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jamesA

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So after having to give up the Equinox because of the nearly 300 dollar lease payment and 270 insurance payment dad was making, I was given a work van to drive home. But that option had a time limit on it.

I had recalled a friend that was selling her 97 grand prix gt for 1000. Called her up and went to look at it. Initially she said that it probably had a blown head gasket and needed a battery. It's a junky car. Headlight casing is broken, faded paint, crappy plastic interior that's falling apart. Most of the cosmetic crap I don't care about. She jumped it off her car and when I finally got it started the thing was smoking from coolant all over the engine. No where near as bad as a bad head gasket, and I couldn't see white smoke billowing out of the tailpipe. After it warmed up a bit, the coolant started flowing, right up and out of the radiator cap, directly onto the battery. I think it just needs the battery and a new radiator cap to keep it from gushing out.

Is there anything else I should look out for? I know these things were notorious for some sort of gasket failure, but it seemed to run fine except overheating due to low coolant levels. She told me she'd let it go for 300, so I figure 120 for a battery, 5 for the cap and I'd replace the belt and waterpump for shits and grins anyway, I'd have a semi-okay 21 year old car with 125k miles for 480, plus insurance and plates.

Two days after looking at it my brother text me about my moms' old 99 Trailblazer. Needs at least one tire and an alternator/belt. With the battery dead I can't see the mileage on the Blazer, but I do know my mom had a whole host of issues with it. 4wd is out, cosmetic stuff, etc.

I mean honestly, I don't have to pay a dime to get the blazer, just jump it, fill up the tire and get it home until I can work on it. But I think the Prix would be easier and quicker to fix up at the moment.

So my question really is which one of these would be a better fit to drive and which one to fix and get rid of? I could use an suv, but at the same time I'm not doing insurance on 3 vehicles.
 
for the heck of it pick up a new radiator cap for the grand prix and jump it again. let it stabilize if it gushes again you know you may have other problems to deal with.

as for the trailblazer, if the 4wd is out it could be a host of other issues (i believe it is electric activated 4wd) after a few days working on an old bravada with a friend (electric 4wd, all sorts of STUPID sensors everywhere for it in the t-case) honestly i'd pass on that.
 
Dont waste youre time on the pos pontiac ...and tbh if youre at a point where you cant afford to drop 1500-2k on a vehicle somethings wrong if you have like over a 650 credit score you can go get a stupid low interest loan for like 3500 from your bank and go buy something half decent. If the blazer is free get it and get it on the road and just stack up $$$ till can get something.... seriously though I wouldnt touch the pontiac with my enemys dick , and I wouldnt worry abt the 4wd stuff let it throw a CEL and drive it in 2wd​
 
No one is getting any loans in this house at the moment. lol
 
Also just because pontiac didnt blow white smoke out 110% doesnt mean headgasket isnt blown. If they literally drove it like that any meaning of time its more than likely blown and symptoms prob will show more when you seal the cooling system because its not building pressure atm. Id say take free blazer and grind do what you gotta do then
 
Neither sound like a great option. But if you actually know how to work on them, I'd take both. Two cars for $500 is a set of assets that can help you. Fix them as much as you can, get them clean, then try to trade both together for something reliable that's worth about $3,000.
 
yeah, don't pay a grand for a 22 year old car with issues that doesn't run and drive. you can get a 500 car that runs and drives without issues.
 
YOU DONT WANT THE GODDAMN PONTIAC HOLY SHIT FIRE - id rather shit in my hands and clap and stab myself in the scrotum with a rusty butter knife than buy that burden , I wouldnt buy a kid I didnt love that car .... theres always other options
 
It's not about want, it's about need. What I want is a brand new car with all the trimmings, but that's not possible. So I can only go with these options.

I need a car in the next two weeks. I have two options and my question isn't what you would do. It's about the cheapest easiest way to get rolling so I can get from A to B for now.
 
If all you care about is getting from point A to point B, just buy a plated dirtbike or a scooter. That's going to be more reliable than either of those.

If the blazer works, just take it. I don't know why this is a discussion. It's cheaper and sounds in better condition. but if you really only need something for 1-2 weeks, you could always just rent something and not even pay for insurance and registration. I'd rather spend $300 on a rental than $300 on something that could blow up on me.
 
If all you care about is getting from point A to point B, just buy a plated dirtbike or a scooter. That's going to be more reliable than either of those.

If the blazer works, just take it. I don't know why this is a discussion. It's cheaper and sounds in better condition. but if you really only need something for 1-2 weeks, you could always just rent something and not even pay for insurance and registration. I'd rather spend $300 on a rental than $300 on something that could blow up on me.
preach
 
also do we need to realistically sit down and go over life and spending habits etc to be closer to 40 and not be able to drop $1500 on a vehicle ? im not even being disrespectful or rude but if you are living paycheck to paycheck then something else thats a bigger problem is going on ... got anything you can unload thats monetary value ?
 
also do we need to realistically sit down and go over life and spending habits etc to be closer to 40 and not be able to drop $1500 on a vehicle ? im not even being disrespectful or rude but if you are living paycheck to paycheck then something else thats a bigger problem is going on ... got anything you can unload thats monetary value ?

There's a couple threads floating around, I won't share as it isn't my business. With that said, I understand James' hardships and what's led to this point. Some shit really sucks and can be hard to recover from, so I'll defend him a little bit there. While dilbeckskate does have a point, I think James hit the point of frustration where he realizes this and he's doing what it takes to turn things around, hence the need for a new vehicle.
 
lol post your zip code and we will put our powers together to find a beater cheap vehicle if you are totally against the blazer
 
Let's pretend we have a $500. We should try to get someone's old Lemons car for $500. lol

Seriously though, if they can race, they're probably good enough to drive for a while.
 
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