Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

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Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby SinisterK » Sun Mar 04, 2012 5:33 am

Hey there. I'm a college student with no experience whatsoever with K Cars. I’m thousands of miles from my home in Louisiana, currently residing in Washington State. My parents decided I’d walked and biked as my primary transportation for long enough, and are buying me that’s right, buying me a car. The vehicle in question is a, you guessed it, a 1986 Dodge Aries. It’s the three speed automatic, and was well maintained and only driven around a small town by an elderly woman. By well-maintained I mean it looks really good, like new. It has 68,000 miles on it, and was pretty much kept in the garage the entire time it wasn’t being driven. What I’m asking is, is such a car a good buy at $2100? I know for a fact that has to be top dollar for such an old car, but my first car was an 1989 Isuzu Trooper that I loved, so it’s not age that bothers me per say. I’d just love some insight as to what to expect from this Dodge, mpg, steering, handling, is it high maintenance, etc. What’s good about it, and what’s bad about it? Brutal honesty is very welcome.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby Pete in NH » Sun Mar 04, 2012 3:00 pm

Hi,

Yes, $2100 is on the high side for this car. But, consider what you could buy in the newer used car market for the same money today. Whether this car would be a practical daily driver for you depends on your mecahanical abilities and if you can do a lot of the work yourself. If you have to pay to have someone else do all your work 25 year-old cars are not practical. If you can do your own work you will find K cars are easy to work on and the parts are readily available and not expensive. This car has a minimum of electronics onboard compared to newer cars and can be quite reliable if well maintained. One thing to consider with these little old lady low milage cars is that it is stll 25 years-old and if it still has all its original belts, hoses and things like ignition wires all that stuff will need to be replaced, also rubber brake hoses may need to be replaced if they are dry and hard. I bought an 86 Reliant last spring with 87K on it and the timing belt was original and was also dry rotting and starting to come apart. The little 2.2L four cylinder engines are very reliable and with care often run over 200K miles. The three speed automatics are also quite reliable. i woild change the fluid and filter if that has not been done and your good to go.

Fuel milage depends on how you drive and if you do mostly highwy or city driving. These cars were not designed to run on alcohol blend fuels and it hurts the milage a bit. With a mix of city and highway driving figure somewhere from lower 20's to upper 20's MPG. On handling, like most early front wheel drive cars they tend to understeer a bit. I find them to have very good road manners and be very pleasant to drive.

I think the bottom line is if you want something to get you through your school years with no real effort ortrouble on your part, something you don't have to rwlly care about but an old toyota or something. If you want a really unique little car that with some care and attention will be with you a long time the Aries might be right for you.

Hope this helps amd let us knoe what you decide. If you need technical questions answered there are people here that can help you.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby K-CAR_WAGON » Mon Mar 05, 2012 6:26 pm

I agree that the price is on the high side, but it really depends upon the mileage and condition (paint, rust underneath, etc.) and how well its been maintained. For that price it should look almost like new and everything including the A/C should be working. If you want a car as a daily driver and want something similar to the Aries I would recommend the later Dodge Spirit and Plymouth Acclaims (91-95), which are in general much easier to find in excellent conditon and generally better value for the same amount of money at this time. Spirits/Acclaims are essentially built on the same chassis but are a little more refined, has a stronger designed motor than the 86, comes with a driver's side air-bag, and replacement parts are easier to find. A weak point on the 4 cylinder Aries/Reliants/Spirits/Acclaims is the head gasket which has a tendency to leak (evident by any of: overheating, bubbles in coolant, sometimes no heat from heater, erratic swings on temp gauge, oil or very dirty coolant.) If you decide to go with the 86 make sure the head gasket is ok. The earlier 6 cylinders in Spirtis and Acclaims have some issues with valve guides and oil, but I think 93 and up are ok. In general 6 cylinders Spirits/Acclaims are harder to work on with regard to changing the water pump but the engine has alot more pep. Also, the headlinders have a tendency to come down on most Aries and need to be replaced (foam underneath dissentegrates with age/heat).

If you are not going to be doing most of the repair work yourself, it is probably not a good idea to get the 86 Aries. If you can do most of the work yourself, it is not too complex or hard to work on and basic mechanical parts are relatively inexpensive.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby 89ARIES » Mon Mar 05, 2012 9:02 pm

The truth is hard to handle. How can we get new members if everytime someone joins the club to buy a K-car, we give them this information. :o I mean, maybe
this car was meticously maintained and won't need a lot of maintenance. I know mine was sort of a basket-case. Too many people touched it. I would be a little concerned about
the headgasket and valve train issues. It could be a damn good reliable car. I know many have been more so than mine.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby K-CAR_WAGON » Mon Mar 05, 2012 9:53 pm

89ARIES wrote: maybe
this car was meticously maintained and won't need a lot of maintenance.


Maybe, maybe not. Any 25 year old used car needs to be gone over and checked out to be safe and reliable. Most of them need at least some work and being far away from home with probably limited tools, limited work facilities, and not alot of cash to pay other people to perform repairs could be a problem for a college student.

89ARIES wrote:I know mine was sort of a basket-case.


I would not categorize your car as a basket case. Basket cases are rust buckets with blown engines. You expect too much out of a car - its just a machine that wears out and needs regular maintance and repairs by a competent mechanic.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby Pete in NH » Tue Mar 06, 2012 1:58 pm

I don't think an honest reply as to the things encountered when owning a 25 year -old car does a dis-service to the club or K cars. i think it is better to let someone know what they are potentially getting into and have them make an informed choice rather than have someone be very disappointed with the car. Also, consider that the price is a bit high and may be so because the current owners want to make sure it goes to a good home and not someone who will just beat the car up as just another used car for cheap. That is why I suggested if the person posting the original question just needs a cheap beater for school transportation another type of car might serve them better,. I would rather see the 86 K car go to a good home where it will be cared for as well. I don't think we will lose a potentail member if you track the car and who it goes to. I think K Car Wagons response about a newer Chysler line vehicle most likely had the same thoughts in mind.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby 88 aries » Thu Mar 08, 2012 2:15 am

Low mileage doesn't mean anything, I have an 81 Reliant that I bought for 600.00 with 83,000 miles, it needs front struts rear shocks, a fuel line, I replaced the exhaust last year on it. If you are in the market for a K-car, for you I would go with a spirit or acclaim, parts are much more easy to find.
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Re: Considering Buying a 1986 Dodge Aries

Postby njr600 » Thu Mar 08, 2012 6:17 pm

I think everyone can agree about the price being high, i would try to see whats the lowest she would take for it. Other then that i would say go for it. I would get your parents to take it to a local shop to see if anything needs to be replaced or almost time for replacing. Maybe they can get the most important things fix for you since they are buying you the car. Make sure your major components are good like the battery, altenator, timing belt, CV joints, ball joints. I believe parts are still available at the auto parts stores. I know componets like that are there for my 84 600. The KCAR is really a reliable car but you just got to keep them maintain best as possible. I believe once you get the car checked out and get your parents to replace what needs to be i think you will be fine. I took a chance with my 600 and didnt know anything about cars lol. I learned alot as i drove it more and more. I know your not trying to go through having to fix a whole bunch of things while in college, thats why i say if you do buy the car have it looked at. Or have it looked at before you buy it then this way you know what you are getting into. Good Luck to you and if you have any other questions feel free to leave them. Lot of good help on this forum. Good Luck!! :D
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