It is not easy to get a car with side air bags either - this is very limiting... sure cars look good but no side air bags and if we are trading up we want side air bags.........

We were not going off again looking today but with the yards closed we can look around

with no salesmen so off again. :) it is allowed to go in look - that's why they are not locked up.

Hi Phyl, I know I shouldn't comment, but, having been a car nut for a lot of years & owned more cars than I care to remember, I feel that a little advice (probably ignored) should be offered.

Firstly, you should be aware that if you are looking at economics, keep the Fairlane. Especially, if I know you at all, it will be in very good condition. A reconditioned transmission, mechanical auto, will cost about $1200 as against the later electronic $1700+. 4 new tyres will cost less than $600. The dealer, has at least $1,000 built into the later car, in order to get in & out of the trade. He is also making a minimum of 15 to 20% on the deal. The only thing in the later car, that is better than the earlier model, is the engine & of course, the looks. (which will wear off in a month). Everything on the newer car is plastic & designed to fail after certain useage. You are right about side airbags, but most accidents involve the front or rear & if 2 vehicles are involved, the heavier one will always come out best.

Having said those few words; good luck & welcome to the nightmare.

Hi Phyl, I have to agree with Innes.....as I recall, the Fairlane was built better and stronger than the Falcon and for that reason, there were a good many of them used as Taxis in Victoria........ I often wondered why my NSW counterparts were going for commodores and falcons......must have been simply the cheaper purchase price.

If you are really committed to a change in vehicle, I would suggest you try an auction......to some extent, you are buying a "pig in a poke" as you dont get to test drive them, but at least you will be paying about the same price as the dealers buy for. You will get a better deal on the fairlane selling privately. It also helps if you have a friend who is a mechanic and can look the cars over for you at the auction.

Best of luck to you, whichever way you go.......

I have never personally owned a car - unless you count the cars that I helped my ex to pay off and that he drove. I only drove briefly and that was about 20 years ago;since then, public transport only.

I used to think maybe one day I would get one, but now I think, nah......too much expense, too much trouble. I manage ok without.

Yes Phyl--thats about what it would be worth now--not many folks want big cars these days--how many miles has it done ?--

Decisions decisions.

Our big old darling has done 290,000 k's but still a big beautiful powerful old girl..The change to run her on gas was just a couple of years ago so albeit a big car, ours costs very little to run..

Then again I am too sentimental of course I can get VERY upset (I know crazy) when my favourite cup gets broken after giving great service for years. No I do not make a special grave in the garden for it :( but er I do wrap it up in nice paper and into a new clean bag before it gets taken away.

Walked and walked and walked again yesterday but no salesmen to hasstle us.

Still not sure which car of 5 we will end up with - probably a 2007 Holden with 4 air bags

(side ones included) done respectable k's and whereas we have travelled long distances in the past will not even put 2,000k's on it a year from now on as we do not enjoy travelling in any form whether it be car, bus, boat or plane.

I drove less than 80 k's on Thursday and Peter drove home and I was like the Koala in the tele. ad. saying "are we there yet"

We have a fast train in walking distance now, so why would we want to have the hasstle of driving any distance other than to shop, but we cannot bear the thought of not having a reliable car and our licences, so not having a car is not an option even if it is just our security blanket lol. We are aware a car costs but everything does and relying on a taxi would be the pits for us unless we really have to. We can just say in the morn. we will go absolutely anywhere we want and that is what we like.

We have been saying for the last 10 years we will go over to Tasmania and visit our daughter but the thought of the trip makes us both keep putting it off....Some people adore travelling and that gives them joy but we love our home. For me a strange bed is no fun :) and the amount I have to take to stay in a motel re utensils and sheets and cleaning stuff (I know weird) why not stay at home. I have seen the blue light showing all those germs in places people are grubs and I am not into sharing those but yes I never touch toilet door handles or the tap handles in public toilets and have the little bottle of stuff to wipe the supermarket trolley handles before I touch them lol

Off again today to cost a transmission for our girl before we bring home another.

Operations are very costly that is the prob. and not commonsense maybe.

We will see.

Have a lovely Monday folks - 1/7th of our lives are Mondays enjoy.....

Phyl.

