I'm trading in my Subaru Legacy GT.

As much as it sucks for me to say this, I honestly can't afford to keep pouring money into my car when there are more important things to consider.

Overall, I took out a loan for the car at 7200 bucks. After replacing an ENGINE, not to mention water pump, starter, resealing a leaky main seal and routine maintenance, I have paid roughly 6,000 dollars for repairs. Or more. (Oh, and I'm still not done paying for it either.)

This has to stop. I STILL LIKE SUBARUS, but this one may just be a bad apple. I would like my next Subaru to be paid for in cash. My wife has been patient enough for years. It's time I did something for the both of us.

My rap sheet:
1998 Subaru Legacy 2.5GT sedan
remanufactured engine
fixed main seal
new timing belt
new starter
new water pump
bad front struts/not-so-bad rear ones
busted antenna
sucky paint
roughly 128,000+ miles

What should I expect to get for this thing as a trade? 2,000? 2500? I don't think anyone will trade this for more than 3k, and I'm still upside down by at least twice that.

I'm taking action, so I need your help. (Don't worry, I'm too much a fan of Subarus to stop going on this forum ) I need to know: What cheap cars should I be looking into? A 20-year-old Pinto? A 5-year old Nissan Sentra? I'm looking to spend 1 to 2 grand, maybe no more - it has to be a "strategic" amount of cash which will have me owning something in a fairly quick amount of time.

Let the flaming begin!
-ryu_haneda