Looking at a bone stock 1G GS-T, low mileage...

[RavenDSMIA]

Alright, I'm not exactly new to DSMs, per se. I owned a '90 GSX about ten years ago, absolute blast to drive, but sadly I had nothing but issues with it as I made the mistake of buying it heavily modded, poorly maintained, and beat half to death. Youth and ignorance got the beast of me I think. I sold it after a year of trying to put it back together the right way, and failing due to financial issues. Things are a bit better for me these days and I have about $5K saved up to buy a car with. I don't NEED another car but I want to treat myself.

So my brother in law knows a guy with a 1G Eclipse GS-T sitting in a garage that he's willing to sell. Can't remember right off what year it is, I haven't even had time to go see it yet. My brother has however seen it and here's how it's been described to me:

Bone stock, all original, everything works. 60K on original engine/turbo/exhaust. No rust, dents, or dings. The factory paint has been well cared for and there are only a few rock chips which can be expected. The interior has also been well cared for, cleaned and detailed, never smoked in. Cloth seats, no tears or stains. Underside of car looks clean as does the engine bay.

Now for the bad. And it's not even a problem, really, but the car has been pretty much just sitting for the last few years. Albeit in a garage, but sitting nonetheless, and I'm not sure if that's going to cause issues or not. I've heard horror stories of gas going bad, oil and coolant becoming acidic, etc. and that does concern me a little. My brother is a mechanic, my closest friends are GVR4 gurus (they all drive them) and I'm no slouch with a wrench so taking care of any problems that arise isn't an issue, I suppose.

But long story short, the owner isn't actively selling the vehicle, he is just willing to part with it, and he is asking $3,000 for it. Book value according to KBB for a car in excellent condition and 60K is just over $2K. But even for that much, a DSM as clean as this, is almost unheard of, at least where I live. They're usually beat to hell.

What do you guys think?

 

[mitsocruiser]

Ide go look at it for your self and if you do buy it trailer home and drain and flush all the fluids before start up .I bought a 1963 mercury comet a few years back that had been sitting in a feild for about 12 years the spark plugs were so old they crumbled in your hands. I replaced the plugs and did all the fluids and got it to start right up after a few carb adjustments. Good luck hope this helps

 

[blownturbotsi]

Yeah I'd say to drain all of the fluids and clean out the gas tank well. Nice find!

 

[spyder97gs]

I wouldn't spend that much on it personally. Talk him down. I'd never pay over KBB for a stock 1G. I just picked up a Spyder GS-T in EXCELLENT condition that just needs a $100 replacement turbo for $3000.

 

[fwdmaster]

Check the compression and, turbo,tranny,and if it's good talk him down and buy it

 

[RavenDSMIA]

I was thinking $2500 or walk, though if everything checks out I'll probably be more willing to drop the three for it. I mean on one hand, yeah, why pay more than book, but on the other hand, where am I likely to find something like this again? It reminds me of when I was looking for a GVR4. Being a member of the GVR4 club and always being around them, I see a lot of modded and stock examples alike. And if given the opportunity to buy a bone stock car for $5K or a modified one for teh same $5K, I'd have gotten the stock one in a heartbeat.

Good call on replacing all the fluids and changing plugs. I'd probably do a full tune-up whether it needed it or not just to be on te safe side. I'm also wondering if it'd be a good idea to go ahead and change the timing belt too but that's a lot of hassle if it doesn't need it.

 

[dsmzoom]

Trailer it home by all means. Do not even attempt to start it before doing all the maintenance, ALL the maintenance. Make this unmolested 1g worth your while. Patience is key.

 

[under50k226]

I'd wait for an AWD model to pop up- My .02. Other than that, I'd do as the others here say, just trailer it and start to change the all the fluids. Good luck!

 

[My1GLaser]

If you do get it, DO NOT trust that timing belt. Even if it was put on the day it was stored and has 0 miles on it.

 

[crimsondragon]

Bring up the kbb quote to knock him down to $2k. Work from there on.

 

[RavenDSMIA]

Good ideas, for sure guys. I definitely plan on tossin the car on a flatbed if I decide to bring it home and you're right about the timing belt. I don't want to, but I'll just have to suck it up and change it. With the AWD issue, I'm really not that hard for it. I mean, I love AWD, don't get me wrong. After the time I did have with my GSX, and after driving VR4s the last few years, I've grown very accustomed to the AWD goodness. But my buddy has been driving a mildly modded GS-T for the last few months while we were putting his VR4 back together (actually ended up pulling the motor to use in the Galant) and even that car was a fricken blast. But on the upside I might get lucky. I asked my brother tonight about the car, and a) the guy is out of town on vacation so I have to wait until he gets back and b) he said he might be wrong and it actually is a GSX and not a GS-T like he told me. Eh, I gave the guy a pass, seein' that he's a Nissan tech and dreams about Z cars all day. Either way, I know for a fact I'm getting a mint 5-speed turbo, so it's just a question of fwd or awd.