Last month, for my birthday, I recieved a 1988 pontiac 6000. I think it's not a bad car, but I'd like some opinions. It also failed the emissions test (because my grandpa didn't read the directions on the guaranteed emissions test pass kit) and the only thing it failed was the HC.
Who has a car like this, and any tips for a kid's first car?
i had a chrysler le baron for my first car, it was an 87 and it was '98 when i got it. wow nearly 10 years ago. anyway, some tips i would give you are that you should learn all that you can do to do self maintenance on the car, its fun and you will learn a lot and you can carry that knowledge with you to other vehicles.
My first was an Opel Record from 1960...
Yes the first should be a easy one for maintenace...
My second was a Rambler classic '64...
What stability!
My third a VW Golf '80
Ouch bad electrics...
My fourth a Volvo 740 '88
So safe n trusty, but the old ones rust...
My 5 th a Peugeot '92
They dont rust at all but is expesive to maintenace here
mY 6th a Ford escort '94
Rusts...
1ST TIP.DONT DRIVE LIKE A ******.
2ND TIP.TREAT UR CAR LIKE U WANT TO BE TREATED.
3RD. DRIVE SAFE. AND TO ALL THE OLD ELDERLY DRIVERS GET READY TO CHANGE UR DEPENDS.
I think that driving on ice/snow is good for the beginner. You need to be good at handling the car.
Also let the kid try to drave at a race track is good. Also there they learn how the car respond.
If the kid is good at manouvering he has an advantage if a bad situation occours.
My best advice is for you to try to learn how to do your own work on the car, if you have the time or interest. It helps you feel like the car is really yours, and it can save you a lot of money, as well as being a source of entertainment and pride. It also elevates you into a select group of people who actually know how their cars work! You'll be less reliant on mechanics, less likely to get cheated when you do need a mechanic to do work for you, and a lot more capable of fixing your own problems when you break down in the middle of nowhere.
You can start by changing your own oil, and then move on to more complex jobs like changing the brakes and spark plugs and things like that. There's a minimal investment, in a set of good 6-pt. socket wrenches, some good work gloves (I really like my Mechanix gloves), and a few specialty tools, but you save big $$$ in the long run.
My first car was and still is a 1992 Honda Accord 4DR.
| peaceninja wrote: |
| i had a chrysler le baron for my first car, it was an 87 and it was '98 when i got it. wow nearly 10 years ago. anyway, some tips i would give you are that you should learn all that you can do to do self maintenance on the car, its fun and you will learn a lot and you can carry that knowledge with you to other vehicles. |
(sorry I haven't replied in so long, I was banned from internet usage).
Thank you and I will remember that. That will probably save me a #&#*@ load of money too, I bet. 
| 14protoman wrote: |
1ST TIP.DONT DRIVE LIKE A ******.
2ND TIP.TREAT UR CAR LIKE U WANT TO BE TREATED.
3RD. DRIVE SAFE. AND TO ALL THE OLD ELDERLY DRIVERS GET READY TO CHANGE UR DEPENDS. |
Well... That's just common sense. 
| Gagnar The Unruly wrote: |
My best advice is for you to try to learn how to do your own work on the car, if you have the time or interest. It helps you feel like the car is really yours, and it can save you a lot of money, as well as being a source of entertainment and pride. It also elevates you into a select group of people who actually know how their cars work! You'll be less reliant on mechanics, less likely to get cheated when you do need a mechanic to do work for you, and a lot more capable of fixing your own problems when you break down in the middle of nowhere.
You can start by changing your own oil, and then move on to more complex jobs like changing the brakes and spark plugs and things like that. There's a minimal investment, in a set of good 6-pt. socket wrenches, some good work gloves (I really like my Mechanix gloves), and a few specialty tools, but you save big $$$ in the long run. |
That's some of the best advice I've gotten so far, thank you so much. Once I get a job I plan on buying and renting as many books as I have time to read on mechanics, and I'm going to learn as much as I can. I'll remember to set some money aside to get some new wrenches, I forgot that I lost all my old ones, lol. | djcaution wrote: |
| wheres the picture?? |
on wikipedia... | Lobo23 wrote: |
| Gagnar The Unruly wrote: | My best advice is for you to try to learn how to do your own work on the car, if you have the time or interest. It helps you feel like the car is really yours, and it can save you a lot of money, as well as being a source of entertainment and pride. It also elevates you into a select group of people who actually know how their cars work! You'll be less reliant on mechanics, less likely to get cheated when you do need a mechanic to do work for you, and a lot more capable of fixing your own problems when you break down in the middle of nowhere.
