James Sweet said:You could try attaching a hose to the fuel pump input and sticking it in a
small cup of fuel, saw that trick once when we were trying to get an old
truck with contaminated gas tanks half full of 7 year old gasoline running.
If the rest of the car is in decent shape how hard could it be to get going?
Worst case you could drop in a whole new motor from a junkyard.
Economics decree otherwise, given how little these are worth nowadays
Economics decree otherwise, given how little these are worth nowadays, even
in mint condition... plus I'm busy with work etc., and it would cost an arm
and a leg to get a garage to do that much to it.
Unfortunately, it's just one of those things that once you get past a
certain point, aren't worth the aggro.
Who cares what it's worth...
unless you're trying to fix it up to sell it for a profit?
Stewart Hargrave said:From a point at sea, to the circles of your mind, this is JackH:
Can't agree.
*Because* they are worth so little, you can afford to spend money on
them.
I think of it as an investment (we're not talking tinny old
rust-bucket Ford here). If you can get your car running well, you will
have a strong, reliable, comfortable workhorse with the capacity to
last many years. When I bought my '87 740 five years ago it was the
oldest car I'd ever owned; it is now the car I've owned the longest
and shows no sign of giving up yet..
That depends entirely on where you are, if you parked it in front of myWhat is mine worth as it is, then?
114k, reasonably complete service history, clean in the body, seven seats,
good tyres etc.
Personal circumstances dictate I may have to offload it soonish, running
properly or otherwise, and I'd be looking for a quick sale.
James Sweet said:That depends entirely on where you are, if you parked it in front of my
house with a for sale sign and a price of $2700 it'd likely be gone in a
week, that mileage is almost ridiculously low for a car that age, complete
service records are rare to find, and it sounds like a solid car that's got
well over half it's life left in it, however where you are I know it's worth
considerably less, must just be a different mentality over there, and I
always thought americans had about the most disposeable lifestyle in the
world.
Hi James.
Here in the UK, older cars, especially big ones which aren't perhaps as fuel
efficient as others, tend to be worth bugger all when they get past a
certain age here... I suppose petrol must be the equivalent of $1 per litre
here, for one thing.
Here in the UK, older cars, especially big ones which aren't perhaps as fuel
efficient as others, tend to be worth bugger all when they get past a
certain age here... I suppose petrol must be the equivalent of $1 per litre
here, for one thing.
I do.
Ok, say I spend £600 fixing it as an extreme, and then I wrap it round a
tree tomorrow - I then either end up loaded up by claiming on the insurance
trying to recoup some of my losses, or I just accept the loss and try and
recoup money on some of the spares.
Either way, I've lost out, but more importantly I could go out and buy
something else in good running order for less than that, and not have a
seemingly unfathomable without buying loads of parts, frustrating mystery,
on my hands.
It may well cost hardly any more to fix, but given I'm £100 out of pocket so
far and its still running like shite, I'm not willing to throw more money at
it unless *someone* who knows what they are doing can just look at it and
say 'ah yes, it's "x", will cost "y", and we can have it ready for you on
"z", and I've heard too many horror stories involving problems like this
where even the main dealer can't fathom it out, but will still be charging
shedloads to determine this.
I'm trying to fix it up so I can use it, as I have a need for either a van
or estate asap - my normal plodder, Fiesta 1.8 Diesel, is fine for most the
time, but I really need something spacious for weekend family duties etc.
When I can go and buy a decent runner with tax and MOT for sub £500, I fail
to see the point in spending the same sort of money trying to fix this
one... it's already cost me over £100 trying to sort it this time, partly
due to bad advice, and partly due to the apparent obscurity of the problem,
and I've been here before in the past, throwing money willy nilly at a
problem and ending up no better off.
Having said all that, I agree they're a very well built car, and it deserves
to go back on the road - when I have driven it, up until it's given up the
ghost again, it's proven to be a very nice drive, which makes all this that
bit more frustrating!!!
As in my other post, say it gets written off the day after I've finally
fixed it, and at great cost... maintenance is something insurance companies
won't factor in with regards to a valuation of the vehicle.
just out of interest, what sort of MPG do you
get out of yours?
What is mine worth as it is, then?
114k, reasonably complete service history, clean in the body, seven seats,
good tyres etc.
I still don't understand why cars in general depreciate so much with age, to
me it's all about condition, a 20 year old car in excellent condition that's
been meticulously maintained is worth more than a 2 year old car that's
filthy and beat to hell, just seems like a no brainer.
Stewart Hargrave said:From a point at sea, to the circles of your mind, this is JackH:
It can be hard to say - condition is everything at this age. These
cars are so cheap that a good application of Turtle Wax can double the
price - and still be very little. You'll often see them in Loot or on
ebay for between 500 and a grand.
But it's low mileage, and if the bodywork shines and interior is clean
and unworn, then realistically maybe 1000ukp, if it was working OK. As
it's not, you could struggle to get more than a couple of hundred.
Remember, there are still plenty of these cars around, and one that
has a major fault will be passed by for a good 'un at not much more
money.
This probably hasn't cheered you up any.
--
Stewart Hargrave
I run on beans - laser beans