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hey all long time no post, my orders just came through and im heading up to the northwest and its looking like things are gonna be expensive so im about to move out of my current daily. currently drive a 14 5.0 and its nice I like it but the payments are a little high and figured I could save money and move back into something I know at the cost of much more miles. looking at a 98 firebird with 129k on the clock for 5k. all stock, leather, with recent replacements to all 4 tires, P/S line and battery. supposedly "rarely driven and garage kept" but you know how that goes.
would need to make a 4k mile trip across the country is really my only concerns, after that ill live 5 min from work so no worries really. plans wouldn't be anything crazy, after I got settled probably most id get up to is a mild cam swap after the usual bolt ons. would be open to full tranny and motor rebuild/replacement but only after the trip for obvious reasons. thoughts? opinions? been awhile since ive been here.
looking at a 98 firebird with 129k on the clock for 5k. all stock, leather, with recent replacements to all 4 tires, P/S line and battery. supposedly "rarely driven and garage kept" but you know how that goes.
Yeah, hard to call a car rarely driven when it has 129k on it at 18 years old. That's 7,000+ miles per year, which is below average but certainly doesn't qualify for "rarely driven" IMO.
Originally Posted by usnfenix
thoughts? opinions? been awhile since ive been here.
I would just say to be prepared for some issues with the car. You'd be going from a 2 year old vehicle to something 18 years old with 100k+ miles and an unknown history. This Firebird might turn out to be a great vehicle, but it's a gamble compared to the new car you have right now. You might be able to find one with a lot less miles for only a few thousand more, so that's another thing to consider. Is $5k the most you want to spend?
no 5k isn't my max, would spend double that and a little more on the right one. been browsing around noticing whats available.
just forget how mileage effects these cars, been 3 years since ive had one. my very first I bought at 98k and drove to 130k while beating on it and had mostly no issues. man I miss that car. stupid ex wife.
no 5k isn't my max, would spend double that and a little more on the right one. been browsing around noticing whats available.
just forget how mileage effects these cars, been 3 years since ive had one. my very first I bought at 98k and drove to 130k while beating on it and had mostly no issues. man I miss that car. stupid ex wife.
It's really all about how it was maintained, various little things can start popping up around 100k, or at least that was the case with my '02; stuff like idler/tensioner pullies, PCV system deterioration, alternator/PS pump issues, cooling system issues such as radiator leaks (especially if the coolant hasn't been maintained well over the last 18 years.) Sensors also sometimes fail around that time (such as O2s), fuel pumps can get weak (especially if the filter has never been changed), etc. Just little stuff that can go wrong with any older car at that sort of mileage. Sometimes these things get ignored and people just keep driving them until the problems become critical, or they sell them.
That's not to say that you'd definitely have those issues, or definitely not, just that these aren't the sort of things you have to worry about with your current 2 year old car. Also, much of that maintenance work might have already been done on this Firebird, so it might be good for quite a while before anything else needs attention. Hopefully the current owner has had it for a while and can provide some insight on it's history and maintenance schedule.
Unless you get all great answers about the history on this car that give a warm fuzzy feeling inside, I would be leery of driving it 4,000 miles across the country considering you'll have no history of how the car does on trips of more than 20 miles. The worst case is that on the trip home the drive train or electronics fails and you're dead in the water for day/week. You might have the leave the car behind at some point, then pay $1,000 to have it shipped to you.
I think a better option is wait until you've relocated and then start looking again. The best value in these '98-'02 LS-1 F bodies are with the cars with under 75K miles. You can probably find a clean, 1-2 owner 6 speed for $10K or even less. An automatic will cost you $1K-$2K less. I've seen some clean 50K-65K mile A4 cars change hands for $6K-$8K. About 2 years ago a member here was selling his 90K mile '98 purple Firebird. He had upgraded essentially all of the drive train + new paint and got $8K for that car. That was a good deal for someone. If you're willing to buy someone else's modded car, you can buy those mods on a 50-80% discount.
