# What do you think of this?



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Hey everyone I was just checking our local news website, and saw they are having a state vehicle auction next week.
Has anyone ever been to one? Anyone ever bought from one? Good idea to go or bad?

As you know I have had lousy luck with my SUV. We really can't afford to get a nice newer vehicle right now, well, we don't want to get into any payments, etc. We just had to have our roof redone and that wasn't pocket change 

My SUV needs head gaskets so we're still looking at another $450 in repairs.

I am going to tell him about this and since he's off work Sunday night, we could go inspect these vehicles on Monday! Maybe I could find a decent truck or something? Fix the SUV and sell it, or if we got a 2nd car, keep the SUV for goat stuff, etc. like we had talked about <insurance on it is CHEAP, $40 for full coverage>.

Here's a link to the story:
http://www.lex18.com/news/state-vehicle-auction-set-for-march-26/

Tell me what you guys think, I'd appreciate it.


----------



## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

We have one here in Ohio and my husband and I have talked about doing that. You are taking a chance on repairs but there aren't any guarantees from a dealer either. If you can get one cheap enough, why not. You just have to have the cash on hand to pay at the end of the auction.


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

ksalvagno said:


> We have one here in Ohio and my husband and I have talked about doing that. You are taking a chance on repairs but there aren't any guarantees from a dealer either. If you can get one cheap enough, why not. You just have to have the cash on hand to pay at the end of the auction.


Thanks! Yep that is one thing I worry about is repair issues. A friend said to see if they have maint. & repair reports available on any vehicle we'd be interested in.

I wish I knew a mechanic to take with us. The only knowledgeable person I know locally is probably my brother in law, he works on Mon, but I do think he has Tues off... I also think they were looking into getting another vehicle too! Hmmm...

I'd love to find a decent SUV or extended cab truck, nothing huge and nothing fancy, as long as it's safe, looks okay <not a hunk of junk lol>, decent tires, and runs well... That's better than what I have now lol

I can't drive my SUV at all right now, it's leaking too much antifreeze


----------



## NavaBoerFarm (Dec 15, 2012)

If I were you I would take your SUV to auction and get a four door pickup there. Not all auction vehicles are bad some just have high mileage and companies sell all their high mile vehicles all at once to auction. 

I believe they let you look at the vehicles before the auction begins so go look for ones with a clean interior. Those will be the ones that were most likely well taken care of. 

Although it is a risk and you never truly know what you're gonna get (just like livestock auctions) but you may just get lucky 
Even if you get a bad one take it back to auction and try again lol


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Thanks Nava! This is a state owned vehicle sale where they are retiring official's vehicles, so it's not an auction where we could take our SUV. We wouldn't be able to take it that far anyway without getting it fixed. 

We saw a list of vehicles, a lot of trucks, but I'm thinking they might be single cab  We need an extended cab truck.
Lots of Jeep Cherokee's, Dodge Ram's, Chevy Silverado's and Ford F150's. I'm thinking the trucks will be reg. cab trucks, but it sure would be nice to find a decent one with an extended cab.
We don't expect to get a grand vehicle, but something decent that will last a few years sure would be nice. We won't get our hopes up of course, but we'll see what happens.


----------



## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Can't hurt to go and find out what is there. Good luck!


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Thanks Karen!

Okay, we went and looked! Lots of decent vehicles, especially anyone wanting a farm truck, average truck or car.
We had to mark a lot off our list because of being a single cab or long bed/more truck than what we need.

The 2 we are interested in the most...

2004 Chevy Tahoe, white, has 207,000 miles, inside/outside is in great condition for being a 2004, and it was well maintained/regular oil changes. The only thing that it has a ! on is it says to check tire pressure. I think my husband said the tires look really good, might just need a little air.
Started it up 2 different times and it started right up, and is quiet. 
I climbed inside, and it felt comfortable and roomy.

The other is...

