Dear Tom and Ray:

My wife and I have a 1992 Nissan Sentra with 84,000 miles on it. My wife is kind of stingy with our expenses and attends a lot of garage sales on Saturday mornings. Typically she wakes up about 6 in the morning and drives about 40 miles total, stopping at about 25 sales around town. She does find a lot of good bargains, but I wonder if the short drives and frequent starts and stops are wearing the car down. I really cannot ask her to stop going to these sales, since she is addicted to them and she also met me at a garage sale. Please advise. -- Roger

Ray: Well, let's hope she's not out shopping for her next husband at these garage sales, Roger!

Tom: We'll assume that's not the case. I think this is one of those times when we have to be marriage counselors instead of car advisors. The answer is, yes, she is putting some extra wear and tear on the starter motor and the brakes by making all of those short trips. But so what? It's only once a week. And besides, that's what the car is for.

Ray: This is just one of those cases where you just have to say, "What's a little wear and tear on a car in exchange for sharing my life with this wonderful person?"

Tom: Besides, you're probably making the car-repair money back twice over with all of those bargains she picks up at the sales. I mean, how much would you have paid for that 1956 Flab-O-matic exerciser if you had to buy it new at full retail?

In their pamphlet "Should I Buy, Lease, or Steal My Next Car?" Tom and Ray break down the strategies for buying a car, so you can make the most of your money. To order, send (check or money order) to Ruin, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. You can also order online.

© 1998 by Tom and Ray Magliozzi and Doug Berman Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.

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