My Dad had a 1974 Vega. At 32,000 miles, despite getting its oil changed every 3000 miles it started using oil.

We ignored that and just added a quart every 1000 miles till I totaled it at 99,000 miles.

To get the car to that millage we had to put on one set of brakes, two sets of tires, a clutch, spark plugs, a few air filters, a starter and a few other odds and and ends.

The car was actually very reliaible for that era.

Id did have its issues. The tranny was always a bit balky when shifting. It had the US made unit, not the german one. First gear was way too steep and you needed to slip the cluthc to get going. Adapting a big motor tranny to a 4 cyl is a bad idea, the ratios are all wrong.

Of course it had the oil problem. The timing belt snapped at 35,000 (that was its only real breakdown). It got stuck in reverse a few times, and it was rusting around the winshield trim clips. The rust problem started after two years.

My Dad bought it as a left over in 1976 from a dealer that went bankrupt for $2400. When I got hit in it by a girl that ran a stop sign the entire vehicle was on its last legs.. It still looked pretty good though ( we had the rust fixed by a friend). We got $2000 in insurance for it.

I atually liked driving the car. It got decent fuel economy, handled well and was comfiortable. It was not fast though!

Not best car ever made by a long shot. The real issues I had was the body rust and the engine.