Faults:

The front passenger side spring broke, shredding the tire. Luckily I was not far from home when it happened.

Air conditioning pump quit at 205000 km.

Body is beginning to rust.

Seats are starting to wear out, but nothing a seat cover won't fix.

General Comments:

Since I bought this car from my grandfather for $300 I have relentlessly tortured it, and it still has never failed to start in the morning, or to get me where I'm going. I have had it in water up past the bumpers, mud to the rocker panels, snow over the hood, and in and out of ditches, trees, and other vehicles more times than I car to count...havn't spend a dime on the car, nor did my grandfather. Plugs have been changed maybe twice, oil maybe 5 times, and the engine will still withstand regular trips above 6000 rpm.

Headlight and grille currently held in with wire.

The bumper hits on the front drivers tire from time to time.

Exhaust also held on with wire.

I would buy another V6 Topaz in a second, but there not many around here in my home town. I would recommend one to anyone, they are great all around cars. Mined been terribly abused, and it'll still beat most import cars on the highway.

Faults:

The head gaskets blew at 70,000 miles.

The transmission went out shortly after at 85,000 miles. I had it replaced, but the car still runs like crap.

The brakes constantly squeak, even after replacing them.

The vinyl is wearing badly.

The paint has been fading/peeling since 1995.

General Comments:

Well, the list is so long I barely know where to begin.

The car is at the mechanic more than it is with me.

I have spent entirely too much money on repairs that seem to never be resolved.

Faults:

Tie rods needed replaced.

Windshield replaced.

Power steering leak.

Radiator leak not fixed yet.

Cruise control does not work.

Automatic seat-belt on passenger side does not work.

Power doors do not operate at all.

General Comments:

After changing regular spark plugs with Bosch Platinum 4 spark plugs, the car is running great.

New plug wires work wonderfully.

The engine is running clean after checking the spark plugs for wear and or damage.

Faults:

The brakes wear out constantly (that car really eats away front pads, calipers and rotors).

The blower motor ground wire melted, and the car eats headlights.

We're on our third set of tie rods. They seem to go out every 20,000 miles or so, but we wait until they are fully worn before replacement.

I've never owned a car that will run away on you on a downhill like that before.

Transmission pan gasket needed replacement twice (they always seem to blow up, literally).

TV rod sticks, so you have to stomp on the accelerator to unstick it occasionally (fixed it twice).

General Comments:

It's a strong running car, even though the car hesitates occasionally (might be bad fuel injectors). My sister thinks it's a race car, and it doesn't like going past 4000 r.p.m.

The automatic transmission is still running strong, except for the pan gaskets blowing (might be my sister).

When you're making a quick left turn into a parking lot and the TV rod sticks, and there's oncoming traffic, it's not funny.

It handles well and grips strong, considering the abuse it's been through. I wish it didn't have so many problems. The acceleration is alright, and the braking is mediocre. It would be an excellent car if it was built with a little more care (maybe the engineers got lazy on it's last year). But I can't strongly recommend it.