hblask 1 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 So I have a 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Last time I checked, Blue Book put the value at just over $3K, but it had a few small things wrong, so I figured $2500 was fair. Twice I put it up for sale in that range with nobody showing even a hint of interest in it. So I was thinking of putting it up for less when my neighbor, a struggling single mom, called and asked if we would sell it (she didn't know I was already trying). I told her I would for $2200 and would let her pay over a couple of years if necessary, which I thought was reasonable. She said she wanted to get it checked first, which she did, and her mechanic (who I have no reason to distrust) said it needs a new transmission and a couple other things that would cost a total of about $2400 to repair.Should I just give her the car? I rarely drive it and just have to pay insurance on an unused vehicle. At this point, I'm not sure I could sell it at all based on the transmission troubles (that wasn't one of the issues I knew about, although in retrospect I guess it's believable). Or should I just take it somewhere and sell it for a couple hundred for parts? Or donate it and take the tax writeoff?The other thing is I live in a rural area, and it's my only 4WD vehicle, so every couple years it's really nice to have to get out of a situation that would otherwise require paying someone. But insurance is about $300/yr, I think, so it'd probably be cheaper to just pay someone (and way less convenient).And no, I don't have pictures of the single mom, but it wouldn't help her side of the story if I did. Link to post Share on other sites
AmScray 355 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 First off, find out precisely what these "transmission troubles" are.For a 1994, yes, it's totally likely that the trans is 'getting there' and may need replacing, but know what the guy is claiming to be wrong. My Buick has a little jump in 1st and I was told 30,000 miles ago that it was critical and needed to be replaced right away lest I immediately die in a horrible crash, causing the world to come to an end and the baby Jesus himself to cast me into the depths of hell (you know how dramatic mechanics can be...). I just take it easy off stops and let first catch softly without banging it and it's running the same as it did when I first noticed it. If you're feeling like a little charity, then give it to her. If not, obviously, you could sell it at a discount and get money for it. Any running, drivable 4WD vehicle in the 'old beater' price ranges will have tons of interest on CL. If you can get in it, turn the key, put it in gear and go down the road, you aren't at the "parts" phase yet unless the trans is acting totally haywire, making the car undrivable.Lastly, as far as having it as an emergency 4wd, consider how often those "situations" occur in immediate range of your house. If so, keep the damn thing and just use it to pull whenever the need arises, without tags or insurance. You're in a rural area; it isn't like there's cops driving by every 15 minutes and even if they do, you have a pretty compelling reason..."Yeah, as you can see, my wife is stuck. We just keep this old Jeep in the garage to pull us out whenever it's needed..." Link to post Share on other sites
Jadaki 0 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 "Yeah, as you can see, my wife is stuck. We just keep this old Jeep in the garage to pull us out whenever it's needed..."If cops ever listened to reason or spent more time worrying about real crimes instead of paperwork on vehicles this might be relevant. Link to post Share on other sites
HollywoodAFD 0 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 If you don't need the cash.... just give it to her. Link to post Share on other sites
SGFULTON83 0 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 If she is a struggling single mom, I'd just let her have it for the sake of the children. Make sure she knows that if it snows, you get to use it to pull your other car out! Link to post Share on other sites
Piddle Duck 0 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 If she is a struggling single mom, I'd just let her have it for the sake of the children. Make sure she knows that if it snows, you get to use it to pull your other car out! this and also add Sal's number to the deal. Link to post Share on other sites
Balloon guy 158 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 this and also add Sal's number to the deal.Could kill the deal Link to post Share on other sites
hblask 1 Posted January 5, 2009 Author Share Posted January 5, 2009 The transmission trouble is that it will "lurch" -- it'll pause for a second or two and rev before it catches when it tries to shift. I have rarely driven it for 3 years, so I could have faulty memory, but it seems like its always done that to a certain degree, so it's probably just a poor design that keeps getting worse through the years, and is unacceptable to a mechanic. But I'm not a car expert, so I could be wrong.The problems I knew about were that it needs points/plugs/etc, that the computer sensors give two false alarms when the car starts, the AC needs to be charged every year (and yes, I've tried to have it fixed at great expense with little result), and the radio display doesn't work, so you have to guess what station you are on until they announce it.And I tried putting in on CL and another (pay) site, without a nibble, even at the below-Blue Book price.Oh, also, the reason why I'm leaning toward giving it to her is we need her to help with the dog business (when we are out of town) and to babysit -- she's an excellent worker and helper, and her son is on my son's basketball team, so she carpools (i.e, does the driving for us), saving us a LOT of driving. If I had to give it away, she's one of the most deserving.I'm kind of talking myself into the "free" price tag, now that I put it that way, I just don't want to be totally ripped off and used. Link to post Share on other sites
