Saving on vehicle costs

[Finance Dave]

Ok, so I thought I'd start this thread. I have about 100 "ideas" to note...so maybe I'll list a couple each time, and get them all in over 1-2 months. If there seems to be little interest...I'll stop posting them.

Please note that the below are my opinions only. I was an ASE-certified auto mechanic for 8 years, then a diesel technician for 9 more….but I am currently neither. My specialties were brakes, suspensions, and alignments. I am an automotive enthusiast today. I own two daily drivers (one for wife, one for me), a fully restored 1969 Camaro that I’ve owned since 1982, and a 700 horsepower 2007 modified Mustang Shelby GT500. I do all my own mechanical work (not body work).

In 2004 I sold a 1989 Toyota MR2 that I had purchased brand new. I only drove the car in good weather…it only saw rain about 5 times in its life…occasionally I’d get caught in rain when on a trip. When I sold the car…it was 15 years old and only had 32,000 miles on it. I had maintained it well and kept it immaculately clean. The book value was only $4,200 because it was so old…but I sold it to a guy from Seattle for $11,500. He sent me photos two months later saying he’d won an award. He had attended the national MR2 club event for the Western US, and his car had been voted the “nicest MR2 in the Western US”.

I mention the items above not to boast, but to credential myself.

I’m not going to mention obvious things like change your oil…everyone knows that. Rather I’ll try to note things that are a bit different, and things most of us can do to lengthen the life or reduce the cost of owning our cars.

Let's see how this goes...and if the mods think this belongs in another area, feel free to move it.

Dave

 

[Finance Dave]

1. If you ever add water to a battery (most of them are sealed today so you cannot do this), be sure to use deionized water (available at auto parts stores). Regular water has ions that mess up the battery chemistry, and you will shorten the life of your battery.

 

[Finance Dave]

2. Used to be you needed to change oil every 3,000 miles…not today. Today’s engines are made with much tighter tolerances and fuel systems that don’t dilute the oil with extra gasoline (older cars ran “rich”, meaning excess fuel was squirted in during operation…and this fuel would run down the sides of the cylinder walls, dilute the oil, and make it less effective). Check your owner’s manual, but most cars today can go at least 5,000 miles between changes, and if you drive under “ideal” conditions, then 7,500 would be ok. (Ideal conditions would be where temperatures are moderate…never gets real hot and never real cold, not dusty roads such as out in the country, and moderate to long trips…short trips of 0-2 miles are very hard on cars)

 

[73ss454]

Cool, I always love to hear what other car guys have to say.

 

[73ss454]

2. Used to be you needed to change oil every 3,000 miles…not today. Today’s engines are made with much tighter tolerances and fuel systems that don’t dilute the oil with extra gasoline (older cars ran “rich”, meaning excess fuel was squirted in during operation…and this fuel would run down the sides of the cylinder walls, dilute the oil, and make it less effective). Check your owner’s manual, but most cars today can go at least 5,000 miles between changes, and if you drive under “ideal” conditions, then 7,500 would be ok. (Ideal conditions would be where temperatures are moderate…never gets real hot and never real cold, not dusty roads such as out in the country, and moderate to long trips…short trips of 0-2 miles are very hard on cars)

On my 2010 4 cyl Camry the oil change calls for 10K. But it does use synthetic oil 0W20. I still do it every 5K as I can't bring myself to go that long. What are your thoughts on this?

 

[rbmrtn]

Glad you started this. I'm not a professional mechanic but I like to DIY on what I can.

Saving money on oil changes. I have about 5 years worth of changes sitting on the self, all gotten for free. If you play the rebates, discount codes and sales at the auto parts places ( AdvanceAuto, Autozone etc ) you can save some $$$. Currently getting 5qt jugs of valvoline nextgen free with $20 amex card rebate. G-oil has had $26 mail in rebate for jugs, available at walmart. Filters can usually be had on sale with rebates also.

 

[rbmrtn]

When you change/flush coolant do not use tap water.

 

[Mulligan]

Fully restored 69 Camaro..... Sweet... I bet your proud of that bad boy. If I had one of those, I could probably just sit and stare at it an hour a day for entertainment purposes. A few years ago, I had an all original 73 Mustang convertible with 39000 miles on it. Wish I still had it, but I couldn't justify paying a $80 a month to store it, as my garage wasn't big enough for 2 vehicles even though it is a 2 car garage.

 

[Sarah in SC]

Love this! Keep 'em coming!

 

[Finance Dave]

On my 2010 4 cyl Camry the oil change calls for 10K. But it does use synthetic oil 0W20. I still do it every 5K as I can't bring myself to go that long. What are your thoughts on this?

I'd say every 10k is sufficient, synthetic oil additives do tend to last longer. The exception would be if you don't drive it much.....I think I'd change it once a year at least regardless. Wow, 0W20 is very thin stuff!

 

[Finance Dave]

Fully restored 69 Camaro..... Sweet... I bet your proud of that bad boy. If I had one of those, I could probably just sit and stare at it an hour a day for entertainment purposes. A few years ago, I had an all original 73 Mustang convertible with 39000 miles on it. Wish I still had it, but I couldn't justify paying a $80 a month to store it, as my garage wasn't big enough for 2 vehicles even though it is a 2 car garage.

