Buying a GN, good deal??

[tl14910]

hey guys i went and checked out an 87 t top with 75,000 miles the other day and the guy is asking 7 grand for it. the problems it has are the clear coat is turning white, theres a little dent in the front fender and rear quarter panel, both of the seats had a rip mark on the outside shoulder about 2-3 inches long, and the passenger door panel was ripped. Also there was a patch panel on the drivers floor pan. I was wondering if i should jump on this and buy it or wait for something else. Thanks.

 

[TexasT]

Hard to tell from the description. Most of the interior can be had new or used. Fixing the body and frame becomes more expensive. Any pix you could post or is there a club in your area that specializes in these cars?

 

[87natl]

Doesn't sound too clean. More importantly, how's it run???????

 

[tl14910]

it ran and drove good, i was suprised how clean the body was. there was no rust on the rockers, the doors or the the trunk lid. the underside of the car had typical rust. i only have one low quality pic of it and you cannot see any problems from it.

 

[87natl]

Runs well, shifts well? No body cancer? Sounds like a good deal if so. The cosmetic things you can take care of. Just get a good look at that "typical rust" under the car and inverstigate just how bad it is. Do you have the ability to get the car up on a lift? That's the next thing I would do.

 

[Chuck Leeper]

Carfax, or the other verification company report??
Sounds like it's beat up.. Maybe, as in 175,000, not 75,000??
Rotted floor can mean leaky t-tops. Bad seals on the tops can = rusted out roof.

 

[GNXwannabe]

Check the door "posts" where the door hinges to the body. T-Top cars sometimes have leaks that get behind the pillar and rust through.

 

[tl14910]

Thanks for the help everyone, the patch panel on the floor was in front of the drivers seat. i was thinking for a second that it could be 175,000 but the body was way too clean when i looked at it and the motor sounded great and really pulled when it got some boost. i did check the door post and there was a little rust around the latch but it didn't look serious. im probably going to check it out again tomorrow and double check the frame and the roof.

 

[gmpower]

Check where the door strikers screw in to the body. If there are cracks on the sheet metal, you are probably looking at a 175000 car, as most of the high mile gbodies I have seen have these stress cracks.

 

[Chuck Leeper]

U can take this as gospel:
IF you see rust, there's a bunch more you can't see!!
BTDT...