fryer98 30 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Oh, also, the reason why I'm leaning toward giving it to her is we need her to help with the dog business (when we are out of town) and to babysit -- she's an excellent worker and helper, and her son is on my son's basketball team, so she carpools (i.e, does the driving for us), saving us a LOT of driving. If I had to give it away, she's one of the most deserving.I'm kind of talking myself into the "free" price tag, now that I put it that way, I just don't want to be totally ripped off and used.From this, sounds like a no brainer to me. It sounds like she would do (and has done?) more back for you than the money you would get for it. Link to post Share on other sites
chrozzo 19 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 From this, sounds like a no brainer to me. It sounds like she would do (and has done?) more back for you than the money you would get for it.this Link to post Share on other sites
Sal Paradise 57 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Could kill the dealHEY.yeah you should give it to her. even though you don't have a politician to tell you it's the right thing, I think it sounds like a good idea. Link to post Share on other sites
brvheart 1,752 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 So I have a 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Last time I checked, Blue Book put the value at just over $3K, but it had a few small things wrong, so I figured $2500 was fair. Twice I put it up for sale in that range with nobody showing even a hint of interest in it. So I was thinking of putting it up for less when my neighbor, a struggling single mom, called and asked if we would sell it (she didn't know I was already trying). I told her I would for $2200 and would let her pay over a couple of years if necessary, which I thought was reasonable. She said she wanted to get it checked first, which she did, and her mechanic (who I have no reason to distrust) said it needs a new transmission and a couple other things that would cost a total of about $2400 to repair.Should I just give her the car? I rarely drive it and just have to pay insurance on an unused vehicle. At this point, I'm not sure I could sell it at all based on the transmission troubles (that wasn't one of the issues I knew about, although in retrospect I guess it's believable). Or should I just take it somewhere and sell it for a couple hundred for parts? Or donate it and take the tax writeoff?The other thing is I live in a rural area, and it's my only 4WD vehicle, so every couple years it's really nice to have to get out of a situation that would otherwise require paying someone. But insurance is about $300/yr, I think, so it'd probably be cheaper to just pay someone (and way less convenient).And no, I don't have pictures of the single mom, but it wouldn't help her side of the story if I did.If the transmission didn't need to be replaced it would be an absolute miracle. Link to post Share on other sites
brvheart 1,752 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 The transmission trouble is that it will "lurch" -- it'll pause for a second or two and rev before it catches when it tries to shift. I have rarely driven it for 3 years, so I could have faulty memory, but it seems like its always done that to a certain degree, so it's probably just a poor design that keeps getting worse through the years, and is unacceptable to a mechanic. But I'm not a car expert, so I could be wrong.The problems I knew about were that it needs points/plugs/etc, that the computer sensors give two false alarms when the car starts, the AC needs to be charged every year (and yes, I've tried to have it fixed at great expense with little result), and the radio display doesn't work, so you have to guess what station you are on until they announce it.And I tried putting in on CL and another (pay) site, without a nibble, even at the below-Blue Book price.Oh, also, the reason why I'm leaning toward giving it to her is we need her to help with the dog business (when we are out of town) and to babysit -- she's an excellent worker and helper, and her son is on my son's basketball team, so she carpools (i.e, does the driving for us), saving us a LOT of driving. If I had to give it away, she's one of the most deserving.I'm kind of talking myself into the "free" price tag, now that I put it that way, I just don't want to be totally ripped off and used.I would, like everyone else, just give it to her... but you should still be able to get a tax write-off of some sort. Maybe ask a local charity to be an intermediary?Also, your transmission is total junk, the mechanic is correct. $2400 is about twice as much as it should be. Link to post Share on other sites
AmScray 355 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokees are ****ing junk. It isn't even worth putting $2400 into it. As someone who's poor, she's dumb to buy a car like that and dump what little money she has into life support for a 90 year old man with AIDS. (this is why poor people are poor) I could understand it if were something that has a reliably long service life (Volvo, older Benz, anything with a GM 3800, certain Hondas or Toyotas), she liked the car and her $2400 might make a difference and carry her a long way until the next major failure, but GJC's are awful and should be allowed to die.(they should have been aborted from the outset)If you like her, suggest that she take her $2400 and use it to buy a car that's presently in decent running condition.Steer her heavily towards the GM 3.8 (Pontiac/Buick/Olds) L27/L32 Naturally Aspirated. Right now, as far as cost/service-life-in-a-dirt-cheap-car ratio, older 3800's or 3800 II's offer your best bet and as a bonus, they're cheap to fix. They're the only car out there right now where you can spend $1500 and stand a chance of getting another 100K without a major failure.Just be a little careful about the trans above 100K, as the engine will outlast the trans three times over. Link to post Share on other sites
