crossing sides again? **bought the car today**
03-06-2016, 01:03 PM
#21
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.
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.
the seats are actually very comfortable, honestly i prefer these over the leather seats in my 14' GT premium. It may be a custom build i have all the original documentation from when the car rolled off the lot in 98 including the window sticker. sold for 29k sticker price back in the day. owner kept everything from oil change receipts to tires. very nice and rare to accompany a 98 car.
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!
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!
03-06-2016, 03:22 PM
#22
this reminds me of a around 2000 or so ill say z28 i see once in awhile owned by some wealthy old lady lol.
its red with chrome stock rims. i think it has cloth int. with an auto. the clear is peeling off the back bumper but its always parked inside and looks like it never moves.
id love to buy it from her but i have no room.probably not for sale anyway.
its red with chrome stock rims. i think it has cloth int. with an auto. the clear is peeling off the back bumper but its always parked inside and looks like it never moves.
id love to buy it from her but i have no room.probably not for sale anyway.
03-06-2016, 08:12 PM
#26
TECH Enthusiast
$9K was excellent. I'd have pegged the value more like $11K, even $12K. Looks like you bought the car for just under the NADA clean retail list of $9600 (KBB is only at $8K). Now go find me one of these listed for $9600 listed in any dealer's lot around the country. You'll never find one. Here's a case where the price guides underestimate the value of both the defunct Pontiac brand and the low miles. NADA gives a $2,250 mileage premium vs. a car with 165,000 miles average!! How insane is that? That works out to be $180 per every 10K miles. The cosmetic/wear gap between a 40K mile car and one with 165K miles is huge. You could have bought a 165K mile car for $7,350. The low mileage specimens are where the deals are. If on a dealer's lot it would have been listed for $12K-$15K.
Probably not easy finding the original SOTL exhaust of these '98's. I'd be tempted to keep it....and enjoy answering questions on why one of my exhaust tips/pipes is "missing." A lot of enthusiasts consider the SOTL "sound" to be classic and therefore sought after, regardless of the off-balanced look. Fwiw, I inquired on a red '98 A4 with 38K miles back in 2011 owned by an elderly gentleman in his 60's. And of course like a dummy I asked why one exhaust pipe was missing...lol. The ask price was $10,500 and that was cheap for that time...probably the lowest one I ran across, but too far away. You did even better. And I was looking for a car just like yours back in 2011 but couldn't find one "nearby." I'd love a 40K mile A4 WS6 to "putter" around in.
It looks like you found the right car. Good job.
Probably not easy finding the original SOTL exhaust of these '98's. I'd be tempted to keep it....and enjoy answering questions on why one of my exhaust tips/pipes is "missing." A lot of enthusiasts consider the SOTL "sound" to be classic and therefore sought after, regardless of the off-balanced look. Fwiw, I inquired on a red '98 A4 with 38K miles back in 2011 owned by an elderly gentleman in his 60's. And of course like a dummy I asked why one exhaust pipe was missing...lol. The ask price was $10,500 and that was cheap for that time...probably the lowest one I ran across, but too far away. You did even better. And I was looking for a car just like yours back in 2011 but couldn't find one "nearby." I'd love a 40K mile A4 WS6 to "putter" around in.
It looks like you found the right car. Good job.
Last edited by Firebrian; 03-06-2016 at 08:22 PM.
03-07-2016, 07:45 AM
#27
$9K was excellent. I'd have pegged the value more like $11K, even $12K. Looks like you bought the car for just under the NADA clean retail list of $9600 (KBB is only at $8K). Now go find me one of these listed for $9600 listed in any dealer's lot around the country. You'll never find one. Here's a case where the price guides underestimate the value of both the defunct Pontiac brand and the low miles. NADA gives a $2,250 mileage premium vs. a car with 165,000 miles average!! How insane is that? That works out to be $180 per every 10K miles. The cosmetic/wear gap between a 40K mile car and one with 165K miles is huge. You could have bought a 165K mile car for $7,350. The low mileage specimens are where the deals are. If on a dealer's lot it would have been listed for $12K-$15K.
Probably not easy finding the original SOTL exhaust of these '98's. I'd be tempted to keep it....and enjoy answering questions on why one of my exhaust tips/pipes is "missing." A lot of enthusiasts consider the SOTL "sound" to be classic and therefore sought after, regardless of the off-balanced look. Fwiw, I inquired on a red '98 A4 with 38K miles back in 2011 owned by an elderly gentleman in his 60's. And of course like a dummy I asked why one exhaust pipe was missing...lol. The ask price was $10,500 and that was cheap for that time...probably the lowest one I ran across, but too far away. You did even better. And I was looking for a car just like yours back in 2011 but couldn't find one "nearby." I'd love a 40K mile A4 WS6 to "putter" around in.
It looks like you found the right car. Good job.
