Brother car shopping again?

[the Teuton]

I need some ideas. Apparently, my brother thinks his Taurus is falling apart -- which it very well may be -- and he's looking for a suitable replacement. He has a ton of crap that he hauls around, much of it being large musical instruments and giant Rubbermaid boxes. He also drives fairly long distances, and he'll be living in Connecticut in August, so gas mileage would be a good thing to worry about. Lastly, his car needs to be cheap and reliable, with an emphasis on cheap.

He has roughly $2,000 to play with, which is a lot for an Ohio beater. I can't think of anything out there to suitably replace his car. He already doesn't have enough space in his Taurus, and there aren't too many cars out there that are bigger. Halp!

PS Idea 1 from me: Nissan Pathfinder...except they rust and don't get great mileage.

[ifcar]

A midsize SUV won't have any more space than a Taurus wagon and decent minivans cost more than $2k. And EPA ratings of the Caprice/Roadmaster are somehow pretty close to the Taurus: 15/24 vs. 17/24.

[the Teuton]

Yeah...I don't know how I feel about recommending something like that. I think he should hold on to his Taurus.

[2o6]

Another Taurus/Sable.



Oddball: SWB Chrysler Van.

[ifcar]

Yeah...I don't know how I feel about recommending something like that. I think he should hold on to his Taurus.

How bad is its bad shape? It's, what, an 01ish?

[68_427]

A midsize SUV won't have any more space than a Taurus wagon and decent minivans cost more than $2k. And EPA ratings of the Caprice/Roadmaster are somehow pretty close to the Taurus: 15/24 vs. 17/24.

+1

[MX793]

Question is:  Will a $2000 Ohio beater meet all inspection criteria in Connecticut (assuming they have annual vehicle inspections for safety and emissions)?

[the Teuton]

Question is:  Will a $2000 Ohio beater meet all inspection criteria in Connecticut (assuming they have annual vehicle inspections for safety and emissions)?

The car will be registered in Ohio, so there should be no worries.

How bad is its bad shape? It's, what, an 01ish?

It's not terrible, just...old. The mechanic came back with a list of stuff wrong with it, but I've not yet seen the list. It could all just be little things, and he may be freaking out. It has really high mileage, though.

[ifcar]

What was your objection to the Caprice/Roadmaster/Custom Cruiser? Age, I guess?

[2o6]

What was your objection to the Caprice/Roadmaster/Custom Cruiser? Age, I guess?

1. There aren't many of them around here.

2. MPG's suck. (You will never reach those EPA ratings)

3. There are PLENTY of SWB (And LWB models) Caravans in this price range around here. Our 99 with 93K loaded with all the options was only 3K, and that was in 2006.

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/cto/1874585659.html

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/ctd/1873059233.html

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/ctd/1867920047.html

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/cto/1866207533.html

How bad is its bad shape? It's, what, an 01ish?

IIRC, Teutons bro bought the car with close to 200K miles. It's lasted quite some time, too.

[ifcar]

2. MPG's suck. (You will never reach those EPA ratings)

What do you know about real-world mileage of Taurus vs. Caprice?

3. There are PLENTY of SWB (And LWB models) Caravans in this price range around here. Our 99 with 93K loaded with all the options was only 3K, and that was in 2006.

And Caravan reliability sucks.

[Laconian]

The Caprice/Roadmaster are likely to appreciate in value thanks to the donk/bubble thang.

[2o6]

And Caravan reliability sucks.

3.0L's are the soft spot in the lineup, but the 3.3, 2.4 and 3.8 are pretty stout motors, especially the 3.3L. Transmissions are a bit of a weak spot, though.

The Caprice/Roadmaster are likely to appreciate in value thanks to the donk/bubble thang.

There are no Caprices left that aren't raised, donked, rodded, or ungodly expensive. Especially not wagons.


These are the only wagons I can find.

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/cto/1861907842.html

http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/cto/1844752237.html

[the Teuton]

He's not getting a Caprice. He's mentioned some soft roaders/crossovers, but I've informed him that his budget might not be up for it. He's worried about his car stuttering a little. I asked him what it was that was making the car do that -- the O2 sensor. I told him he'd fix that right up with just that little part. Am I wrong?