vonteego3 0 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 The transmission trouble is that it will "lurch" -- it'll pause for a second or two and rev before it catches when it tries to shift. I have rarely driven it for 3 years, so I could have faulty memory, but it seems like its always done that to a certain degree, so it's probably just a poor design that keeps getting worse through the years, and is unacceptable to a mechanic. But I'm not a car expert, so I could be wrong.The problems I knew about were that it needs points/plugs/etc, that the computer sensors give two false alarms when the car starts, the AC needs to be charged every year (and yes, I've tried to have it fixed at great expense with little result), and the radio display doesn't work, so you have to guess what station you are on until they announce it.And I tried putting in on CL and another (pay) site, without a nibble, even at the below-Blue Book price.Oh, also, the reason why I'm leaning toward giving it to her is we need her to help with the dog business (when we are out of town) and to babysit -- she's an excellent worker and helper, and her son is on my son's basketball team, so she carpools (i.e, does the driving for us), saving us a LOT of driving. If I had to give it away, she's one of the most deserving.I'm kind of talking myself into the "free" price tag, now that I put it that way, I just don't want to be totally ripped off and used.What sort of dog business do you have? Link to post Share on other sites
Sal Paradise 57 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 What sort of dog business do you have?fighting Link to post Share on other sites
bigcoled 1 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Times are hard... with the economy it's not sensible to really give things away... Tell her, "I understand the issues with the transmission, but I feel the Jeep can still run as is... I cant give this away, and i dont want you to feel robbed... blue book minus 2k..." Link to post Share on other sites
Quacktastic 106 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Times are hard... with the economy it's not sensible to really give things away... Tell her, "I understand the issues with the transmission, but I feel the Jeep can still run as is... I cant give this away, and i dont want you to feel robbed... blue book minus 2k..."How much of a pause is that... between the ellipsis and the start... of a new sentance?...She may leave... before you get... to finish... your... sentance... Link to post Share on other sites
Quacktastic 106 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 fightingI was thinking beastiality porn, but potayto potahto Link to post Share on other sites
hblask 1 Posted January 6, 2009 Author Share Posted January 6, 2009 The Jeep only has 115K miles on it, it's been a second car for years, and I lived about 3 miles from work for about 4 years when I did use it.Scram's suggestions: Personally, I wouldn't dump basically the full value of a car into repairs, but she does need 4WD. She's got another, practical car that she uses most of the time, but her driveway is all uphill and ices over in the winter, and 4WD is her only hope. So for 4 months of the year, she needs something like that. Personally, I wouldn't look at Jeeps either, but it has been really well cared for. What sort of dog business do you have? fighting I was thinking beastiality porn, but potayto potahtoAll excellent guesses! The correct answer is: Meat Supplier for McDonalds!We do dog training and dog boarding. We have a small kennel on our property, we usually keep just a couple dogs at a time, but have had up to 12.We also do training at our place and at a local vet hospital. I used to teach classes, but stopped when we had kids because someone has to watch the kids while the class is going on. Link to post Share on other sites
strategy's_touch 0 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 Times are hard... with the economy it's not sensible to really give things away... Tell her, "I understand the issues with the transmission, but I feel the Jeep can still run as is... I cant give this away, and i dont want you to feel robbed... blue book minus 2k..."I am getting sick of hearing about the economy from everyone. in awful radio ads, the economy is the PERFECT opener for the sales pitch, apparently. Link to post Share on other sites
fryer98 30 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 I am getting sick of hearing about the economy from everyone. in awful radio ads, the economy is the PERFECT opener for the sales pitch, apparently.2nd.I thought the same thing when it was used in a velveeta commercial I saw last night. Link to post Share on other sites
bigcoled 1 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 did u kno, dollar stores wereone of the few profitable businesses in the us this year? I el oh eled at the duck dude.. back to poker... Link to post Share on other sites
brvheart 1,752 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 How much of a pause is that... between the ellipsis and the start... of a new sentance?...She may leave... before you get... to finish... your... sentance...Man... you're an asshole... Link to post Share on other sites
rvrchsrhtr 0 Posted January 6, 2009 Share Posted January 6, 2009 The Jeep only has 115K miles on it, it's been a second car for years, and I lived about 3 miles from work for about 4 years when I did use it.Scram's suggestions: Personally, I wouldn't dump basically the full value of a car into repairs, but she does need 4WD. She's got another, practical car that she uses most of the time, but her driveway is all uphill and ices over in the winter, and 4WD is her only hope. So for 4 months of the year, she needs something like that. Personally, I wouldn't look at Jeeps either, but it has been really well cared for. Even if you really want to help the lady out I would still ask for at least $500. I mean if it last her a month she can scrap it out and break even. shrug Link to post Share on other sites
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