i was going to look at a 90 camaro Rs tomorrow. it has 97,000 miles on it and has a 305 V8 w/t-tops. the body from what i saw on the internet looked good. I will take it to a mechanic later, but i wanted to know what could i do to make sure it was a good car. you all know because you all own these cars. i want to know what to look for. what are these cars most known for as far as problems. what should i look for. he's asking 2500/ best offer. but i'm going to try to talk him down. let me know the things you guys do when you look at used thirdgens. what tricks to use.

make sure the motor is original

the VIN will match on the block, here's a picture of what i mean: www.IROC-Z.org/newpics/other13.jpg

you should look at tire wear, see if the guy has been torturing it..

hard shifting transmissions can be a bad sign

look at some of the more rare options on my site to see if there are any goodies for you: www.IROC-Z.org/rpo/Camaro/1990/90.php

look at the headliner, that's one of the first things that goes..

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Webmaster: www.IROC-Z.org

thanx for the help Colin. i hope others give me some insight.

Bring a magnet with you and inspect the fenders, rear quarter panels, doors, hood, rear hatch and roof. When the mechanic takes a look (hopefully it will be on a lift) look for signs under the carriage of the vehicle. IE..Rust, mis-match paint, worn suspension parts , oil/tranny/rear end leaks and so on. Hope this helps.

Mileage. If he says the mileage is actually below 100,000, see if he has the papers to prove it. I was fortunate when I bought my 89 IROC last year with 74000 miles on it; he actually had proof.

Leaks. Look at the bottom of the engine. Look in the engine. It's often hard to remove every bit of grease that's built-up over the years. It COULD just be a very dirty engine, or it could have a pretty active leak.

If you're test-driving it, don't let him have it started before you get there. That way you can see if it smokes on startup.

Bondo! Look for bondo anywhere. Usually means it got into a wreck, and that could mean more substantial damage elsewhere.

Look for mismatched body panels, another indication of a wreck.

Check the condition of the doors and the hatch. When I bought my camaro the rear trunk latch didn't work.. I didn't think anything of it though because I didn't bother to check the trunk. But it's a surprisingly heavy hatch lid, so holding the trunk open with one arm while fiddling around inside with the other is potentially dangerous.

Ask what engine mods he's done.

Check for oil in the antifreeze, and antifreeze in the oil. On that note, check for rust in the antifreeze and the condition of the cooling system in general.

Spray the windows/ttops/rear hatch real good with a hose, preferrably with a little bit of pressure behind it. If it doesn't stand up to a garden hose, rain's certainly going to get inside.

When test-driving the car, make note of how it shifts. If there's any slipping in the tranny (auto), that's a sign of a costly adventure in your future.

Take the engine all through the RPM range, but don't blow the engine. Drive it at WOT to see how it does under load/hard acceleration, and then do some more mellow low-rpm driving. This should give you a basic feel for the condition of the engine.

See if any engine parts are missing or if any vacuum ports have simply been capped. That could be a sign that the guy's too lazy to fix it, and could have done the same with more vital engine parts.

Get a carfax report. There could be all sorts of stuff he's not telling you.

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89 iroc-z 305 tbi
k&n filtercharger, open element air filter. nuffin' else

RUST! Check the wheel wells and floorboards. Take a phillips screwdriver and remove the trim that goes over the four bolts that hold down the seats. See if those bolts/nuts are rusty - if they are it will probably mean new floorboards are necessary in the not-so-distant future.

Make sure all power functions work. I bought my car with the power windows not working and they are a b1tch to change so definately check all that and always get a carfax.
http://www.carfax.com/cfm/PromoPage2_New02.cfm
That is the link of a free one on the house so to speak.

Whatever you do, and whatever condition the car is in, don't buy it just because you've been waiting so long to have one, or for any other reason other than it's the perfect car. If it's not exactly what you want, or doesn't seem in perfect condition, don't be afraid to turn down any offer he makes and wait for the next one.

If you find one small problem and decide to live with it, chances are you'll find lots more problems soon. Or that problem will eventually drive you crazy. If it's not exactly the car you want, ditto the above. Don't "settle" for it because you want one bad. It won't be long before you'll be dissapointed you didn't wait for a better one. For example, you said it's a 305. Many times, all you see is V8, and ignore the fact that it's a 305. Make sure you don't want to wait until a 350 comes along. If you have to have a 305 for whatever reason (insurance, parents, cost) that's fine, they're good motors for the money. I'm just stressing, don't settle. Experience talking.

Other than that, what everyone else said goes for me too. Pay, VERY close attention to the tranny if it's an automatic. Very costly to rebuild.

Dave M
88 GTA
(who's finally found his perfect car)

[This message has been edited by Dave M (edited July 15, 2001).]