Car Advice?

[Chris Fitzgerald]

There used to be the cassettes with a wire that would plug into a phone or a portable CD player, I used one for years in my old 79 K20.

Not sure if anyone still makes one or not.

I've used those before, but they were always buggy and always crapped out before too long. I'd probably be best off getting a better bluetooth speaker than my current little wonder boom. It gets overwhelmed by the road noise on the highway. I'm fine with setting my phone in the cup holder otherwise.

 

[jmlee]

If you have just an 1/8" auxilliary input for your older car stereo, and you have a Bluetooth capable phone, then you can get a little widget like the one below that lets you stream into the jack. Downside is that you don't have an onscreen display in the vehicle, but you can play music, audiobooks, satellite radio (from the phone app) etc. into an older stereo. It's just $27 CDN from Amazon, so a pretty cheap fix.

 

[Chris Fitzgerald]

@jmlee i would be all over that if the stereo had an aux in.

 

[Gaolee]

I had a Kia Soul back in 2015-2016. It was a great car. I “upgraded” and got myself nearly ten years of trouble. I recently rented a Soul to attend a funeral out of town, and the new ones are even better than the old ones.

There's your answer then. And, asking me what car would be good is probably a bad idea. This is my answer:

Stylish AND practical. What's not to like?

 

[Plain Old Barry]

There used to be the cassettes with a wire that would plug into a phone or a portable CD player, I used one for years in my old 79 K20.

Not sure if anyone still makes one or not.

There are also FM transmitters that plug into lighters.

onn. Bluetooth FM Car Charger with LCD Screen, Type C, Wirelessly Stream Calls and Music - Walmart.com

Buy onn. Bluetooth FM Car Charger with LCD Screen, Type C, Wirelessly Stream Calls and Music at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

 

[Gaolee]

OK, time to be a little more serious. Rust makes fixing the current Xterra pretty much a non-starter. If it cannot pass emissions to be licensed without spending as much as it is worth, maybe more, on repairs, that seals its fate. Taking a look at something like Auto Trader for relatively low mileage cars in mild climates across the country seems like a way to get a used car that somebody else took the depreciation hit on while still getting one that hasn't been eaten by the tinworm. A ten year old car from Texas or Nevada will be very different from a ten year old car from the midwest. I'm not sure how different the prices will be. Probably not much. Buying it used saves enough money to fly to wherever it is and then drive it back.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

OK, time to be a little more serious. Rust makes fixing the current Xterra pretty much a non-starter. If it cannot pass emissions to be licensed without spending as much as it is worth, maybe more, on repairs, that seals its fate. Taking a look at something like Auto Trader for relatively low mileage cars in mild climates across the country seems like a way to get a used car that somebody else took the depreciation hit on while still getting one that hasn't been eaten by the tinworm. A ten year old car from Texas or Nevada will be very different from a ten year old car from the midwest. I'm not sure how different the prices will be. Probably not much. Buying it used saves enough money to fly to wherever it is and then drive it back.

Good idea!

 

[Mike N]

There are also FM transmitters that plug into lighters.

onn. Bluetooth FM Car Charger with LCD Screen, Type C, Wirelessly Stream Calls and Music - Walmart.com

Buy onn. Bluetooth FM Car Charger with LCD Screen, Type C, Wirelessly Stream Calls and Music at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

There were FM converters way back in the day (yes, I'm old) and it seems that every Chevy Chevette that rolled into the shop had one.

Myself I had an 8 track/FM converter combo (I think it was made by Motorola) in my 72 Buick and then I got one of those 8 track to cassette adapters and I was living large at that point.

 

[Mike N]

OK, time to be a little more serious. Rust makes fixing the current Xterra pretty much a non-starter. If it cannot pass emissions to be licensed without spending as much as it is worth, maybe more, on repairs, that seals its fate. Taking a look at something like Auto Trader for relatively low mileage cars in mild climates across the country seems like a way to get a used car that somebody else took the depreciation hit on while still getting one that hasn't been eaten by the tinworm. A ten year old car from Texas or Nevada will be very different from a ten year old car from the midwest. I'm not sure how different the prices will be. Probably not much. Buying it used saves enough money to fly to wherever it is and then drive it back.

How much rust? I didn't think you PNW guys had the problems like us WNY guys do...... there's usually more salt on the roads here in the winter than there is snow.

 

[turf3]

How much rust? I didn't think you PNW guys had the problems like us WNY guys do...... there's usually more salt on the roads here in the winter than there is snow.

Well, the OP is already saying the Xterra "needs rust repair". I assume that means perforating rust in body panels, which is likely also to mean that much of the undercarriage is badly rusted. I wouldn't probably be as concerned about the frame or suspension components as that ANY TIME you try to service anything under there the screws are going to snap off and have to be dealt with, all of which adds huge costs to repairs.

