Saying hello!
#1
12-09-2007, 09:11 PM
Join Date: Dec 2007
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Saying hello!
[align=left]Well to start, my name is Nathan! After my '96 Dodge Stratus got totaled, I ended up getting a '98 Avenger Sport to replace it. Silver, power everything, moon roof, premium sound. Mostly happy with it, but it does have some 'bugs' to work out. Anyhow, I'll save that for another post![/align]
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12-09-2007, 09:30 PM
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#3
12-10-2007, 12:22 PM
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#6
12-12-2007, 09:13 PM
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RE: Saying hello!
Thanks for the welcome! I suppose I should give a bit of history about my 'new' Dodge and how I acquired it! This isn't the first Chrysler car I have owned. My first was, of all things a Plymouth Reliant. Decent enough for my second car, but didn't last long! My next one was a Plymouth Sundance, then traded that for the 1996 Dodge Stratus that I owned from spring of 2000 until late last September. I have to say, that Stratus was the most reliable car I have ever owned. It only had 49,000 miles when I bought it, and had around 119,000 when she was taken from me. If not for that accident, I would still be happily driving the car. I know it's not a performance car, but I loved it all the same.
After the crash, I started looking online, initially to find another Stratus because of the good luck I had enjoyed with the previous one. Unfortunately, it seems that not many people were very good to their Stratus', as the few I found for sale were in quite bad condition. One wouldn't even start, was all banged and scuffed up, and the entire engine bay was full of leaves and pine needles. I knew I wanted a Chrysler car, so I expanded my search to the Sebring. Then it suddenly hit me one day... what about an Avenger? I had been immediately drawn to them the first time I saw one on the street, and for some time was planning on eventually trading the Stratus in for one someday. That is until I heard they had discontinued the vehicle.
Anyhow, it seemed pretty natural that I should upgrade from the Stratus to the Avenger, so I ended up limiting my search to Avengers only. I became absolutely consumed with owning one! Every time I looked at pictures of them... the interior cockpit, the alloy rims, the hood bulges, the spoilers... I knew more and more that this was what I NEEDED to have! Finally I found one. The ad said that it was a 1998 Dodge Avenger, that it was black, had 42,000 miles, new brakes and tires, and came with inspection and 20 day plate, all for $2,495. The dealership was nearly 40 miles away, but that was a small price to pay for an Avenger! I called the dealership and asked if the car was still available. It was. I asked if the mileage in the ad was accurate. It was a typo. Should have read 142,000 miles. (Ugh) I told him I would be there first thing next morning to see it.
When I arrived at the dealership, I was again somewhat disheartened. Didn't the ad say it was black? This Avenger was silver. Didn't the ad say new brakes and tires? The tires on it were so badly worn I was surprised they were still on the rims at all. The salesman said the power steering pump was gone. The driver-side door handle was missing. (Ugh again) Still, all in all it really looked good, I told myself. We chatted as I looked the car over. I told him about the accident and how long I had been without a car, hoping to play on his good will a bit. The paint was shiny and sparkling, no major dents scrapes or oxidation. The interior appeared quite neat and clean as well. I also noticed that the side of the door said Sport on it. Hmmmm. It has a sunroof... sweet! The salesman told me that the door handle, power steering pump, brakes and tires would be taken care of once the car was sold, so I started to feel a lot better. Unfortunately, I didn't actually have their full asking price, but I wasn't saying a word about money until I absolutely had to. He held up the key, saying, "go ahead, start it up and see what you think." That was when I started to smile.
Opening the door and sliding behind the wheel of this car was the biggest nostalgia rush of my life. I put the key into the ignition, and gave it a twist. I was suddenly 20 again, and sitting behind the wheel of my red Firebird for the first time all over again. Hearing that snarling V6 come to life was like a homecoming. That's the feeling this car gives me. That total sense of cool. It's low, sleek, has a great looking interior... everything I always loved about cars was right here. Power sunroof! 16" alloy rims! The excitement made me feel giddy. Let me tell you, I haven't been this excited about car ownership in a long long time. After the Firebird, I ended up stuck with whatever I could afford; usually a 4-banger 4 door sedan. The Stratus was the closest I had come to excitement since then. Well, concerning CARS that is! But now... I had a chance to OWN a Dodge Avenger! It wasn't lost on me at all that this car shared styling cues from the Viper. In fact, I could see hints of Stratus, Stealth, and Viper in it. And yet it was it's own animal.
Snapping back to reality after a few moments, I took a good listen to the engine and I prodded the accelerator. Aside from the power steering pump, it sounded absolutely perfect. Smooth idle that seemed to be hovering between 700-800 rpm's, no strange knocks, pings, or anything else out of the ordinary. I popped the hood and went around to look at the engine, and listen better. Still good. I went around and bent over to listen to the exhaust pipe. Nothing but the normal putter of exhaust. No strange sounds, no bad smells, no smoke. I looked under the car, and was surprised to see no rust anywhere. The body, undercarriage, and exhaust looked good, whole and clean. Even the insides of the door sills and hinge areas were still shiny and silver. The car had definitely been in at least a minor crash because the nose and rear bumper didn't completely match up the way they should, gaps being wider in some spots than others, and paint cracked and peeling slightly where the polyurethane was stressed, but I could forgive minor esthetics. That stuff can be fixed easily. It was time to make my deal. I told him that if they would accept $2,000 I could have cash tomorrow. He said that if I could come up with cash, we would talk and work something out.