I would be willing to act in haste to beat someone to a clean, 1 owner, 50K mile car that is very fresh looking and well maintained...and priced good. Not the case for one with 130K miles...unless it was priced at $3K to $4K.
northwest is supposed to have some nice rust free cars , especially Oregon maybe find a car out there if you gotta fly round trip to see it , buy it , and store it till you can get there then you can take the 4k mile drive out of the equation.
I agree with rpm ws6 that 130k is not really a "rarely driven" car although that could be its most recent history - that happens people use a car less and less after buying a newer/better car.
I do think 130k while not low miles is on the lower end of miles for a 98 car and have personally had really good luck with ls1 z28's with high miles , owned 4 so far lowest miles was 130k at time of purchase (150k now) and that was a no winters car, highest will crack 1/4 million miles by the end of April still stock unopened eng/t56/and rear this will be my 5th season with that car and besides tires,rotors ,pads ,plugs ,wires ,fluids have only replaced a window motor , pretty damn reliable....
believe i have found the one gentlemen, 98 ws6 all stock with 40k original miles. worked out a deal with the seller and it looks good so far. Posted the stang up for sale tonight. Will miss her but will be nice to move into a ws6 especially one with room to grow.
i appreciate the previous posts tho, people here are always way more friendly and helpful than over at svtp
It's really all about how it was maintained, various little things can start popping up around 100k, or at least that was the case with my '02; stuff like idler/tensioner pullies, PCV system deterioration, alternator/PS pump issues, cooling system issues such as radiator leaks (especially if the coolant hasn't been maintained well over the last 18 years.) Sensors also sometimes fail around that time (such as O2s), fuel pumps can get weak (especially if the filter has never been changed), etc. Just little stuff that can go wrong with any older car at that sort of mileage. Sometimes these things get ignored and people just keep driving them until the problems become critical, or they sell them.
That's not to say that you'd definitely have those issues, or definitely not, just that these aren't the sort of things you have to worry about with your current 2 year old car. Also, much of that maintenance work might have already been done on this Firebird, so it might be good for quite a while before anything else needs attention. Hopefully the current owner has had it for a while and can provide some insight on it's history and maintenance schedule.
funny thing everything you mentioned ive replaced on a f body before. The tensioner and alternator decided to go out as a pair along with the high pressure side of the PS lines. Not worried about replacing these small items, just trying to avoid having to replace one on a 4k mile trip. however since the thread start found a much better one and shouldnt be an issue anymore.
believe i have found the one gentlemen, 98 ws6 all stock with 40k original miles. worked out a deal with the seller and it looks good so far. Posted the stang up for sale tonight. Will miss her but will be nice to move into a ws6 especially one with room to grow.
i appreciate the previous posts tho, people here are always way more friendly and helpful than over at svtp
NOW you're talking. This is the car to check out vs the other one which you know will need repairs much sooner than later. Good luck with this '98 and post some photos if you get it, along with the details.
NOW you're talking. This is the car to check out vs the other one which you know will need repairs much sooner than later. Good luck with this '98 and post some photos if you get it, along with the details.
will do looks like it should be around next Thursday. Car looks good so far, carfax came back clean as well. will post once everything is finalized.
Glad to see you stayed away from the higher milage one. It might have ended up costing more than your payments Can't wait to see some pics of the new f-body!
Glad to see you stayed away from the higher milage one. It might have ended up costing more than your payments Can't wait to see some pics of the new f-body!
seller developed cold feet shortly and then re-agreed. should be picking it up Monday now instead of today.
seller developed cold feet shortly and then re-agreed. should be picking it up Monday now instead of today.
I know the feeling.
One of my early collector car "purchases" was a 2 owner 1968 Coronet R/T convertible (white, red interior, red stripes) back in 1993. It had been with that owner since 1976. I spent a lot of time with him going over that car. They wanted the money for other things. We agree on a price and I gave him a deposit before planning to bring the rest a few days later. It was a very presentable #3 driver quality car. Those R/T verts don't grow on trees, especially white/red or red/white ones.
