and how much would you pay? I posted this on alltrac.net too, but really want some more opinions. I'm supposed to hear from the owner tomorrow...he doesn't remember it...he's got around 5000 cars between two yards. The details: '87 Celica GT-S Black with blue velour interior. Sitting for aprox. two years at the yard. *Exterior is sound, No wrecks. Paint is coming of in chunks from what seems to be surface rust (car seems pretty solid). Even the sunroof hasn't been leaking and is solid! It hasn't had anything taken from it externally and is not sitting directly on the ground (couldn't really tell if the tires were flat though, too many tall weeds). *Internally it's actually surprisingly clean. The passenger door panel was removed but is still in the car and I didn't bother to see what was taken, not worried about that part. The dash has minimal bubbling for the age and how long it's been sitting. Nothing else was removed internally. Supposedly it has a 'blown motor'. Wow...that could be anything! Nothing taken there either. Oh yeah, and the car only has 130k on it! I really should've taken a camera. I am wanting it as a total project car, something fun to repaint, mod, etc. and am hoping to buy it cheap. I've found running '87 GT-S cars for $600 but they're about 300 miles away... and this one is right around the corner. I'm waiting for the owner of the yard to call me back with a price and am scared he's gonna want about $1000 for it...then again maybe I'm just jumping to conclusions. I'm crossing my fingers for under $500...way under...
If the car has been sitting for 2 years, it may have more problems then you can see, areas i would check for rust are: Under the back seat: and behind the rear quarter panels, inside the rear wheel wells. The engine would probably need a complete rebuild. is it sitting on Tires/rims? or just on the ground? any moisture caught underneath could cause major rust problems as well. I love a good project as much as anyone, and i am not trying to discourage you, just be fully aware of the condition of the car before you buy it. and just as a frame of reference, i paid $400 for my first 87 GT 3 years ago and I was abele to insure it and drive it the day i got it.
It is risky. Personally I would check craigslist and forum sites for somebody that is looking to get rid of a gts that is running. Then maybe grab what you would need from the junkyard gts.
Not generally a fan of cars that have sat, so it would need to be cheap as to interest me. Brake pipes, fuel lines, calipers, discs, bushes can all suffer. If an engine has had a blow up, I would be very sus to use it after a long sitting period, water and oil pathes could be corroded to hell etc. These cars, the strut tops, inner sill areas, floor pan etc can all Rust to hell , but a car can look great on the surface. I understand the logoc of buying a project car totally, but imo experience from building up and restoring cars, starting with a running or recently in use car is a far better base. You get to check the mechanical elements better, if the body work needs a total re build, it will eat up lots of time and money, having the peace of mind that you at least have a running lump etc can be the difference between a finished project and a sold on pile of bits. If that car was for sale in the UK I would pay no more than £50- £75 tops Have you thought about accident damaged cars? they can make great project bases. one of the best project cars I purchased had only had a mild front end bang, sold it for a good profit and enjoyed hunting for the parts to fix it up
2 yrs? - the motor is rust inside for a start, bet it's been rained inside and the sun..... By now I bet people have been scavenging from it as well I'd buy it if it was $200 or under and fresh in the yard Personally no, parts yes - take what you need
i bought my 88 altrac out of a boneyard full of old muscle and commuter cars. the only things missing was the two front seats, rad and gastank. the thing sat for 3 years in a tree because it wouldnt pass a safety so the owner abandoned it. here its "illegal" to remove a car from a junker, so i bought it striped it and torched the fuck out of it to get what i wanted. 6 hours later i had a revamped dose of car. and for only 300 bucks. which i made back in a month (and then some) selling parts off it.
