91 Acclaim 2.5 A413 bought for $350 because someone let the oil level low and it spit out a rocker arm. I drove it home running on 3. I just loosened the cam and put the rocker arm back in place. Later did a valve job, head gaskets, timing belt and belts and hoses, the usual cap, rotor, wires and plugs. Later did all brakes, struts and control arm bushings. Needed new coil and wire between the battery and alternator. Mechanically good, just clear coat peeling and paint fading. Drove it 8 years, no odometer. That had died at 135K B4 we bought it. Two years to work at 30miles/day then my son 2 years to high school at 10miles/day and 4 years around college. No head liner. Wind shield sealed with aquarium sealant. Front windows fell out of the tracks and had to be reinstalled with new clips and greasing of the winder mechanism. Shredded a diff seal on the highway and limped back with replacement fluid. Replaced in November on the driveway with leaves blowing in the wind. At the end, the sway bar fell out of the rear axle on the highway. A real character builder for my son. His friends called it "Red Alert." With one year left to go in college the blow-by past the rings spit the oil pan gasket out and it could not hold oil. When I sold it to U-Pull-It I kept the head and the brakes. It was replaced with a dark green 93 Spirit V6 with A670. He drove it a year then after graduation we did head gaskets, timing belt, water pump, belts and hoses, new headlight housings and SilverStar Ultras. After naval OCS in Providence, RI, he drove it from Arkansas to California.
Mine: 92 Acclaim custom Silver Blue repaint
Daughter's: 94 Shadow Blue to be replaced with 91 Spirit Maroon Burgandy with 58K after a transmission rebuild.
Youngest Son: Another 93 Spirit "Gray Ghost" for us to do head gaskets, seals, timing belt kit, water pump, water pipes, belts and hoses, plugs, wires, rotor, cap, diff seals, brake hoses, and brakes as needed TOGETHER for his high school and college experience.
In the bullpen:
88 Horizon
89 Horizon
91 Caravan
89 turbo Voyager
94 Spirit peeling white
These vehicles are the simplest except for having 2x to pull the dash to remove the heater box for replacing the heater core on Spirit/Acclaim. Fuel pump (x2)
but normal engine/suspension/brakes are easy and inexpensive.