Should I repair or replace my car?

Well, second car now, was a 96 ford e 250, now a mercedes 240 d 1981 model. I have driven both without too much maintenance than the usual fluid, filter and thermostat change.

The mercedes has a few things that should be done and maybe stock stating they are 25 years old and have upwards to 400k miles on them. Timming chain and gears, 300 bucks, vacuum pump(which will destroy the timming chain when it fails) 300 bucks and the usual valve adjustment.

I am guessing about a grand to have that done at the dealer, as I cant do it and do not trust other mechanics to get it done. I know it can have other problems, all the fuses are melted, some rust and leaks here and there, low oil pressure at idle, oil leaking from head gasket. Just lucky I was able to get the ac working again with adding a 25 dollar can of freon.

So, what would you do at this point? Do you arrange to have this done to prevent a disaster down the road or look into getting an econobox like a toyota yaris and sell it privately to a mercedes nut and hope it doesnt break down?

If you divide out 1000 dollars by 6 months, that comes to 166 a month. Thats assuming I go the full term with no other problems like an alternator, starter, glow plugs, brakes, power steering, etc, etc.

A Yaris is est on the edmunds site at around 10-12 grand and the car I would look to buy after checking finanice options.

I am starting a second job making more money than my first job in a few weeks and thought that would be the best time to look into this. I know we have talked about used, but I am the guy who needs the extended warranty, if it can, it will break and paying a 5th or 4th the price of a new car that may have unwarrantied problems or general maintenance isnt worth it when I am only shopping for a car around ten grand.

Personally, I would buy a new car, but I drive A LOT and have already gone through 16 cars in 14 years... I also just got a 06 Ford Focus in Feb. BUT, I had never had a car with 400K miles on it either... SO, if I were you... I would fix the Mercedes, at the dealer, probably in reality spend $2000, and then look into a new car in 6 months when you are securely in your new job. Then you can sell your Mercedes with its, relativly new timing chain/gears, pump, valves... I say $2000 so you can also get the other stuff done. You will probably make the money back you spend now, fixing the car, then when you sell it.

edit:

Actually, I just realized you have a desiel... F the new car... Fix that beast and make it a Grease Car... :rock:

I would get a new (or one- to two-year old) Toyota. Toyotas have proven over the years to be the most reliable cars on the market. Over the coming years, a reliable, economical (could still be high performance) car will save you lots of time and money.

If it were just regular maintenance stuff and the car was in good shape, I'd do it. But stuff like melted fuses, low oil pressure makes me wonder. Even for a Mercedes 400K is a ton of miles. I'd try and get a good price for it, then get a '90s Corolla unless you're looking for something stylish.

Normally I'm a very pro-repair guy. I bought a '94 Grand Cherokee with 86K last year for $1000. It had been driven so little everything was original and needed replacing. I did the hatch struts, rear brake system, and transmission sensors right after I got it. Next week I'm going to do the front brake system, shocks, axle seals, U-joints, sway bar bushings, and tie rod boots. After that will be rear shocks and bushings and muffler. Then exhaust manifold, O2 sensor, and maybe the PS pump. And then...

Actually, it's less than it sounds, especially since I'm doing the work myself. It's all ~10 year interval stuff, and it should be good for another 10 years. But I'm only putting in all that work since it's cherry.

Since you asked I'm going to throw in my 2 cents. I priced your car at edmunds.com and trade-in value is $104 and private party value is $457. Since you've stated it has other problems and mercedes are very expensive to repair, I would suggest the new Yaris and the 3yr no worries on repairs. Plus depending on the amount of driving you do the Yaris will lower your fuel costs. Good Luck either way!

Oh, forget the tires. THe benz wont run well on cheap tires. THe wear bars are showing through. Whats that 600 bucks for 4 tires?

I have had two people offer me a thousand for it as is at work. Its billed as a million mile car, but lots of stuff makes me worry. I dont think the taxi cab design was ment to last 25 years before the million mile mark.

I commute 10 miles a day, 31mpg, but lots of little running around, getting lost, etc looking for a second job, helping my parents who live 57 miles a way one way, etc. I spend nearly 90 bucks a month in diesel at 2.79 a gallon. I spent a good 300 bucks for gas for my old van I had.

I use to work on my and dads car at home, but now I am limited to the advance auto parking lot and their house when I am in the area. Not allowed to work on a car in the parking lot where I live. Working two jobs wont give much time to do so either.

I just hate to start the cascade failure in motion that sometimes hits when you repair one thing, when 2 grand that cost to get it back running, yet still old and high millage could of been a fifth of the price of a new car.

Yeah, any small entry car with same of more fuel economy is fine with me. I wouldnt mind a diesel yaris, but I dont think they are available in the NA market. I may end up moving home to help my folks and commuting to work 57 miles one way before too long and I question the benz and really dont feel that secure when I am more than a few miles from home.