2001 Dodge Durango with 149,000 miles. Blue and is also in really good shape. I really like this one too. Felt very comfortable climbing in, and both times we got into it to check it, it started right up. I believe my husband said the tires also look good on it. It was also taken in for regular maint. 

We own a 2001 Olds Bravada right now. I think we get about 16mpg in town and about 20-21 on the highway. Reading the reviews on these two vehicles they seem to be very similar to the Bravada.

Also, I don't drive very much.
We bought the Bravada with 86,000 miles in November 2007, and right now it has 113,000.

The auction is tomorrow. The Tahoe goes before the Durango.
There were a lot of nice vehicles - would make great farm trucks, but they were all really big for us.

There is a really nice Ford Focus I really liked, but don't think it could pull our trailer, and the hitch hookup is smaller than the one on our Bravada.


----------



## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Sounds like you have 2 nice options! Are you going to try for them? At least if you don't get one, you have a chance for the second one.


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

ksalvagno said:


> Sounds like you have 2 nice options! Are you going to try for them? At least if you don't get one, you have a chance for the second one.


We're planning to try for one of them  The Tahoe sells first, then the Durango a little later. Of course I am very skeptical about getting into another problem vehicle, but at least we see the maintenance reports on all these vehicles, still wish we could drive one. It's a gamble lol If the price is right and later we have to put a little $$ into it, then it would be worth it.

Fingers crossed! Tomorrow we'll check and make sure the windows work on both, the seatbelts, and if anyone can think of anything else we should check? Heat works on both of them did check that today.


----------



## NavaBoerFarm (Dec 15, 2012)

I know the Tahoe has more miles but that's what I would go for. I'm a Chevy guy lol

Too bad you don't want a long bed. I love my pickup and the long bed is perfect for a livestock rack


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Yeah I hear ya on being a Chevy person, I love Chevy. I'm just very leary of a vehicle with 200,000 lol 
But not saying no to it either. 

If we had a farm and a reason for a large truck I'd jump all over one of them  But we just don't have a reason to get a large vehicle. We have a couple of acres, and dont' haul goats very much, usually just in the summer for 4-H stuff & have a trailer for that.


----------



## DDFN (Jul 31, 2011)

HoosierShadow said:


> The 2 we are interested in the most...
> 
> 2004 Chevy Tahoe, white, has 207,000 miles, inside/outside is in great condition for being a 2004, and it was well maintained/regular oil changes. The only thing that it has a ! on is it says to check tire pressure. I think my husband said the tires look really good, might just need a little air.
> Started it up 2 different times and it started right up, and is quiet.
> ...


Ok I am a big Chevy/GMC kinda girl (just had better luck with those over other brands). My dad had an old dodge truck when I was growing up and we loved it. Many years ago before I got my Chevy dually I had test drove a dodge ram 5 speed. Well it didn't handle as well as the Chevy and it didn't seem to have as much power (which could have just been a wastegate issue). I have never been in a Durango so I am not sure how they would handle.

They both sound like very nice vehicles. If you like both I would start bidding with the first one up since you may get outbidded on that one then you have the second to fall back on. It's really up to you. Some older type cars (like Volvo's and Mercedes for example) are considered past the point of flaws once they reach 200,000 or 250,000, but some others can be around the point of needing TLC.

Now on a side note my Uncle has a used car lot down here and he buys trucks and vans from the local government auctions and has always had pretty good luck since they typically have to take good care of them. Some times they are beat up and cosmetically troubled but normally the things run pretty good.

I wish we lived closer and I could send the hubby or father with you to look them over.

Back when my hubby had his RX8 it had those tire sensors on them and if it was a cold day and tire pressures ended up being a little low it would let you know. On a warm day that pressure would have been fine but the cold lowers it a bit. If that is the set up it has then just realize when ever you have the tires changed in the future those sensors get replaced with each tire change if they are like the RX8's wheels (something about they fit in the tire seal etc). I don't think they were to expensive but just an added fee on top of other things.

If the hubby wasn't at work right now I would have him jump on to tell more about those two vehicles because I am not the car person he is. Hope the little bit of info helps and best wishes.


