Auto Q & A
Auto Q & A
By: Dr. Wheels
Topics:
Posted by editor Thu Aug 10, 2006 16:19:14 PDT
Viewed 998 times
1 response 0 comments Dear Q & A: Somehow my windshield got badly cracked in my 1999 Toyota Camry and I need to have it replaced. I understand that I can get a good used windshield from an auto wrecking yard, so I called a couple, but they said they don’t install them. Is this a job I could do myself? It doesn’t look hard. The quotes I got on used ones were for $130 and $150.
- Marie
Dear Marie: Too much for a used windshield, especially if you then must have to arrange to have it installed by somebody else. It’s not do-it-yourself easy. Check your yellow pages under “glass, auto” or “auto windshield installation and repair.” Get a couple of quotes, with firm prices. Some shops offer mobile service, at your home or office location, for prices comparable to those at shops where you have to leave your car. Your particular windshield shouldn’t cost you much more than about $125 ($140 mobile service) and new, not used, installed. The job should take about an hour.
Dear Q & A: My cousin has totally bought into this 18,000 mile synthetic oil that’s being sold so hard in television commercials. Is it really good enough oil to not have to be changed for all those miles? It sure costs enough to make you believe it’s superior. What’s your opinion?
- B. A.
Dear BA: Think it through. Why do we change oil? Because it gets dirty. Tiny pieces of grit get sucked into the engine through even the best air filter and that dirt then circulates among all those highly polished engine parts and causes wear. The best oil in the world, synthetic or not, can’t make those tiny vandals disappear and the longer you leave your oil unchanged, the more dirt will collect in it to cause engine wear. If you change your oil every 3,000 miles, oil filter every 6,000, air filter every 10,000, and use an oil that’s clearly marked “API Service SJ, SL, SM,” in a viscosity the manufacturer recommends (usually 5W-30), your engine will love you for a long time.
Dear Q & A: My last car just died and I need a car pretty desperately. I’m basically living on Social Security. I don’t drive much (maybe 7,000 miles a year), but this is a semi-rural area without public transportation, so when I need to go anywhere, I don’t have options. I’ve got a chance to get a 1988 full size Chevrolet from a neighbor for 900 dollars. It runs great, has been cared for very carefully (oil changes and such), but it’s a V-8 305 cu. in., and the paint is flaking. My kids tell me, “Get a small car, that one’s too big, check the used car dealers.” Well, I did check, and cheapest I’ve seen are like $2,995 on the lots.
My feeling is that since I drive so little, I should jump at this chance to get a decent car at a price I can afford. What do you think?
- Pres.
Dear Pres: Flaking paint? Great. It’ll be very low on car thieves’ steal list. You’ve got the right idea about relative costs. Your kids are thinking about $3-plus gas, but you use so little of it that fuel is the least of your car-cost worries. Getting a car you know vs. getting some questionable back-of-the-lot vehicle is a no-brainer. Run the Chevy by your mechanic for a quick look-see and if he says it’s okay, go for it. Hey, you’ll already have saved two grand when you write your neighbor the check. Some numbers: A big Chevy gas cost for you, at 16 mpg, is about $1,443 per year. A little Ford Escort gas cost, at 23 mpg, is about $1,004/year. The difference is about $439/year or $36/month.
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