To Repair, or not to repair- that is the question

Often times we are asked "do you think it's worth fixing?" When customers run into high repair costs on high mileage vehicles sometimes they are in for a tough decision. For the most part, every decision is unique to its own situation. We understand when you're tired of pouring money into your aging machine. Here are a couple of tips to aid your decision whether or not to trade in 'Ole Sweetie.' 1) A newer used car may not mean you will visit us less. Do your homework on the vehicle you wish to purchase. Road test a few different models. After you narrow your selection, bring it in for a pre-purchase inspection. We will run a free reliability report on that year, make and model of the vehicle you have chosen. We have saved customers thousands with our pre-purchase inspections. Also, our inspection will help with final negotiations during your buying process. 2) Consider the depreciation and taxes you will pay on that vehicle. A $1000.00 is the amount of taxes you will pay on a $20,000.00 vehicle. Another note, a brand new car loses an average of 22% of value in its first year. That $20,000.00 vehicle is now worth $15600.00 after year one. 3) A brand new vehicle often times leads to brand new problems. We shake our heads daily when working on new (and not so improved) engines. Sometimes it is difficult to believe manufacturers are making improvements. I'm not going to name any specific models, but I have a close friend who had to have 3 different engines installed before its first 30,000 miles. Thankfully it was covered under manufacturer's warranty. But, this led to much frustration, and another new vehicle purchase he wasn't ready for.

There have been many times we have told customers "Yep, Ole Sweetie is not worth fix in time to send her to the pasture" but we realize the decision is yours alone and will always be happy to give you our honest opinion. #DalesServiceCenter #AutoRepair #PrePurchaseInspection