OscarTG

Looking for a 2nd car and I've been reading everything about reliability in these cars. I found a for sale ad and called the seller to check it out, $7300 116k miles. It read "private seller" but when I arrived it was in a business complex with a handful of other cars. He had to jump the car and she started right up. I had the hood up before he started it and checked the oil and it didn’t look old or black. When the engine started it made a couple of knocks but quickly went away, maybe this is normal. The dash number led's are wearing a little but you can still read them, I think this is why the carfax report says incorrect odometer reading. All the electrics worked fine and I found no rips or tears in any of the seats. There was some carpet missing in the rear right pass kick panel and you can see the plastic grommet that shields the wiring. The front left signal light was loose and when he was jumping the car I could see the fuse box cover was missing or off. The paint is ok and no major dents other than small chips in the hood. I couldn't test drive it today cause he hade 5 cars parked in front of it. So, I will take it for a spin tomorrow. Is there anything else to look for when I test drive it? How much should I haggle him for? 6k? Any comments appreciated, thank you.

here is a copy of the carfax report......

http://members.aol.com/burntdvd/c230carfax.pdf

Untertürkheim

The most important thing are the maintainance records for the car. Who serviced the car, what fluids did they use? Remember, this car has very specific requirements for oil, ATF, coolant. If it was not done correctly the car may be damaged. Expect to spend at least $1k on your first maintainance service if the car was not cared for recently, after that, it is a great car.