Well i've had a horrible year with the monte in 2010.. it was problem after problem costing me huge amounts of money!! I've owned the car for almost 2 years now ( in about 7 days) ive spent: repairs $3491.87 Parts for other repairs $11.62 reg maint: 422.90 figuring out whats wront with it $299.67 and other $903.60 Grand total of $5229.66 shes starting to cost alot.. considering all the "repairs"were done this year.. i just got a bill today for $749.00... i considered getting a new vehicle but i cant afford payments.. if i could get a new one id get a challenger se/sxt model with 3.5L or a 2005-2007 monte carlo ss .. i just hope the montes good for now and has no more huge bills like the past year.. Anyways sorry about my little rant guys just had to talk about it

 

wow, that totally sucks, what have you had done for that much money....

 

Another car can cost you a ton of money too, ya know. Being a few years newer doesn't necessarily mean that it's going to be a better car.

In economics, there is a term for this, it's called the "Market for Lemons." Basically, if you have a good car, you like it's looks, and it's not giving you any trouble, why would you sell it? You wait until it is giving you trouble, is starting to look like crap, or some other problem usually to sell a car. Of course, there are exceptions. Life happens and you need bigger cars, or you're one of those people who just has to have a new car every 2-3 years. However, for many of us, we don't sell our cars until we know they're about to start causing problems or the repair bills are beginning to amount ot more than they are worth.

 

What exactly have you spend all this money on?

 

I know how you feel, I think we all go through it...I would never consider selling my Monte, but there was a point where I was going through transmissions and transmission rebuilds as much as I was doing oil changes if not more...after having it redone by Dynotech, after less then a year it broke, but the owner of the shop past away, so I had to have it redone again by East Coast Superchargers, it broke again, they fixed it but stated it was breaking because it was shifting to hard at the bottom end, I had the PCM redone to shift softly at the 1-2, 2-3.

One night while driving home it started to feel like it was mis shifting again...I didn't even wanna take a look at it, I put it in the garage, went inside and was so fustraited...like the wind was knocked out of me...I was considering taking off the turbo kit and throwing in the towel and calling it a day.

I took a look at the car a few days later, and I got lucky it turns out the air filter poped off and was blocking the inlet which was causing the car to "buck" and misshift due to lack of airflow.

The thing is you really have to sit down and decide is the car sentimental to you? Take a breather and really think it out, it is true that a new car may give you issues to...So the Monte stops giving you issues, and you have some extra money as the days go by, you really have to decide on 1.) Modding this monte to your liking or 2.) Saving all the money for a new car...the last thing you want to do is start modding this one then it breaks to the point of not wanting to fix it anymore then all that mod money goes down the drain.

I also recommend you buy the movie called "love the beast" It is absolutely phenominal and shows the relationship between a person and there car and the special bond formed there, as well as the frustraitions and set backs when everything goes wrong.

Best of luck I pray all of the issues go away in 2011, keep us updated!
Joe

 

I know how she feels too. That's the reason I traded in my grand am for the Monte. If it's turning into a money pit, time to consider something else. Like a 2007 SS Monte, or a good 4th gen SS.

 

First, what were the bills for??

Second, it takes knowing a good amount about cars and what to look at to shop for a good used/older car. Key to me is if you feel it's been pretty neglected (especially with oil changes), it may be worth walking away. I've successfully bought a couple GREAT cars at 100K miles, 9-10 years old. But also to make those cars a reasonable deal, it takes a few things into consideration:
- You paided either a small sum in cash or have extremely LOW payments because it's a cheaper car. You should be able to put aside money to justify reasonable repairs (not maintenance, repairs, like radiator blew).
- It helps a LOT if you do your own wrench work (another cost savings).

I am still driving a '94 Grand Am bought in '03 with 86K on it. Today, it has about 202K miles on it. I've done my share of wrench work on it, but to be honest, my cost in the car has been very low (bought it for $3800 on '03, if I was to guess, outside of oil changes and brakes, I have never spent more then $400 a year in repairs, and that's probably a HIGH estimate, as I think the only year I came close was '09).

And Cowboy brought a good point. People sell 3-4 year used cars commonly because they were bored with them. Older/higher miles cars are sold usually because the current owner feels they plugged enough cash into them. Now, my wife and I are selling her '94 Grand Am (yes, we have two of the same model car, both bought the same year). Her car is fine for an older car (we actually were planning to crank another 1-3 years out of it as she uses it like I use mine now as a winter beater). We came across a deal that seemed like a great idea fo an '05 Impala with a 3400 and 150K for $500, needed a new transmission (I had to pay a shop on that, had a salvage trans put in). And then just some basic maintenance. Now we have too many cars and we're trying to sell her Grand Am. I laugh a little because i listed it as a great running car (as it is a running car, no problems driving away with it), common question I am asked is "does it run". Seriously, I am not kidding it runs. This Impala was just an odd situation that made sense to go for it, hence why we are getting rid of the one Grand Am (instead of driving it into the ground).

 

Megan. I think a lot of us have been there at one time or another. I had a 93 super coupe T Bird. I had the same problem. If it wasn't one thing it was another. Over two yrs. At the time I thought it was cheaper then a new car. And it was. But at sometime you have call it quits. I sold it to a guy that drag races. I don't think i'll ever buy a new car again. Maybe a two yr old one. let someone else take that hit on the price. Talk about a $$$ Pit. I have a 70 Chevelle. It never stops with that car. But that one easier to work on then anything the make now days. Just parts no labor. If you know how to work on the older cars. Plus it more fun. cause it doesn;t have to be on the rd that day. I'm not trying to give advice here. Just sharing my thoughts with you Megan. Hope this yr is cheaper & Better for you.

 

I'm glad to know that the old Chevy's are just bad as the old Ford's!!!

In 2000 miles with my Torino, it has stranded me once with a burned ignition coil. Other than that, it usually just wouldn't get me out of my driveway in the first place. The '50 Chevy we had before it had a set of points burn out and the fuel filter stopped up a few times.

The Monte Carlo has had the battery die about 2 years ago. It just never got me out of the parking lot. The A/C went out in '07. Other than that, it's got a small leak in the rear main seal now, but spark plugs at 100,000 miles, keep good air filters, cabin filters, and grease... she's running great still!! I think I might have to replace the blower fan in the car because it just makes a bad sound and sometimes feels weak. But I'm a fair wrench man myself and plan to drive it to about 200,000 miles, which means I have about 84,000 left.

 

Well i got lower intake gaskets done, oil pan gasket, some o ring that went i had to fix( got someone from bf work to do it for 600 plus the parts) brakes all had to be redone.. new calipers, rotors, pads all the way round plus a brake flush.. new radiator, a hose, vacuum lines, spark plugs, valve cover gaskets, serpintine belt, tensioner, and a few more that i cant think of.. all this plus reg maint. the top part of my engine has been apart 4-5 times in the last year i hope she's all good now.. feels like i pretty much rebuilt the car lol