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Thanks! Well we didn't buy either of them. The Tahoe went for it's value IMO, but the Durango went more than we thought it would. If we had the extra cash, we might have gotten it. Sure was a nice vehicle. We'll just keep looking, surely something will come up!


----------



## DDFN (Jul 31, 2011)

Sorry. I can understand though. We are on a tight budget around here right now, too. Hope you can find something in your price range that is worth it (low maintenance and good running).

I had an old VW rabbit truck (aka caddy) that thing got 55+ mpg and could haul as much stuff as I could ever dream of. Was great height for the goats and even the mini horse to ride in the back (under camper top, it was an extra tall topper too). It lasted long enough to be worth it's weight in gold and still would be on the road if a girl driving on the wrong side had not hit it. It didn't look at great condition wise but ran like a well tuned beast!

Had you thought much about looking into like an older Crosscountry wagon? They can actually pull a fair size trailer and have goat room in the back. Also this may sound odd but if you can find a used Hearse (and are ok with that) they normally are in good running condition and have fair prices since most people find it creepy to even think about driving one. Just an idea.


----------



## NavaBoerFarm (Dec 15, 2012)

That's too bad.. I know the auctions around me the vehicles go well over what they are worth most of the time. 
Just keep trying I'm sure there are other auctions in your area. 
Craigslist has some cheap vehicles sometimes


----------



## NavaBoerFarm (Dec 15, 2012)

DDFN said:


> I had an old VW rabbit truck (aka caddy) that thing got 55+ mpg and could haul as much stuff as I could ever dream of. Was great height for the goats and even the mini horse to ride in the back (under camper top, it was an extra tall topper too). It lasted long enough to be worth it's weight in gold and still would be on the road if a girl driving on the wrong side had not hit it. It didn't look at great condition wise but ran like a well tuned beast!


Oh man I love those caddy pickups
I've been wanting one for a long time but they are in the 5K-7K area for a nice one

Was yours the diesel 
That's what I want. Sure they may be slow and sluggish due to no turbo but they are awesome economical and multipurpose little trucks


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Thanks so much! Well I am tired of looking on line at vehicles lol There is so much that goes into this, I wish it were easier.
I really think we lucked out by not getting the Durango  My husband kept saying it was worth this and that, BUT, he didn't compare it to prices of other Durangos from that year/around that year & mileage that are selling in the general area lol

I'm wondering...and I've been wondering about this all day, as I don't understand the works of the engine completely.

The first sign of issues with our SUV was back at the end of July, before that it ran just fine.
It overheated, first time ever, and I got it off the road as soon as I could, and put water in it. It was a 100+ humidity kind of day, and we were an hour from home going to a goat show.
I'm wondering if it got so hot at that moment that it caused the gaskets to go bad? I just can't figure out WHY the heater core would leak, plus the intake, PLUS the radiator did have a crack. The radiator had a small crack about 3 years ago, we used stop leak and it was fine until this overheating thing.

My biggest question in all of this is....
If it's still running just fine, what are the chances of the engine going bad? It's only overheated that one time.
Just wondering if we don't find anything and it has no other issues, if we're just better off fixing the darn thing and keeping it lol
I mean heck, we've just about replaced everything in it lol Body is in great shape, interior just needs cleaned, everything is in great shape.


----------



## DDFN (Jul 31, 2011)

HoosierShadow said:


> Thanks so much! Well I am tired of looking on line at vehicles lol There is so much that goes into this, I wish it were easier.
> I really think we lucked out by not getting the Durango  My husband kept saying it was worth this and that, BUT, he didn't compare it to prices of other Durangos from that year/around that year & mileage that are selling in the general area lol
> 
> I'm wondering...and I've been wondering about this all day, as I don't understand the works of the engine completely.
> ...


