After reading some of the war stories I don't feel I've done so badly. My
worst car was the Audi 5000. Bought it used with low mileage (60K ish).
Something broke every other month and something expensive broke three times a
year.
First it was the power steering pump. Rebuilt pump was $150. And don't
forget the "special" fluid at $24 a Qt. Fuel pump and filter: >$200.
Catalytic
Converter. Heater/AC fan motor. Engine temp sensor. Intake manifold rubber
pieces. Sun visor. The headliner on the sunroof came loose and I couldn't
use the sunroof.
When the cable on the driver's side window mechanism frayed leaving the
window in the stuck down position I went to the local wrecker's to salvage one
from
one of the three 5000's they had sitting around. All three cars had already
been harvested. I wound up buying a passenger side unit and building one good
one from the two.
The whole time the transmission leaked onto the exhaust manifold. The leak
was below the "water line" meaning it continued to leak when sitting still.
After a three week trip I came back to a car that smoked like a bomb was set
off
until the residual oil finally burned away.
The starter failed leaving me stranded. A rebuild starter was $250 just for
the part. When the car left me stranded a second time with a failed CV joint
it went down the road. Enough is enough. I now drive a 97 Taurus. Total
repairs to date (after 118,000 miles): one starter for $150. This starter went
down hill gracefully and I was able to replace it before stranded me.
Dave Massey
57 TR3
71 TR6
80 TR8 (undergoing water pump transplant)
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