Is the price right?

[91expogurl]

Hey all, I'm a newbie to the board and I have a question for anyone who's willling to answer:
But first, my story: my '91 recently crapped out on me (left me stranded at a stop light...tranny completely died) and because it has such high mileage and a significant amount of body rot, I've decided to look into buying a new truck. Last night I made about an hours trip to go look at a '94 eddie bauer with 115k. Cosmetically, it showed some obvious wear and tear; minor scratches, a couple small dents here and there and the traditional rust on both rocker panels/dog legs. I guess nothing a little elbow grease and a buffer couldn't help. The front seats (leather) also showed some wear and tear. The fan (ac/heat) was kinda loud and made constant noise.
I took it for a test drive and everything seemed fine, including taking it on the highway. It was a little different compared to my grandfather 91 with the smaller tires and tiring engine, but it wasnt anything i couldnt get used to. The tranny seemed to shift fine (big plus for me after the Sunday drive incident)
The dealer is offering it for $2995 and said he could lower it to $2650; i could walk out with the truck for $3100 (including taxes, plate switch, and document fees).
The salesman also mentioned that it hadn't gone through the safety inspection yet, where it would get all spiffed up (cleaned, vacuumed, and anything fixed that was bad/wrong), a new oil change and all that good stuff.
Finally, my question is, do you think I'm getting a good deal on this truck? I wanna spend my money wisely, so I don't end up in the same boat I'm in now, because quite frankly it's not a Carribean cruise.

 

[xmodster3o3]

That price seems about right to me, it sounds like great deal, try asking if they can take care of the problems it has like blower and the dog legs. But with that many miles, dont depend on that tranny to last long as well. you might be in the same problem with that explorer. Also if you didnt know explorer are known to have transmission problems. If i where you i would just have the old explorers transmission rebuilt.

 

[MAXIMIS1]

all in all i think xmodstrer has a good idea rebuilding the old unit might be a good idea.
dealerships are the worst place to buy a used car period. if you got cash in hand then take it to the news rack and buy up all the local classified adds and i am sure you will find a better deal. i recommend finding a local service mechanic that you can trust and have him give it a once over . it might cost you about one hours labor no more then 1 1/2 hours time under one hundred dollars but this can be money well spent. might be a goos idea to have a transmission shop give it a inspection usually about 40-60 dollars labor for them to . good luck

 

[91expogurl]

Yeah, I might do that. My stepfather's best friend rebuilt the tranny once before but only replaced what parts were bad, not the entire thing and said he would do it again. But with it being so old, a lot of people keep telling me it's not worth it and I should just go with something new. But it's definately an option.
Thanks for your opinions, I appreciate it

 

[monkeypothrower]

If you love your car, you might do it. I have had mine replaced in the 2 years i have had it. Its been replaced twice. PLus more repairs, the more time and money spent fixing it, makes me love it so much more. I would get the tranny fixed again. PLus you already know what you got and you know the problems. -TJ Good luck

 

[Positive Vibes]

How many miles do you have on your '91? One thing to check for is the towing package. If it has the towing package you will have a tranny cooler which helps the tranny last longer. The price sound reasonable, not to high but I would keep looking. And as stated before, take it to another mechanic and have it checked out.

 

[Ford_Racing_Guy]

i myself always test drive it....then go back again and have my dad test drive it.


2 heads is better then one they say.... sometimes a second person can spot any problem you may have missed.

 

[Noved87]

I got my 94 sport for $3500 including fees. it is on "good condition" as described by Kelly Bluebook. All i think it needs is a clutch 2500 miles later. i got it from a repair shop locally so all the repairs were done when i got it

 

[davidmmm69]

dealers make their money in the used car sales...
i used to work with car salesmen or ex salesmen...
and they said only few people can make anymoney selling new cars because everything is a set price,,

massive markup for used..

 

[91expogurl]

I had just recently hit 188,000 before the tranny crapped out, I bought the truck in '03 with 167,000 and it was slipping then so I had it rebuilt, it ran awesome until about 6 months ago when it started slipping between 2nd and 3rd and taking forever to engage into reverse. My stepfather and his friend (the guy who rebuilt it) took it for a ride and said it shifted perfectly and came to the conclusion there was nothing wrong with it - always drives nice when it's not you drivin it.
I did test drive the 94 and everything seemed to be fine mechanically to me, but obviously I'm no expert My friend who is pretty knowledgable in cars told me to look at other cars before coming to a decision on this particular one. To him it wasn't worth the money, but then again he's also a Chevy dude.