Is a 91 Accord a Clunker?

Apparently not. It does get around 20mpg and the Clunker program seems to require that it get 18 or less. Oh well. I very well might have gotten a new Civic.

Reply to
dgk
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If you have a 91 Accord that gets 20mpg, you have a clunker, no matter what the program specifies.

Reply to
Stewart

indeed - that thing should be getting in the 30's.

Reply to
jim beam

Easy 30's. My old 79 hatchback was in the low to mid 30's.

Reply to
Stewart

I don't drive it a whole lot. Sometimes I drive it to the nearby Park-N-Ride lot but usually I commute by bike. I think I average 5500 miles per year, almost all of it local driving. Now that I really think about it though, I probably get around 22 mpg. I'll check the next time I fill up.

It is a great car but it has significant rust and badly needs a paint job. I just don't see putting in more money than I have to though - it's only got 115k on it but it's gone through an awful lot of NY winters. If I could get $4k for a trade-in I'd likely get a new Civic.

Reply to
dgk

Looks like no, it does not qualify, the average epa rating for this car (modified) is 22 mpg, the average driver gets 22.8. so while your mileage is very average, especially considering, short trips, city driving and cold winters, it is not "bad enough".

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and
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"How do I know if my car or truck is an eligible trade-in vehicle?

There are several requirements (but you also have to meet certain conditions for the car or truck you wish to buy). Your dealer can help you determine whether you have an eligible trade in vehicle.

Your trade-in vehicle must

have been manufactured less than 25 years before the date you trade it in have a "new" combined city/highway fuel economy of 18 miles per gallon or less be in drivable condition be continuously insured and registered to the same owner for the full year preceding the trade-in The trade-in vehicle must have been manufactured not earlier than 25 years before the date of trade in and, in the case of a category 3 vehicle, must also have been manufactured not later than model year 2001"

Reply to
Justbob30

Well, it's definitely a clunker (at least, mine is with all the rust and dented body panels it accumulated after 5 years in college parking lots). But, perhaps sadly, it's not eligible for a CARS rebate.

BTW, with 115K on it, there's LOTs of life left in it. Mine's at 214K now. And it gets about 32 highway and high 20's around town.

Reply to
JRE

There's mileage and then there is hard living. NY winters and roads account for much. Still, I'm not aware of any major problems looming. It has cost between $500 and $1000 each of the past few years for various ailments. I would be cheaper if I knew how to diagnose and fix some of this stuff but I'm definitely better with software than hardware. I did replace the computer on it once.

Still, even at $1000 per year, it's cheaper than buying a new car. And insurance is much lower than for a newer car. I do miss airbags though, and ABS.

It would look much better if I had it painted.

Reply to
dgk

Mine has been in NYS all its life, except for about 6 months in PA.

Why did you have to replace the computer?

Reply to
JRE

It was in a deep puddle after a big downpour. The water was two inches deep in the passenger side. It was fine until I drove it home and pulled down a steep hill - then the car died and wouldn't start. After a week it still wouldn't start.

Folks here told me that I had likely shorted out the computer since it is under the passenger's feet. Sure enough, a $60 junkyard replacement and the car was alive.

I ended up using a few buckets of cat litter to really dry out the carpet and that worked very well.

I'm a bit nervous that more damage was done by the flooding but it isn't like the motor got submerged and it's been about 3 years since it happened.

Reply to
dgk

Well, it certainly sounds like the computer had a reasonable excuse to retire.

Once the car payments were over, I have yet to spend $1K per year on this car at any stage of its life, though the year it needed tires, brakes and rotors, and an axle came close (grin).

From memory, the car's service history:

I thought I would have to replace the starter at about 38K but found cold solder joints in the bendix unit (I wondered why it failed so young) and reflowed them at no cost and just replace it at 205K or so because the contacts had worn out and I could not find a piece of copper plate on a weekend to replace them with.

It's had two 90K services with timing belt, water pump, etc. I'm not sure the body of the car will last to #3 at 270K but I think the engine will.

I had to replace the sway bar bushings this year, as there was air where they were supposed to be (I had just gotten the car back). I think they were something like $20 for both sides.

The gas lines rusted out and the low-cost alternative was a junkyard fuel tank two years ago for about $100.

I reflowed the solder joints on the main relay about 3 years back to fix intermittent staring problems. Another $0 fix.

The brakes have been done about 5 times, usually in the driveway. The exception was when my son had to have them done at school. I need to replace the caliper and wheel cylinder on the left side next time as a employees of a national chain overtightened the bleed screws something fierce, breaking one and screwing up the thread on the other. Sometimes it just pays to do it yourself...every brake change I've done has also included a complete fluid change so calipers and wheel cylinders are original. Both front brake hoses were replaced a few years ago, and the master cylinder ($65 or so) this year.

