Now that LittleGolem has her license

"CalzoneGolem" (calzonegolem)
05/22/2019 at 08:59 • Filed to: cars I might buy my daughter

It’s time to get serious about car buying. We’re going to take cash out of savings because when a nice car lands it goes fast.

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I’m leaning to wards Impala. MrsGolem is leaning towards the Sable. The Sable is blue so LittleGolem will love it.

DISCUSSION (49)

functionoverfashion > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:20

So it seems the 4-door coupe trend started in 2003 with the Echo?

But seriously, the Sable looks like a decent choice.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:22

Restraining myself to only offer suggestions within bounds, I recommend the Sable - because it’s a dead brand. Okay, not just that, but premium trim and low miles.

fhrblig > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:25

I vote for the Impala. I had the 80s equivalent when I was in high school (Celebrity) and it was perfect. Relatively big, safe, and reliable in the face of teenage neglect. I had it for seven years.

CalzoneGolem > functionoverfashion
05/22/2019 at 09:26

The Tau rus comes with studded tires which might be nice for her first winter of driving.

CalzoneGolem > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
05/22/2019 at 09:27

Please don’t restrain yourself.

CalzoneGolem > fhrblig
05/22/2019 at 09:28

GM can sure make a car the stays on the road in the face of neglect.

Cash Rewards > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:35

159k on the cop car, but double that for idle time

functionoverfashion > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:42

Ooh that is a bonus.

CalzoneGolem > Cash Rewards
05/22/2019 at 09:42

Maybe, but yeah that’s a good assumption.

WildlyMild > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:48

Sable looks to be starting to rust and at that mileage it’ll likely need work soon’ ish. Taurus could use some body panels; maybe it was a different kids first car. But i’d ask if transmission or heatercore and tube assembly have been done. Echo recently had water pump replaced so maybe previously overheated?

I vote impala. Steelies with hubcaps are a bonus. Inquire about coolant tubes if 3.8 and intake gaskets. Should be easy enough to maintain in the driveway.

MiniGTI - now with XJ6 > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:49

I second the impala. Rest are crap cans

punkgoose17 > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 09:56

All good choices. The Taurus seems like the logical choice, but the Sable seems to be in the nicest condition and hopefully that would encourage little Golem to take good care of it.

ttyymmnn > Cash Rewards
05/22/2019 at 10:06

Idle time with the AC running.

WilliamsSW > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:09

Cop motor, cop tires, cop suspension, cop shocks.

nermal > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:09

Why don’t you give them your current car, then go buy a new GT350 or Power Wagon for yourself?

CalzoneGolem > punkgoose17
05/22/2019 at 10:10

I feel like it being blue will help her bond with it and that’s important for a first car as it’ll affect how she p er c ei ves cars going forward.

CalzoneGolem > nermal
05/22/2019 at 10:12

Sorry, Forest is my forever car and MrsGolem doesn’t want to give up her Soul.

CalzoneGolem > WilliamsSW
05/22/2019 at 10:13

I better not find half a pack of cigarettes in there.

WilliamsSW > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:14

“ fix the cigarette lighter"

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:17

First gen focus

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:20

JAGUAR XJS LOLOLOL

Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:21

Impala, hands down.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:27

That sable seems like the one most likely to have some time before that final trip to the great dustbin in the sky of disposable Detroit cars. Like the Taurus, it’s already pre- dented.

At casual glance, it seems like Maine has some deals on used cars for less than 5 grand, but as one hailing from a land wh ence cars never rust, I’m sure there’s a reason for that.

merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:28

Impala all the way. Those Taurus/sables of that vintage lose their rockers from the b pillar back and you don’t see it until it gets bad enough the cladding falls off. No thank you.

We’ve had a few impalas through our shop with over 200k and still going strong.

MoCamino > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:28

We have a 2001 Echo. It has 340k miles on it. The only major issue we’ve ever had was when the A/C compressor died - twice. (The compressor on these is small , and frankly never really worked that well.) That may not be a big deal in Maine, though. :) It’s finally starting to have a slight slip in the tranny, so it may be about done. But still - over 300k miles on ours, so the one you have listed above could have a lot of miles left.