Thanks for all the info, and stuff to think about! It's surprisingly minty on the inside, no rain/water damage to be seen anywhere...not even sun fade! No odor either... It might be worth it to buy just as my own personal parts car so I can pull parts as needed without having to leave the house LOL. Yeah, it's not picked over at all...only the pass door interior panel is off (it's in the seat though). Under the back seat is clean as is under the spare tire. It's startling to me to see a car in this condition sitting there surrounded by crunched cars... And it has it's tires and wheels on so it's not directly on the ground. Yeah, I know it's incredibly risky. I'll just wait to see what the guy says tomorrow... I know there's a couple sitting in someones yard about two miles from me that are wrecked soooo.... But of course I'm always on the lookout...Craigslist, forums, etc. If I can find something decent somewhat close by I'll probably try to snag it 8)
Ooh and there's a place up the road from them that sells four cylinder engines for $115....and they have 5 Celicas from yrs '85-'89...knowing my luck it'll be four that are '85 though LOL!
Of four with 3SFE engines. Me personally, I refuse to pay for a junker. Granted, I did buy one for $700, and I did also purchase a 90 Laser(just removed from road) for $300. The front windshield cost me $275 right off the bat to pass inspection.(In its defense, it was a great little car and got me through a tough point in my life with very little cost to me.) Inspect for rust. That has got to be the most stressed point of everything. That is the one thing that kills these cars. Motors are a close second, but eh...what difference does it make. Your purchasing for a project. Keep in mind that the previous owner may have trashed for a tranny problem too. Those are hard to diagnose until you have a running engine. When you are looking at doing a project, there are a few factors that get automatically added in. I know my car is damn near bullet proof at this point(Cant thank willie enough for it now), but I know once I get the motor in the car, it will get all new pads, rotors(no questions asked here. I don't care what kind of shape they are in) and calipers(if needed.)
i bought an 88 4th gen from salvage auction here last year for $150, and bought another 89 4th gen from the same auction this year for $180....now I have endless parts for mine. Another perfectly working 3sge, 4 doors, skirts, 8 wheels and tires, 2 hoods, 2 full interiors, sunroof, all glass, suspensions, etc. Definitely a good investment.
I should finally find out how much he'll take on Monday. I went and looked at it again today and want to kick myself...I took the camera, took a pic, opened the screen only to see "no memory card" AAAaaaargh!!! Sheesh... Anyways, the only bad rust is right along the edge of the rear right tire well (seems typical) and of course the muffler. The car is on it's own tires with no ground touching it anywhere. Just a few high weeds. Also it looks like it's got a blown head from my limited knowledge...the oil looked surprisingly clean, like it'd been changed yesterday, but open the radiator and UGH, it looked like thick creamy off white goop inside. Also the only parts taken are the pass side mirror, pass side window motor, rad overflow tank and the battery is removed (don't know if that's common procedure or not...) I don't personally want to pay more than $150 for it as I've seen too many running GTS's for well under $1000.
Sounds good, by now the battery was a doorstop anyway. Buy it if you have access to cheap missing parts or a parts car. Any motor that has not turned in 6 months has rusted bores and will eat the rings in the first 1/2 hour. Open it, hone it, fit new rings or stand and watch the smoke accumulate. Make sure you prime the oil system/bearings well before attempting to turn it.
well....HAHAHAHAHA!!! They want $1000 for it!!!! Yeah right...I'll go buy something else for that much!
Yeah, that's about how I felt, but I think I was ready for it... I told them straight up that I can go buy running ones for half that and they said "i'm sure you can'. I figured they'd be pricey but MAN! Oh well...I've found some good prospects for cheap elsewhere
a grand for a car that dosent run? WHAT THE FUCK WERE THEY THINKING?! i have seen running SX's here (GT-S over there) for half that. more than likely on their last legs, but still running... my ST Coupe (GT over there) cost me 2 grand, and that was a bargain, in the good condition as she is... i would of paid alot more for my car... but back to subject. i could get the entire car for about 300 bucks here, strip out the engine for what i want (Head, Tvis intake, the lot.) And my car will probably sell for alot more (not selling... ever.) seeing as the interior is rare, as well as the body style... your best bet, turbodog, is to go and strip out everything from that car there, take it home, make sure you have a trailer handy, and when you have all the bits from it, buy the shell, and reassemble it in your garage. that way, it might bring the price down. just as long as he dosent crush it 1st.
