7244too

I have the opportunity to purchase this 86' from the original owner. Has 118k on it. He's asking $4,500.00. Thoughts and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

7244too

Here's a few more. The bubbly areas in the pics seem to be more in the chip guard coating than metal. Engine compartment is a little messy but should clean up nice. Everything appears to be there. Sorry, didn't get a pic of the engine compartment...DUH. Any advice is appreciated, Gery.

Bayou Olds

Is everything functioning? Minor interior work and the rust bubbles seem to be the only things needing attention.. Carpet is cheap and just requires time. I'd offer 4k to offset the minor stuff it needs and a good steaming under the hood.

w-30dreamin

Be careful,don't kid yourself,the chip guard coating does not rust...metal rusts.
They say rust is like an iceberg,there is usually more hiding underneath than what you can see on top.

coltsneckbob

Frankly I have no love for cars of the 80's. I would skip it. Oh, one exception the 1984 Porsche 944.

Aceshigh

Car looks good, but the powerplant is not all that great at all.

Like he said, carpet is cheap......usually.
I don't know what that specific year carpet would run though.

It really depends on how abused the 200-4R trans is too.
You spend $4000 on the car and then have to do a $1500 trans rebuild it's not going to feel good.
Not to mention how messed up the engine bay is possibly. Throw an LS1/6 speed in it.
That will surprise alot of people.

I can think of many better vehicles to spend $4,500 on to be honest.

Allan R

118K is not that high for mileage. From the pics, I would say it's been rode hard a few times. The general appearance looks good, but some issues like the headliner bother me. Does it have water leak issues? Those liners don't usually let go that bad. No pics of the engine bay or under the car? Check out those areas because a lot of times it's the things you don't see on the outside that come back to bite you.

More important is how does it run and does the owner have any maintenance records? I know from experience that there is no such thing as 'minor' rust - so be really careful about that. Is the owner willing to have it inspected by an independent mechanic?

I am not sure I'd spend 4500 on this car without it having some really redeeming features, which aren't in evidence. True, it's one of the last years of 442 production, but that's just not a great incentive.

oldcutlass

The headliner is an easy fix as most of the glue on liners tend to delaminate just like that one.
Besides asking him what maintenence he's done, I'd also ask what he thinks it needs?

I then would proceed to check the following:
Does the car smoke out the exhaust?
Is there evident blowby comming from breather in the valve cover or PCV?
Does the transmission shift smooth up and down the gears?
Is the transmission fluid a pretty pink, and does it smell like varnish?
Is the underside of the car corroded, frame and floor boards.
Does it have good tires?
Do the brakes pulsate or pull to one side or the other under heavy braking situatios?
Does everything work electrically and functionally, windows, a/c, power seats, etc...

It also does pay off to ask if he would accept less!!!!!

BTW it looks like a nice car!!!!!

Higgins

I have been looking at the 80s 442 & salons for a while, thinking of getting one. I would pass on this one at that price. Too much rust to repair. At $3,000 I might consider it if everything else checked out.
Higgins

ziff396

I agree. The rust is way more than you can see in the pics alone. There will be alot more hiding.

dc2x4drvr

Rusty