Hey Scotty,
I have 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser with 162,535 miles and an automatic transmission. I've been planning to take the old girl out to a road trip about 300 miles down south to see my girlfriend (and please note this is my only car). She runs great and there are no glaring issues except that there's an oil leak, the brakes screech and that the tail light doesn't work but it seems to be more of an electrical issue (since i tried to change the bulb but its still not working). Battery's fine, tires need a change but nothing more than that. Even then, I've been told by family members that my car is too old and that I would end up in the side of the road. What steps do you recommend i take to fix the issues stated previously? Finally, what should i do to maximize my chances of not having it break down and do you think It's possible to have a road trip in this particular car?
I greatly appreciate your time and effort, thank you.
the brakes screech
Service them. Don't get ambivalent about brakes.
the tail light doesn't work
That's a safety issue, and a ticketable offense. Get it sorted.
tires need a change
You really like playing with fire don't you ....
You've gotta stay on top of these things. This is all really basic stuff for vehicle ownership!
what should i do to maximize my chances of not having it break down
have it inspected by an honest, competent mechanic
Thanks for replying. Joe. These are basic things that come with vehicle ownership, yes, but as a college student with bills, these things are quite hard to pay for. Me not knowing anything about cars doesn't help either. Either way, I will try my best to get my car back in shape. The right tail light hasn't worked but that's an issue that only started very recently and haven't noticed till now.
I understand. I was there. And not having money is exactly what brought me to work on my own cars, cook for myself, do my own home repairs etc., and generally become more independant. You learn by doing. I managed to own and drive a cheap, but perfectly running and safe car.
These are all easy things that you can handle, and save loads by not paying a mechanic. It all starts with picking up a $20 Haynes manual. It holds your hand, step by step, with photos to help.
Can my old car that has a few issues handle a road trip?
Anyone's guess would be as good as a magic 8 ball's.
I'd say probably yeah but a lot of perfectly good cars breakdown on 300 mile road trips, even new cars.
So make sure you have road side assistance and towing coverage to get it to a big town with a good mechanic in case something does go wrong.
Honestly? you probably can make it - I wouldn't risk doing that in a 21 year old Chrysler.
Thanks for your time, Dan, i appreciate the pointers. I don't know if it would help but I've been told to stop every 2 or so hours driving to check on all the fluids and to keep an eye on potential overheating. What do you think of this?
I do not think you need to constantly stop and check, keep an eye out on the temp gauge and on any fault lights.
Take an OBDII scanner, and maybe take it to a mechanic before the trip - that's apparently what everyone did in 1980s soviet Russia, where cars were about as reliable as a 20 year old Chrysler. :silly:
Take MountainManJoe’s advice and have all of the listed repair and maintenance items taken care of. After all, even if you weren’t planning a road trip, you would need to take care of your car for safe driving.
road trip about 300 miles down south to see my girlfriend
How much will a rental work out to?
Com’on Thrust, a rental? Why If you haven’t taken a road trip in a car that leaks oil, has bad tires, brakes that need servicing and a non-functioning tail light…you haven’t lived! 😳
Lol, but then the lady wouldn’t be impressed if it needs a tow while she’s in it..
.... unless you fix it on the spot with duct tape, her hairpin, chewing gum, and save the day. Then you can be a hero. 😆
If he succeeds using the above items, he might damn well be a hero, that night too..
A rental goes for about... 420ish over here but even if i did have the money, I don't meet the age requirements to even rent a car. (21 is the age that you can, at least over here.). I will get the car fixed anyways... shouldn't be but a small fortune.
All the best!
Learning to do your own maintenance and basic repairs will give you a more reliable vehicle, save you money, and help you avoid screw ups from shady mechanics that don’t know what they are doing (nobody cares about your car more than you do).
You’ll be surprised how easy a lot of basic repairs are. Start by looking at Scotty’s videos, especially the old ones. “Chris Fix” too. Also look for YouTube channels specific to your car model.
To save time, buy only the tools you need. I have found that for an average repair or service, the parts plus tools comes to about 2/3 the cost of paying a mechanic to do it, then I have the tool forever. If I have to do it again, it costs me about 1/3 since I already have the tools.
Just be aware what is DIY stuff and what isn’t (like transmission stuff).