Next day I was there with cash, and he said that since they were going to take my deal, they would not 'dump any more money into it'. I would have to take it as is with no inspection sticker. I talked him into at least changing the power steering pump, and the deal was set. Two days later I drove my New Dodge home.
[align=center] [/align]
After the crash, I started looking online, initially to find another Stratus because of the good luck I had enjoyed with the previous one. Unfortunately, it seems that not many people were very good to their Stratus', as the few I found for sale were in quite bad condition. One wouldn't even start, was all banged and scuffed up, and the entire engine bay was full of leaves and pine needles. I knew I wanted a Chrysler car, so I expanded my search to the Sebring. Then it suddenly hit me one day... what about an Avenger? I had been immediately drawn to them the first time I saw one on the street, and for some time was planning on eventually trading the Stratus in for one someday. That is until I heard they had discontinued the vehicle.
Anyhow, it seemed pretty natural that I should upgrade from the Stratus to the Avenger, so I ended up limiting my search to Avengers only. I became absolutely consumed with owning one! Every time I looked at pictures of them... the interior cockpit, the alloy rims, the hood bulges, the spoilers... I knew more and more that this was what I NEEDED to have! Finally I found one. The ad said that it was a 1998 Dodge Avenger, that it was black, had 42,000 miles, new brakes and tires, and came with inspection and 20 day plate, all for $2,495. The dealership was nearly 40 miles away, but that was a small price to pay for an Avenger! I called the dealership and asked if the car was still available. It was. I asked if the mileage in the ad was accurate. It was a typo. Should have read 142,000 miles. (Ugh) I told him I would be there first thing next morning to see it.
When I arrived at the dealership, I was again somewhat disheartened. Didn't the ad say it was black? This Avenger was silver. Didn't the ad say new brakes and tires? The tires on it were so badly worn I was surprised they were still on the rims at all. The salesman said the power steering pump was gone. The driver-side door handle was missing. (Ugh again) Still, all in all it really looked good, I told myself. We chatted as I looked the car over. I told him about the accident and how long I had been without a car, hoping to play on his good will a bit. The paint was shiny and sparkling, no major dents scrapes or oxidation. The interior appeared quite neat and clean as well. I also noticed that the side of the door said Sport on it. Hmmmm. It has a sunroof... sweet! The salesman told me that the door handle, power steering pump, brakes and tires would be taken care of once the car was sold, so I started to feel a lot better. Unfortunately, I didn't actually have their full asking price, but I wasn't saying a word about money until I absolutely had to. He held up the key, saying, "go ahead, start it up and see what you think." That was when I started to smile.
Opening the door and sliding behind the wheel of this car was the biggest nostalgia rush of my life. I put the key into the ignition, and gave it a twist. I was suddenly 20 again, and sitting behind the wheel of my red Firebird for the first time all over again. Hearing that snarling V6 come to life was like a homecoming. That's the feeling this car gives me. That total sense of cool. It's low, sleek, has a great looking interior... everything I always loved about cars was right here. Power sunroof! 16" alloy rims! The excitement made me feel giddy. Let me tell you, I haven't been this excited about car ownership in a long long time. After the Firebird, I ended up stuck with whatever I could afford; usually a 4-banger 4 door sedan. The Stratus was the closest I had come to excitement since then. Well, concerning CARS that is! But now... I had a chance to OWN a Dodge Avenger! It wasn't lost on me at all that this car shared styling cues from the Viper. In fact, I could see hints of Stratus, Stealth, and Viper in it. And yet it was it's own animal.
Snapping back to reality after a few moments, I took a good listen to the engine and I prodded the accelerator. Aside from the power steering pump, it sounded absolutely perfect. Smooth idle that seemed to be hovering between 700-800 rpm's, no strange knocks, pings, or anything else out of the ordinary. I popped the hood and went around to look at the engine, and listen better. Still good. I went around and bent over to listen to the exhaust pipe. Nothing but the normal putter of exhaust. No strange sounds, no bad smells, no smoke. I looked under the car, and was surprised to see no rust anywhere. The body, undercarriage, and exhaust looked good, whole and clean. Even the insides of the door sills and hinge areas were still shiny and silver. The car had definitely been in at least a minor crash because the nose and rear bumper didn't completely match up the way they should, gaps being wider in some spots than others, and paint cracked and peeling slightly where the polyurethane was stressed, but I could forgive minor esthetics. That stuff can be fixed easily. It was time to make my deal. I told him that if they would accept $2,000 I could have cash tomorrow. He said that if I could come up with cash, we would talk and work something out.
Next day I was there with cash, and he said that since they were going to take my deal, they would not 'dump any more money into it'. I would have to take it as is with no inspection sticker. I talked him into at least changing the power steering pump, and the deal was set. Two days later I drove my New Dodge home.
[align=center] [/align]
#7
12-15-2007, 08:52 PM
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