How much damage is too much?

[blade970]

I am looking at buying this 1990 GSX off a guy that lives outside my town. He was hit by a yukon. He told me it still drives fine and there is no engine damage(I haven't looked at the car in person yet), but I told him the most I could give him with this amount of damage is 400 bucks. Now, I'm not sure if anyone will be able to tell frame damage from just this picture, but any opinions on whether this is TOO much damage are greatly appreciated.

Keep in mind I have another car that I will be driving. This car is meant 100% for track purposes, so i will be gutting the interior and pretty much just pounding out most of the quarter panel dents and only replacing the necessities.

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Thanks again for looking.

 

[brassc2007]

i couldnt see the picture but depending on the damage to the suspension if its not to bad you can just have the alignment checked and make sure it is within specs. If it has some tweaks that do no include unibody damage it is fairly simple to fix with some used parts from ebay or most salvage yards. all the yards i know of have a couple dsm's that have seen better days but still deserve more than the crusher. I would not base the decision off the picture, i would look at it in person and check the front end thoughroly for tweaks. Turn the wheel and see if anything rubs, take a look underneath and check the frame by eye and mayber a small square to check for straightness and check to see if the front end has moved back or off to the side which may indicate a tweaked frame. But if the price is right then what can you do many salvaged cars or slightly damaged cars can be fixed with a little time or money. just my .2 cents. Every man has his price

 

[blade970]

Alright,. i rehosted the pics. here they are. The guy said he'd take 400 for the car. Good deal?

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[wancsta]

Looks like a good parts car to me.

 

[grnchevyz]

the only thing that worries me is seeing the rear passenger seat in the angle it is....either the 1/4 panel pushed it or the floor crumpled. If the floor crumpled, chances are there is frame damage near the front of the rear passenger wheel. I'd be really careful with this one if its going to be a track car. I'd guess it won't be babied and if not repaired carefully, the stress of it all could cause you more trouble/hurt than anything else...having said that, as wancsta said, 400 bucks isn't too bad for a parts car.

 

[AWD-TSI]

There is significant damage. the pillar is bent, the floor would have to be straitend and the roof would oil can when pulled back. Quarter is unusable to me and looks like there might be suspension damage( strut tower). it wont be easy to pull out if you do get it. lots of frame time. sorry bro parts car i say!

 

[knochgoon24]

Buy it for a parts car if the front if fine then look for a shell to swap it all into.

 

[Dadowhip08]

Yea that looks worse then the one i got i got a 99 eclipse rs tho.. that the kid before me ran it into the woods and the front of the frame where the fenders mount was bent down but i got a friend to pull that up and my quarter was smashed in same side but that just has to be replaced and i paid 300 for it. if your not doing that work yourself and dont know anyone with a frame machine then i wouldnt get it. for parts its a good idea but more then likely that will cost just the same amount as you getting a used one that is in good shape. Kinda seems like your paying him to hall it away if you are gonna race it with that engine that is in it mite not handle what your throwing at it so then again it wouldnt even be worth it for parts. Check a junkyard mite find something... I see those in the ones near mine all the time with no body work needed just are missing alot of stuff.

 

[brassc2007]

as a parts car beings its a gsx it seems to be worth 400 for the motor, trans, and transfer case, and the rear end and if the front is ok for 400 thats kind of a deal its hard to find a used motor or trans for any less than 300 most of the time if it was me i would go for it

 

[costas14]

good deal

 

[BeantownDSM]

Looks like a lot for work.I can find you a better deal on a track car...

 

[MichaelSuch]

Not a bad deal for $400, the transmission and engine is worth more than that. You could probably find a nice conditioned AWD roller for a good price and just swap in the drivetrain parts and engine into a roller.

 

[BeantownDSM]

It is not bad for $400 but what are the problems after?

 

[fastfive0]

definately only a parts car....you DO NOT want to get involved with trying to repair that. Unless you have your own frame rack and are a very good collision repair expert!

 

[costas14]

its good for the parts but if theres a small body shop with frame repair they should be able to do it and maybe it'll cost about a grand to get it straight and fix other stuff

 

[allthrottle]

If the engine and most of the drivetrain are in good shape, pick it up. $400 isn't bad for parts, but don't try to restore that car. There's a real good chance it has frame damage, and even so, the damage in the pics looks like it would cost at least $2k to repair. I had a '97 Integra that only had a watermelon sized dent in the rear quarter that half a dozen shops quoted me no less than $1000 to repair.

 

[blade970]

Thanks for all the input guys. To answer a few questions I would be doing all the repairs myself. A buddy of mine has shop hookups so we could actually use professional tools as opposed to just throwing a hammer at it .

So to sum it up I would be looking for suspension damage, a crumpled floor(meaning frame damage?) and AWD TSI, what did you mean the roof would oil can?

Dadowhip and beantown, sadly, it looks like you two live in a little bit better areas than I for finding junkyard treasures. Up here in Montana, or billings at least, people don't junk teir cars until 100% broken so sadly finding a GSX there is like finding an ferrari for sale in town.....impossible

Any other input still apppreciated. Also, how difficult would it be to swap everything to another 1st gen that wasn't AWD? Would I need a lift to swap drivetrain and everything else? Being as that is the only thing I really don't have any access to.

 

[allthrottle]

Even so, you're better off looking for another AWD chassis and dumping the parts from that car into it. A quarter panel, new hatch, tail light, rear bumper, side skirt, possibly the door and it looks like the suspension on that side will still cost you quite a bit of money. After you put a few months work into it, it still may not look or ride great, and little creaks, leaks and moans will become annoying.

About the AWD into FWD swap, I think I remember coming across a long thread in the drivetrain section about that. The FWD-AWD swap into a 1g is supposed to be much more difficult and not a straight bolt-in swap compared to FWD-AWD in a 2g.

 

[blade970]

I'll call around the junkyards again tomorrow before I decide for sure and see if there are any GSXs run down in there without as much damage. Even so, 400 for the engine, drivetrain, and everything is a pretty good deal(assuming the engine is in good condition?)

 

[blade970]

Now, I know the quarter panel is pretty much toast, but Like I said, I don't really care how pretty it is, if by some miracle of God there isn't extensive frame damage would i still HAVE to replace it, or could I just get it back to a ghost of its former shape and just leave it?

 

[ilco187]

i would buy it then i would pound out the damage and use the shell for a winter/dirt rally car, its awd and if the body started getting to rusty i would use or sell the drivetrain for some new mod parts

 

[oldman420]

Dude if you live in montana come to alberta, lots of 1g dsms here and with the exchange rate you'll get an awesome deal. Goto Canada Used Autos, Cars, Trucks, Boats, Motorcycles Online Classified Ads - AutoTrader.ca , go to calgary, alberta and bam i bet you'll find at least 5. Try Kijiji Toronto Classifieds: Free Classified Ads for Toronto, Ontario and try calgary as well.

 

[rEclipserGST]

Just buy it and part it out, then go to Alberta and do the damn thang. It never hurts to come across a come up... and knowledge is power. You have an edge knowing about this site to begin with, apparently he doesnt... so buy it.

 

[AWD-TSI]

Well when i said the roof would oil can it is when u try to straighten the pillars Both C and D pillars look messed up. The roof would look like a soda can poppin in and out. there looks like there is floor damage just how much im not sure. there might be subframe damage you would also have some trouble getting the hatch to fit as well as the door. if it isnt tweeked. I wouldn't fix it even if i were to do the work myself. To risky to have that much damage and not replace most of it with new parts. i say parts car or rally car its its gonna be caged
thats my two cents

 

[costas14]

perfect rally car, then you can hammer out the damage when you get more