newb looking at a local but rusty '86 t4wd

[binky_rutledge]

Hi all,

I've known about these little things for a while but never really found one locally, I just did but she's pretty rusty. How much is too much? I'm looking for a winter beater more than anything right now. Going back to test drive it again after readIng more from the board.

Asking price is 1250! (seems really high for the rust problem). It's got 123k on the clock.









I'm not really sure anything else you would want to know, I didn't really know what to look for just found it and basically went right there to check it out. I apologize for my ignorance...

[dlb]

no apology necessary, binky. few other good things to check are the fluids to make sure they look clean--no oil in the coolant, no coolant in the oil. if it's auto trans, the ATF should be bright red. besides that, take it for a drive and check of any weird clunks or rattles, make sure it starts easily and idles smoothly.

none of the rust i see in those pics is serious but it does make it a rust busket, and $1250 is too much for a rust bucket IMO. if it ran ok, the most i'd pay is $400. i'm cheap as all hell though.

[simon84]

Does not look too rusty to bother with to me. I bought a tercel that I would say was a bit more rusty for $500. But that was 10 years ago, and I still have it. I did a big rust cleansing resto and paint job and it all came back and now it's a total rust bucket.
Not sure if that helps but some rust is not fatal. It's important to see where and how bad it is underneath. Body panel rust is not the worst thing. Frame rust and rust around lower control arms is a bigee. A bit of floor panel rust can be fixed up, or slowed down.
I notice that the exhaust pipe bend over the axle is new. That's a chronic exhaust failure zone.

[speedgraphic]

Talk them down to $800-1000, if you can. Rust sucks, but I've seen an awful lot of cheap T4WDs that, if they're not rusty, have collision damage which is far more annoying to deal with IMO. That one looks pretty straight.

[larry mcgrath]

There is a lot of rust around the major suspention attachment points,cleaning these up properly requires them to be sand blasted and delt with approatly.Can be a lot of work if done right. front fenders are no longer available,so pick n pull or cut the rust out and repair. how many miles on this pix of engine compartment,interiour. Just my tw cents worth.

[Petros]

welcome to the list!

likely if you want a rust free car you will have to travel to the south or western states, and your total cost will be higher. I do not think the rust pictures is a problem, though it should be addressed and well coated to save it from getting worse. As stated the price is too high by about two times. And only than if it has no mechanical problems.

[celtglen]

IMHO I would pay 900 for it, 123K is just over (by30K) the break in point on the 3ACs 93K being the mid point for being broken in.

The rust is indeed a problem but if you are into project cars and have the patience to address the rust issue I'd buy it.

My Tercel is still (and again) running just fine at 311K miles--but I don't have underneath rust issues: when I ordered the car I paid for underneath rust resistance added SO glad I did.

Have you thought about getting a VIN report on this car? Its called a Car Fax, it lists all inspections failures and passes aswellas accidents and previous owners...I think getting that report is about 15 bucks and well worth it.

CG

[binky_rutledge]

I had to pass, I talked him down to 850 but it had other issues as well. Needed brakes done, front left wheel bearing, gas tank was really rusty and started leaking when I test drove it (couldn't tell where from), needed an alternator, interior was a little rough, needed tires, clunk under acceleration, needed a tvsv... Too much stuff for 850, and he didn't even want to go that low... I'll just have to keep looking, glad I got to test one out though, know a little better what to look for in the future! Thanks for all your suggestions and help. The rust on the rear left rocker was my biggest concern, looked like it was jacked and punched right through, you can kind of see it in the 5th picture, much worse in person though. The hatch was much rustier than in the pictures too, those were the ones he had posted in the ad, which must have been taken a while ago.

[dlb]

good move, binky. no sense in rushing to buy a terc and winding up with an overpriced project car. sounds like you have a good idea of what to look for when checking out tercs so just keep looking and you'll find something worth the price.