Hi,
I've got a 2000 neon ES and it needs quite a bit of work. It'll need new 4 new struts, full brake job, inner and outer tie rods, possible ball joints, and at least one rear wheel bearing. As far as I know I haven't had the timing belt changed on it, and it is at 137k miles. My question, is this car even worth it to fix? I've gotten the tensioner replaced, lower bushings replaced, and regular oil changes. If not, I'm just gonna drive the car till it dies.

Thanks.

 

well if it hasn't been changed yet, you are 32k Mi overdue for the Timing belt, and if that goes, odds are you'll really foul up the pistons & valves( so add engine rebuild to above list)
and it really depends, would you do the work yourself, or take it to some one? if the latter you are probably looking @some where between 3-5 grand worth of repairs..(Including engine rebuild/replace)

now never mind book/resale value, is the car worth that much to you? if not, there's your answer... hit up the next push,pull, or drag sale in your area, and get what you can for it..

 

how feasible is all of this stuff? I'm not super intelligent when it comes to cars, but I can read and follow directions. Tearing apart the motor sounds pretty intense but not something I'm against.

 

That is all regular maintenance for the most part; you'll have it with every car you own. Brakes are easy to do. Using a scissor jack and jack stands, I can service an "axle" in about an hour, start to finish including flushing the brake system. Inner tie rods don't go out often, and thus, are fairly expensive IIRC and take a bit of time to replace. Outers take about 10 minutes a side if you aren't dealing with rust. Ball joints are a bit of a time consuming job, and you'll need the old ones pressed out and the new pressed in. You could remove the control arms yourself though. Struts are a fairly straightforward procedure. You just need to pay attention when removing the springs. Timing belt: I didn't want to deal with it so I paid to have it done and had a couple of other parts replaced at the same time so I wouldn't have to deal with them later.

 

If it runs good, where are you going to replace it for less than the cost of the work needed. Most of the used cars with good mileage are going to cost more than 2,500. Put the work into it, make it reliable, and run it. If you are not too mechanically inclined, have the timing belt/w.p., tensioner, and motor mount replaced at a good shop, should run about 600 with a Gates kit. Cost me $598 including parts. The rest you can do yourself and then get an alignment at the shop. Like Darth said, It's all maintenance, and unless you buy a new ride to replace it with, you will have it with anything you own.

 

alright. are there tutorials around here about doing tie rods, struts and the like? I called my local shop and they said to do the water pump and new belt will be about 400 total, which is surprising.

 

Look at the how-to thread. Can't remember what's in there exactly. You can also go spend $10 on a Chilton manual that will tell you everything step by step or d/l the manual in my signature.