Probably not easy finding the original SOTL exhaust of these '98's. I'd be tempted to keep it....and enjoy answering questions on why one of my exhaust tips/pipes is "missing." A lot of enthusiasts consider the SOTL "sound" to be classic and therefore sought after, regardless of the off-balanced look. Fwiw, I inquired on a red '98 A4 with 38K miles back in 2011 owned by an elderly gentleman in his 60's. And of course like a dummy I asked why one exhaust pipe was missing...lol. The ask price was $10,500 and that was cheap for that time...probably the lowest one I ran across, but too far away. You did even better. And I was looking for a car just like yours back in 2011 but couldn't find one "nearby." I'd love a 40K mile A4 WS6 to "putter" around in.
It looks like you found the right car. Good job.
Yea its in better condition than i was expecting. I was on the verge of selling my daily but now id feel comfortable just rocking this thing especially since i pay less than 150 a month on it. I will hold on the the stang for awhile so i have time to mess with the t/a and change all fluids and do the dreaded spark plug change.
03-07-2016, 05:39 PM
#29
TECH Enthusiast
Is the spark plug change really needed at "only" 40K miles. Yeah, I know they've been in there for 17-18 years, but the car sounds like it was mostly kept out of the elements and treated fairly well. My car is at 17K miles and the plugs are still original. I'd like to hear RPM WS6's thoughts on this one.
03-07-2016, 06:55 PM
#30
Is the spark plug change really needed at "only" 40K miles. Yeah, I know they've been in there for 17-18 years, but the car sounds like it was mostly kept out of the elements and treated fairly well. My car is at 17K miles and the plugs are still original. I'd like to hear RPM WS6's thoughts on this one.
I'd change everything fluids etc just so its all done at once and you know its done, and done right.
03-07-2016, 07:07 PM
#31
Is the spark plug change really needed at "only" 40K miles. Yeah, I know they've been in there for 17-18 years, but the car sounds like it was mostly kept out of the elements and treated fairly well. My car is at 17K miles and the plugs are still original. I'd like to hear RPM WS6's thoughts on this one.
lol whats the "only". carfax verified and registration records are true to the odometer.
Does it need it probably not if the motors purring like a kitten, but the EGR and junk 98 PCV system sucking oil into the combustion chambers I'd give em a change. At least take #2 & #6 out and see how they look, it is tempting to let her go to 60K before bloodying up the knuckles etc. but it's your car your call.
I'd change everything fluids etc just so its all done at once and you know its done, and done right.
I'd change everything fluids etc just so its all done at once and you know its done, and done right.
yea it runs fine and probably doesn't need a spark change but in addition to changing all the fluids i want to change em for my own piece of mind. I do still intend to drive it across the country to my new duty station.
03-07-2016, 07:41 PM
#32
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Is the spark plug change really needed at "only" 40K miles. Yeah, I know they've been in there for 17-18 years, but the car sounds like it was mostly kept out of the elements and treated fairly well. My car is at 17K miles and the plugs are still original. I'd like to hear RPM WS6's thoughts on this one.
Overall, it's not a bad idea to pull at least a few and see how they look, but I wouldn't expect much (if any) measurable benefit from changing them at this mileage.
FWIW, these have been my experiences with the assembly line issued plugs:
On my daily driver '02 car I pulled them for the first time at 100k miles, much of this was expressway mileage, just as recommended. They had a perfect wear pattern and perfect coloring, looked like they could have gone for another 100k. I changed them anyway, with new Delco iridiums, and noticed no appreciable difference in performance or MPG....perhaps there was 0.25-0.50 mpg improvement at most. Idle was a bit smoother.
My '99 car I didn't own long enough to ever change the plugs. Bought it brand new and sold it with the factory platinums never being touched.
My '00 car, I also bought it brand new but I changed the plugs several times during the process of building and racing it. It had an aftermarket cam and I experimented with tuning on this car, so plug wear/fouling isn't comparable to a stock engine in this application.
On my '98, I pulled the plugs shortly after buying it at 11k miles, that was 12 years ago. The stock platinums looked like new still, but I changed them for a set of copper tipped NGKs since I had good experiences with them in my '00 car and wanted to see how they performed in a stock engine. I remember that the idle seemed to be marginally smoother, maybe it was just in my head, no change in performance otherwise though.
FWIW, that same set of NGK TR55s from 12 years ago is still in my '98 today. They only have about 6,000 miles on them. The car runs as flawlessly as it did the day I put them in, so I see no reason to change them again at such low mileage. These modern EFI cars don't really need plug changes very often unless the engine is modified and the tune isn't (or can't be made) precise. Even my old SBC Nova, with a mildly built engine and Holley performance carb, has been on the same set of plugs for about 5-6 years now (probably ~4,000 miles), and when I looked at a couple last year they were still great. The upgraded MSD ignition probably helps, and I've put a bunch of time into tuning the carb for the best average blend of performance/driveability/efficiency, but you can't ever get a carb to be as precisely tuned under all running conditions as what can be achieved with EFI. So as long as my '71 doesn't need new plugs, I'm sure my stock '98 doesn't either.
