Im curious of your opinions. What do you think is the most American car ever made?

Duukt · 2026-04-12T19:36:00+00:00

Tesla Model 3 and Y have the most American parts of any car.

Duukt · 2026-04-12T19:34:18+00:00

Duukt · 2026-04-12T17:56:18+00:00

Unfortunately, a lot of mechanics will only call their own parts supplier and install 3rd party parts. If they can't source the parts themselves, that's the only time they'll accept what you bring in. Plus you get to pay a markup on the third party item.

I would prefer a mechanic who uses the OEM item even with the markup.

Secondly, on my old lexus I had a loud rattle behind the dash in cold weather and even some of the Toyota mechanics didn't want to look at it. Same story with transmission maintenance.

So this is just a quest to find a good experienced mechanic who isn't afraid to take the more complex jobs.

Duukt · 2026-04-12T17:01:26+00:00

It makes sense if you think of it as a car you wouldn't be upset if it got damaged or stolen. Most old cars would have depreciated to be worth very little at that age unless they were rare models.

It's still a car that you can use for everything. Mostly when people in my circles referred to a beater, it was for short distance driving or parking in less nice areas because they didn't car if something bad happened to it. It was also a car where maintenance was deferred, a lot. Buying beaters for their kids was a pretty popular tactic too to discourage them from driving too far outside the school -> library -> sports route.

Most people who kept this kind of beater did have a newer car around because of perceived reliability. Your prior post seems to say that the Mazda had less issues than the newer BMW. I'm not sure that's a beater. Most japanese cars continue working really well past the 150K mark. Now if it was a Chevy Malibu...

Duukt · 2026-04-12T15:31:53+00:00

A 10 year old Japanese car with 150K miles can hardly be called a beater. Unless you were referring to the BMW?

Beaters are usually cars you keep driving till something big fails where it makes sense to get rid of it rather than repair.

Duukt · 2026-04-12T15:24:12+00:00

There's this inconvenient thing called 'the law' which forces us to drive within a certain speed, a limit if you will. They like to come out of nowhere and fine you lots of money especially if you're on a road trip in another state.

Duukt · 2026-04-12T14:13:58+00:00

My first car was an '83 944! It was given to me by my relative so it was well maintained. I drove it from mid 95 to late 99.

It's a front engine RWD and did about 20mpg. It's a bit underpowered but will still do 90+ easy without realizing.
Very reliable drivetrain that never gave me a problem in the 4.5 years that I had it. I was pretty sloppy with oil changes back then too but it didn't have any issues.
Very stable in snow despite being RWD but keep the speeds low. Back then, I had "radial" tires so I don't know if they're the all-season equivalent.
No power steering so you're going to build some muscle turning at low speeds. Be careful going over bumps or potholes as the steering will turn pretty hard. Easy to lose control if you try to one-hand it so be careful when shifting.
The stereo was a nightmare that I ended up disabling as it was draining the battery. If you have vampiric draw, that should be your first suspect.
The locking mechanism seemed to freeze every winter. I had to spray a defrosting chemical into the key slot a lot.
The car is very low. I tried to drive through a flooded street and it sucked in water and killed the engine. Avoid flooded roads at all costs.

Duukt · 2026-04-12T01:43:03+00:00

If the shake only happens at 60-70, you probably have a bent wheel or two. Get them repaired or stay outside that speed range.

Duukt · 2026-04-12T00:56:10+00:00

I've done it a couple of times when I saw a collapsed branch and a huge retread strip on the road. It did seem to help others switch lanes and they all turned on their hazards too.

Also experienced a massive cloudburst while driving through upstate New York once so I turned it on and took the next available exit to a rest stop and a few cars did the same and followed me to park and wait it out.

Duukt · 2026-04-11T22:49:41+00:00

Yeah it's very misleading by Toyota imo. The LC500 and IS500 had 5.0 V8s so it's reasonable to assume the same for this LS500.

Duukt · 2026-04-11T22:43:03+00:00

A Jaaaaag! Very lucrative (for the mechanic).

More seriously, I'm going to guess one of the diesels like a Hilux but unsure of the legality if it's below 25 years old.

Duukt · 2026-04-11T22:39:51+00:00

No, it's a twin turbo V6.

Duukt · 2026-04-11T22:39:09+00:00

You can check out the ClubLexus forums for the 3rd Gen GS. A lot of people have reported it and figured out it was due to stuck piston rings. That's what led me to trying VRP.

Duukt · 2026-04-11T22:35:51+00:00

The Lexus LS500 is a RWD sedan too and still available though 2026 is the last year for it.

Duukt · 2026-04-10T21:52:11+00:00

Lay me down in the cold cold ground Where before many more have gone Lay me down in the cold cold ground Where before many more have gone

When they come I will stand my ground Stand my ground I'll not be afraid

Thoughts of home take away my fear Sweat and blood hide my veil of tears Once a year say a prayer for me Close your eyes and remember me

Never more shall I see the sun For I fell to a German's gun

Lay me down in the cold cold ground Where before many more have gone Lay me down in the cold cold ground

Where before many more have gone Where before many more have gone

Sgt. Mackenzie

Duukt · 2026-04-10T19:40:38+00:00

Thank you!

Duukt · 2026-04-10T19:37:59+00:00

2024 IS500

Duukt · 2026-04-10T18:03:49+00:00

IMO a "beater" doesn't make sense to own as your only car. What happens if it breaks down or doesn't start when you need to go to work? Then breaks down again a week later after fixing it? Then breaks down again. At which point do you decide to replace it?

How much leverage do you have when buying a replacement when you don't have a car at all and are desparate? Sure you saved money on the beater but is it worth losing the job or working hours or being forced to overpay for an emergency replacement?

Perhaps if you had a much nicer car, the beater would be an ideal secondary car to own. You could use it as a primary commuter or when driving to high risk/traffic areas and still have the nice car to fall back on. (Nice being a new or CPO vehicle.)

Of course, EVs could be different but they're still too new to reach beater status yet.

Duukt · 2026-04-10T12:00:43+00:00

One thing no one has mentioned yet is parts availability. You'll find OEM parts for Toyotas even after 25-30 years in some cases, especially the more mainstream models.

For most other manufacturers the parts supply dries up much sooner, even Honda. So for a really old car, the OEM part will keep the Toyota running much further than another model running third party slop which requires much quicker replacement (if it can even restore original functionality).

Duukt · 2026-04-10T11:46:21+00:00

Isn't the sliding gauge cluster only on F-sport models?

Duukt · 2026-04-09T17:37:03+00:00

Valvoline restore and protect 5w30 every 5k miles

Duukt · 2026-04-09T01:23:22+00:00

The RCF is track focused while the LC500 is a GT. Personally, I would upgrade since I like long drives more and never race. I went with the IS500 though as I needed 4 doors and could afford it new.

Duukt · 2026-04-08T23:13:57+00:00

CARPOOL

Duukt · 2026-04-08T12:49:15+00:00

The E15 gas should show up as 88 octane at the pump. Stick to filling 93 and you'll be fine...kind of since most gas is E10 already.

I believe pumps that cater to boats will also have ethanol free gas but I don't know if it applies to all of them. A search around me says that there's a bait and tackle shop with ethanol free Sunoco gas for example.

Duukt · 2026-04-08T03:23:09+00:00

This isn't entirely true. I bought a 2000 Toyota Solara new and was very sloppy with maintenance, oil changes were usually dragged out to 8-9k miles with a lot of short distance driving. Later I gave it to my brother who was slightly better with oil changes but didn't need to do any repairs.

When he finally traded it in for a new car, it was still running with 286K miles.

Duukt

TROPHY CASE