u/AskMeAboutMousework

Long story short, my dad died and left me his 2000 Mazda MPV. It's only got 98k miles and runs pretty well for a car that's almost as old as I am.

But there's a catch: It's got serious damage to the side panels and doors. My guess is that someone in his church got into an accident and then gifted him the van when they replaced it.

I've already spent a couple thousand on it (needed a ride, and repairing was cheaper than replacement) so now it has new tires, radiator, battery, and water pump. Plus there's lots of random issues with the lights and stuff. My mechanic thinks it could be worth 3-4k to the right buyer, but ChatGPT tells me I'd be lucky to get a thousand. Who's right?