Should I keep my car until it’s not useable or just sell it for what I can get?

Posted by Tricky_Tilnel@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 33 comments

Hello!

I have a 2016 Ford Explorer (Police Interceptor) that I got back in 2021.

It has no console in it, 140k miles, and works great as a daily driver. I WFH and just use it for errands so I drive it around 5-6 times a month.

Recently I needed to get the coolant hoses replaced which costed me about 1k. It got me to think whether I should sell it soon or just ride it out until it dies. Even if I did sell it, not sure how much it would get me since it’s older. Runs fine though.

Any thoughts or suggestions on this?

Thank you!

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Crowlady77@reddit

It’s almost always cheaper to drive the car you have until something major blows. Buying another car is just very expensive.

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Equana@reddit

$1000 is two car payments. Two. A paid off car that fits your needs is worth keeping.

Keep it until a major component like and engine or transmission fails, then scrap it.

I am still driving a 2004 SUV with 158K on it. Rust will eventually kill it but for now it costs me less than $1000 a year.

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Infamous-Mousse-4181@reddit

$1000 is two car payments. Two.

Only depends on what you have

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Tricky_Tilnel@reddit (OP)

Yeah that’s fair! I should have mentioned that my partner has a car as well.

I think I will just keep it til it’s scrap then, I appreciate all the responses from everyone and will be a lot more careful on mechanic prices.

(definitely not going back to the one I went to after hearing this 😭)

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Equana@reddit

So you have a backup... Excellent!

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jrileyy229@reddit

Don't go back to that shop

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Tricky_Tilnel@reddit (OP)

I won’t! Sucks I got jipped (they had some amazing reviews and are a local shop) so I’m a bit surprised but I won’t go back and will do better research going forward

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Educational_Fox6899@reddit

Maybe research what they actually did on explorer forums. You may have been ripped off or not. Might make you feel better or worse lol. FYI don’t know anything about working on explorers. I think most here are assuming you paid $1k to replace a $20 hose, but there can be a lot more to coolant lines than just that. As a BMW owner believe me I know.

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SpaceCat72@reddit

I see alot of that. You aren't alone. Alot of formerly reputable shops are stooping to scamming their customers. Keep it and keep rolling. The new stuff is trouble

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Aggressive_Ask89144@reddit

1K for some pieces of rubber and clamps is genuinely diabolical. The name brand hoses are 20 bucks 😭

But yes, keep it till it blows up. A small, very expected ticket item for a decade old car is a big difference from suffering in dealerships being hunted by car salesman hounds, paying all of this money for an often worse quality vehicle and twice the cost in insurance.

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Tricky_Tilnel@reddit (OP)

Good to know, I honestly wasn’t too sure about the price as well but I definitely should have checked other places for reference. So that’s on me for sure

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Boopped_Snoot@reddit

The part is $93.76 from my local Ford dealers website (free shipping included) looks like you can get the dorman brand (reputable company) for 37.40.

It looks like it might use those crappy one-time clamps so throw in another $15 for some high quality band clamps.

You said the upper hose so I really shouldn't lose any coolant but it looks like it holds 2 gallons so add another $40 If you wanted to include a coolant flush which would actually be a pretty reasonable thing to do with that mileage.

All in worst case scenario less than $200 in Parts and about 30 minutes of labor for a competent mechanic.

If they did a proper coolant flush and everything I wouldn't be mad about paying $500 but $1,000 is probably more than the dealership would have charged.

There really aren't any easier modern cars to work on than what you got since what you've got was built to be a fleet vehicle that gets used and abused. Learning to be a little handy really would be a good idea. You would save an absolute ton of money plus The knowledge and confidence you would gain would definitely Help prevent you from getting ripped off by mechanics in the future.

This job would have been really safe to learn on and only cost about $100 and an hour of your time if you decided to do it yourself. You'd also probably feel really proud of yourself for saving $900.

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ly5ergic@reddit

What is a 1 time clamp?

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Aggressive_Ask89144@reddit

Yeah, shops love rinsing people for cooling. Hoses aren't really that intensive either as they come already pre-cut and molded and you can just take off the old ones, probably flush the system while you're at it, and secure the new ones. Hell, it's just the clamp half of the time and the hose is still intact.

I always watch Dr. Youtube for everything. I'm far from a master mechanic, but they make same cars and most things are just held on by a little bolt anyway. The hardest part is usually just contouring into there.

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samsly135@reddit

If Id own one, I'd probably invest and drive. Love the car. But you drove it for 5 years and could have annoyed by it. Console is convenient, but doesn't influence anything. Maybe your model can be extended with some aftermarket carplay.

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medic-pepper@reddit

How far is your office from you? As well as how far are your errands? Because sharing one car and having a E-Bike or something is a possibility if you are close enough. Could also Uber.

Since you don't need it a ton, mileage and efficiency aren't really a big issue. if you decide that having a car for you is still needed, I'd keep the interceptor. Parts are plentiful and insurance should be pretty cheap.

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CompetitiveLab2056@reddit

$1k for coolant hoses☠️ Please don’t go back to that shop: they robbed you

Keep the car

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JohnnyPneumoniacJr@reddit

OP oughta put the cop lights back on, and go shake down that shop right back asap 💀

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RumWalker@reddit

Can you afford a new car? Do you want a new car? Those are pretty much the only questions that matter. Mathematically, getting rid of a paid off car because of a $1k bill is a bad decision when a newer vehicle is going to cost you $25-50k+, but most people don't live on math alone. Do what you feel.

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Tricky_Tilnel@reddit (OP)

I should have mentioned that I would just end up sharing the car my fiancé has. I only need to go into the office about once a month so I wouldn’t need to drive much other than that!

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JohnnyPneumoniacJr@reddit

I personally don't mind having 1 car to share, its inconvenient however not "one years insurance" kinda hassle lol. Maintenance is maintenance but if its overall an expense you dont need, let that be your deciding factor. Unless the thing is costing like 2k/year for a few years in a row to keep alive lol (aside from gas, insurance etc!)

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RealCanadianMonkey@reddit

"It's got a cop motor, a 440 cubic inch plant. It's got cop tires, cop suspensions, cop shocks. It's a model made before catalytic converters so it'll run good on regular gas."

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DenseCow7560@reddit

Is it the new bluesmobile or what?

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RealCanadianMonkey@reddit

Fix the cigarette lighter.

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Dependent_Ad_1270@reddit

I think they’ll understand that’s not accurate

You could tell them instead of being sarcastic

Would’ve taken the same amount of time

Could have the satisfaction of being right and helping someone

Sarcasm is fun tho i get it

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RealCanadianMonkey@reddit

I guess you didn't get the reference.

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SeniorHovercraft1817@reddit

Drive it until the wheels fall off.

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EmbarrassedEmu469@reddit

if you only drive 5-6 times a month I would counter with maybe you should just uber and not have a car at all. If that doesn't mesh with your lifestyle or location then keep driving it, the math should be fairly obvious. It's the smarter way to go.

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varrengale@reddit

Since you say you have access to another car anyways absolutely keep it. Working on your own rig is a valuable skill to have just in case, and there's no vehicle better to learn on than the one you don't have to use for work in the morning.

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Cool-Negotiation7662@reddit

Fixing "old car" problems on a good running vehicle with a good body is usually substantially less than a new or newer car.

Rubber parts go bad from age. Sensors, ignition, and more. Fix it and keep going. Learning how to do easier things keeps costs down.

You need to evaluate what you want and need, vs the costs of keeping or replacing.

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