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Old 10-27-2007, 09:59 PM   #1
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Which car should I buy?

There are two potential cars:

1) '88 Chrysler LeBaron GTX Turbo Sedan w/ 96k miles. $1300

Good: Clean car, saw no rust. Has good pick up and go and has tons of extra options.

Bad: Idles ROUGH; stalled in reverse when going very slow, and when at a stop, car is VERY close to stalling. Shifting from 3rd to 4th gear once caused a hesitation. I mentioned I forgot to test the AC to the seller; when he tried to work it, no air would come out of the vents. He wasn't familiar with the car. He was only there so I could test drive it, he didn't actually own it, so he may have been pushing the wrong buttons. Only 1 speaker may work. When test driving it, and rushing cause I had to get to work, I tested the radio and only one speaker work. Consintrating on the road, I didn't really check the adjustments but I doubt anyone would have set it to work on only one speaker. Also, when I went to adjust the power mirrors I heard a loud "nails on a chalkboard" sound and smelt burned rubber

Worries: Potential tranny problem, idling problem, gas millage, old age, no climate control.

2) '93 Chrysler Le Baron Coupe (Base) w/110k miles. $700

Good: Tranny shifted very smoothly + flawlessly. (PRNDL) Backing up and going forward was very smooth. Car was comfortable and everything functioned well. Body was solid.

Bad: No plates = I couldn't test drive it. Could only back it up and move it forward in a small parking area at low speed. Tranny's of this year known to fail. Minor rust in underbody and paint peeling on trunk lid.

Worries: Tranny failure, rust, paint.

Which one?


EXTRA DETAILS:

'88 LeBaron: Has 4 new tires, and a gas leak was fixed (via new gas tank, lines, I don't know for sure, I forget) Inspected recently and passed. However, seller is a small dealer / garage who inspect their own cars. So I don't know if they just passed it themselves to sell it.

Credibility thing for them:

Test drove another car from the same place whose brakes failed about 15 seconds after leaving the lot. Didn't make it past the neighbors house. When I returned from test driving the LeBaron, the car was back up on display, about 15 minutes later.

'93 LeBaron: Tires are around half tread left I believe, has brand new shocks, springs, and struts. Seller has had car for about a year and a half and no tranny work needed / done. Previous owner experience is unknown. Inspection passed a year ago (Sept. 06) Is a private seller.

Prices listed above are asking prices and I will try to reduce both as much as possible. Though I doubt they will be reduced by much, if at all.

I need a cheap (in price, not reliability) car and quick as getting to work and school in time by relying on other people is becoming increasingly difficult.

Personally, My "gut" feeling tells me to go with the '93 LeBaron, but it has a lot less options in compared to the '88 LeBaron.


Please help. I need to have a final decision by Monday or so and I'm like runaround. Thanks in advance for your replies!
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Old 10-28-2007, 02:21 AM   #2
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Re: Which car should I buy?

Are you kidding? Don't get either. Today's car market is ridiculously flooded with vehicles of all sorts so don't tell me you don't have other options. Look for Saturns. $1300 should get you an all right DOHC model that will excel in gas mileage. Or at least look for older Accords that have had rebuilt/replaced trannies.
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Old 10-28-2007, 06:13 PM   #3
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Re: Which car should I buy?

I live in a small town. As of now, these were the two best cars that are around that I have looked at. Others are either too expensive or too crappy. Believe me, my first option wasn't a LeBaron either, but I really don't have a huge choice.

I'm 16, have no credit and can't buy from a dealership as I have no one who can sign for me, and I don't have the money to have a car w/ full insurance. I need to pay the car off all at once or within 2 payments or so.
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Old 10-28-2007, 10:09 PM   #4
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Re: Which car should I buy?

If those are your only two options go with the 93' work and get yourself a different car when you can afford it. Who cares about options for now it's cheaper and sounds like a better car, have a mechanic check it out though to be sure.
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Old 10-28-2007, 10:49 PM   #5
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Re: Which car should I buy?

If you must, then the 93 obviously is the lesser of two evils, given the terrible condition of the former. In addition, a turbo vehicle means more parts to wear out and probably at a quicker rate, even if its a factory turbo made for daily driving. 96k is also pretty close to servicing time too.

However, I cannot imagine purchasing a car without fully test driving it. That way you can take it up to speed and find leaks, bad steering components, bad brakes, rpm jumps, etc. Why exactly doesn't the 93 car have plates? This means the car wasn't used (i.e., sitting in a yard or something) for a period of time so you may need to change all the fluids if that's the case. If the tranny is smooth now and you use it properly, then it most likely will stay smooth through the day you sell it. It sounds like the current owner took good care of the car though.

I agree that you shouldn't be concerned with options or even performance for that matter. You just need a vehicle to get from A to B as well as to get driving experience on the road. Plenty of time for "options" and "performance" later in life.
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