Buying used 97tsi. What to look for/how to repair current problems it has.

[Spectre420]

So one of my friends dads is selling his 97 eagle talon tsi for pretty cheap (800$ish) the car has been owned by him since mile 1 and is a 100% stock virgin car. (@90k miles) The car is worth in good condition about $5000 in my area. The owner was trying to sell it for 1850$ for 8 months but now needs money badly for some family issues that came up and is trying to get rid of it fast now. I feel like I wouldn't have too much difficulty talking him down to $600 or less if the problems with the car are complex enough and considering that in my area no one wants to buy a car that runs less than ideal.
The car has been maintained pretty decently well from what i can conclude however, it has its share of issues. I currently have not done any tests on the car and will be conducting those this weekend but I would like to present the community with what is known so far and try and see if I can get some opinions on the car and a general idea of whats wrong/what I need to fix/test.

Engine:
The car has been sitting mostly in one spot for about 8 months now. It has been ran for about 15min once/twice a month just to keep it alive. The car will start and run but it has some issues.
First thing i noticed is that the idle is very very low 100-200rpms tops and the car will eventually stall out at idle if left for a while. It has some trouble revving up when under vacuum (gotta push the gas real good). Owner told me once it gets into boost however it smooths out a bit but its still not perfect.
I was told that the engine is running lean.
I suspect injector problem or fuel delivery. Possibly an air leak.
Engine however is running pretty smoothly despite all this.
In need of new fluids, particularly oil/trans fluid

Body:
Another issue is that when his wife went to drive the car (rare occurrence) when the door was frozen shut she ripped the door handle clean off...
I would assume this is repairable but I'm not entirely sure how to do so (probably could figure it out). The door however does open fine from the inside. I was thinking of installing THIS as a replacement to the factory white handles anyway and I believe this will fix the problem but I would like to check with y'all to be sure.

The last and final thing is that the door needs to be lifted up slightly in order to close. In other words, the door is sagging a bit. I was told by the owner that he took it apart and checked it out and all the hinges are tight as can be and upright however its the sheet metal that they are bolted into that's sagging and flexing with the weight of the door. He suggested welding a piece of metal onto it and re-drilling holes to strengthen it. (seems logical) Do you think this would work or is there any other easier solutions? If the door is stuck that way I can live with it but it would be nice to fix it up.

What I plan to do:
Go back on a day that its not raining and dark with one of my slightly more car savvy friends and jack it up and inspect the underside and up inside all the engine/suspension/drivetrain components for any obvious problems
Take it up to advanced auto and have them run their scan tools and check out the starting/charging system.
(Hopefully by this point not necessary as its gonna cost $$$) Take it to a professional shop and have them inspect it to figure out the issue.
If possible, take it for a very lengthy test drive city/highway

Now what I would like to know from the community is:
A: Based off the info provided, what do you think the engine problem is/could be? What tests should I do? (Preferably cheap/free ones) What things should I look out for?
B: Is that door handle easily fixable and am I looking at the right part to do such?
C: What is the most practical solution to that sagging door?
D: Is there anything else I NEED to check out before buying this car? I know tons of used car inspection stuff but anything that I need to know for this specific model?
E: (I know with lack of seeing the car/info this is hard to answer) SHOULD I BUY THIS CAR?

I really would love to buy this car as I quickly fell in love with the talon and have wanted an 2nd gen eclipse (close enough to a talon) since I can remember but I wont get it if its a problem filled junkbox.
I am willing to spend 1400$ish (including purchase price) and a week or two of TLC and hard work to fix up this car to a running, reliable-enough car. All labor not requiring any very special equipment (alignment rack.etc) will be done myself so no labor cost other than new tools if needed.

I will update this thread with any engine codes/problems/other info that I figure out

Till then, thanks for taking the time to read my thread and possibly respond as well. Its much appreciated.

 

[97_4g63t]

I just got a door handle at autozone. They have them in the hard to find section. Those would work though. I don't know why but I had more hell changing the door handle than putting the motor in idk why but it kicked my ass. I'm big on doing boost leak tests. They account for tons of problems with our cars. I would look into that. Are you gonna work on the car before you buy it? A compression test would be your best bet on the condition of the motor. You can rent one at part stores so you just have to front some money.
The sagging door I'm curious too because mine does this and I haven't looked into it. You could drain the oil and look for metal or coolant. Check the coolant for oil. That's what I would check before buying. Lots of other little things but you can always figure them out down the road. Oh another big thing would be wiring. Trying to search through hacked wiring for bad connections is a nightmare. Some pics of the engine, exterior and interior would help with a decision. 600 is pretty cheap though.

 

[LouieAWDTSi]

At that price, I say jump on it. Door handles are a pain but I remember many people doing them often and there is a good chance there is some references. You could part the car out and make well over $1,000 so I say buy it, great price specifically since its a talon.

The 2gb talon bumpers, lights, and side streaks are worth a pretty penny now a days. Trust me, I been trying to piece it all together for my awd spyder ...soon talon spyder.

 

[Insane20]

Ya I wouldn't pass this deal up. Like said before the door handle you can get at autozone and it's not a really hard fix. The door sagging is probley the hinge bushings you can get at advanced. As far as running issues do a boost leak test compression test you could also check fuel pressure but who knows it's been sitting so long it could just need a tune up.

 

[tomsoftail]

Stay away, far away! Btw, what is the seller's address & phone number?
Lol

It's already been said but selling a dozen or parts will get yer money back. The rest will be gravy if you decide upon this. Get it!