03-07-2016, 07:45 PM
#33
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Having said that, the lack of coil pack mounting rails on a '98 does make the typical plugs change process a bit different (for those who do this from the top, like me.)
03-08-2016, 10:05 AM
#34
only done the plug change once, was during the header install on my 01 SS. seemed to be the only time it was feasible. I will do headers on this car so maybe at the same time again. however if they look good then perhaps ill keep em. wouldn't be changing them for performance just for peace of mind.
03-08-2016, 12:19 PM
#35
The '98 PCV system, though it does put the valve in a slightly different spot, isn't any better or worse that the other years.
Having said that, the lack of coil pack mounting rails on a '98 does make the typical plugs change process a bit different (for those who do this from the top, like me.)
Having said that, the lack of coil pack mounting rails on a '98 does make the typical plugs change process a bit different (for those who do this from the top, like me.)
Changing plugs sucks on are year camaro from the top, only done it twice and both times my hands and arms looked like a rabid cat attacked me.
03-08-2016, 01:09 PM
#36
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only done the plug change once, was during the header install on my 01 SS. seemed to be the only time it was feasible. I will do headers on this car so maybe at the same time again. however if they look good then perhaps ill keep em. wouldn't be changing them for performance just for peace of mind.
On the '98s it's a bit different though, as there is no coil rail (coil packs are individually bolted directly to the valve cover).....
You'll still want to pull the AIR tube (for those with AIR still intact), but if you then put your knee on the battery and hover over the engine bay, you can reach down and back to access the #6 & #8 plugs. Yeah, your arm will get hacked up a bit. You can remove the coils individually and make just as much access room as the later years, but it's a matter of opinion as to whether or not this is more of a hassle than it's worth.
03-08-2016, 01:38 PM
#37
On the '01 (or any '99-'02), it's not so bad really. Simply unbolting the AIR tube from the manifold and removing the coil rail on the passenger side is really all you need to do. Some people find removing the coil rail a real hassle the first time due to one 10mm bolt at the back of the rail, in fact most people never reinstall that bolt. It's really not hard to remove if you have a small, ratcheting box end wrench (I bought one specifically for this job years ago - it worked perfectly.) Once that rail is off and the AIR tube is out of the way, you can access all four plugs on the passenger side well enough to change them.
On the '98s it's a bit different though, as there is no coil rail (coil packs are individually bolted directly to the valve cover).....
On a '98 you actually don't have to remove any of the coils to access the plugs from the top, unlike a '99+, because they don't stick out as far/high due to not being mounted to a rail. The downside is, it's a much tighter fit without the coils removed, and to remove them individually is a much bigger hassle than just pulling the rail on a '99+ car.
You'll still want to pull the AIR tube (for those with AIR still intact), but if you then put your knee on the battery and hover over the engine bay, you can reach down and back to access the #6 & #8 plugs. Yeah, your arm will get hacked up a bit. You can remove the coils individually and make just as much access room as the later years, but it's a matter of opinion as to whether or not this is more of a hassle than it's worth.
On the '98s it's a bit different though, as there is no coil rail (coil packs are individually bolted directly to the valve cover).....
On a '98 you actually don't have to remove any of the coils to access the plugs from the top, unlike a '99+, because they don't stick out as far/high due to not being mounted to a rail. The downside is, it's a much tighter fit without the coils removed, and to remove them individually is a much bigger hassle than just pulling the rail on a '99+ car.
You'll still want to pull the AIR tube (for those with AIR still intact), but if you then put your knee on the battery and hover over the engine bay, you can reach down and back to access the #6 & #8 plugs. Yeah, your arm will get hacked up a bit. You can remove the coils individually and make just as much access room as the later years, but it's a matter of opinion as to whether or not this is more of a hassle than it's worth.
I'd say replacing #7 #8 coils is worse than #7 #8 spark plugs, what a PITA it was.
03-08-2016, 01:58 PM
#38
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I'd much rather leave the coils in place and just deal with it, pain in the ***. Replacing #7 #8 coils were the most pain in the *** things and it seems so simple but it's not, the worst part was the damn electrical connecter and thats with me literally laying over the motor/engine bay LOL
I'd say replacing #7 #8 coils is worse than #7 #8 spark plugs, what a PITA it was.
I'd say replacing #7 #8 coils is worse than #7 #8 spark plugs, what a PITA it was.
03-24-2016, 01:03 PM
#40
Congrats on the purchase usnfenix. Nice car and sounds like you got a really good deal!!!
I also own a 98 WS6 (Vert) but in black. Picked it up almost 2 years ago and it still has less than 30K miles.
I also own a 98 WS6 (Vert) but in black. Picked it up almost 2 years ago and it still has less than 30K miles.