You can start by changing your own oil, and then move on to more complex jobs like changing the brakes and spark plugs and things like that. There's a minimal investment, in a set of good 6-pt. socket wrenches, some good work gloves (I really like my Mechanix gloves), and a few specialty tools, but you save big $$$ in the long run. |
That's some of the best advice I've gotten so far, thank you so much. Once I get a job I plan on buying and renting as many books as I have time to read on mechanics, and I'm going to learn as much as I can. I'll remember to set some money aside to get some new wrenches, I forgot that I lost all my old ones, lol. |
Well, one thing I forgot to mention is the importance of a good service manual. I have a real shop manual for my GS-R (OEM from Helms), and it is an amazing resource. Conversely, I have a Chilton for my 90 Legacy and it is crap. It was totally wrong about half the stuff it said about the brake job I was doing. The information was very generic for imports in general, and might as well have been written for a Honda or a Toyota.
Example: on Hondas you need to screw in the rear brake pistons to get the brake back on the disc during reassembly, due to the setup of the parking brake. On a Subaru, you can just push in the piston with a clamp. The manual made it seem like I could damage the piston by clamping it (like on a Honda), which isn't true on a Subaru. Fortunately, I knew that, or I would've really been lost on what to do. At least the pictures matched.
The Chilton manual will be OK for me, but it's a lot harder to use if you have less experience on cars. It's worth it to try to get a specific OEM shop manual (diff. from the owner's manual) for your particular year, make, model. It's worth the extra $30-60 for sure. Alternately, you could get a .pdf of it on Ebay, probably, for only a couple bucks. I did that for a while for my GS-R before I finally sprung for a real one.
If you're really strapped for cash, you can probably find Chiltons or Haynes manuals at the local library. Also, a shop manual could be a good thing to ask your parents for on your birthday or an equivalent gift-giving holiday if you're really interested in doing your own car work. Your folks will probably feel a lot better about getting you a manual and some tools than a new video game or two, and that loosen their wallets some!I dont know man. My first car qas a Peugeot 206 creamfields. I still have it. And its a good car.
My first car is a vw golf 1 from 1983
actually i have a ford focus turnier from 2001 can you post some images of your car here.
First car was lada 
if you know, know is audi A6 
more better than lada but between lada I had Opel and other vechiles my first car is my baby a 1994 honda prelude.
I'll chime in and say that my first car was a 1981 VW pickup. I bought it with 160,000 miles and then sold it on ebay at 275,000 miles. It was a good car/truck. By now, someone has it and probable dropped a diesel engine in it.
my family's first car was a fiat padmini..........which used to get embarrased by sitting in............. and they bought maruti zen and then i finally bought a ford fiesta ... my first own income car
Mine was (and still is) a 1989 Austin Maestro city 700 van. 1.6 litre 4 spd.
Failed a warrant of fitness in it just yesterday - on no headrests, a tiny bit of rust and a bit of play in the steering.
In the process of buying a 1987 holden commodore berlina 2.0 auto and a 1990 holden commodore GTS 3.8 auto together with my older brother.
my first car?? I know what i'm getting. 1990 Hinda Accord. I think those are good cars.. lol. Theres still alot of them around still. In my neighborhood I see em alot. And everywhere else i go in canada. lol.
my first car was a Peugeot 404 (a french oldtimer), a really good car..Now I drive german 
My first car was old Ford Scorpio 1985 GL. It's a large car and it was difficult to park it.
Here is a photo before repainting:
I have fully repaired the engine, suspension and fully repaint a body. 2003 Audi A2 1.2 TDI (3L engine). An extra extra car
| draganuta wrote: |
| 2003 Audi A2 1.2 TDI (3L engine). An extra extra car |
I am agree with you friend! It's nice bird! | alyer wrote: |
My first car was old Ford Scorpio 1985 GL. It's a large car and it was difficult to park it.
. |
I learned to drive in a chevy suburban. That was hard to park!my first car was a tatty old 1 liter ford fiesta which only lasted one year and then it got scraped.
| web_harman wrote: |
| my family's first car was a fiat padmini..........which used to get embarrased by sitting in............. and they bought maruti zen and then i finally bought a ford fiesta ... my first own income car |
Hey, wth is a fiat padmini? Never heard about it... My first car was a Fiat 124, from 1968. I was just one year older than the car when, turned 18, I started driving it. My dad's idea was that there is no way a youngster can keep a car "untouched" for long. And you can bet he was right! Five days after I got my driving license (it was the Christmas night of 1985) a BMW just drove into my back when i braked too heavily to avoid people suddenly crossing on pedestrial crossway. I was right indeed, but my dad was right too! It was a fantastic car, double-body carburator, with an impressive horse-kick when the second carburator was opening (pedal pushed way down)! I can imagine that for US standards a little engine of 1.300cc is like a baby-car, but I can ensure you that running down the highway at 180km/h (is it about 130-140mph?) was as smooth as silk.A 1971 Ford Escort 1300 Automatic. It was 3 years younger than me and dog sloooooow! This was 1985.
| Lobo23 wrote: |
Last month, for my birthday, I recieved a 1988 pontiac 6000. I think it's not a bad car, but I'd like some opinions. It also failed the emissions test (because my grandpa didn't read the directions on the guaranteed emissions test pass kit) and the only thing it failed was the HC.
