Should I go for it?

[mattmans88]

Hey guys, this is my first post here. I've been reading for a little while but now I have a question. I'm talking to this guy who is selling an 84 SVO for around 1700 and its got some ups and downs to it. First off he says the car has 97,000 miles on it, but in the interior pictures I can see a spot where the carpet is worn out (kind of on the side of the transmission tunnel) by the driver's foot rubbing, plus the drivers seat has two wears/tears on the outer edge of it. I can see the seat tearing a little I guess, but two places and a wear spot in the carpet? On only 97,000 miles? Is this common, or could this car really have 197,000 miles on it. Do SVO's have a odometer that can read over 100,000 or does it roll over at 99,999.9?

The body isn't perfect either. There is a dent in the drivers side fender wherer the guys says it looks like the previous owner hit a curb. Also the lower part of the bumper (thin part on bottom) is cracked and hanging from the accident. By looking at the pics it looks like the headlight don't line up perfectly with the hood on the driver's side either.

According to him the tranny has been rebuilt by the previous owner, but it will pop out of secnd when you drive it most of the time. He said he just keeps his hand on the shifter and it stays in gears, could this just mean the shifter needs to be aligned or is it internal trouble? The rear brakes were all replaced and the front ones are ok. New parking brake cable, 86 intake, and a few other small things.

The car definately needs some work and your guys input will help me decide whether to get it or not. Its 4 hours away from me so a drive just to see it is kinda outta the question lol. I gotta rely on pics and stuff until I decide, if I decide, to go and get it. With my luck the guy is proabably on this forum :rolleyes: . Oh well maybe he will share a little moire info then lol. Thanks a lot fo rthe help guiys I'm sorry for all the questions. I really want to own an SVO, but being in college right now I need to make this decision once and get the best one for me, because I don't have the money to have to put into a car thats going to be DOA. Thanks again guys!

-Matt

[boss82gt]

What is a 4hr drive? To me 1700 wouldn't be such a bad deal if it was complete and you are able to do repairs on your own.

[mcb82gt]

Typically, talking to someone over the phone about a car, it will usually be worse in person when you get there (sorry). SVO speedo's do not read over 99K, the clusters are very easy to swap also, so the mileage will truely be unknown. All my mustang with over 100K have NOT had worn spots in the carpet. It sounds like from your description, the car has been wrecked once, maybe twice. If it were me, I think I would pass. Wait for one with a little more solid body and if you can 85.5-86 had the 35lb injectors already from the factory, with other minor improvements. I think they look better also, with the flush headlights, but just my opinion. Either way, good luck.

Mike

[mattmans88]

The car is over 4 hours away from me Boss82gt, so its more like 9 hours round trip. I'l going to call the guy again tonight and ask him if the title is salvage or whats up and what the real mileage is on the car. He said hes probably the fourth owner so its changed owners quite a bit. hes had it for a year and put about 500 miles on it this summer but needs to sell it now due to money issues. If it really has 197,000 miles on it and has extensive damage to it there is no way hes getting 1700 from me, no way. I also want to know if it burns oil and stuff like that. I just wish it was closer because then I would run over it with a fine toothed comb. Oh and another thing, in the picture he sent me of the engine compartment is almost looked like the pasenger side strut (the top of it the bolts to the top of the strut tower) was lifting off of the strut tower a little bit, but the drivers side looked flush. Whats the deal with that?

Thanks a lot for your comments and help so far guys, I appreciate it. And please, keep them coming!

-Matt

[Mike Croke]

Sounds like it's pretty rough from what the seller will admit to. That transmission is very suspect since any shifter adjustment would take at most a couple minutes from inside the car. So it needs body work and paint, carpet, seats re-covered and the trans has to come out based merely on a phone conversation. I'd pass on that one personally unless you're looking for a serious project.

[AT6svo]

Ok, I'll ask the obvious question...

...where are you (Mattsman88_) and where is the car located?

Surely there has to be another SVO closer to you than this one.

[DVSCAPRI]

Ok, I'll ask the obvious question...

...where are you (Mattsman88_) and where is the car located?

Surely there has to be another SVO closer to you than this one. Not only that, but maybe??? someone here is closer & could go look at the car for him & give an honest opinion??? I'm only suggesting this after getting burned myself on my T/A. If I could've got it checked out in advance I wouldn't have lost $12,500 on purchase & 7K plus on rebuild/repairs.

[boss82gt]

The car is over 4 hours away from me Boss82gt, so its more like 9 hours round trip.
-Matt

I fetched a 79 supercab in an ice storm once. I took the money with me just in case, but I had no idea it was as nice as it was. I took a huge risk in that weather. The owners wife said over the phone it had some rust and it is too bad. That was all I had to go on. What should have been 6 hours round trip took 16 due to weather. All I needed was a friend that was as nutz as I was just in case I bought it. And I did buy it. To grip about 8-9 hours drive seems trivial IMO. If you really want something it is always better to see it.

