Been running in circles thinking about this... recently I've fallen in
love with the VW Fox. Not sure if it's just the name, or it's cute
personality, or what, but as my current car now needs another clutch it
seems time to look at something different...

There's one for sale near me... a 1990 2-door, with the 5-speed, power
steering, etc., etc. (basically all the options for this car, it being a
tiny economy thing). But here's the kicker: 170,000 miles. Yikes.

I'm scared to even go look at it for fear of falling in love. But I
need this thing to be a primary car, and I don't have a lot of money.
Like, at all. I've read a lot about them, and heard that the foxes are
really reliable and easy to work on (especially for someone like me who
has little experience working with cars...), but with that many miles,
I'm increadibly nervous. I mean, to get that far the owner has to have
taken at least somewhat good care of it... but I'm not sure how much
more it can take. I'm pretty sure I can get the car for $700-800.

So I'm really in an existenstial quagmire of sorts here. I obviously
like these cars enough to even consider one like this, but really
logically I know this, at the very least, has the possiblity to be an
incredibly crazy and bad idea. I keep finding myself daydreaming of
foxes in my head, but figure I really should ask about the reliability
of these things. I mean, with that many miles, how much more life do
you think I could get out of it? I would assuredly check it out
thoroughly, and have my mechanic look at it, but even still...

Well, that's my dilemma, as silly as it is ;-). Thanks for your time,
and any advice you may have.

-Blair

"none" <""blaircl\"@(none)"> wrote

Foxes are good cars. They're basic and were VW's entry level basic car but
they're Golf/Jetta mechanicals and are pretty robust.

People don't buy a VW Fox with 170,000 miles because they like its name, its
"cute personality", because they are "in love", or to extricate themselves
from an "existential quagmire". They buy it because it can be had on the
cheap, and they can be made to be fairly economical and reliable
transportation by a minimally competent DIYer. Just a hunch, but something
tells me you're not the type of individual that's particularly experienced
with a wrench, and undoubtedly a car with 170,000 miles on the clock selling
for $700-$800 will need some work, quite likely even a new clutch. You
didn't mention what type of car you currently drive, but I think your best
bet would be to put that money into a new clutch for your existing car and
see how many more miles you can squeeze out of it. Then start saving a
little money every week so when the time comes, you can buy yourself a more
reliable and lower mileage Asian appliance.

--
Kent
1987 VW GTI 8V, original owner, 222,000+ miles

"none" <""blaircl\"@(none)"> wrote

Fox's here in the USA never had power steering! 5 speed Fox's were on the
rare side so figure since you think it's cute... then you may also have a
collectors item(lol)! They are as close as "the peoples car" VW has made in
a long time. They are very basic and run forever, most of the time anyways.
Anytime ones finds a car that runs well for under 800 then you done good. I
purchased a 89 Fox(160,000miles) which needed a headgasket because the owner
drove it after the water pump went bad for a few too many miles. Fixed it
and sold the thing with 250,000 miles on it. Taken care of, they last.

"none" <""blaircl\"@(none)"> wrote

!70,000 miles is certainly not excessive for a 15 year old car. The
important thing is not the mileage, it's the condition. Is it a rust bucket?
If so, forget it. How is the engine, transmission? Any leaks? Is all of the
glass intact? How about the interior door panels and other upholstery? What
is the condition of the paint, seals? Any collision damage? Does everything
work (lights, A/C, heater, etc.)?

Good luck.

Just a FYI, but you know not all people who use "big" words like
"existential" or talk about liking a cars personality are mechanically
hopeless morons who should drive their Camry and shut up. Sure, cars
haven't really been my thing in the past, but I'm very mechanically apt
in many other departments, and there is always a first time for
everything. I suppose all I'm trying to say is that: Dude, open your
eyes. There are more than 5 (or whatever) types of personalities in the
world. My experience? All those stereotypes are usually quite wrong.
I guess you can never be to sure in usenet, but most of the AOL'ers and
1337 hax0r 15 year olds have moved on the random web forums, so even
going to the length to come and post here means something. Don't rush
to judge everybody.

Oh, and you can take your "Asian appliance" and shove it :-P. (;-))

As to the rest of you, thanks a lot for the advice. It really confirmed
my hunches re: condition vs. mileage. If it's in good shape, I think
I'm going to go for it.

Take care all,
-Blair

You're right, I'm ever so sorry. My therapist is always telling me that I'm
too judgmental, and I just don't listen. You also caught me on a bad day
last week. I started feeling especially bad about myself after reading your
post because I couldn't understand all the big words you were using. I had
to keep running back and forth to my bookshelf to get the dictionary, and I
just snapped.

I have to go now, as Oprah is about to begin. Again, please accept my
sincere apologies and enjoy your Fox.

--
Kent
1987 VW GTI 8V, original owner, 222,000+ miles


"none" <""blaircl\"@(none)"> wrote

2 door, 5 speed sounds like a keeper.

Motor is a low compression model so chances of valve damage if the
timing belt snaps are reduced to a practical nil.

170K is nothing if the motor is decent, (see next) and the brakes stop
the car.

Get a compression (both wet & dry) test on the motor. If it's tight and
there are no outstanding issues then replace all the fluids (oil, trans,
brake, coolant, etc) and get to motoring.


What's not to like?


TBerk