[ifcar]

He's not getting a Caprice. He's mentioned some soft roaders/crossovers, but I've informed him that his budget might not be up for it. He's worried about his car stuttering a little. I asked him what it was that was making the car do that -- the O2 sensor. I told him he'd fix that right up with just that little part. Am I wrong?

There's no $2,000 SUV with halfway-decent mileage that will meet his cargo space requirement of more-than-Taurus, and many gas guzzlers that will leave him with less room. Does he maybe just want something different?

[the Teuton]

There's no $2,000 SUV with halfway-decent mileage that will meet his cargo space requirement of more-than-Taurus, and many gas guzzlers that will leave him with less room. Does he maybe just want something different?

He just wants something that won't break down on the way to Connecticut, which his car won't...I think he's worrying about this a bit too much. I'mma get the list of "needed" repairs sometime tonight from him. I bet the only thing pending is that o2 sensor bit.

[ifcar]

He just wants something that won't break down on the way to Connecticut, which his car won't...I think he's worrying about this a bit too much. I'mma get the list of "needed" repairs sometime tonight from him. I bet the only thing pending is that o2 sensor bit.

Well, any car might, especially something bought for $2,000.

[the Teuton]

Well, any car might, especially something bought for $2,000.

We'll see. All things considered, he takes incredibly good care of that car. It has the Vulcan V6. That engine is nearly indestructible, and he's gotten as much as 31 mpg out of it on the highway.

[GoCougs]

$2,000 budget pretty much precludes any selection criteria - MPG, miles, brand, model, type, etc. He'll have to jump on the the car in the best shape/lowest miles whether it's an '89 Caprice, '92 F-150 or '96 Corolla.

[Laconian]

$2,000 budget pretty much precludes any selection criteria - MPG, miles, brand, model, type, etc. He'll have to jump on the the car in the best shape/lowest miles whether it's an '89 Caprice, '92 F-150 or '96 Corolla.

I think you do have some wiggle room with regard to very broad criteria (sedan OR truck OR coupe etc.) but yeah, pretty much.

[the Teuton]

Wow, you guys suck. I wanted a mid-1990s-2000s economy car with less than 144k miles on it (what my Subaru had) in decent shape with a manual transmission. And with the exception of a few small niggles, I landed what exactly I wanted for $800 -- less money than I was planning on spending. 11,000 miles later, it's doing all right for itself now after some, erm, niggles.

You can have your oil-burning, brake-killing, muffler-less cake and eat it, too.

[BimmerM3]

Wow, you guys suck. I wanted a mid-1990s-2000s economy car with less than 144k miles on it (what my Subaru had) in decent shape with a manual transmission. And with the exception of a few small niggles, I landed what exactly I wanted for $800 -- less money than I was planning on spending. 11,000 miles later, it's doing all right for itself now after some, erm, niggles.

You can have your oil-burning, brake-killing, muffler-less cake and eat it, too.

What the fuck?

[2o6]

Wow, you guys suck. I wanted a mid-1990s-2000s economy car with less than 144k miles on it (what my Subaru had) in decent shape with a manual transmission. And with the exception of a few small niggles, I landed what exactly I wanted for $800 -- less money than I was planning on spending. 11,000 miles later, it's doing all right for itself now after some, erm, niggles.

You can have your oil-burning, brake-killing, muffler-less cake and eat it, too.

+1.


My car was 1/2 the budget, and I had a lot of choices.

[ifcar]

Neither of you had the more-cargo-space-than-Taurus requirement. That's the killer.

[2o6]

Neither of you had the more-cargo-space-than-Taurus requirement. That's the killer.

I suppose. However, the market at that time (Pre 00') was pretty limited aside from a Van.

[sportyaccordy]

Why the fuck does he need so much cargo space... and does he need it all the time?

He should get something regular sized w/a decent motor and a trailer hitch. Rent a U haul trailer when u gotta haul shit. Otherwise, suffer with something like a Chevy Astro.

[hotrodalex]

I think you do have some wiggle room with regard to very broad criteria (sedan OR truck OR coupe etc.) but yeah, pretty much.

Do remember that you and Cougs are on the opposite side of the country. Used cars in Ohio run pretty cheap.