Total cost of ownership

[Matthew Goeke]

Hey guys, i have a 1978 buick regal, which alot of you already know me, i didnt really know where to post this but basically this is the cost to get this thing running and driving (hopefully) all i have to do is replace the fr brake line and it should be drivable, i have all of the parts for the job now. this is the build sheet of everything i bought just to get it running.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dU_79TFGkrR07Zq8f7frBhlONfabohDzYIHdcsMtwKg/edit?usp=sharing
also im keeping it for a few years unless someone offers me 5k before my craigslist post expires

 

[Matthew Goeke]

im thinking about buying a new radiator, does anyone have any recommendations or should i stick with this one? if you cant see thats white stuff, i have no clue what it is.

 

[pontiacgp]

let's see now, the total cost of the ownership of my GP is.....hmmmm, your guess is as good as mine....

 

[Ribbedroof]

Rule #1 Never add up all the receipts
Rule #2 NEVER let the wife see all the receipts!

Luckily, my wife is a good sport about it, so not a problem

 

[pagrunt]

Would that be Vol 1-the first 10 years, Vol 2-the second 10 years, Vol 3-the current 7 years?

 

[Kennybill]

If your not a car guy, then maybe you should sell this car. There's a good chance you'll put a $1000 in it. Radiator, V belts, rubber and steel brake lines, possibly calibers and rear wheel cylinders, tires, Yada yada. If someone makes a reasonable offer you may want to take it. JMO. Ken

 

[85442/86buick]

Total cost of ownership ........damn that's a deep rabbit hole.

Easy $1,500 a year , plus insurance , plates and more on the years that tires are replaced, transmissions are rebuild are we including cost of gas. new shocks , springs , rebuilding a front end.........and the list goes on and on

Cars are not cheap , but waiting for the next bus in the middle of winter bites, come to think of it in the middle of summer it bites to.

But I would not trade car ownership for anything short of a rocket ship.......but thats just me.

Dave

 

[pontiacgp]

my GP is still less than the depreciation my kids have lost on their new cars, plus my GP will be paid off next month so no more payments to the Pontiac dealer....

 

[axisg]

a wise old man told me many moons ago to set aside $1000 per year per vehicle for maintenance once they got to be 50k miles or 5 years ( whichever came first ). That was 20 years ago so I now set aside $100 per month per vehicle.
Once you hit the 5 year 50k mark the payments are typically done ( and very little has been spent on maintenance ). So you need to consider what it takes to keep them rolling. That's all-in pricing including tires, oil changes, brakes, every 2nd year undercoating, etc... BTW

Because the Monte is so old and not winter driven I still set aside that amount and typically I spend $300 on storage and $900 in upgrades and maintenance every year. What you don't spend some years rolls over to the next.

Using this formula I have 2x 14 year old vehicles as DD's in the household. They are not new or pretty but safe and reliable. One is due to be replaced as it reached $1300 in repairs just the last year. The next repair will take some consideration and likely if its over $500 I will have it sent to the shredder.

Learning how to do things yourself will save you the $90/hr shop rate. As far as a rad, the Fbody rad slips tight in. Its aluminum cored, plastic tanks and the one in my car has been great for 5+ years now

 

[lilbowtie]

Matt you have a beautiful car. If you really want it money would not be an object to get it running. You haven't got any money in this car(other than your list) and I would hope you would want it for sentimental reasons. If your worried about money you have spent you still have a long way to go. Your working on the brakes and your system has been opened. You need bleed your system and flush out the old brake fluid and replace w/ new. my guess is the bleeders will break and require wheel cylinder and or caliper replacement - hope you don't but a vehicle this old I would replace them anyway w/ new master cylinder and put new brakes on while I'm there. Don't know why you put stop leak in it but did notice a water mark on the passenger floor mat which is a possible heater core. You mentioned radiator, if you do that replace the water pump while your at it. The headliner is sagging which requires removal to replace or if your talented repair by cleaning and installing new headliner material - it will take time and patients to do without breaking. The rear bumper filler is broken and requires replacing - once you get one it will need to be painted, might be a good time to fix the ding in the right rear and the hood. Put pen to paper and this would be a good START to a dependable, presentable car.