Need Some Advice

[bwf4]

My October 22 order of an XLT, Lux still hasn't been scheduled. My current vehicle, a 2012 Chevy Sonic, is in the shop with a coolant leak. The repair estimate was $2000 for parts alone, well exceeding the worth of the vehicle. I'm guessing I am at least 6 months out from receiving my Maverick. What would you do in the meantime? Used car prices are crazy!

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[Dad]

You're sort of between a rock and a hard place. My advice is to fix the Sonic and either wait on your Mav order or, like some other members, call dealers all over the country looking for a dropped order. You'll need that Sonic to take you to pick up your new Mav.

 

[ShadowChas]

I myself would not put $2k into a $2k vehicle, I would check all websites to find a maverick or quite possibly another vehicle that suits your needs for price/utilities/economical,etc

 

[Gullzway]

My October 22 order of an XLT, Lux still hasn't been scheduled. My current vehicle, a 2012 Chevy Sonic, is in the shop with a coolant leak. The repair estimate was $2000 for parts alone, well exceeding the worth of the vehicle. I'm guessing I am at least 6 months out from receiving my Maverick. What would you do in the meantime? Used car prices are crazy!

$2k? What needs replaced? I replaced my Sport Trac radiator last year for $120, shop wanted $900.

 

[Spartan_J]

More specifically identify a $2000 coolant leak. Also how many miles and general condition of Sonic.

 

[bwf4]

Needs new water pump, outlet, thermostat, hoses. It also has a valve leak. $2k was just the parts without any labor, so add $$.

It has 125,000 miles on it, needs a break job, has an exhaust leak, probably more wrong as well.

 

[Maverickman74]

I just checked craigslist and there are atleast a dozen interesting older 80s and 90s cars in your area under $3000. I would say 6 months from now you have a 90% chance of getting over half that money back. So thats not bad. Go get something dumb and fun for the summer. Roadkillinng it is fun.

 

[dalola]

Needs new water pump, outlet, thermostat, hoses. It also has a valve leak. $2k was just the parts without any labor, so add $$.

It has 125,000 miles on it, needs a break job, has an exhaust leak, probably more wrong as well.

What kind of a shop gave you this pricing? Seems very high. No local mechanics you trust? Just the parts you mention should be no where near $2K. I would shop around on this job.

Regardless, you could fix the chevy, try to find another beater, find a nicer used vehicle for long term, or buy a new (in stock) vehicle right now. Or walk.

Good luck.

 

[Old Ranchero]

Needs new water pump, outlet, thermostat, hoses. It also has a valve leak. $2k was just the parts without any labor, so add $$.

It has 125,000 miles on it, needs a break job, has an exhaust leak, probably more wrong as well.

I would get more than 1 estimate to get accurate estimate of repair cost, and only focus on the minimum needed to repair coolant leak and get it on the road. That short list you provided shouldn't be more than a couple hundred $ WITH labor to get back driving again. Then prioritize the other issues you mentioned and fix 1 at a time based on what is likely to fail soonest or result in most expensive future repair if not done now and cause a major engine failure.

Also, can you afford to make monthly payments right now? I would probably get the Sonic running again, get it car washed and get on-line quotes to buy it from you. Pick best 1, rent a low budget vehicle while you sell the Sonic and use $ from that sale to go put a down payment on something else and make payments on that until your Maverick arrives.

Good Luck!

 

[JennyJoannSuebeeMcNash]

I myself would not put $2k into a $2k vehicle, I would check all websites to find a maverick or quite possibly another vehicle that suits your needs for price/utilities/economical,etc

This is the hard truth, but the truth nonetheless.

 

[bwf4]

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. I'm going to pick it up from the shop this afternoon and get the itemized list of parts. It's possible I could get the coolant leak fixed for cheap, ignore the exhaust and valve leak and be able to limp along for a few months.

I never thought it would take this long to get this truck.

 

[theway-yay-ting]

I never thought it would take this long to get this truck.

Ford should offer this as a custom decal for all of us!

 

[Davis]

Just let it leak and top it off every once in awhile.

 

[Landric]

Ford should offer this as a custom decal for all of us!

Unfortunately Ford can't even reliably send out emails. If they did offer a custom decal none of us would get it until 2025 due to constraints, dealer allocations, and the increased cost of glue. About 1/3rd of us would get an email explaining the delays in shipping our decals, everyone else would just be in the dark.

 

[rclee]

Fix the Sonic as inexpensively as possible, and as someone suggested chip away at the smaller items that you can afford. When the Maverick comes in, keep the Sonic for a few months in case you need transportation for any warranty work. Fuel prices are not going down any time soon, so I bet there will be a huge market for your Sonic because of it's fuel mileage. Hell, you might make a few bucks on it!

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