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Back away slowly Posted by Ari [Email] (#2847) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Ari) on Wed, 8 Dec 2004 06:38:22 In Reply to: Help - I'm about to do something stupid..., SS, Tue, 7 Dec 2004 13:31:30 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
OK, let's see. Somebody is selling a car that won't start. Two possible scenarios here-
First - this is a very nice car that has been babied all it's life - maintained by the book. No oil change missed. One day it won't start, so the owner decides it's the last straw, and is willing to sell it cheap instead of trying to fix it. Turns out to be something simple like a blown fuel pump fuse, and you've got the deal of the century.
Second - This car has been driven hard and put away wet. The last time it had an oil change, there was a Democrat in the White House, and the brake fluid is a classic vintage. When something broke, it stayed broke. Of the 53 things that were just waiting to break and keep the car from running, one thing beat the others and it won't run. Fix that one problem, and the other 52 are waiting in the wings. Once running, you'll find out about the dead A/C, transmission that has two fewer gears than stock, and a heater core with the integrity of a sponge.
I'm going to assume the second scenario is more likely. Chances are this car hasn't been treated well. Chances are the owner knows why the car is dead, because selling a non-running car is a pain. And if he/she/it doesn't know why it's dead, do you think they've been taking good care of it?
The chance of this being a creampuff with just one problem is so close to zero as to challenge modern number theory. The chance that not starting is just the most obvious of a bushel-full of problems is astounding.
Yes, you can buy it and part it out. Fine if you've got the room for a junk car, and don't mind piecemealing it out over the next 5 months. Sounds like a royal pain to me.
My advice is to find a nice car in good condition. The price difference between a nice, well-maintained car and a Needs Work Badly car isn't that much; much less than the cost to bring a neglected car back up to snuff. The only difficulty is that finding well-maintained cars is hard, and takes lots of time. But patience is worth it.
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