Should I repair my trade-in?

Hi: We have a 1997 Legacy Outback. It has been parked for the past few
months due to problems with it overheating. ( I start it & let it idle for 10
minutes every few weeks.)

It needs to have the knock sensor, water pump, timing belt replaced.
Estimate from Suby dealer is $1,063

I want to use this as a trade-in for a Saturn Vue. Which would bring me
the best return - trade it in 'As is' or fix it first? And no, I don't want to
go the Private Party route, too much hassle.

Thanks, Phil

 

Try posting this to alt.autos.subaru

 

Wow... And people bitch when they have to have their cylinder head
replaced for roughly the same price on a old sohc Saturn? I know
subaru's are a pain in the ass to work on but I think you can have that
work done for less elsewhere.

I highly recommend a 4cyl Vue or you'll be buying another engine that
has a timing belt, buried water pump, and is expensive to service.

They will tell him to fix it and forget the Vue, he wants a Vue not
repair help.

 

I looked at it more as a value question, as in will it be worth it to get
this fixed before trading it.

If he wants to get out of it, he would be far better off selling it himself
and buying a different vehicle. But, he doesn't want to do that.

Better you see what kind of trade they'll do for your broken Subaru than put
a bunch of money in repairs and then trade it.

Ken

 

Ya, I did post to both groups at the same time. But my main question was
what would give me the best overall payback for a trade in?

In researching used car values at several web site it seems the car has a
'Trade-in' value of about $3,100. (if it didn't have the water pump problem.)
As it is now I don't know if a dealer would give me anything...

 

Phil,

Why would you fix it for the dealer? If you fix it and trade it in and
you'll get your $3100 and be out the $1063 you spent fixing it, OR don't fix
it and trade it in, and you'll get your $3100 as long as you don't mention
the problem ...(or maybe more with a Saturn, as trade-in's are where Saturn
dealers with the "no-haggle" policy play the numbers game.) Rule of thumb
is you keep your mouth shut and get as much for the car as possible. Don't
worry about screwing the dealer over as if you haven't been screwed over by
a dealer (of any make car), you will be sooner or later. I traded in a '94
SL2 that wouldn't pass emissions and they gave me $1500 for it for my '06
Vue.

I also agree with Blah-blah about the 4 cyl, but a 5 speed if you can get to
like a manual. If you worry about mileage, it's pretty good (almost 28 hwy
on mine), but keep in mind that according to Saturn literature, the 4 cyl
automatic gets worse mileage than the 6 cyl. FWD. The worst mileage is the
6cyl AWD. I like the car so far (since 11/05) and have had no problems,
squeaks, or anything and I put 60 miles minimum a day on it.

Good Luck!!

Scott

 

IMHO unless it has a lot of other problems not mentioned, you should fix it
yourself for about $200. and keep it. This car has depreciated about as far
as it is going to and is now almost a free car. Gas prices are going to go
crazy this summer so we are all going to be driving a lot less. By the time
the dust settles you may want a car with a lot lower fuel consumption than a
Vue and you may want to keep the old Outback for a winter beater or for
those times when you really need a 4WD. The combination of an old 4WD for
winter and a super fuel efficient FWD for summer will give you lots of
options and redundancy and will make the FWD last years longer.

just my .02 YMMV

 

The normal rule is if you can drive it onto the lot then any mechanical
problems are the dealers problem.

They are probably going to tow it to a dealer auction anyway as they
probably do not want it on their own used lot as it is not a good mix with
what they are selling new. When I purchased our new Saturn cars the dealer
agreed to a trade in price sight unseen and when I gave them the keys when I
picked up the new car they did not even look at the old car and it was off
the lot to the auction that day. The one thing you can be sure of is that
they will not give you any more money after repairs. Because your trade is
worth more than mine was your dealer may do a walk around to count the
wheels and fenders but they are only checking for big problems.

YMMV

 

when you trade the car in you don't get anything for it. they just jack the
price up of the vehicle to compasate for the trade in value so you lose out
on it.best bet is to trade as is. no sense of losing more money than you
have too.