Car Heads: I Need Some Advice...help...questions...opinions ???

[TAYLORMADE]

I'M LOOKING TO GET A CAR JUST TO RUN AROUND TOWN IN, I SAW THIS AD AND IT SEEMED INTERESTING. I CALLED THE GUY, WE SPOKE, HE TOLD ME THAT WHEN HE BOUGHT THE CAR, THE ENGINE WAS BAD SO HE SWAPPED IT WITH A 305 ENGINE WHICH CURRENTLY HAS LESS THEN 70K ON IT. NO RUST, POWER WINDOWS, POWER DOOR LOCKS, CLEAN INTERIOR. HE ALSO SAID THAT THE CAR HAS ALOT OF SS PARTS ON IT. I DONT REALLY KNOW MUCH ABOUT THIS MODEL, ANYONE WITH EXPERIENCE DEALING WITH ONE OF THESE OR KNOW ANYTHING I SHOULD KNOW, WHAT I SHOULD LOOK OUT FOR. PLEASE HELP A BROTHA OUT. DO YOU THINK IT'S A GOOD DEAL OR SHOULD I PASS AND KEEP LOOKING.

ORIGINAL AD:1986 Chevy Monte Carlo LS 305 throttle body many extras 97,000 original miles extra parts inc. $1500 firm.

 

[redsox]

For $1,500 you dont have much to lose. Even if the thing goes south
on you, you can always sell the car to a chopper for parts and recoup
some of your investment.

 

[Mt. Yukon]

1,500 you better cop that shit, you can put twice that amount into and be rollin in style. Nothing to lose at that price.

 

[TRUFICTION]

The Body Looks Decent So...........
If It Dont
Smoke
Knock
And The Trans Is Pullin In Al Gears Youre Good
Id Buy That One Quick A Few More Bucks
And You Have A Nice Daily Ride.

 

[LSN]

And most importantly...THROW SOME D's ON THAT BITCH!!!!!!!!!!



























Oops...nevermind I see you're from Queens...

 

[KILLA DANCH]

Hey look my dog, what you do is talk to the person selling it and ask them if you can have your mechanic look at it and you'll leave the 1500 with them as collateral. Or bring a mechanic with you and have them check it out. If everything is gravy then go with it. I did that with my last two cars and was'nt let down.

Or

Put your hand on the hood and see if the engine shakes the car. If so you might have idle problems or it may need motor mounts. Ride it around and see if the trans jerks or is hesitant. Next put your hand behind the exaust pipe and see if it puff, puff, puffs, if it comes out in a steady stream it's all good. Also see what color smoke comes out. If it's black or grey and thick, that's not gravy. Check the oil and the transmission fluid and see how dirty. Look for spots where it may have been hit and painted over or fixed.

One

 

[TAYLORMADE]

I APPRECIATE ALL THE ADVICE, THANKS FELLAS. KEEP IT COMIN'

 

[KILLA DANCH]

Hey look my dog, what you do is talk to the person selling it and ask them if you can have your mechanic look at it and you'll leave the 1500 with them as collateral. Or bring a mechanic with you and have them check it out. If everything is gravy then go with it. I did that with my last two cars and was'nt let down.

Or

Put your hand on the hood and see if the engine shakes the car. If so you might have idle problems or it may need motor mounts. Ride it around and see if the trans jerks or is hesitant. Next put your hand behind the exaust pipe and see if it puff, puff, puffs, if it comes out in a steady stream it's all good. Also see what color smoke comes out. If it's black or grey and thick, that's not gravy. Check the oil and the transmission fluid and see how dirty. Look for spots where it may have been hit and painted over or fixed.

One

 

[KILLA DANCH]

Also start the car and turn the wheel all the way left and right. If it whines than you may need a new power steering pump in the near future.

 

[thoughtyouthought]

I wouldn't pay no more than $900 for it, all twenties, so it looks like good.

 

[ghoststrike]

double check the blue book value of it,,,1500 seems a lil high for that

go here,
www.kbb.com

 

[UltimateLurker]

I'm a dealer; you STILL might want to run CARFAX on that *ish*. Plus, check the under carriage for any exterior cosmetics (i.e. possible frame, flood or rust/decay). I can see quite a few from the pics(both rear bottom panels).
It's a NEW YORK CAR, you know what that means = less value(see reasons above.)
Also, should conduct a tranny test on it(listen for abnormal noises, look for slipperish).....importantly, make sure there's no lucas transmission oil bottle lying around anywhere.
<img src="http://www.hotrodhomepage.com/hrhp_images/lucas_2.jpg">


Verify 305 engine block replacement (by checking with the dealer). $1500.00 is a good deal, but then again Monte Carlo are usually *in high demand*. Seems a little too good. From what I can tell from the pics, it seems like a "cold weather car"(cars in traditionally cold states) if so, this will lessing it's value a little(see rust factor/bad roads ect.).

Overall not a bad deal. I hope this helps..!

 

[dwnsouth]

didnt they stop making that model in 87.....the body is worth more than anything else....down here a car like that without an engine would go for 2grand easy......

as long as you are okay with the possibility of it breaking down....go for it....

me personally, if i wanted to just get around town...i would get an old accord.....

 

[gameboy]

i wouldn't pay that much for a 20 year old car,,, fuck that! without looking at the blue book value,,, i'd say it's worth about $800 (that would be my offer). that is great mileage for an '86,,, but still, that thing could die any day now

 

[BCSD2012]

I had a few Chevy's in my life and expereince with maintenance(some work I did myself-some I took to shop) on these kinds of cars:

1: (critical)Have them move the car and check for oil/transmission spots. Oil brown spots where the engine is, transmission fluid red/burnt brown where transmission is. CGM's mid 70's to late 80's were sort of bad with rear engine seals leak. What that means is that the seal in the back of the engine is decaying and the engine is leaking oil. You will alway shave to add oil, and it's just a matter of time before they completely decay, yoru addign oil all the time, and your engine is losing oil pressure. Also means that when your car is at a stop and it's dripping oil on a hot engine your car is going to smoke.

2: (critical) Start car, let run for 10-15 minues on a level surface and pull out the transmission stick. Check the color of the fluid on the stick, should be bright red, if it's burnt or brown you may have SERIOUS tranmission problems in the future. Transmissions can be rebuilt for 4 to 6 hundred dollars, but if the torque convertor is gone, add another 4 to 6 hundred.

3.(critical) while car is running put foot on break and place car in reverse. Listen to the way the transmission shifts, is it smooth or do you ear a "klunk" sound and a sinking feeling when you put it in reverse. If it klunks tell the owner you wanna take it to a shop and have the transmission pan pulled off. the tell tale sign will be metal shavings in the bottom of the pan, broken gasket seal, dis-colored fluid. Ask the mechanic that takes of the pan about all of those things, also about the torque converter.

4.(serious) Right above teh spark parks on both sides of the engine is where the valve covers are. Look for dirt deposits and old oil around those areas. If you see dirt run yoru finger through it and see if oil is present. If so the valve cover gasket is broken and teh oil running accros the valve is leaking. Not to expensive to get fix just a coupel of hundred if you pay someone, I use to do it myself. Sort of easy to do if you have tools.

Anymore questions send me a pm homey. I had a 76 Impala, a 84 Monte Carlo, and a 94 Monte Carlo in my life time.