged credit either. Better credit only allows you to make larger foolish decisions. Never finance a depreciating liability. The goal is to get to the point where you don't need credit anyway so who cares what your credit score is? I sure don't and haven't since about the same yours took a hit from what you've said. I was doing things all wrong and was "investing" on real estate and other things I was duped into thinking was a good idea. I "needed" good credit so I could finance a dozen properties and then make profit on them later so the amount I paid to the banks in interest didn't matter, right? Boy was I wrong.

Lending institutions have successfully convinced society that it's just the thing to do: get a credit card, get a car payment, get other debts including a mortgage and then live paycheck to paycheck barely getting buy to give them a massive chunk of our income to borrow against depreciating liabilities. What a scam and it's the reason everyone is so far in debt in this country. Sadly, our economy would topple w/o the reckless and blind spending though since we don't actually produce anything but that's a conversation for another topic.

If it were me I'd do whatever it took to pay that loan off and narrow it down to one vehicle for everything. Sell it for scrap, part it out and possibly sell the other vehicle too. The goal is to pay off the loan and then have some cash to buy whatever will get you buy for ALL of your needs right now. Notice I didn't say "Put a down payment on a new mistake" I said to buy. This is a rare concept these days since so many want to "finance" and then pretend it's buying.

You may not be taking what I'm saying as constructive criticism and might think me a prick with the things I say but you aren't in a position to be owning two vehicles. That's just doubling down on the depreciation and loss you're realizing over the years.

I say all of this not to pick on you or single you out but sometimes in life we need someone willing to tell us what we need to hear instead of what we want to hear. I really do wish someone had told me many years ago this same stuff which I, too, had to learn the hard way. My god what I would have done differently in terms of financial decisions armed with the knowledge of the subject I have now.

[ray1970]

It isn?t any of my business but how are you still making payments on a fourteen year old vehicle?

[def90]

It isn?t any of my business but how are you still making payments on a fourteen year old vehicle?

Bought it used, I've had it a couple years, have 1 year left on loan. I also had shitty credit at the time I purchased due to the housing crash in '08 so interest rate sucked.

[20X11]

I think you need a new mechanic.

[def90]

I think you need a new mechanic.

4 different mechanics.. I've lived in Boulder for 19 years and have yet to find a mechanic I trust.. Then again my other vehicle 2002 Jeep Wrangler has only had to go in the shop once in which I took it to the dealer. This truck is turning in to a money pit. ANyone know of a good shop in Boulder?

[Mtneer]

4 different mechanics.. I've lived in Boulder for 19 years and have yet to find a mechanic I trust.

Mountain Auto Repair in NoBo has been good for us on the F-150 over many years. If you had a Toyota, Charlies would be the hands-down choice.

[Martinjmpr]

4 different mechanics.. I've lived in Boulder for 19 years and have yet to find a mechanic I trust.. Then again my other vehicle 2002 Jeep Wrangler has only had to go in the shop once in which I took it to the dealer. This truck is turning in to a money pit. ANyone know of a good shop in Boulder?

Wait, you have another vehicle? Then definitely dump that lemon and be done with it. Save your $$ for something better and drive the Jeep in the meantime.

[def90]

Wait, you have another vehicle? Then definitely dump that lemon and be done with it. Save your $$ for something better and drive the Jeep in the meantime.

Yeah, I'm an electrical contractor and the Dodge is my business/work truck loaded up with my tools and equipment.. The Jeep is my personal vehicle which has been paid off off years, don't want to load it up with all my stuff though. Either way I'm leaning towards walking away from the Dodge.