Trade in our keep as station car?

[slackerinabox]

I have a 2008 Saturn vue hybrid (exactly the same car as a chevy Captiva sport) that I actually do like quite a bit. It's served me honorable and still works, but now the problems are creeping up, and my wife's new gig deserves a new ride (I mean, it's a little embarrassing to be driving an extinct brand when she's a new manager there).

I'm definitely getting a new car but I'm having second thoughts on trading in the Vue. Here are my pros and cons:

Pros:
- It drives surprisingly well
- Great mpg - about 40 mixed
- I souped it up a bit with CarPlay and a backup cam/navigation.
- It's quite comfy for my humble needs (to be clear, we don't need 2 cars now, but possibly in unknown months when I'll be changing office locations myself from remote)

Cons:
- Seems to have a lot of rust under the chassis. I've been DIY patching up some minor dents and the loose rust that comes down when I say tapped a dent out was unusual

So my situation is clear - I *will* be getting a new daily driver for the mrs. I'm wondering if it's penny foolish pound smart to trade in for the abysmal $1000 offer when I'll most likely need a station car (basic) in a few months.

 

[DooKey]

You are going to need a second car in a few months so you need to figure out if the upkeep costs for the current hoopty it going to be cost effective versus buying another used car over time. Only you know what's wrong with the Vue so it's hard to make a good suggestion. However, I'd say keep the Vue and drive it until repair costs become too high. It gets good MPG and meets your needs.

 

[herm0016]

keep it for the second car. 1000 is laughable in todays market, you should be able to get 2k+ easy for anything that runs at this point.

 

[slackerinabox]

You are going to need a second car in a few months so you need to figure out if the upkeep costs for the current hoopty it going to be cost effective versus buying another used car over time. Only you know what's wrong with the Vue so it's hard to make a good suggestion. However, I'd say keep the Vue and drive it until repair costs become too high. It gets good MPG and meets your needs.

Sorry, I should have clarified:
- The "annoying" repairs are strictly of the wear and tear and yes annoying variety - rear hatched failed, rotors were on their last leg, the tires will need to go before winter. The positive part is that the parts are mad cheap - rear hatch? $25 and 1 hour of labor, so it's not like the tranny is failing

- IF I kept it I would surrender the plates and cancel insurance until I actually need it

- no check engine lights and my gas mpg calculations implies that even the hybrid system is functional

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I'd say all those items you cite in post #4 are either chump-change or just the replacement maintenance of owning a car . If you think you'll benefit from having a backup ride, I wouldn't take the loss for getting only $1,000 in the trade-in bargain. You can keep it in what we know in California as "no-op" status without registration or with registration for non-operation, thus avoiding the insurance and other costs. But when you think you might need it as a backup ride, even a few times per month, get it tagged and registered normally and pay the insurance premiums for it. For the insurance, you'll save a lot of money if you only cover liability for accidents you cause with damage to the other vehicle. If you are at fault for doing damage to your old ride, you would shoulder the repair bill or total the car and junk it. But for what it's worth in trade-in or the Kelly Blue Book, that's not putting a lot of assets at risk.

 

[slackerinabox]

Thanks for the feedback guys! I'm keeping the old horse because I simply can't replace it for less than $5k looking at ads. I'm actually really enjoying the ghetto body work - bond-o bumper repairs look great and white isn't all that difficult to paint match for "good enough" - so it's looking great for a car that old and I have a project to keep me busy.

I think I'll gift my dad the gizmos inside and slap a FOR SALE sign on it with zero pressure to move. If I can get $2,500 for it cool. If not I'll just hang on to it for a bit. The rust worries me the most, structural integrity concerns me when I'm dropping the little ones off to school (though I'm no engineer)

 

[herm0016]

if you cant replace it for less than 5 why sell it for 2500? any cheap car will need similar maintence items.

 

[slackerinabox]

if you cant replace it for less than 5 why sell it for 2500? any cheap car will need similar maintence items.

true, but with the rust my mechanic bitched about stripped bolts etc for simple brakes and maintenance. And ok I’m a sales guy, the tax benefits of donating (new plan, cousin suggested) and having a goal in my head for something humble but a little more city friendly like a civic after say 2 years will keep me motivated. I’m sanding and painting this weekend, my gut is that I’ll change my mind and drive it to the ground after I put more love into it. It’s weirdly capable on road trips and hella less stressful dents and bumps wise than driving something I actually care about. The amount of times I’ve had rear view mirrors ripped off the one time I’m in arush and forget to fold them…

 

[Scarpozzi]

I'd get under the car or put it on a lift somewhere and hit the rust with a wire brush....then get some rust converter and spray it good.

We have a van, SUV, and a truck. Having three vehicles is very handy when you have one breakdown. My 4Runner was actually acting up for a long time and I finally replaced the computer in it after diagnosing the issue. It just took me a long time to rule out everything else. It was nice being able to drive my truck when I needed to.