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Update on 95S320

1K views 10 replies 3 participants last post by  LWB250 
#1 · (Edited)
Made a last ditch effort to contact the owner. I wrote before about how the owner has Alzeimher's and his daughter is an employee of a close friend of mine. I did check out the car, looked very well maintained, and took the car around the block. Car is registered(I believe) but was not inspected.
Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, I was not allowed to have the car inspected. I was never given a good reason, but essentially they didn't want the car taken off the premises. Perhaps they are hiding something or they don't want to get ticketed for no inspection. The only thing wrong was the check engine light was on. That needs to be looked at.
But these people are not letting me. I sent a text to this woman and I never heard back. Like a lot of people in my area...she was hard to deal with. So I think I am going to walk on this one. It's a shame. The car was beautifully taken care of and the body and interior look almost new. I told her I have cash and this could be a win/win situation. The car is just sitting there in the garage. They want to get rid of the car and I want it....bad. If the car is in half decent shape we both gain here. Obviously these people don't care about what I want, and are in no hurry to get rid of the car. People don't make things easy. Any thoughts on this one?
 

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#3 ·
95s320



Yeh..she is pretty isn't she. Car barely has a mark on it. She is asking $5000, and I could probably get her down to $4500. It's that CEL that is bothering me. My mechanic thinks it could be the catalytic converter. So I would have to spend an additional $1200 just to pass inspection and make the car roadworthy. Sometimes you have to take a risk. I am thinking of making an offer. But these people have been such a pain in the u know what...I am at the point where I don't want to give them my money. They have made this whole thing very difficult. Just setting up a time to get over there to look at it was a problem.
 
#4 ·
you say its a 95, window sticker and your avatar suggest 99'. I don't know about a 95, but if it is a 99, did you not have a chance to plug in a code reader? If it is a 99, I'd have a female call the owner and schedule a test drive... except, send her there with the code reader and get the code off the car to get a better idea of the CEL. Or you can ofcourse send another gentleman (a women is better if the seller is female imo). Either way, any car is a mechanical item and subject to breakdown even if all was ok during purchase. If none of the above is viable, go there with 35 big face one hundreds and fan it out to her as you make the offer... good luck.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Correction...



The car is a 1995. I just put that pic up there to show you how good the interior looks. You are very observant one pic is of a 99. I thought about buying a code reader and going over there myself. I don't know how or where to stick the thing in. Then I would have to bring it back to my mechanic to look at it. In a perfect world, she would let me drive the 20 lousy minutes to my mechanic and we could go over the car for a few hours. I then would be more comfortable knowing what THE cEL is about, and what I am getting into. But these people are a PAIN to deal with!!!
Bottom line... if I really want it I will have to make an offer and take some risk. I was just wanted it inspected for some peace of mind. They are not going to allow that to happen which says a lot about who I am dealing with.
 
#6 ·
95 = No obd2 connector... you can still get codes but its more involved, hence why I would WALK AWAY from this car. Some here love their pre-face lift models (92-95) and speak volumes about the build quality but I personally like the post face lift models (96-99). The OBD2 connection makes it so much easier on the low level DIY'er. 96 and upward have the OBD2 connector. For me, I'd walk from this deal... least as you've mentioned, the owner is willing to have the car inspected... OR just low ball them... 2500 and say, "take it or leave it" as you make the offer.
 
#7 ·
Technical talk



So, I guess what you are saying is that to get codes off of a 95 you need some technical knowledge I don't have. Essentially my mechanic would have to be doing the work. As I figured with my lack of technical knowledge, even if I got the reader it would be an exercise in futility. This is a strange one. Just to look at the car was difficult. The woman would only let me look at the car when her father was not around. In other words he has Alzeimeimer's and she told me, "when the car leaves the driveway he thinks its being stolen". Unfortunately, the father was always around so just this little prelim step was difficult. But it could explain why they don't want the car taken out of the driveway. Yeh...it's going to take a while for them to get rid of this car. Now I know why people buy new cars. These people want to sell the car on their terms...unfortunately that's not good for potential buyers.
 
#8 ·
well to answer your question about the code reader, yes... obd1 needs to be plugged into the car with the hood up and you have to count the blinks on the light to decipher the code. Some cars even have the built in code readers... I don't know too much about it because I have never used it.

OBD2 on the other hand is super simple... if you have ever inserted a plug into an outlet, youd be able to use the obd2 reader. Essentially you plug it under the dash on the drivers side (US cars) and the reader will read a code out on the display. you than plug that code into the google search bar and vola! you have an approximation of what sensor is throwing up a fault... you can ofcourse post it here too and Im sure these guys would help guide you through the problem. Do yourself and the old man a favor and find another car. lol. Good luck.
 
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