I had to replace the passenger side interior door handle, which disintegrated, for $35 a month or so ago. The driver's side is on its way out but still hanging in there.

It's on battery #5 and exhaust system #5 or so. I think.

Most of the exterior bulbs have been replaced along with the interior dome light, most more than once. The instrument cluster ones, turned down most of the way since new, remain fine.

It needed a new front spring (I replaced both) at about 90K. A thrown-up rock appeared to have nicked the spring causing it to fail.

I did the clutch at 130K, because it was fall and I didn't want to have to do it in the winter, for what turned out to be no good reason as the original was only 40% worn. At least I won't have to do it next year or the year after...

Outstanding issues:

It needs a new front main seal. I might get to it before the next 90K service. Or not. At least it's not the rear main.

The 3rd gear synchro is worn, so one has to shift into 3rd slowly. I have no plans to fix that.

The shocks in the struts on all 4 corners need to be replaced, but not urgently. I will probably do them in the fall.

The A/C condenser blew a few years ago. I'm not converting it to new refrigerant, so the A/C will remain inoperative.

I need to take apart the dash again to fix the heater control valve cable (again). I might do it in the fall or wait for next spring.

The cruise control has gone intermittent. I have yet to diagnose but my first action based on history will be to reflow the solder joints on the control module.

The driver's window seal has started leak a bit (air, not water) but it's usually fairly quiet.

The rear door handles stick. I'll probably fix that this weekend for free.

Other than that...it's rusty and looks like crap but it's fine. Even the seats are still comfortable!

It is truly difficult to believe how long this car has lasted, not that I'm complaining. If it died tomorrow I'd still have gotten much more than I expected when I bought it.

Airbags would be a plus, but so far I've been able to steer this car around trouble. ABS would be nice, but as long as I remember to steer and *then* stomp, etc., it's not really necessary. The biggest danger, really, is that in my other car with ABS I might give up some ground I could use to avoid an accident.

Reply to
JRE

Yes, but you do the work yourself. If you have to pay someone to do this stuff, it costs a lot more. Some things I can do. When the brake reservoir started leaking I did get one at the junkyard and replace it. That kind of thing. But mostly my problem is knowing what to fix.

Reply to
dgk

this car

your mileage

driving and cold

vehicle?

certain conditions

determine

trade it in

gallon or

the full year

than 25 years

vehicle, must

why does the CFC program seem like it is rewarding the lavish, the irresponsible or the unwise ? everyone who purchased economically, responsibly or wisely in the last 20 years is pretty much exempt from the benefit.

I once owned a now 36 yr old car 335,000 + miles (odometer broke) w/2 diy- jcwitney engine/head rebuilds and etc. repairs that would not have qualified the low mpg requirements with even a stretch and it probably had pretty descent emmision numbers too.

robb

Reply to
robb

Right, I don't get the benefit because I bought a sensible vehicle to begin with. Nor do I get to rewrite my mortgage because I didn't buy a house that I can't afford.

Nor did I get to loot the US treasury by making huge bets (with borrowed money) that real estate prices would climb forever and then just refuse to pay off when they finally fell. All that money was siphoned off by the already wealthy - and they get to keep it while we pay off the bad bets.

The idea of recouping that stolen money by having a tax on wealth instead of income seems to be a non-starter. I guess it just makes too much sense.

So, other than that, I don't really see what else Obama could have done. We need to get the guzzlers off the road, we need to keep real estate prices from collapsing, and we need to keep the financial institutions running. We need to keep healthcare costs from swamping us all. Anyone have a better idea?

Reply to
dgk

Right. So the people that made bad decisions get to steal your money and mine... That sounds all right, if you're one of the ones that gets to do the stealing. To the rest of us, it's bad business.

What do you mean the "already wealthy"? The people that got those mortgages were people that would never have qualified for them in the old days. They got ARM's with interest-only payments so they could buy a $300k house while they were making $50k/year. When the bust hit, they couldn't pay the mortgage, and we got to bail them out.

We already tax wealth, as it's made. Why should people who have succeeded be forced to pay again, because of that success? That sounds like jealousy, not fairness.

You want guzzlers off the road, impose large fees and taxes on the guzzlers. Don't give the people free money to buy new cars. And the financial industry was NEVER in any danger. A few large companies were, and they would have been sucked in by other companies if they failed. Without the risk of bankruptcy for bad business decisions, capitalism is doomed.

If you want health care to not swamp us all, the solution is NOT to give it over to big brother and let him tax you to death for it. The better answer would be to spur competition in the market. Eliminate state laws making the sale of insurance from out of state illegal. And, by all means, lets get rid of the idea that insurance should cover every hangnail and sore tummy. Health insurance should be high-deductible, and there for emergencies that could bankrupt you. Normal doctors visits should be paid out of pocket. It would save you tons of money each year, and you'd be able to control the costs all on your own.

Reply to
Joe

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