Who has a car like this, and any tips for a kid's first car? |
my frist car was a cavlier its a dafe car and very dependable i miss that car alotMy best advice is for you to try to learn how to do your own work on the car, if you have the time or interest. It helps you feel like the car is really yours, and it can save you a lot of money, as well as being a source of entertainment and pride. It also elevates you into a select group of people who actually know how their cars work! You'll be less reliant on mechanics, less likely to get cheated when you do need a mechanic to do work for you, and a lot more capable of fixing your own problems when you break down in the middle of nowhere.
You can start by changing your own oil, and then move on to more complex jobs like changing the brakes and spark plugs and things like that. There's a minimal investment, in a set of good 6-pt. socket wrenches, some good work gloves (I really like my Mechanix gloves), and a few specialty tools, but you save big $$$ in the long run.
My first car was a 1971 mini. Red with a white roof. I spent a whole summer spraying it, modifying the engine and suspension, renovated the interior. Then my first week at college I crashed it and had to use the bus for another 2 months until I repaired it. It then failed its MOT and I had to scrap it due to rust.
My first car was a 1986 dark gray Dodge Omni ..... 4 door, that I rolled within the first year I owned it! It certainly was a fun car .... shoulda just kept the rubber side down though! :\
1972 Ford Escort Mk1 Estate, 1.3 litre crossflow engine (the Kent) not much with 62 bhp but the estate came with a 4.11 rear end ratio so up to 140 kph, it goes like the dickens.
1976 Ford Escort RS2000 with the 2 litre OHC engine borrowed from the Cortina 2000E.
Ford Fiesta 1.1
got stolen one evening wth my weekly shop on the passenger seat
Had it back a week later, but was wrecked
I probably would still have it now as i hate to get rid of things
spinout youve had some bad luck with rust eh?
My first car was a Volkswagen. A very old one, but it drove simple, its service was simple, everything was simple. One of the best cars I ever had, the old Beatle ones. I regret to the day that I traded it in for a VW Golf. The latter has radiators tailormade for the North European conditions, not for Africa or other countries with hot climates.
| deanhills wrote: |
| My first car was a Volkswagen. A very old one, but it drove simple, its service was simple, everything was simple. One of the best cars I ever had, the old Beatle ones. I regret to the day that I traded it in for a VW Golf. The latter has radiators tailormade for the North European conditions, not for Africa or other countries with hot climates. |
volkswagen is my first car too...i did restore it by myself and 3 years after, i sold it just to buy 1969 mach 1 ford mustang and restored it too...i love mach 1my first car was a 1979 chevy chevette. It was a great little car to get started on. with no power steering, i got plenty of exercise.
My first was a Maruti Suzuki 800 in 1998 then replaced it with a second hand Maruti Suzuki Zen in 2001. Replaced that with a new Maruti Suzuki Zen in 2004 and then finally Tata Indica Vista in December, 2008
My first car was passed down to me by our next door neighbors (the Jones). The car had originally belonged to another neighbor (the Smiths) of ours who had given it to Jones' eldest son when he first got his license. He drove it until he graduate college which conveniently coincided with me getting my license. The Jones didn't feel right selling the car so they gave it to me for the price of doing mowing their lawn one summer.
This thing was a tank! Gun metal grey, black vynl interior. When I got the car, it had been on a construction site for a couple of months and needed some general maintenance. I didn't have the month to pay anyone to do it and my dad was not mechanically inclined so I borrowed books from the library and taught myself how to diagnose common problems and repair them myself. When I replaced the spark plugs they were so coated in sand they almost didn't come out of the engine block!
For many people their first car is something special and mine definitely was. It took me through all of high school and most of college before it finally died on me.
I do not have a personnal one but I use a lot my parents car which is a Peugeot 206.
my first car was a Dacia 1310 ! produced in romania in 1989 . all people say that is a bad car but i think that this car have same qualities. The most important qualitie from my point of view is that the engine have no electronics. More electronics means more problems. Now i have no car but i will buy a new car next year. I think i will buy a volkswagen.
VW Polo 1978 - I got it in 1985 when it was 7 years old.
It ran well, and I put 15000 miles a year on it until it wore out. The only problems I had were caused by a minor prang I had (my fault), and it convinced me to stick with VW.
I exchanged it for a VW Golf 1987 in 1988 - not too many miles, and again a good servant.
I then ran various company cars - Peugeot 305, Vauxhall Astra... before I got my next owned car, a 2006 Skoda Fabia - basically a VW Polo for £3000 less.
Can't fault it so far, one problem which was fixed under warranty, but its running well so far, and great for fuel economy, which really matters these days.
Malcolm
