Car Saga: Part Tow (Two)
Is 2007 going to be the year of car repairs and bad repair choices? As a reminder, we own three cars – the newest (9 years old) is my two-door stick-shift car in decent shape, next is an older two-door sports utility vehicle (purchased for $5.00) in poor shape, and an older model utility van in poor shape. December 2006 gave us a frozen, busted water pump on the car ($400 with the tow). January gave us rusted and blown brake lines on the van ($530 with tow). And there is more on the horizon; we’re just waiting for it.
We’re perched on that slippery slope of never-ending repairs I’ve seen time and again with older cars. Cars die at some point and need replaced, unfortunately, we’re at that point with 2.5 of the 3 vehicles (my car is in good shape, but has crested that hill). Neither the van nor the SUV are in good shape and both honestly need replacing.
The van needs new tires and that is going to hurt too – more money for a hobbling along vehicle. We really don’t want to fork out any money for a new (used) car until we’ve bought a house and can get a good replacement. Current plan of action is to let the SUV die when it does and keep patching the van up as needed, easier said when the van isn’t eating dollars. Maybe I can convince the partner to get some new used tires to save some pennies, but, even if the van dies, we should be able to sell the tires and get some money back.
Each vehicle has more than 100K miles; my car will be crossing the 140K mark this month. Each vehicle is owned outright, which is a beautiful feeling (mapgirl agrees). But each vehicle is leaving me with a nag of worry at what next week, next month will bring.
Oh and that turned down AAA program is looking pretty good right now. Each tow is running about $60 and I’m thinking this year might be the one we need to use their service (normally I’m opposed to such services). Or, I wonder if our tow company has a frequent tower program instead?
bluntmoney
January 22nd, 2007 18:17
Does your car insurance offer towing? Sometimes that’s available. (We recently found out it was included with our insurance, but we do have full coverage so that may be a factor.)
3 Things About Money
January 23rd, 2007 07:43
I am a fan of AAA, because I drive a broke-down car. It makes sense then. I usually don’t subscribe when I am driving a new car but with this one…I am happiest when I am sitting in the car that skidded into the ditch because I was too broke to buy snow tires and I am making the call to AAA. My sympathies to you on car-fu. My car is heading into the “major things go wrong” phase and I am dreading it.
Dorky Dad
January 23rd, 2007 12:59
I’ve got a AAA Plus membership which, if I remember correctly, costs just under $100 per year. I drive a ’96 Explorer with over 150k miles, and it’s good for at least one tow per year. If 2.5 out of your 3 vehicles need to be replaced, AAA membership is a no-brainer.
And AAA offers a lot of other benefits aside from towing, like a Visa card with 5% cash back on gas, 5% off Barnes&Noble.com and OfficeMax.com, and 10% off Target.com and Circuit City (purchases of $199 or more).
Jerry
January 23rd, 2007 14:11
A quick suggestion on getting a set of tires – check the local junkyard /salvage yard / craigslist / ebay. You can get a decent set of tires for $50-$100 a set.