Maintenance Costs

I drive in Dallas traffic so that was how I based my opinion. They would run over you there, no kidding. Alot of road rage going on, DAILY. Maybe it's different where she is . Our cars can be nice to drive daily, but usualy when someone is buying from an ad, they should be cautious. They may have to spend alot of money to get it to be worthy of a daily driver. She didn't say what the asking price is or realy what condition it's in so I was just speckulating on worst case...

 

At worst the Maverick is inexpensive to buy and inexpensive to maintain.
If you have to finance a car you will be making payments of $300 or more a month. Your costs to keep that Maverick running will be way under than on average over the next 5 years.

 

Any car that is more than 20 years old might go 10,000 miles trouble-free or it might just go 10 ... pretty much a roll of the dice.

If you are going to get involved with an older car and have to rely on it as your sole transportation, it is always a risk, but as others have pointed out, these cars are as simple as it all gets. If you do the work yourself or need help from a pro mechanic from time to time, you will not find any other vehicle that is substantially cheaper than a Mav or Comet.

Real life examples ...

$700 for a new in-tank fuel pump in my daily driver... had a shop do it because I was short on time and this one was a lot more involved than most ... that would be about $30 and a 1/2 hour of my time for the mechanical pump on my Comet.

Head gaskets in a mid-90s Monte Carlo ... $600 ... turned that over to the same shop ... I don't have the tool to pull fuel injectors, and the motor is in sideways, making it a PITA to get to things on the rear bank. This would be about $60 and about 4 hours of my time on the Comet. If you had a mechanic do this, I would still think it would come in at about $300.

Our cars are not complicated at all. Cars from the 80s and newer got increasingly more complex, and that will cost more typically to fix. The trade-off is they can be a lot more reliable. Just jump in it and drive.There are a lot of deals out there on solid 10 year old cars right now. A car with a carburator needs a little warm-up before it is happy. You may need to adjust the choke seasonally (very easy ... just need to do it with the car stone cold).

Just make sure that car is not a rust bucket, and most everything else can be dealt with. Upgrade to front disc brakes and electronic ignition, and it will be so much better to drive a lot.

 

At this point I walk everywhere I go so I don't mind being without a vehicle once in a while and being without one won't kill me. I wont need it to travel on the freeway much so that shouldn't be a problem either. I also have a wonderful group of friends that are willing to help me out.

I may not know a lot about this car to begin with but obviously since I was smart enough to look here for information I must be willing to do my own research. This is just one place I've found to obtain information. I'm not lazy by any means so looking up how to fix something myself is not something I'm opposed to. Actually, I want a vehicle that I can work on because having to pay a mechanic at a fancy dealership isn't something that I am looking to do. I want to learn more (hence why I am currently double majoring in Business Management and Biology, and am looking to earn my phD in the future). I am an intelligent individual and the first stage of learning you have a tendency to ask a lot of "dumb" questions to people who know more then you do. My purpose here at the moment is to read what you all have to say, compare that with what I have read other places and then determine who's answers are most appropriate for my situation. BTW, does anyone know where I might be able to find a repair guide for the maverick?

I do realize that this is a 37 year old vehicle, however vehicles these days are ridiculous in price and their repair costs are often quite high...AND...you can't do a lot of repairs yourself without having to worry about "will this void my warranty?" Plus purchasing a new vehicle is a huge sunk cost as it depreciates the second you set foot inside it. This is also the kind of vehicle that I am more likely to keep because most new vehicles seem to be falling apart more quickly.

Also, I do appreciate those of you who are reminding me that it being an old car and that anything could happen. I have had more friends with new cars that have had more problems then they will be worth when it comes time for them to resell. I hope to keep mine longer then they keep theirs. This forum has been very helpful to me and I think I am going to move forward in the purchasing department. I like what I'm hearing and it seems like what is required is something I can do.

Keep on posting! I'm learning a lot from all of you. Thanks!!!!

 

price parts for a maverick...that will tell you what you need to know...most of the guys in here do the mav for the love of cars..i know that by the time i get done i could have bought some little peice of foreign junk that gets great gas milage and has a great a/c system, BUT i am a mav fan i love my V-8 and my crappy fuel mileage, i love that i own a piece of american automotive history and am passing it on to my son to drive..NO RICE burners here. American and proud.

 

i commuted in the bay area for 4 years in a 6banger mav and more than that in the grabber.they both rode good IMO, my grabber has always been very comfy for me. I dont care about A\C but other than that i would have to say i liked the ride better than any of the cars my mom was commuting the same roads in (she had four in that same amount of time) i also paid much less in maintenance because she had to take hers to the dealer.... Mattericks tune up i would do almost every other month, but i only had to pay for parts because i had the tools and location. brakes about every four months, again self installed.

 

and dont worry about the DUMB questions...as i have previousally stated you have a great bunch of mav fans that have been there and done it. they have always answered my DUMB questions..thats how we learn..and by the way you came to the right site you have alot of info and fans that want to see you get your mav completed...welcome to the club brother....and good luck

 

I agree...
Now, are we responding to a "brother" or a "sister"? I read female by the avatar name...

 

get one of these http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Chil...30350269619QQptZMotorsQ5fManualsQ5fLiterature

it will cover general maintenance, tuneup,engine rebuilding, electrical stuff, emission control/fuel system, chassis electrical, clutch/transmission, drive train, suspension/steering/ brakes, body and troubleshooting

Awesome book to have!