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by hju22_-3 1066 days ago
Man, at this point, I just want a shitty old car that I can fix everything myself without tons of computer stuff in them. But there's always the issue of parts availability.

Anyone know of a dumb(ish) car that is user repairable with decently easy to find replacement parts?
4 comments
metadat 1066 days ago
Toyotas and Subarus circa 2003-2007 and tend to be pretty dumb and easy to repair compared to the cars being produced today.

But they're getting old, and safety systems in newer cars have come a long ways. Even I am considering picking up a Rivian or Bolt to get access to better safety systems.

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hju22_-3 1066 days ago
Yeah, that is a significant problem. Wear and tear on the main chassis (is that what it's called?) of the car also isn't making it much safer as time goes on.

Though, I suppose there's also fuel efficiency to consider as well.

Thanks for the reply, I appreciate it.

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FooBarBizBazz 1066 days ago
> also fuel efficiency to consider as well.

90s cars are just as efficient as new ones (neglecting hybrids). They have port-injected engines that run hot, lean, and efficient. They don't suffer from carbon buildup. They don't make nanoparticulate soot. But they do make more NOx, and NOx is what emissions regulations measure.

90s cars are also lighter, which again contributes to efficiency. Since then, cars have become heavier and gotten bigger blindspots in response to crash testing and the existence of SUVs.

In fact, merely talking about fuel economy, in a society that now mostly drives SUVs and oversized pickups, has become an absurd thing. We end up fretting about marginal issues while the primary trends thunder towards oblivion.

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freedude 1066 days ago
Most Chevys from the 60's.

Go to a car show and talk to those that remanufacture cars.

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m463 1066 days ago
I hope there is the EV equivalent of that idea. And EVs might have less maintenance (although things still break).

I wouldn't mind having a rooted tesla.

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hju22_-3 1066 days ago
That would be nice yeah, but considering how complex they are, I feel they'd need to be built from common parts and a user-configurable operating system or something. But I doubt that'll happen. The closest thing I've seen is JerryRigEverything's EV Humvee project: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0vZL9uwyfOFezIOiBjkdW3TT...
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jeffreygoesto 1066 days ago
Triumph Spitfire
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