Looking to buy a 1999 Trans AM A4 w/ 61k from a local dealership. The car is flawless, interior is perfect with the exception of a cracked dash, exterior is in good shape, engine's clean...and then I check the service records.

Apparently the car was owned by an older gentleman who kept very detailed records. (good so far) It shows that the oil was changed about once a year for the life of the car. Not as much as I'd like to see but whatever. No notes of any coolant system change, no fuel filter change. A year into his ownership show "rebuilt rear end" with no additional information. (clean title) Tranny fluid added once about 4 years ago, tires same thing. So I pop the hood and check it out...

The coolant looks like it has mud in it. The oil is blackish. PS fluid was essentially dry if I remember correctly. The tires have dry rot. It turns out the thing has been sitting on the dealer's lot for over a year! Anyway, they have the car priced at 10,900 and they aren't willing to budge.

My question is to those of you who have purchased an LS1 with a similar background as this. What has been your experience? Will a flush of the coolant system, tranny fluid, brakes..etc undo any damage the old fluids may have caused? Obviously there are several things that could be wrong with the vehicle. I'm just looking to get a general census on the value of the car and what I should look for in this type of situation. Thanks.

 

With 61K it's starting to get up there in mileage and there is no sure way to tell what kind of damage has been done by running bad or no fluids for that long. I would move on and find one you know was maintained.

 

well, with the engine oil being black there might have been more engine wear (specifically rod bearings which have been spun frequently on LS1's).

with the muddy dexcool that is just more crap to deal with in the cooling system

the dry P/S fluid, did it seem to have flakes in it, a sure sign of running the pump too low and damaging the rack which send metals flakes into the pump

I bought my car with 120,xxx miles on it but it didn't have any mechanical problems just shitty exterior. Move on and find another LS1 car and don't buy fom dealerships unless they offer a warranty! They are rip off artists, after working at one and listening to the salesmen I have come to hate them.

 

1) Walk, no, RUN away from that particular car.
2) Never, never, never buy from a stealership. As noted above, they are truly the crooks that they have earned their reputation for. Used cars is where they make the bulk of their profit, because the true value of a used car is difficult to judge (unlike a new car, where the retail and dealer cost are known values). And used car salesmen work on 100% commission, so they will say anything to get you to buy the car. No sale, no money. Do the math.
3) If you get that uncomfortable feeling when looking at a car, either by a dealer or even by an individual, walk away. Your gut is a very good indicator, you should listen to it, rather than your desire to get a car right now.
Best of luck.

 

Dealerships are very good at cleaning up a car to make it seem like it has been taken care of. Wonder what it looked like when it was brought in? They want $11,000 for an 8 year old car that you are going to have to immediatly; buy new tires for, change all the fluids and filters, flush cooling system, better plan on A4 service too, and that's just from an initial look-see.

 

a good dealership will take the care in change the oil and fix whatever is wrong with the car, i work for one on the side and they change tires all the time, fluids brake inspection collant service the works, selling cars that break down not long after u buy them is bad business, get a bad name doing that

 

Walk away form that car! I picked up a 2000 WS6 for 10,700 with longtubes, lid , & was in great condition.

Scott

 

Another NO vote here. Just pass on it. Too many red flags coming up and the price is too high for a potential 'problem' car.

 

Walk away

 

Run!!!!!!!

 

yeah that doesn't sound like a very good deal at all.
just move on.

 

yeah dealerships suck i work at a dealership and the bastards still wont give me any deals or even a descent discount on any of their used vehicles

 

Tell them to change all fluids, and add new tires along with a 30 day warranty. If they did all that i'd consider it if f-bodies are a rare find where you are at.

 

You're better off buying a car off of this board or e-bay for that matter. As a rule of thumb all F-Bodies have been beaten on, it's just a question of how hard, how often, and how well they got fixed.

AJ

 

oil changed once a year??? uh engine's gonna run lovely

 

Yea I would definately not even consider this vehicle. You should be able to find something for sale privately that's well maintained and maybe has some goodies for that price.

 

I concur.

 

Could you elaborate, please?

I don't think 61K on an essentially 9 year old car is much at all. Hell, mine has 115K and still runs like a champ. And I'm sure there are plenty of others, too.

But judging by all the other stuff on this particular car in question, I'd definetely move on to something else.

Koolaid_kid: There are no crooks among the individual sellers, right.

 

i dont agree on not buying from a dealership. i bought my car from one. no probelms so far. i bought it from a ford dealer 1 year ago.it was a biggggg ford dealership too paid 15500 for it.
bluebook was 18500 at the time.

by the sound of the car i would move on.

but dont not buy a car from a dealership. just make sure you look it over liuke you did this car

 

Of course not.
The difference is this: The stealerships do it for a living. The individual sellers you can filter through to find a car that is what they say it is. And the price will be lower, too. Either way, you have to take care, and if something sets off a red flag, go to the next car. Caveat empor.