To new or prospective SVX owners

[dcarrb]

Here I offer the maintenance and repair records on my silver SVX. I paid $1800 for this car in August of 2006, with an odometer reading of 154,273 miles. I've logged 19,500+ miles in local routine driving and occasional 250 mile road trips. Valve cover gaskets and front seals (and hopefully the timing belt) had apparently been replaced by a previous owner. Safe bet that a PO also took the hit for a radiator and rear wheel bearings. It's bone stock, tight, ultra-quiet (excepting occasional chatter from a heat shield at speed), rust-free, and strong. It exhibits less-than-artful collision repair to the nose, needs paint and a host of minor things such as dash bulbs and sun visors. All-in-all, it's probably a fairly typical example, thus this list may be of interest to those with, or considering, a car of similar age/mileage:

69,780 mi. transmission replaced (receipt came with the car)
154,301 mi. battery replaced
154,320 mi. air filter replaced
154,375 mi. oil and filter changed
power steering fluid changed
rear wiper blade replaced
154,445 mi. four-wheel alignment
tires balanced and rotated
154,456 mi. radio antenna assembly replaced (used)
154,472 mi. transmission fluid and filter changed
differential lube changed (both)
154,500 mi. rear wiper motor assembly replaced (used)
154,665 mi. front wiper blades replaced
154,739 mi. fog lamp bulb (right side) replaced
156,924 mi. oil and filter changed
PCV valve replaced
front wheel bearings (both) replaced
front ABS tone wheels (both) replaced
right-front ABS sensor replaced
power steering high-pressure hose replaced
157,228 mi. window master switch replaced
158,718 mi. throttle position sensor replaced
159,600 mi. ignition switch replaced
tires (4 Cooper CS4 Touring, V-rated)
160,000 mi. oil and filter changed
steering rack replaced
AC compressor/receiver replaced (R-134a)
power steering return hose replaced
162,773 mi. front sway bar bushings replaced
oil and filter changed
170,732 mi. hood support struts replaced
170,750 mi. right-front brake hose replaced
oil and filter changed
transmission fluid and filter changed
tires balanced and rotated
170,767 mi. alternator and drive belt replaced
173,100 mi. right low-beam headlight bulb replaced
173,770 mi. rear strut mounts and spring seats replaced

Bold-type items were goners; other stuff was PM/wishful thinking. I have a shift lock control unit, trunk struts, and breather hoses in the garage, waiting to be installed on some warm Saturday. Add a starter relay to the to-do list. It bothers me not knowing the age of the timing belt and I'll probably tend that in the coming year. In short, there's always something as a matter of routine. Candidly, I'm crazy about this car but lack the resources and motivation to treat it as it truly deserves. You should budget accordingly.

dcb

[Mike621]

Thanks for the detailed synopsis. After nearly 5 years of ownership, I've contemplating listing out the same, but have yet to do so. SVX ownership can prove to be expensive.

[RojoRocket]

I'm frankly afraid to list everything. The wife might find it!!

Glenn

[Seraph]

Owning a SVX is like owning a boat. Your happiest days are the days you bought the SVX and the day you sell the SVX.

[shelfy]

yikes! i've done very little to the ebony svx in 33 months / 61k miles of ownership, but the things i have done have been major.

[LetItSnow]

It's awful that the SVX can be picked up for a fraction of its upkeep cost. These cars are going to die away as they are bought by people who aren't aware that they're probably going to pay the difference to maybe $7k-10k to keep it from becoming (or remaining) rolling (or not!) junk, and don't follow through with that expense.

It's not an $1800 car in the conventional sense!

[dcarrb]

Understand, I don't think this is a bad record for an eighteen year old, eighteen hundred dollar car. It's a real-world example. Folks should be mindful that it takes money, constant care, and more money to keep ANY old car rolling.

The more I spend on these things, the longer I figure they've got to stick around and earn their keep.

dcb

[ensteele]

Originally Posted by Seraph

Owning a SVX is like owning a boat. Your happiest days are the days you bought the SVX and the day you sell the SVX.

I fixed it for you Lwin:

"Owning a SVX is like owning a boat. Your happiest days are the days you bought the SVX and the day you sell the Boat."

[svxistentialist]

I'm not currently using any of my cars mostly due to economic circumstances, but for a complex top end car they are not all that expensive to own and run, at least in relative terms.

They DO need the attention to detail shown by dcb to keep them right, and in that respect they are possibly not the ideal student vehicle if the money for this maintenance is not available.

Just to illustrate how an SVX is expensive to run in Ireland [as opposed to expensive to service and maintain] here are some running cost comparisons for you.

Annual insurance $1150
Annual road tax $2150

Fuel currently costs 1.25Euro per litre.

In US terms that is approx $1.77 per litre and is $6.69 or so per US gallon.

So to fill the car up would usually take $115 or thereabouts. Considering that when I was using the SVX as a daily driver I normally got the equivalent of 17 or 18 mpg in US gallons, high mileage in the SVX is an expensive business.

So it continually amuses me that in the US there are so many young SVX owners and SVX drivers. Trust me when I say that in Ireland or in England there are NO/nada/zilch/zero students driving SVXes.


