Just passed up a 94 with 39K-had the cash in my pocket

[Peterofdevon]

I can't believe it. I was ready to just buy it. Garage kept, not a mark on the interior. Then I drove it...

1) started fine, smooth idle for five minutes then...uhhh ohhh, that little injector miss thing. Just noticable, but its there.

2) pulling out of the lot...uhhhh ohhhhh...vibration city...just like my 94 which has had new drive shaft, new engine and T mounts, too many front end parts to mention without turning blue. Vib is drivetrain specific, noticed immediately by my novice GF.

3) funny exhust odor, sulfur kinda smelling.

3) Rose mud color---uck!

asking price 6900 and I started thinking about the 255 pounds of rubber on the car dry rotting in the garage.

What would you have done?

So I drove the M45 sport again today to get over the loss (I just couldn't face sorting this vib out) of the lowest mi Q I've seen over the past five years.

Peter

[irax]

i would of offered the guy 500 for it, thefact that it has so meny parts in the front end replaced kinda tells me it was a colision, the vibration kinda confirms it.

[Peterofdevon]

no no no...my current 94 135K has had the sus parts. I mentioned it as a gosh knows what it will cost possibilty for the 39K one.

It also had the mocha interior---very nice BTW. It was like sitting in a time machine.

Peter

[96Qowner]

$6900 is simply too much after, as you say, 12 years. 39K is sweet, but since it didn't run flawlessly, I'd have passed, too. Too many Qs being sold cheap these days. I prefer the idea of paying cheap and fixing everything - like $2500 and then spend another $4400 on restoration.
Modified by 96Qowner at 9:35 AM 5/30/2006

[AZhitman]

Good call - Miles mean very little on these cars, and the shimmy/shake seems to indicate lots of rubber parts need replacing (tires, bushings).

I'd take a fully-maintained 80K mile car over a 40K car that's all original parts.

[Q45tech]

However unlikely that the things that cause the vibrations are changed on even a well maintained car...........motor mounts, transmission mount, exhaust hangers, driveshaft [reindexed and re balanced] diff mounts, shocks and associated rubber. Kingpin bearings/seats, lower suspension arms [front and rear].

The dealers had a hard time selling just upper links and tension rods.

I'll never forget the time my son bought a 89 turbo transam from a museum with less than 1,000 miles on it - totally rotten in just 10 years!

[mcastro]

Wow. I dunno...

While there might be some rubber components which need replacement, it’s hard to put dollar figures against a finish that hasn’t seen much weather, or an interior which hasn’t been sat in much.

Out of curiosity, I did a search on Cars.com and the dealer has it advertised there with a carfax; looks like a one-owner kind of deal. The one thing about shopping for an old Q is that once on a while you can find one that a well-to-do elderly person purchased, and only used it once or twice a week to go to the grocery store. This may be that, or perhaps some kind of probate where it has been sitting in a garage for several years.

The price is too high, but the dealer probaby thinks he can get something close. Excessively low miles sell, and these guys probably did the minimal to get it running. He probably got it for half of that.

If I were in your spot, I would give the guy a deposit check to hold, and take it in for a diagnostic eval at the local dealership, and maybe even get it up on a lift to examine things personally. If it’s a local car, the dealership may even have done the servicing and have all the records. Let them put in writing what is wrong, and if it’s worth it, go back to the used-car lot and use it to beat him down to a fair price. If the cost to fix is excessive, at least you did your due diligence, spent $100 on the “what ifs”, and then re-focus your energy on the M45 possibilities.

Aside from the lavender color, how is the exterior appearance of the car?

[Q45denver]

Depends on how it was driven, City miles aren't equivalent to high way. Remember these were $50k new so even $10K would not be unreasonable. I'd be damn sure to verify the mileage however.

[elwesso]

ITd be one thing if it was a black on black Q45t... but a purple one (not the dark purple).. EWW..

Probably a good move, however if you consider that every Q is gonna need about the same amount of work done to the suspension, brakes and tires, paying the extra for a mint interior and exterior is kinda worth it...

Still IMO an all original 90-93 is worth more to m.e

[Peterofdevon]

Wes, the color was worse than lavender, it was a mud rose and I was immediately disappointed when I first laid eyes on it.

I agree 100%...if it was black, if it was dk blue, even cream or beige, I would have done it and then just paid to sort it out.

I tossed and turned last night thinking...well I could have it sprayed...but holy ****, look in the mirror dude...its just a common--- car not a 69 vette.

Then I saw that 75K one in SC...the guy had garaged it, serviced it, conditioned the leather all the time, new wheels...he loved it. Wanted 5500. And I didn't feel so bad.

I'll wait for a Touring. Oh and after driving the M again, my 94 with FSTB and blues and new sus parts is frankly very very good and offers up a less twitchy ride and to me a better looking less glitzy interior---of course not near the cornering or low end torque.

Peter

[elwesso]

Peter I honestly feel as if the M45 sport handles about on par with my Q.. Thats at least how it felt to me, slightly faster down low, up top about the same..