Well, a couple days later he calls me on the phone and says they just can't part with it....it's now one of the family members. He drove the hour to my house and returned the deposit. I kept in touch with him over the next 10-13 years and they still had the car. My only mistake was not paying for it when I went to see it and taking possession. A year doesn't go by when I don't think about that car and think what might have been. Hopefully, if they did finally sell it, it went to a great home that would keep if for 30+ yrs as well.
well worked out a saturday meet and greet and shes here, needs a little minor touchup stuff and by god that factory exhaust and EGR have got to go but shes pretty sweet, shifts nicely and is in good condition, t tops and door/dash are in great shape. got to love these florida cars, carfax has this car never leaving FL. Door codes were ws6/ws9 with GU5 for a real ws6. all in all not bad at all.
Looks nice. Verify the build date. A pre-April 1998 build will ensure you have the earlier style roof panel which don't bubble and blister when left out in the hot sun. That's a big plus on the 1998's and one less thing to worry about. 1998 WS6's are much scarcer than the later years. You don't see them all that often.
I sort of expected to see the '98 OEM SOTL exhaust set up. But there's a right exhaust tip showing in the photo. So that's been replaced/modified already. For some reason I just assumed you were after an M6. But, I have no problem with an A4. In fact, I prefer the stress-less driving with a WS6/A4 when you aren't constantly thinking about what gear and rpm are next.
M6 isnt bad at all but i want to throw a stall in there like a previous SS ive had. the exhaust is original except for a pair of tips welded in. will be changed for a quad tip axle back, i dont like the single look.
Looks nice. Verify the build date. A pre-April 1998 build will ensure you have the earlier style roof panel which don't bubble and blister when left out in the hot sun. That's a big plus on the 1998's and one less thing to worry about. 1998 WS6's are much scarcer than the later years. You don't see them all that often.
I sort of expected to see the '98 OEM SOTL exhaust set up. But there's a right exhaust tip showing in the photo. So that's been replaced/modified already. For some reason I just assumed you were after an M6. But, I have no problem with an A4. In fact, I prefer the stress-less driving with a WS6/A4 when you aren't constantly thinking about what gear and rpm are next.
I remember hearing rumors in the summer of '98 that some of the last WS6 cars to be built for that model year received the new-for-'99 dual outlet system. I don't know that to be factual, and some owners of late build date examples have confirmed that they have the single outlet system, but I have encountered a couple of '98 WS6 cars over the years that were claimed to be original with that newer system. Obviously any claims must be taken with a grain of salt unless it's the original owner, but it does seem odd that anyone would install a newer factory catback rather than go the more typical route of something aftermarket.
Anyway, you're much better off with an earlier build date due to the roof issue mentioned above. 04/98 should likely be OK, and anything earlier would definitely be OK. 05/98-06/98 would be hit-or-miss, and anything later is definitely subject to the problem.
Originally Posted by usnfenix
M6 isnt bad at all but i want to throw a stall in there like a previous SS ive had. the exhaust is original except for a pair of tips welded in. will be changed for a quad tip axle back, i dont like the single look.
The A4 is certainly a plus, I wouldn't even consider the M6 myself. The car looks really nice other than the missing seat belt guide and the big screen aftermarket radio.
Not too many WS6 Trans Ams came with those base seats either. Most had the inflatable/articulating buckets (RPO AQ9 I believe.) Someone may have custom ordered this car originally.
Congratulations on the purchase.
I know many owners don't like to share purchase price info but several of us here use that info to help others with their questions in the 'What's It Worth' section. Real world prices help us out to assist others if you feel like sharing. Thanks!
02-26-2016, 11:56 AM
crossing sides again? **bought the car today** 
Can't wait to see some pics of the new f-body! 