 

[Mike N]

Well, the OP is already saying the Xterra "needs rust repair". I assume that means perforating rust in body panels, which is likely also to mean that much of the undercarriage is badly rusted. I wouldn't probably be as concerned about the frame or suspension components as that ANY TIME you try to service anything under there the screws are going to snap off and have to be dealt with, all of which adds huge costs to repairs.

I'm well aware of rusted vehicles and extremely experienced in repairing them...... 40 years of twisting wrenches in the salt belt, I know how to use a torch and there's honestly not much that scares me.

I could show you pics of the junk I worked on daily, but I'd need to be sure your tetanus shot is up to date.

 

[Plain Old Barry]

There were FM converters way back in the day (yes, I'm old) and it seems that every Chevy Chevette that rolled into the shop had one.

Myself I had an 8 track/FM converter combo (I think it was made by Motorola) in my 72 Buick and then I got one of those 8 track to cassette adapters and I was living large at that point.

Some cars in the early oughts had stereos that could accept an optional CD player or changer. My 2005 Tacoma had such a factory radio. I was able to pick up an inexpensive aftermarket device that added an external 1/8" input so I could use an XM tuner and later an iPod.

It was cheap and I followed Crutchfield's instructions to disassemble and reassemble the dash.

As I remember, all I needed was a 10mm socket w/ extension and some Harbor Freight plastic trim tools to pop off the climate controls. After 4 10mm bolts came out, the entire center stack tilted right out. It was an easy one beer job. I'll bet most cars of the same vintage are similar if you know which panels to pry to get to the screws.

Even the door panels were cake in that truck to replace speakers. Remove 1 or 2 screws, lift the entire inner door off some hooks.

 

[turf3]

I'm well aware of rusted vehicles and extremely experienced in repairing them...... 40 years of twisting wrenches in the salt belt, I know how to use a torch and there's honestly not much that scares me.

I could show you pics of the junk I worked on daily, but I'd need to be sure your tetanus shot is up to date.

Anything CAN be done. The question is, whether a well-rusted old car of no collectible or sentimental value will pay the costs.

 

[Mike N]

Some cars in the early oughts had stereos that could accept an optional CD player or changer. My 2005 Tacoma had such a factory radio. I was able to pick up an inexpensive aftermarket device that added an external 1/8" input so I could use an XM tuner and later an iPod.

It was cheap and I followed Crutchfield's instructions to disassemble and reassemble the dash.

As I remember, all I needed was a 10mm socket w/ extension and some Harbor Freight plastic trim tools to pop off the climate controls. After 4 10mm bolts came out, the entire center stack tilted right out. It was an easy one beer job. I'll bet most cars of the same vintage are similar if you know which panels to pry to get to the screws.

Even the door panels were cake in that truck to replace speakers. Remove 1 or 2 screws, lift the entire inner door off some hooks.

The elusive 10mm socket........ the one that mechanics lose the most.

I have a tattoo of a 10mm socket falling off the ratchet, only to be lost forever.....

 

[turf3]

The elusive 10mm socket........ the one that mechanics lose the most.

I have a tattoo of a 10mm socket falling off the ratchet, only to be lost forever.....

It used to be the 9/16 socket.

 

[Gaolee]

How much rust? I didn't think you PNW guys had the problems like us WNY guys do...... there's usually more salt on the roads here in the winter than there is snow.

Cars last a long, long time here. It was pretty routine for me to drive a 20 year old car that was not rusty. My current little van is rusty because it spent the first eight years of its life as a Monterey County water department van, in a salty marine environment, and now it gets full of SCUBA gear that drips salt water in it. I don't expect it to last more than about another 10 years, but that would make it 25 years old. Even with the exposures it has had, it's not getting eaten alive like it would where you live.

Point being that this area has plenty of examples of older cars that don't have any rust at all. This is another place to look. Washington and Oregon, away from the direct Pacific coast.

 

[Gaolee]

The elusive 10mm socket........ the one that mechanics lose the most.

I have a tattoo of a 10mm socket falling off the ratchet, only to be lost forever.....

The supply of 10mm sockets is in the same place as the supply of the other sock that you cannot find any more.

 

[Mike N]

It used to be the 9/16 socket.

I have enough of those as well.

I started wrenching professionally in 1983 and at that time the majority of stuff we worked on still had fractional fasteners.

Fast forward 40+ years later and most of the new kids at the shop had metric only tools, other than maybe a 1/4" socket for hose clamps.

 

[Mike N]

Anything CAN be done. The question is, whether a well-rusted old car of no collectible or sentimental value will pay the costs.

The question really comes down to whether the old rust bucket is worth fixing. Some states have regulations on outer body rust for annual inspections, other states (like NY) don't care about outer body rust, as long as the frame is solid, you're good to go.

At the end of the day it costs money to drive anything...... used cars nickel & dime you to death and a new car comes with a hefty payment book.

 

[Mike N]

The supply of 10mm sockets is in the same place as the supply of the other sock that you cannot find any more.

I lost count as to how many 10mm sockets I have........ let's just say I have many of them.