Buy a 2001 Mercury Sable or keep my 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo?

[lisa s]

In August, I bought a 1999 Jeep Grand Grand Cherokee Laredo. This is only my second car (first was a Toyota) and I really don't know alot about cars. Anyway, I bought the Jeep because I was moving to Michigan and I know how the winters are and I didn't want to get stuck in snow; so I felt safe knowing I have a 4WD.

The car gave me not a moment's trouble until the week of Christmas.

During the week of Christmas, there was some sort of steam coming from the hood. Well, I got that fixed. Then, about two weeks later ~ Jan. 6 ~ the check engine light came on as I was driving to Ohio. Well, I went and I got that checked out. Then this past Friday ~ Jan. 16 ~ my car was literally "huffing and puffing" down the street. Basically, when I press the gas pedal, it hesitates to go and literally sounds like it's "huffing and puffing". However, if I'm on the highway going at least 60 mph, it didn't give me a problem. But, the minute I stop at a stop sign, for example, it hesitates to go again. Well, Saturday morning, we got that fixed.

My husband is sick of the car especially since what happened on Friday. Friday was terrible because I was driving to Ohio and the car was giving me problems and I was freaking out because I didn't know if I'd make it back home. He says we should get rid of it. He wants to buy a new car and make payments; I'm against financing a car. So, anyway, he has a friend who has a 2001 Mercury Sable and the friend is willing to swap cars.

I know nothing about cars so I cannot judge a Mercury Sable or any car. But, I am hesitant to just so quickly abandon our car for what my husband thinks will be "greener pastures".

I asked my husband why he wants to change cars if we've been able to fix every problem we've had with the car. He says because he thinks we'll have to be fixing the car alot in the future, too and that he had some bad experiences with Chryslers.

Like I said ~ I don't know anything about cars, but don't all cars (especially older models) have problems at one time or another? I don't think there's a guarantee that the Mercury will be so "smooth sailing". And, why does this friend of his want to get rid of the Mercury anyway?

Anyway, does anyone have any ideas on what I should do and some things that I should consider about this whole situation?

I'd really appreciat it.

 

[rage613]

You will never be sorry that you have a jeep, I can not say the same thing for a Sable, I have worked on them both and the jeep is BY FAR a much better vehicle, take it to a reputable shop (not necessarily the dealer) as the dealers depending on where you are at do NOT always do what the customer may need, so take it to a good shop and have the little stuff sorted out you will be happy for a very LONG time, I have seen these jeeps with 450,000 miles on them and still going strong, I can not say anything even close for a sable!

 

[Ralfcoder]

Take the jeep to a reputable mechanic, and ask him to evaluate the car. Tell him you're thinking of making the trade, and you want to know if there are any problems he can find, or things that may fail in the future.

Now, understand that no mechanic can find ALL of the possible problems that you may have in the next 10 years, but he should be able to tell you if there are any major things that need attention, or will reasonably soon.

You can find a mechanic by checking the Mechanics Files at cartalk.com - see the link below. This is the website for Click and Clack - the chuckleheads that have the show "Car Talk" on NPR.

Oh, and where are you in Michigan? I've lived here for most of my life, and while 4WD is nice, it's not a requirement. I've only owned 2 4WD vehicles in over 35 years of driving, and neither was my daily driver. If you're in the lower peninsula, and not in the snowbelt along Lake Michigan, you can most likely get by nicely with a decent front-wheel drive car.

 

[thebax2006]

You seem to have lost your car sense after getting rid of your Toyota.
Jeeps and Fords are junk unless highly modified for rock climbing or mudding.
Try a Mitsubishi Outlander or Endeavor if you need to get around in the snow. Subaru is also well made and liked by owners.