Joe

[Bohler]

Originally Posted by dcarrb

I paid $1800 for this car in August of 2006, with an odometer reading of 154,273 miles.

I paid $3500 for mine in Sep 07 with 160000miles on it. Makes me feel like I might have overpaid.
Since then I have spent well over that price in just mechanical repairs: replaced the sparkplugs(Guy who had it before me only replaced the passenger side and he used the wrong kind), right rear brake caliper and rotor(due to caliper seizing up), Transmission(due to shearing front diff and nonworking AWD), MAF(due to stalling), timing belt(due to breaking), idlers and water pump(preventitive), Camshaft and sprocket(due to broken timing belt), coil packs(one was going bad replaced them all),driveshaft(broken front u-joint),front axles(due to vibration).
Car now has over 200,000miles on it and it runs great, but it is sad knowing that the value of my car doubles when I put my bicycle on the roof rack!

[TomsSVX]

i could make my list for all my cars...

it would make me cry deeply considering I cannot sell my silver for an 1/8th of what I have in it in parts alone....

Long story short... only a n00b would own one

Tom

[K_Dub]

Originally Posted by Bohler

Car now has over 200,000miles on it and it runs great, but it is sad knowing that the value of my car doubles when I put my bicycle on the roof rack!

I think that a lot of owners on here are original owners, or have owned their car for many years, and may be upset about this car's depreciation. I get that. But let's face the facts; the cars aren't worth nearly what we tend to think they are, and that opens the door to a lot of new owners with much smaller budgets. I think this has lead to a lot of animosity here, and that shouldn't be the case.

My car is worthless to anyone but me. I bought my car to own it, not as an investment. Much like many of the SVXs being sold today, mine has reached it's final owner. Resale doesn't matter a bit to me, so as long as I can keep it on the road for a reasonable price it will live on.

My message to old or original SVX owners is:
Don't worry that somebody with less money is getting into your exclusive club. Own you car and enjoy it. You'll never recoup all of the money you've put into it, but in reality that shouldn't matter as it's still cheaper than buying a new car. Someday these cars might end up on Barrett Jackson as a big ticket item, but until then if somebody wants to pony up for a cheap used car and it croaks on them such is life. That doesn't devalue your experience, so don't let it get to you. Attrition is a fact of life, and it is not the fault of people buying into the market that these cars are dying off. They just aren't worth what they used to be.

[Bohler]

Originally Posted by Bohler

Car now has over 200,000miles on it and it runs great, but it is sad knowing that the value of my car doubles when I put my bicycle on the roof rack!

Originally Posted by K_Dub

My car is worthless to anyone but me. I bought my car to own it, not as an investment. Much like many of the SVXs being sold today, mine has reached it's final owner. Resale doesn't matter a bit to me, so as long as I can keep it on the road for a reasonable price it will live on.

I wrote that because I thought it was amusing,but true. I honestly don't care what my car is worth. Like all my cars I am and will be their last owner. I have a 1966 Ford Falcon that was in great shape with 65000 original miles until I was rear ended about 9 months ago. To the insurance company and most other people the car is not worth fixing, but I am definitely going to have that car back on the road... eventually. The cash value of the car will never reach the amount of money I am going to have to put into it, but it will still be worth it to me.

[SVXyGirl]

I was a 19 year old poor college student when I picked up my first SVX (the 92 claret). Honestly, I did not know what I was getting into at the time. I wouldn't dare calculate what I've put into that car. (I'm sure other people here have dropped more money into their cars than I have.) Even though I was broke, I worked hard to keep the car running. Thankfully the people on this network (and on the other forum) and my car nut family have helped along the way. I have people ask me almost everyday why I insist keeping these cars. Somedays I wonder why I don't trade them in for a newer car. Today I was reminded why I still own this particular SVX (and the other one). I have been away for about 4 days. Driving about 1,100 miles round trip in a Nissan Frontier. When I got into the SVX, I just felt "right". I know this sounds cheesy but it's truly how I feel. I guess what I am trying to say is that there are many people who buy these cars because they are cheap. They expect a cheap first car/beater/commuter, but realize they aren't when parts start breaking. But, there are still some people (like me) that buy these cars and turn into enthusiasts.

[SoCal LS-L]

Yikes!!

At the risk of sounding like im bragging.... I "won" mine from a charity auction for $1126.... with little defects aside from the sunburnt finish, and 135,000 on the odometer.

Since then, May '08, I have spent roughly $400 on repair (not counting body parts from my recent crash). My biggest problem was my waterpump going out.... but I did the labor myself so perhaps my figures are partially skewed. Im also not counting my EGR code, as it doesnt affect drivability or smog.

Im now at 146,000 miles.... so besides gas and routine maintenance not added to the $400......

11,000 miles divided by $400 repairs, equals just under 4 cents per mile in repair costs. Not having a car payment and the required full coverage means my car is almost paying me to drive it.

Maybe im just lucky?

Its a real shame that the car is ultimately going to be done in by lack of parts availability.... its such a pleasure to drive and I have never enjoyed a car on the freeway and long trips as I have my SVX.