A few months ago I had to replace the starter on my car. It was a moderately priced repair when all was said and done. My car is well taken care of, but as it ages things start to go. This morning I couldn’t get my car to start. My mechanic came by (you’ve gotta love small towns), took a look and was able to determine that it wasn’t the starter (which I had already surmised). So I paid the money to have my car towed to the shop and they will take a look at it (hopefully tomorrow morning). The challenge that I’m facing is that I believe there’s a point beyond which it’s not wise to continue pouring money into an old car, but I don’t think that I drive enough to justifying buying something that would require a car payment (and higher insurance). I suppose that I could buy something in between, but I don’t think that I could find anything for a reasonable price that would require significantly less “older car” maintenance than my current car. The other issue is that since my car has a good deal of body damage (it’s been hit twice while parked), there isn’t really any resale value, especially if it’s not running. I guess a large part of the decision will hinge on the cost of repair. Still even if it’s a cheap fix, there is the chance that at some point before I graduate I will be at this crossroads again.

Any suggestions?

No Comments »