Check Craigslist for diesel MBZ's in your area. Around here they go for ridiculous prices($4k?). Could very easily be worth selling it as-is for considerably more than $1k. Good luck, bud.


:buddies:

any competant MB mechanic could do this....

an old trick of replacing ultra long MB timing chains without taking too much apart is to locate timing chain master link at top of cam. then split chain and splice new chain to old chain. then slowly pull thru new chain. when new chain is all the way thru. splice chain back together with master link taking care to keep cam in alighnment.

downside you can't see the gears which at 400K miles is wasted. but you would take out chain stretch. you don't need a MB chain, simply a double row chain w/correct number of links.

As was pointed several times in your prior requests for help. best solution is a LOW mileage vehicle. it's not too dificult to find older vehicles with low miles at reasonable price that gets 25 mpg. Mileage is way more important than age, if low maintence is your goal. it's very_dificult to find a low cost/low mileage new little car, like everyone is wanting...

a good place to list your 300D for sale is the desiel forums. folks are always looking for fixer upppers. it would get snapped up quickly at a decent price.

From your description, I would vote for giving up on the Mercedes...

I think you should dump the Mercedes. It is too expensive to maintain it. A corolla is much better than Yaris. Yaris has really weak engine. Yaris has great difficulty going up hill.

More I research it, seems the carolla comes in on top.

Wasnt aware the yaris was so underpowered, of course i drive a 240d mercedes and theyare widely known for being underpowered too.

From far as Ive read the yaris gives the same fuel economy as rated as its design is maxed out. The carolla uses a larger engine and the way you drive causes the fuel economy to vary more.

I guess the main thing is price. If I can get a yaris with just ac and manual tranny for 10grand, its a no brainer. I had someone tell me about the gm 0% deal and how he got a dae woo model, cant think of the chevy name for it, but it gets pretty good fueleconomy too.

cobb said:

More I research it, seems the carolla comes in on top.

Wasnt aware the yaris was so underpowered, of course i drive a 240d mercedes and theyare widely known for being underpowered too.

From far as Ive read the yaris gives the same fuel economy as rated as its design is maxed out. The carolla uses a larger engine and the way you drive causes the fuel economy to vary more.

I guess the main thing is price. If I can get a yaris with just ac and manual tranny for 10grand, its a no brainer. I had someone tell me about the gm 0% deal and how he got a dae woo model, cant think of the chevy name for it, but it gets pretty good fueleconomy too.

Click to expand...

There are serveral car web sites that test the yaris & corrolla. Yaris does well in fuel economy test on flat roads. However when the yaris has to travel on decent grade hill, it struggles hard to maintain same speed. Yaris will have difficulty moving an icy hill during the winter. Corolla has stronger engine to handle its weight without sacrificing fuel economy. Yaris also lacks decent sound insulation. This factor might be important to car buyers who are sensitive to noise.

The Corolla is also a very established design and cheap to work on.

Moore and moore I look at it, the carolla looks like also a good car to let my parents drive if we trade cars. I want to get the automatic model with cruse control, so dad could drive it without worry of shifting and cruse control for me to stay regulated at speed limits on highways.

Someway the yaris appeals to me as a modern version of the old geometro. I dont know why I have an attachment to that car, the xfi hatchback, but everyone I look at has a good 200k miles and barely runs. THe owner starts to jack up price as I talk to them about it and I just do not have the yard or time/money to upgrade it. Also an engine is hard to find too if I get a rebuilt one vs junkyard.

I am starting a new job in a few weeks that is sink or swim, I miss one day the next 18 weeks I am fired.

You really think the yaris is that under powered. Lets not forget my current car weights 3700 lbs with a 62hp peak diesel engine with no turbo. I dont mind it, just wish it had better throttle response. Noise is not an issue either.

I thought Id get the yaris for me to drive around, then drive my parents when needed in their car as they plan to always own a car in their later years. Seems cars have a limited life rather you spend 10grand or a new one or a few hundred thousands. For the most part 40mpg isnt bad compared to the price as many prius owners seem to get average of similar fuel economy for a much larger, car twice as much. Price seems 2 grand cheaper than Kia Rio and gets 8 mre mpg than that car.

About a year ago I was seeing Geo Metros for under $100 on Craigslist all the time. One needed an alternator, another needed a main seal, etc. Nothing too hard. I think the seal one was a '98 with low miles. Heck, a couple guys could probably yank that little Suzuki lawnmower engine out of there without a hoist.

Well, any endevador will take time and money, money from a new car and time from work.

Considering a new basic yaris is 10gs, you can easily hit a fifth or a fourth of that with parts, towing, transportation, work missed, etc.

I am getting ready to start a new second job with 18 weeks of mandatory attendance for training. So, if the benz conks out, I need to get my rear to work or call a rental car place.