What could be wrong with a $500 car?

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For heavens sake snatch this up.

Mass needs a non notarized bill of sale (eg normally signed) and the title. Title will have a spot for sale price. Pretty normal stuff. You have to get a new inspection sticker when you register it even if the old one is still good.

My $850 volvo sold.
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You should beware the seller knows at least something about cars, which could be good or bad. Good meaning he took care of it, bad meaning he knows when to get out.
 
For five bills, I would snag that.

You can part that thing out for more than that and still get $250 around here for the shell at most scrap yards.
 
It is a race against the clock and TY for not buying my Subie.
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When I saw the picture I told him I would be making calls.......

NOW you see why I think I can fi it, and I agree with him "Could be a daily driver for a long time for the right person."
 
you get what you pay for, as long as you are comfortable with wrenching yourself then grab it fast.
 
BTW replying from an iphone to me says preppy, which means he might have spent money on car maintenance.

Of course you can get iphones for a penny now, but my statement still stands. My BIL co-owned a sailboat with this other preppy 20-something who wanted a subaru.

IDK why you're waiting a week, for a parking space or the money or whatever, but I'd grab this as you say in "one ATM withdrawl." Then once you hold the papers you can slow down and reevaluate. This has way more chance of growing into being worth $1000 than any investment you can make on wall st.

As you speak, as you type this, there are other buyers trying to get the guy to take monthly payments, trying to get the guy to guarantee the car in writing, trying to write checks, trying every idiotic move in the book. Show up with five benjamins and no sob stories and it could be yours. Skip work/ school/ life and grab this thing. Don't email the guy: call, call call.
 
185,000 miles is a lot of miles, even if they were all highway. Then again, these days, $500 cars with potential are not an easy find. It's a gamble no matter how you look at it and if $500 is something you can easily put at risk then go for it.

If you don't put money into it right away and the sheetmetal is good maybe you can scrap it, if it turns out to be a dud and minimize your loss.

The key issue, to me, is being able to make it legal to drive so you can run it for a few weeks and properly assess the entire car before putting money into it.

On a car like this I always get a safety/emissions inspection before I buy so I know what I'm looking at for repairs just to get plates on it.

Keep in mind that if it is still unsold in a week at that price there is probably something seriously wrong with it. There is no shortage of guys who flip cars who will be looking at that ad, also. If they pass on it maybe you should, too.

Keith
 
I bought a 500.00 truck once and it ran awesome just rusted real bad...motor and trans were perfect and I drove that thing until I sold it for 500.00 to someone else...I would say go for it
 
The fact that his ad says "PARTS CAR" automatically sends me running. If the car runs and drives, why part it out? It's cheap transportation.

Now if it runs so poorly that it's better off as a parts car, that makes sense as well.

I'd be careful with that one. Go drive it and see what you think
 
Subaru's tend to eat wheel bearings, so it's possible it's just that and not anything else. The other thread indicated some wobble on braking, that's likely warped rotors--but high miles in Boston could be pounded ball joints too. Radiators also seem to be common on Subaru's, so it's not necessarily an indication that the coolant was never changed. That said... what condition is the heater core/hoses/etc going to be? Check engine light is on, who knows what that could be. Won't pass smog like that. Does it need a timing belt soon?

It's probably worth the $500 for parts; and to the right person it could be worth it to fix up. But I see a money pit. If you have to pay someone else to work on it, it's a total money pit.
 
Let's see: head gasket, transmission, bent frame, poisoned cat, flood damaged electronics...

You'll have to check it out before buying, price is not a good indicator of quality below $3k IMO.
 
You just never know. A guy came in my parts store a few years ago driving a cherry '65 Buick Skylark. I asked him how much the paint job cost (it was black). He said it was original. He bought the car for next to nothing from a little old lady. It had been in her garage for years. He filled it with gas, put in a new battery and it fired right up.
 
I bought my beater 97' Honda Accord three years ago for $200, at the time it had 160k miles. It now has 224k miles.

Things that I've done in three years include, spark plugs + wires, valve cover gasket, brakes (twice), radiator, and tires. That's it! And, of course oil changes every 10k miles. I have to add 1/4 of a quart of oil at 7500 miles. I think that's pretty awesome for a car that I only paid $200 for, and spend about $1000 in repairs/maint.

SO, this just goes to show that you can definitely find a good car for very little money. But, it's definitely going to take some time to find the right deal.
 
Originally Posted By: Artem
The fact that his ad says "PARTS CAR" automatically sends me running. If the car runs and drives, why part it out? It's cheap transportation.

Now if it runs so poorly that it's better off as a parts car, that makes sense as well.

I'd be careful with that one. Go drive it and see what you think


Not necessarily. On the AD that I posted for my Dodge Grand Caravan I wrote for Parts or Daily Driver. To me, that van was junk and not worth anything to me. But, the person who bought it loved it (well he probably loved the price even more, only $700). I was willing to let it go for $300 at the salvage yard.
 
With $500 cars it's likely a medium scale repair or repair no one can figure out. One I bought they thought it was the clutch nope front wheel bearings. Another had a massive oil leak they thought it was the oil pan gasket nope front seal. I'd say only buy $500 if well educated in the make and model and ready to do a little wrenching. Now if you're asking about $200 always look under the bumpers.. it may look like it's been used in a bumper car arena!
 
Take a scanner or pull the codes (not sure if this is OBDI or OBDII). A rich running car for a long period of time can foul the cats and then you're out $2k for cats.
 
This one's mine, folks.

EDIT: Ill snap some pics when I have the Bill Of Sale in my hand. The T is taking me there today.
 
Just becareful driving it home, in case something important breaks. And make sure you have insurance coverage before you drive it 1 foot.

BC.
 
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