[mattmans88]

I live in New York, fairly close to Albany. The car is near Hatfield, Pennsylvania. If anyone lives next door to this guy and can take a look for me that would be awesome. Right now I'm pretty iffy and I'm leaning more towards the "pass" side.

I don't think a 9 hour trip is trivial though. When your driving a E-350 van to pick this thing up and getting a max of 18 mpg at close to 3.00 a gallon the trip isn't some little thing. The only day I have free during the week is Sundays, I work or go to school the rest. So I don't want to totally waste my time and money on a basket case like DVSCAPRI was conned into. Do any of you guys know of an SVO for sale for around the same price range near me in New York? I have been searching this forum and 3 others looking for one near me and this is the closest one to me and in my price range lol :tumbleweed: .

[boss82gt]

I guess gone are the days when people stopped at nothing to realize ones dreams. I wish you luck finding your SVO.

[XxGATORxX]

Well, not sure how to really phrase the following, but its a 20+ year old car. Plain and simple. You will be hard pressed to find a "selection" of cars in much better condition in that price range. Not saying that it cant be done, but the simple fact is that the cars are dissapearing to either people putting them back together or to the asshats that think they are still worth a million dollars in parts.

My honest suggestion would be to leave that one for someone that could spend the time and money on it. Just wait for a while and build up the funds that will allow you to open the selection a bit more. There are a ton of cars out there in the 4-6k range.

For example, I personally know of one in Jersey with mods that looks to be well worth the 4K the guy is asking.

Just some thoughts for ya.

-- GGG

PS...hate to break this to ya, but even if you spend 15K on a car thats 20 yars old, if you plan on driving it, you are gonna need to work on it.

[mattmans88]

I think I worded that kind of wrong lol. I know I'm goign to need to do some work on the car, its 23 years old (older than me :rolleyes: ). What I mean is I don't want to have to rebuild the engine, tranny, and turbo as soon as I get the darn thing. I know it needs some bodywork, but I'm not quite sure how the frame looks or whether it was tweaked in that same accident. He sent me some more pics of it and it it also rusting on the back of the roof edge, where the seam begins for the hatch. It is rusted through in the spot. The interior also looks pretty rough. If he comes down on the price then I'll think about it more, but as it sits i don't think this is the one for me.

Boss I didn't come here to be judged by you. I already have a 88 5.0 (hence my username) and that was my dream first Mustang/first car. I worked as a dishwasher and doing a few other jobs to save up my pennies and I bought that baby a little after I turned 17 for $1100. Sounds like a deal? It wasn't lol. Almost every body panel on the car had damage. The drivers side quarter panel was smashed in 3-4 inches. I put at least 100 hours into the body on that thing with a lot of help from my dad and I still need to buy some new doors for it. But I'm driving it right now and it looks worlds better than it did. THAT was my dream, to get my Mustang and make it look/run good. But shes lonely in the stall by herslef so I figured I would get an SVO as a playmate and be a part of Mustang history at the same time :tu: .

I also understand "you gotta pay to play", though. I've seen so many BEAUTIFUL SVO's for sale, but they are either in Indiana or the owner wants 5,000 for them. I think thats the way I will go. I'll keep saving up and get one for a little more money that needs a little less work. My dad and his girlfriend would proabably kill me if I got another "project car" anyway. So maybe its for the better.

[Mustang Marty]

The carpet was worn out on the drivers side in my 92k mile 85 McLaren and torn to hell in my 93k 79 Coupe. Hell, the carpet in my 2001 Mustang is worn all the way through to the right of the gas pedal and in front of the molded in rubber pad. The car has 77k miles but it has been like that long before 50k. I even have floor mats and there are still worn spots. I bought it with 268 miles so I know the miles are correct.

So, the carpet can wear out before 100k miles.

[boss82gt]

I'm not judging. Seems to me your reaching for something you can't afford yet. This SVO is not the car for you at this time. I'd forget SVOs all together till you are out of college and working a good job.

[CheatedByLove]

i would pay that price for it

[Ford'sCapri]

offer him $950-$1100 for it. i could have bought a svo instead of my 79 capri. i wish i would have.

[silversvo]

You should go for it and see the car in person then judge for yourself unless your like me and buy the car site unseen. I bought a car in Littleton Colorado site unseen and drove 13 hours one way up there with a the same day. I drove it all the way home and the car didnt have anything really done to it since I brought it home except the usual tune up stuff. The car is still together and is running, but poorly to this day, which that was almost two years ago. I would offer him a cheaper price on the car and negotiate it. Trust me, if you want an SVO that bad, you will take the risk of wasting one day away on a road trip. As for your van running 18MPG, that isnt that bad at all because that is what my truck gets. You should ask the guy to try and meet you half way with the car or something like that. If I lived closer to you, I would offer to sell you a couple of the cars I have, but I am little over 20+ hours away from you. Just bite the bullet and go take the ride and look at the car in person. You might say it is actually better than it sounds, or vice versa...