Dutch7

So I was browsing craigslist today and came across a dark blue 2000 WS6 with 152k miles on it. its an A4 and has black zo6 wheels and looks like its lowered a bit. The guy says there is nothing wrong with it(but you know how that goes). Hes asking only $4500 should I be worried? the reason I ask is its kind of a far drive to go check it out. If I do what should I look for on these years? and any other advice you have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Dutch7

oh and since mileage is getting high how much would a rebuild be for engine and tranny. Might just buy it to flip and keep looking for a 02 M6

metalmilitia606

iTrader: (8)

For the mileage I would say that is a fair price.

Guitar

iTrader: (9)

Agreed. ^ It would go for that around here, maybe a bit more depending on condition of paint and interior. I'd check it out.

TomXTC

I would ask him questions. Get the answers in writing.
It is high mileage but for that price sounds like a good deal. Of course we have not seen the car nor pics much less heard it run or driven it.

I understand the question. Is it likely that there is something major about to go which is why he is pricing it so low. Could very well be. The only way you are going to find out is to go there in person and check it out.

Ask him if he would mind your taking it to a mechanic to have it checked out if you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself. If it seems OK pay someone near where the car is that is legit a little bit to do a compression check. Take your code reader or have that checked. Have every part of the car checked out and if there are any heavily worn or damaged items then take in to account the repairs to see how much of a good deal it is after that. If it is in good condition I would snag it up. You will likely face a rebuild sooner or later depending upon how many miles you drive. That is getting up there for these cars especially if they have not been pampered and worse if driven hard.

When I went hunting for my WS6 about 4 years ago I found either high mileage cheap ones or very expensive low mileage ones. There was one locally that looked pretty nice, ran pretty nice, but had 125K or some such mileage at least that high. He was asking in the $6800 range but willing to go cheaper.
It was tempting but I passed.

After getting frustrated with no local cars I wanted and only the occasional one that was as far on the other side of the Country as possible that might have been a decent deal I put in a reverse ad on Craigs List "Wanted 98-02 WS6 in good condition reasonable price" or something similar. I got a response from someone in Portland, Oregon, I live in Seattle. It was a car that this guys parents had who were muscle car collectors which was not listed for sale anywhere. It had 33K miles on it, brand new GSD3 tires which are what I wanted and was $10,000. I went down there and after looking at it and driving it and seeing all the records they had decided it was legit and bought it and drove it home. I don't regret that purchase. It was a balance between low mileage and good condition that I was happy with. It now has 57K miles so still not a lot and no major problems and I think I got what I paid for. It can be frustrating looking for a car and especially if you pay someone to rebuild and/or install something like a motor it is not cheap.

If on the other hand you are doing a project like I was with a 83 Corvette a few years back where I did not care about the motors condition as I had a machined built nice new big block I was buying from my buddy to install with him then it took the pressure off of the condition of the motor. If you were going to install a modded motor and the rest of the car was all good then it might still be a good deal.

If on the other hand you are wanting a good condition stock vehicle that is not going to have costly issues anytime soon then my first advice applies.
Check it out. If he tells you it has no issues and you ask him if it is OK to meet you at a shop for a used car buyers inspection and he has a problem with that then that would be very fishy and I would not bother with it. I would not let anyone drive my car or take it but would drive to a shop for them to pay for an inspection if I thought they were a serious buyer. It could be a great deal to jump on but I think you can act fast and do the proper inspection too. I don't know how far away it is but I would try to get a feel for how legit the guy is and try to get the truth on condition before making the trek but in the end you won't know until you get there.
Good Luck and let us know what happens, good bad or otherwise.
It is good to be wary when buying any used car. I wish my girlfriend would have listened to me about a recent used car she purchased that had red flags waving all over the place but she was not smart enough to see a single one or listen to me. Now she has a car that is running on two of it's 4 cylinders with oil leaking everywhere hoping to get rid of it.