body and interior Would this be a good first 2002?

[Frank Vogel]

I am looking to buy my first 2002 and have found a few for sale on CL near me. The nicest one I can afford has some front end damage bit the rest looks good in the add. My question is how hard is the front end of one of these cars to buy? Do I need to cut the grill off of another car or is there a place that sells replacement body panels that I have not found yet?

Here is a link to the add so you guys can look at the pictures. https://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/5156718522.html please tell me what you guys think of the car in general and how hard that front end is to fix. I have a welder and basic tools.

Thanks for your help.

[joysterm]

Hard to tell the extent of the damage to the front end by the pics in the ad but IMO you can do better,

given the asking price + the dollars you will be spending to fix the damage.

Good luck with your hunt......

[M3M3]

search is your friend.

 

try using "buyer guide" as the term.  many threads on what to look for.

Edited September 2, 2015 by mlytle

[kiva667]

Given that it's a '76 with front end damge, my opinion is: no. You can do better than that.

[Frank Vogel]

Thanks guys, I will keep looking.

[TobyB]

My suggestion- go look at it.  I agree, the price seems a bit high on the internet, but it might be a nice car, and that's 'nice car' money, not 'perfect car'.

 

The front sheet metal is very light- there may be very little damage, and it kind of looks like it's a 'fix' not a 'replace'...

 

Go look.  Look for rust, rust and more rust.  Then go look at a few others, and see what you think.

 

You need a baseline, and the way to get that is to go looking at cars. 

hth

 

t

[catlin]

http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/cto/5189106736.html

http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/ctd/5184539709.html

http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/cto/5195762841.html

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/cto/5175715646.html

 

These arent the best but just wait for a great deal. That one is overpriced IMO even if it didnt have damage on the front.

[Frank Vogel]

Catlin Customs, thank you for the suggestions.  I am going to call about the white one in Portland. That car looks really nice. I looked at the green one in Seattle and it is covered in Bondo over rust. the Black one is gone already.  

[pklym]

Catlin Customs, thank you for the suggestions.  I am going to call about the white one in Portland. That car looks really nice. I looked at the green one in Seattle and it is covered in Bondo over rust. the Black one is gone already.  

 

That white one does look pretty clean. I can't imagine what the hell the owner was thinking coming up with that interior color scheme and paying nearly $2k for it, but you can slowly change the interior to match your personal stylings.

[catlin]

Well... 2k is a little exaggerated but yeah it's pretty odd

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[adawil2002]

The more you learn the better equipped you are to evaluate if an '02 is good or not. Shop around and buy the best one you can afford.

[Mark92131]

That Sahara 76 has a nice interior, I would kill for those seats...  I agree with TobyB, the front end damage looks like it could be repaired, not replaced.  The ad claims original paint and interior, but looks like it was recently re-painted in the original color and the interior redone.  Also it looks like their is a patch of rust on the passenger side front fender above the rocker, but it could be the pictures.  The seller wants pretty strong money for a car with a damaged front-end, $7K now $6K.  Offer $4K, fix the nose for $1k and you would have a nice ride.

 

IMHO,

 

 

Mark92131

Edited September 2, 2015 by Mark92131

['76mintgrün'02]

Quote from the original CL ad, "Not willing to meet you, you have to come to me..."

 

 

 

Could this be because the driver's side strut mount is about to come apart?

It looks like it has a badly torn strut mount; which might imply tired $trut$, a$ well a$ the re$t of the $u$pen$ion rubber bit$.

[TobyB]

Yep, could be.

 

BUT there's a rustbucket and one that's gone already- you just have to keep looking.

 

The only mistake is to buy the first one you've ever seen.

 

I continue to be surprised by how MUCH old car prices have gone up, across the board, from bugs to microbusses to 912's to Dinos to... well, yeah, even 1968 chev pickups.

 

t

 

[adawil2002]

Mama always told me, you better shop around...