This is definitely a question for the hubby or my dad. I will let the hubby read this tonight when he gets home and get his opinion on it. Well from what little I know (I myself am a diesel person so gas engines blow my mind a bit) it could have damaged the seal on the gasket or even of blown the gasket, but if it had blown it you would have known it. If the leak reopened in the radiator after it over heated I would think that the leak stop stuff would have gotten hot and came out from the place it had filled (this is just me thinking since I don't really know and need to ask the man of the house). So if it is leaking again and the leak stop worked the first time I would just try to do that again for the radiator. If it is running fine now then I would think it would be fine at least for a bit. Not sure if you would want to put the time and money into changing the gaskets and things.

When I got my little rabbit truck I had the head machined because it leaked a little oil and put a new gasket on and sealed it with the copper gasket sealer. It still leaked at the oil return which is pretty common with those old VW's. I tried filling it with the copper gasket sealer but it still leaked. So the hubby's papaw suggested using super glue first and then coating it in the copper gasket sealer and it never leaked again! Now I know this is a different beast and had different issues then your SUV but never under estimate the power of super glue and copper gasket sealer those two together can work miracles.

Let me find out from the hubby or my dad and I will let you know what they say since I am not a mechanic.


----------



## DDFN (Jul 31, 2011)

NavaBoerFarm said:


> Oh man I love those caddy pickups
> I've been wanting one for a long time but they are in the 5K-7K area for a nice one
> 
> Was yours the diesel
> That's what I want. Sure they may be slow and sluggish due to no turbo but they are awesome economical and multipurpose little trucks


I paid about 1K for mine but it was needing a little work. It had the diesel engine (which the engine is still in great working order waiting on a new body for a rebuild). This little truck was my dream vehicle! They are slow and sluggish but I even could move trailers on level ground around the farm no issues. Oh you may drool over this but my hubby had a turbo diesel quantum! I almost got a diesel dasher but the caddy stole my heart! If you want to see pics and I can start a new thread as I don't want to steal Candice's thread.

That's it we should get Candice an old VW Dasher wagon! Well maybe not you can't find parts to easy any more.


----------



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

DDFN said:


> This is definitely a question for the hubby or my dad. I will let the hubby read this tonight when he gets home and get his opinion on it. Well from what little I know (I myself am a diesel person so gas engines blow my mind a bit) it could have damaged the seal on the gasket or even of blown the gasket, but if it had blown it you would have known it. If the leak reopened in the radiator after it over heated I would think that the leak stop stuff would have gotten hot and came out from the place it had filled (this is just me thinking since I don't really know and need to ask the man of the house). So if it is leaking again and the leak stop worked the first time I would just try to do that again for the radiator. If it is running fine now then I would think it would be fine at least for a bit. Not sure if you would want to put the time and money into changing the gaskets and things.
> 
> When I got my little rabbit truck I had the head machined because it leaked a little oil and put a new gasket on and sealed it with the copper gasket sealer. It still leaked at the oil return which is pretty common with those old VW's. I tried filling it with the copper gasket sealer but it still leaked. So the hubby's papaw suggested using super glue first and then coating it in the copper gasket sealer and it never leaked again! Now I know this is a different beast and had different issues then your SUV but never under estimate the power of super glue and copper gasket sealer those two together can work miracles.
> 
> Let me find out from the hubby or my dad and I will let you know what they say since I am not a mechanic.


Thanks! I've been thinking about this all day. I forgot to mention that we did replace the radiator lol Geeesh, how'd I forget that part lol
We put a new one in back in Oct. Bypassed the heater core about 2 months ago. We did take it to a shop someone said it was the water pump, planned to get it fixed. They said the pump looked just fine, and said it was the intake gaskets. They said over $600 to fix it, so we brought it home.

I found another shop that will fix it for $420. The only time in 5 1/2 years that it has ever failed me was when the fuel pump went out...in November! Yes one thing after another. But what else is there left to fix? lol
That's why I am nervous about it but also nervous about getting another vehicle, I KNOW what we put into this one, I don't know what has been put into another or if there are issues that the seller wouldn't tell us about, etc.


----------