Yes I feel the same way Phyl with my Old car --still in great condition and even though it is a 1985 model--has only done 160 thou ks--like you I am very content in my own home these days as I have all the comforts here--I do on occasions travel the 10 hours to my Son's place--but I have seen most of the country here--and have NO wish to travel O/S--however I would hate to be without a car--as it is the independence--I can go when and were I wish. The good 2nd hand ones I have looked at are not in as good condition as mine and have done many more miles--

160,00k's Jane on your 1985 makes your car worth keeping but with ours 1990 has done almost 300,000 so o.k. we go get new tyres which is not a big expense but add near $1000 which it always seems to cost for a full service (always some parts need replacing) plus a transmission and labour maybe $2,000 and we are up for the best part of $4,000 needing to be spent minimum and then maybe the motor will konk out because our girl is 19 years old :(

We are thinking I am not sure if 2006/7 but even that has over 100.000 on the clock.

Just going to try and get washing out as the housework is falling behind with us out from dusk to dawn lol.

Phyl.

Yes thats always the worry Phyl as to what will go next when you put new parts in--is it good money after bad--you just never know

I agree with Innes. 7 years ago I needed the automatic transmission "blown out" and reconditioned at a cost of $3000. So I went along the path that you are now on. In the end my mechanic said that if I sold it, he wanted to buy it, as it was in excellent condition. So I paid the $3000, and got a 20 year warranty with the reconditioned transmission, and touch wood I have never had another problem with it. It is a 1984 Telstar and I regularly travel from Canberra to Sydney, Nowra and Melbourne. That $3000 was well spent in my opinion and I could have ended up with a lemon had I sold it when I had the original problem. I'm sure there will be people with totally different experiences. All you can do is get someone reliable to look at your much loved car and get an opinion on it's condition. Good Luck, it's not an east decision to make.

Thanks folks - that is our worry also Pommy - a lemon car. I rolled a near new car and very lucky to be alive today because the darn thing locked as I took a bend loaded with bags of potatoes and huge tins of the makings for soft serve ice cream when we had our General store/cafe/milkbar at Noojee and it being a station wagon I got hit with everything as the car rolled and if not for the 44 kilo x 4 bags of potatoes (we chipped for fish and chips) stopping me on the roof of the car (inside) from rolling one more time I would have been down the side of a high hill and into trees and dead.

A man came into our shop where he travelled to talk to us and said "I saw your car in the wreckers and found out it was yours and had to speak to you about it as I had the same make model and the brakes locked on me and I rolled mine" I know how lucky I was to be able to crawl out a partly opened window to get out as upside down and barely comprehending with a huge lump on my head (lucky my eye was o.k.) This car was just 2 years old but found out much later it had been in an accident previously.

Horrible just horrible and it was not the only lemon we had another but not in an accident.

My two daughters also had lemons first cars.....

We went and talked about a new gear box today and for what we need (other things Peter talked about) it will cost around $5,000 with new tyres etc. etc. so we are still debating.

We are not desperate thank goodness so plenty of time to discuss and mull over.

Thanks folks

Phyl.

Hi Phyl, I don't want to talk you out of doing what you want to do, but the gearbox, for your model Fairlane, should not cost more than 12 or $1300 exchange, reconditioned, including labour. You said that your services are costing $1000. Somebody is seeing you coming. There are only a couple things to check, to make sure that the engine is OK, not costly. Apart from anything else, your repair workshop wont bother to tell you that with your car running on gas, you can safely double the miles between services. Baring unexpected breakages, due to metal fatigue etc, that particular V8 will still be going when they bury you & Peter. Even your electric windows have the basics made of metal, unlike all the new ones that are plastic & have a designed life. You are looking at replacing a good car with a 2 or 3 year old one. If you are not buying an ex company car, why do you think somebody wants to get rid of a near new car?

Good luck.

Our car is a V6. The quote today was $1,800 to fit a reconditioned gear box plus a front bearing leaking oil in the front and injectors and brake pads plus new tyres and there was more Peter was told. The air conditioning is also not heating so seems everything is packing it in and time to say

bye to our car. :( :(



If we took this car in to trade the day after we spend all this money on it we will still get

$1000 trade in and in fact only one said $1,000 most all said $500 and only the $1,000 offer even bothered to look at it with Peter going to the wreckers today and he did not even want it and also he did not take one look at it as it was around the corner and he could not be bothered to leave his work shop as he has one 1990 already and does not want another.



We will not sell it privately in case a kid buys it and of course won't spend the money on it because it is running fine but we know it needs work......



The one we will probably buy is a 2006 Commodore Acclaim with side air bags along with the front ones and parking sensors and seems a really good car but it has done 130,000k's

We will do about 200k's or less and if I have my way much less a month!!! so we will put so few on the clock lol.

It is just to have a decent car to drive if we want to whenever, just a couple of k's a week.....We live in the heart of everywhere we want to go now not like from whence we have come.

Phyl.

Only 3 years old, and so many K - would have to check that out. The usual for a car of that age is usually far less than that.