advice needed! potential purchase

hi folks, so iv found what i think looks like a good buy. but as im new to all this i thought id run it by you guys first. the cars located near me so itd be perfect!







It's a 1600 carb engine with a full respray in porsche polar silver. the owner also says theres not a single bit of rust on the exterior or the underside. its had a few other bits and bobs done to it such as new suspension/ headlights and theres a full set of new seals around the windows. the guy bought it with the spray done so it didnt come with the original badges. are replacement badges easily found? i prefer the look fo the car with them on. i reckon i can get the whole lot for ?900


oh he also mentioned a big box of spares that he'l throw in for free

thanks and i look forward to hearing some advice

william

got mk2 grill on it which as you can see doesn't fit.
no front spoiler buts that easy to put right.
the rear bumper has dropped. this could be as simply as it needing putting straight but it might also be a sign of a bump.
looks like mk2 seats in it too.
and it shouldn't have the wheel archs either.
if you don't want a stock car and if it's as he says with no rust then could be good purchase.

bouchay on here makes badges to order so have a word with him.

Yeah the front grille looks suspicious. A Mk1 grille is no more expensive, or difficult to obtain, than a Mk2 version, so why attach the wrong one to a car????? And the droopy bumper - 5 minute job. Also look at the wheels - obviously some fancy alloys were attached, but have been retained or sold separately. Its the little things which add up, to suggest the car has been superficially made to look good (!?) but in fact might not be. I'd be VERY wary of a seller claiming "100% rust free" too - is there photographic evidence, with the rear axle removed, to show this area? How about behind the arches? Inner wings? etc.

Fair game if its reflected in the price though…..

i think the wheels are in the background of the last picture.

Personally id run a mile.

has he got a massive stack of recipets, mots photos of respray etc?? if vehicle has just been reprayed WHY? (hence droopy bumper and *shudder* painted bumpers)

MK2 grille looks ridiculous on it too. what spec should it be? a driver??

id be very wary (but im a cynical old cow and iv been VERY lucky that both my MK1s have been unmolested and virtually rust free)

?900 - a bit cheap if its had a respray  :dontknow:

unless its been a very cheap respray, in which case you'll end up spending more in the long run…

Eck said

unless its been a very cheap respray, in which case you'll end up spending more in the long run…

AMEN to that! :X

Non-matching headlights?
Where is the screen washer jet?
etc

I can see a spot of rust from here

ok think were done now.
be careful with it and give it a good going over is what people are trying to say here.

thanks a million guys! can you tell im a newbie? iv alot to learn  

Like others said, watch out for the cheap respray. Mine has had one at some point and as a result the clear coat is patchier than my pathetic attempt at facial hair!

Probably the single most expensive thing to put right properly on the car, I'd wager.

If you go look at it take a magnet and test areas on the car as there could be tubs and tubs of filler hidden under a lovely paint job.

A good way to check how good the bodywork has been done would be to pop a door card off and look to see if the trim holes are welded up (= good) or just filled (= bad).

If you get any bad feeling at all don't buy.

Just to add my 2 pennith - I would ignore the fact that it is close to you. I would rather spend 2 hours on the motorway sitting in a warm car for the sake of looking at a potentially better car rather than lying on my back for 8 hours welding up a floor I bought from just up the road.  :wink: