I thought I would share for the benefit of others contemplating a similar purchase. I bought this car 6.5 years ago for $13.6k and put 82,000 miles on it. I lost $1938 per year in depreciation and spent $3289 per year in repairs, which adds up to $435 per month. Just about every common problem of this vehicle became my problem at some point - head gasket, wiring harness, transmission, throttle actuator, computer, timing chain cover seal, nitrogen accumulators, belt and belt tensioner (twice). The only one I missed was the evaporator on the A/C, perhaps because the condenser decided to leak instead.

It was a great car to drive but 26 trips to the repair shop (some planned for service or tires, most not) means it was not the most reliable vehicle on the planet. It is probably best as a hobby car, but since it was my wife's daily commuter I rarely had time or the risk tolerance to do any of my own work except simple stuff like brakes, radiator and oil changes. My next car will be a BMW - I have owned Mercedes and Audi and want to complete the trilogy before I end up in the poor house.

Thanks for the memories.
-ChipJ

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Chip Johnson