Beater Cars?

**redmaples** · 02-22-2009, 04:30 PM

After reading another thread where the poster was given advice to sell a car that she owes on & purchase a less expensive, 'beater car'...
I am wondering how many others actually have 'beaters' ?

I am also curious to know what qualities make a car a 'beater'?

Yes, we do have a beater.. old Isuzu Pup...1986 ..it has less miles than our 1998 Blazer. It is not pretty, but starts & runs. It cost less than what one of our truck payments used to be. It is also great on gas!

It seems that to keep a beater...you can't really 'beat' it, but better have some general mechanic skills or a good mechanic.

Interested in thoughts & experiences with your 'beaters'.

**JerryG** · 02-22-2009, 05:07 PM

I used to drive a beater. 1984 Mercury Lynx that was a diesel. I drove it for 18 years. All of the paint had faded to rust. I had to tie the driver's side door shut and the rear hatchback window did not lock. Turning on the headlights required needle nose pliers. It did not have ac (I live in AZ). It died a slow painful death from an oil leak that was too expensive (at the time) to fix. I cried when I traded it in. We called it my POS car.

I now drive a 1996 Ford Ranger that has 160K miles on it. I'm meticulous about maintenance so I intend to drive it / keep it for quite awhile.

**khjmom** · 02-22-2009, 05:58 PM

Our car is paid for....2000 or 2001 intrepid (which we will never buy another due to sludge issues...but that's another story). We have had to put a new engine in it (yep....back to that sludge deal) and at the moment has deer tracks & on both front fenders and the hood. It irritates me, the deers both bit the dust but they did feed to families that happened along right after they ran into my dh, but the car is paid for. We are looking for another intrepid with a blown engine but a good body so that we can repair ours without turning it into insurance. My bil can do the paint job to make everything match....so it's just a waiting game now to get this one fixed. My dd is the one with the new car.

**YankeeMom** · 02-22-2009, 06:22 PM

Dh's truck is a "beater". It's a 1993(?) Chevy S-10 with 150k miles on it. It runs, the maintenance on it is less than a car payment would be. To me a beater is a car you don't freak out about someone banging their car door into or hitting a shopping cart with it lol. I guess it qualifies as a "beater".

My van, 2002 Ford Windstar, is also paid for but it is not a "beater".

**Spirit Deer** · 02-22-2009, 06:45 PM

Our 1994 Chevy Blazer is a beater. It has piston-slap, bad brakes, and is a total rust-bucket, among numerous other problems. In spite of all its ailments, it was always reliable till the brakes failed. It was driven almost daily till last November when our trusted mechanic informed us the brakework it needs would be more than the car is worth. So it's now sitting out there under the snow waiting for spring, when we hope to be able to sell it for parts. Otherwise, it'll be junked. It was replaced in November with a 2002 Chevy Avalanche, which everyone mistakes for brand new. It has 70,000 miles on it and we got it for a great price. I think we hit the bottom of the truck sales slump, so maybe the timing of the Blazer's demise was good after all.

In the summer my husband drives our 1986 GMC Safari as his work car. It has no rust, but with 185,000 miles on it, it's starting to show its age. It's sure been a reliable car though. We've been driving it since 1989 and will drive that one into the ground, too. Maintenance on that seems to run about $1,000 a year, far less than 12 months of car payments. The Avvy will be parked in the summer to save miles on it and prolong its useful life.

**zakity** · 02-22-2009, 07:08 PM

Oh man... I drive a two door 89 Nissan Sentra. It won't die. I love the thing.

Our other two vehicles are a 74 Chevy Suburban (which is parked) and a 94 Jeep Cherokee. The Cherokee isn't totally a beater though. DH is slowly turning it into an "off road" vehicle.

**Judi Dial** · 02-22-2009, 07:18 PM

Sitting in our driveway is our last beater: a 1999 Caravan van. The car ran the last time I parked it, but I refused to drive it any more.

The throttle got stuck open with me at the wheel on a freeway.

The brakes went out with me driving also on a freeway.

The transmission failed (or started to) the day I parked it. I got home, got out of the car and told DH, "I don't care if we have to get a car loan, I will NOT drive that car again!"

All three incidents happened within 6 months of each other. Inbetween times, I drove it out of state and and around town with no problem. Also, it was going to take $$$$ for DH to patch the body enough to get it to pass inspection. At the moment, it's a storage unit with a license plate!

Would I buy another beater? Yes, but only from someone who does some car repairs. The guy we bought this from never works on his own cars.

Judi

**Homekeepn** · 02-22-2009, 07:42 PM

Yes we have a beater. A 1993 Chevy Blazer that our son drives around.

**Buckeye5** · 02-22-2009, 07:47 PM

Yes, we have beaters. 1193 Ford Explorer 4x4..165,000miles, a 1995 Bonneville, 167,000miles on it and we put a new transmission in it this past fall, runs great but is starting to rust and a 2003 Buick rendevous owe $5000 on it and need to put some $$ in it with 137,000 miles on it, I wiil never have another car payment after this one.

**warramra** · 02-22-2009, 07:59 PM

We have two beaters that we love, even with all their faults. The first one is DH's commuter car a 1991 Honda Accord we bought for $2000 last Spring. It saved our butts over the summer with the high gas prices. It has 170K miles and needs new window motors for the front doors, but otherwise is a good, solid car at half the cost of gas of his other car. We also have a 1995 Pathfinder that has 270K miles. Right now the battery is dead, but otherwise that has been a great car and is like the energizer bunny. DH uses it for his summer part-time job and for all our dirty jobs.

Our family car is a 2005 Caravan which we will pay off this year. It looks like a beater car thanks to a hit and run in the side panel. But, so far it has been reliable. We will pay it off and drive it until it becomes too expensive to fix (I just know it will be the one car that will give us problems).

**onencgirl** · 02-22-2009, 08:12 PM

I drive a 1997 Chevy Monte Carlo. It has 132,000 miles and still going strong. I like not having car payments.

**jamie79** · 02-22-2009, 08:22 PM

Dh drive a 99 Taurus thats been paid off for yrs and only has about 84,000 on it so its going to be around for awhile

**lisettelovebug** · 02-22-2009, 08:25 PM

I miss my beater. I had a 97 chevy lumina with 109,000 miles on it when I bought it. Only one owner and I paid $1800 for it in 2004. LOVED that car. It was roomy but not a huge beastie car. The only thing I did to it was put new tires on it. Of course a few weeks after the new tires, a lady went through a red light and hit it. Boohoo!!! I had it for about a year and a half, but if it hadn't been totaled me or dh would still be driving it. We have 5 people in our family so we still need the van but if we ever need to get a second car I would so love another one of these cars.

**Starlight9803** · 02-22-2009, 09:50 PM

I also drive a beater. a 1990 Geo Prizm with 256K miles on it. We paid $500 for it 7 years ago, and other than basic maintenance and a few small repairs, we haven't done anything to it. I plan to drive it until the engine goes (and then DH will probably put another engine in it lol) It needs a new headliner and could stand a coat of paint (no rust though), but other than that looks fairly good. DH has a 1988 Chevy 4x4, but I wouldn't consider that a 'beater' since it still looks brand new (cause it's his "baby" lol)

**mommy4ever** · 02-22-2009, 10:27 PM

that's all we ever own. Dh is a mechanic, so he buys them in distress, fixes them for minimal cost. We drive them a year or so, find a "new" vehicle in distress sell the "old" for more than we bought them for and start the cycle all over again.

Currently a 1997 sunfire and 1996 cavalier.