There was no lighter when I purchased the car from its previous owner.
The brakes where squeaky when I first got it and since I never took the time to get it fixed, I now have a pretty consistent wailing sound coming from it that I am getting fixed very shortly.
The windshield wipers need replacing.
The alignment needs readjusting.
I have been more than pleased with my car in the year that I have owned it. It is my first car and my Dad named it the Cherry Bomb. It's a 2- door hatchback.
For its mileage, I think it runs surprisingly well. There have been almost no problems and I have few complaints.
I wish that it had rear window defrosters because in the winter I can never see out of it first thing in the morning.
The mileage isn't as great as I thought it would be, maybe 27-30 mpg in the city and 40-45 on the freeway. I mean that is pretty good, but not as good as people said it would be. But hey, its still a bargain!
A lot of people have remarked on the poor quality of the air conditioner, however it has worked superbly for me. The only problem I have there is the switch is loose and in order for the blower to turn on, I have to stick 2 pennies between the switch and the casing of the switch. But apparently, that's a common problem so it shouldn't be difficult to fix.
Another reason I am so happy with the car is that it takes a beating and keeps ticking! I am a complete car idiot... I owned it for a year and went 10,000 miles before I thought to change the oil. I have never taken it to a mechanic for maintenance (although I am going to soon) and it is still wonderful.
As you can see I am very happy with my little red cherry bomb!
The "wailing" of your Brakes means that you need new brake pads and could need your rotors replaced. Do that soon because they are so small that a few weeks limited driving can eat up half of the rotor without you knowing it. I have a 97 metro and I'm having to live with one good rotor because I wasn't prepared for the cost of the brake pads and two rotors. When the repairman showed me the rotar damage and the bill I nearly fainted. Rotors cost plenty, but that may affect your alignment as well. From the date of your post I hope you did it by now. You can buy a new lighter at any auto parts store it is simple to fix. It snaps together.
Rotors only really cost a lot of money when you have the job done at a shop. I've replaced them on a RWD AE86 Corolla, a Neon, and I'm about to do my Metro in the morning. the part itself should only cost you about $13 or so from a good parts store, and a bit of work to replace them on your own. Almost as easy as changing a tire. :)
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