I've owned the Camaro since 1982. I reset the odometer from 28,000 miles to zero when I restored it (this is perfectly legal so long as you don't represent the mileage as the "true" mileage when you sell it), and now the odometer reads 5,200 miles...so I drive the car less than 500 miles per year. I have an 1,120 square foot garage.

 

[Finance Dave]

Love this! Keep 'em coming!

Thanks...don't want to post too many at one time, have to spread them out.

P.S. Moderators, somone suggested we "sticky" this thread. Please apply if you agree. Thanks.

 

[Mulligan]

I've owned the Camaro since 1982. I reset the odometer from 28,000 miles to zero when I restored it (this is perfectly legal so long as you don't represent the mileage as the "true" mileage when you sell it), and now the odometer reads 5,200 miles...so I drive the car less than 500 miles per year. I have an 1,120 square foot garage.

Thanks for the pics, Dave. I never get tired of looking at a nice 60s Camaro. Somehow I bet those 500 yearly miles aren't used for the weekly groceries trip and left in the parking lot while you shop!

 

[pb4uski]

My dad recycled his used motor oil from four cycle oil changes by using it in his two cycle engines that required mixed fuel (like older outboards and snowmobiles where you mixed the fuel in the tank rather than oil injection prevalent in today's tow cycle engines). It was old Yankee LBYM. Since we ran the boat and snowmobiles a lot when we were kids, he probably saved a lot of money on two cycle oil over the years. Not sure if I would recommend it to others but it seemed to work ok for him. YMMV.

 

[travelover]

My dad recycled his used motor oil from four cycle oil changes by using it in his two cycle engines ...... YMMV.

I don't think so. Even using used motor oil as chain lubricant for a chain saw is false economy.

 

[LOL!]

How about:

Don't wash or wax your car.

Change the oil only every 2 years.

Practice hyper-mile-ing to save gas (coast everywhere).

Don't do scheduled maintenance until double the number miles happens.

 

[73ss454]

How about:

Don't wash or wax your car.

Change the oil only every 2 years.

Practice hyper-mile-ing to save gas (coast everywhere).

Don't do scheduled maintenance until double the number miles happens.

You sound like my SIL.

 

[travelover]

You sound like my SIL.

Yea, I was gonna say my old girlfriend.

 

[JOHNNIE36]

Nice thread and post Dave. First thing I thought of when I saw the pic's was Great Lakes Naval Station. Isn't that an F4 in the background? Great photos of the car. Would love to see it first hand. Thanks.

 

[Finance Dave]

Nice thread and post Dave. First thing I thought of when I saw the pic's was Great Lakes Naval Station. Isn't that an F4 in the background? Great photos of the car. Would love to see it first hand. Thanks.

Thank you. I'm not sure if it's an F4...we have a tiny military area near our city, that plane has been on a display stand there for 25 years...so maybe that helps you.

The car is nice....the interior is fully restored too.

Here are photos of my estimated 715 HP (at the flywheel) Mustang. I have had it chassis dynoed at 622 RWHP and 618 lb*ft of torque. For those of you that don't know much about how horsepower is measured...the 700HP number is what you'd typically see in any advertising literature.

If anyone likes, I could explain the difference...but I'd probably bore most of you to death.

 

[Finance Dave]

3. Rule of thumb…holes in the TREAD of a tire can be plugged/patched in most cases successfully. Holes in the SIDE of a tire should never be patched/plugged…that part of the tire flexes too much and does not have the steel belts in it…IMO it is dangerous to plug/patch a sidewall.

 

[REWahoo]

Most definitely an F-4 behind your Camaro...

 

[walkinwood]

2. Used to be you needed to change oil every 3,000 miles…not today. Today’s engines are made with much tighter tolerances and fuel systems that don’t dilute the oil with extra gasoline (older cars ran “rich”, meaning excess fuel was squirted in during operation…and this fuel would run down the sides of the cylinder walls, dilute the oil, and make it less effective). Check your owner’s manual, but most cars today can go at least 5,000 miles between changes, and if you drive under “ideal” conditions, then 7,500 would be ok. (Ideal conditions would be where temperatures are moderate…never gets real hot and never real cold, not dusty roads such as out in the country, and moderate to long trips…short trips of 0-2 miles are very hard on cars)

Someone told me that I should still change oil at 3000/3500 miles because of the altitude here in Denver. Any truth to that? We also use 85 Octane gas because of the altitude (doesn't cause knocking) if that makes any difference.

Great thread for an auto know-nothing like myself.

 

[Sun456]

We've saved tons of money by calling our dealership, describing the problem, getting them to throw out ideas as to what they think it is, then looking up step by step repair procedures on the Internet and doing it ourselves. Thanks to all the do-it-yourself repair people who post step by step instructions and pics! We love those folks. Especially the ones who post every single detail on how to do things, down to the bolt locations and which way to turn them.

 

[Sarah in SC]

OH, Sun, reminded me of my only real car-tip (I leave the mechanic-ing to DH):
I do a lot of research for him online, and forums devoted to various makes/models are hugely helpful. I have successfully used the Saturn forum for all kinds of suggestions and fixes for our old ones, and of course regularly visit the Social Knowledge community (see links at the bottom of this page) that is devoted to Airstreams. It has been a massive help in keeping our old girl running.
Research on repairs in the age of the internet and youtube is a godsend.