Me and my husband are currently looking to buy are first car. I was just looking through ars local clasifide ads when I seen a 1997 thunderbird for sale. The owner wants $500 for it because it has a head gasket, needs driver side tie rod ends, and possibly a new battery. Nieghter me or my husband nkow anything about cars. How much would it cost to fix and is this a good deal?
2007-04-11 21:18:39 · 5 answers · asked by josieshs 3 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
The battery is probably $100, the tie rod ends $150-300 and the head gasket could be up to $1000 depending on what's involved.
Forget that! Add all that up, and you could get a much better car for less money. Cars nowadays are really reliable, just find a low-mileage one that's '97 or newer. Consider Japanese or Korean cars. You wouldn't want to drive a non-union-built car to a union jobsite, but other than that they're perfectly fine cars. Reliable and easy to fix, too.
If you two were inclined to learn to fix cars, you could save a fortune on repairs. I've never spent more on tools than I saved on repairs, and I get to KEEP the tools and reuse em :) The power of knowledge!
2007-04-11 21:36:46 · answer #1 · answered by Wolf Harper 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Usually if you bring your own parts to the shop they charge extra labor. My shop does, because we make money on parts and that would be a loss. Some shops wont even do it. Its a pretty inexpensive job at any rate, a top of the line moog tir rod end will probably be $130. and alignment is typically in the $75-100 range. A store bought moog tie rod end is prob $30, so Id just do it myself and get the alignment @ some cheap tire shop.
2016-05-18 00:22:46 · answer #2 · answered by delores 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is a lousy deal because you will spend at least that same amount in repars alone if not more. Repair the head gasket requires taking the engine apart, and while it is apart other problems could be found. Best to leave this one alone and keep searching.
2007-04-11 21:31:03 · answer #3 · answered by eric g 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Stay away from it, these cars had numerous engine problems. The 3.8 engines in these cars were prone to head gasket failure.
2007-04-12 07:55:19 · answer #4 · answered by Rick B 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it will cost more than you than you will want to pay, especially if you don't know that much about cars. do yourselves a favor and fork up a little more cash and get a running car.
2007-04-11 21:32:40 · answer #5 · answered by oldguy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