Full disclosure - there is no driving excitement in an Echo. None. It had right about 100hp from the factory. While it will knock down close to 40mpg on the highway, they will not be sporty, fun miles. This car is an appliance. A toaster. I will say we’ve never had problems with the water pump, so if the one you listed has had overheating problems, I can’t speak to that.

Edit - I forgot to mention the catalytic converter. We had to replace ours somewhere around 180k miles. It wasn’t a cheap cat! I was able to find relatively inexpensive O2 sensors on the aftermarket. Believe it or not, you have to pull the front passenger seat to replace the rear O2 sensor because of how the cable is routed.

CalzoneGolem > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
05/22/2019 at 10:29

Yeah you gotta look underneath before you declare it a deal haha.

CalzoneGolem > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
05/22/2019 at 10:30

Maybe if I could find one that the rear suspension hasn’t rusted into one piece.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:36

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/csw/ctd/d/montrose-2002-ford-focus-zx3-5-spd/6887698440.html

Nibby > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:40

https://maine.craigslist.org/cto/d/paris-like-new-mercedes/6874788725.html

shop-teacher > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:53

And doesn’t have holes in the rocker panels.

shop-teacher > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 10:55

I vote for whichever one is solid underneath.

CalzoneGolem > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
05/22/2019 at 11:00

Not even an add? C ome on! I expect more from you .

CalzoneGolem > shop-teacher
05/22/2019 at 11:01

This guy salts.

CalzoneGolem > MoCamino
05/22/2019 at 11:03

Wow that’s weird about the o2 sensor. I don’t think I’d reasonably be able to convince my wife the Echo was the right choice.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 11:05

https://nh.craigslist.org/cto/d/concord-84-vw-rabbit-16/6880151145.html

How much do you like the kid?

CalzoneGolem > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
05/22/2019 at 11:07

More than enough to not put in that.

p.s. I love your blinker in your avatar.

Ilike_cougars > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 11:28

You could save a little more and look for something newer in the 4K range? Probably more fuel efficient and will be spending less on gas in the long run, if you need to pay for gas? and not to mention a little more safer maybe?

MoCamino > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 11:30

It wasn’t hard, it just surprised me.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 11:31

Think of it this way- they’ll never go fast enough to get hurt in a single-car crash, and if they’re paying for maintenance, they’ll always be too broke to do drugs, as teens are wont to do.

And thanks! My phone made the .gif for me, I thought it was cool

CalzoneGolem > MoCamino
05/22/2019 at 11:42

That’s pretty bizarre.

shop-teacher > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 11:43

Yep!

My next door neighbors are a lovely retired couple, who rent out their basement to medical students. One who was living there several years ago, had a first gen Focus with big holes in the rocker panels. As my wife and I were walking past this young girl’s car, I told my wife, “You know, I would never in a million years buy my child a new car, but I’ll be damned if I let her drive around in a rusty piece of shit like this. That fucker will wad up like a beer can in an accident.”

For Sweden > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 11:48

I gotchu fam: https://maine.craigslist.org/cto/d/washington-2004-volvo-s80/6890697892.html

Kinja'd!!!

CalzoneGolem > For Sweden
05/22/2019 at 11:53

A bit out of our budget also:

Needs tires, ebrake, window and fuel leak to be fixed for a sticker

For Sweden > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 12:17

Look, do you want your child to learn how to wrench or not?

MoCamino > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 12:35

Yeah, the front sensor hits the wiring harness essentially at the base of the engine compartment, at the bottom of the firewall. (Right where you would expect.) Rather than follow the tunnel to the front of the car and hit the harness in the same spot, the connector for the rear sensor goes through a bung in the floor and hits the harness near the floor shifter. The easiest way to get to the connector is to remove the passenger seat. I guess the engineers had to make some choices with such a small car. All I can figure is that they had issues with the wiring getting too hot if it followed close to the exhaust pipe too far.

CalzoneGolem > MoCamino
05/22/2019 at 12:42

Well they did a good job packaging these are so roomy for being such a tiny car.

CalzoneGolem > For Sweden
05/22/2019 at 12:43

That’s what Rat-L-Trap is for.

Cash Rewards > ttyymmnn
05/22/2019 at 12:45

And a host of electronics straining the system

MoCamino > CalzoneGolem
05/22/2019 at 13:05

They really are. I can’t complain about them. Ours has been a great car.