Here is the final comment of the inspector:

Overall a "solid appearing driver". Although it has some quirks - we have surface rust, paint issues , a somewhat faded interior, engine leaks, all on a car with only 28K miles showing (on a non-digital dash)?. To be clear - this is not a 100 POINT PERFECT SHOW CAR! Ask yourself why would a vehicle with "low mileage" have all these issues? You need to get a very clear service history (records) for the car. We viewed the underside from the prone position w/aide of a floor jack - (on a lift would have been much more informative), it shows surface rust on frame & suspension components, along with multiple fluid leaks, several of which appear to be (very) long term (engine and rear differential). Anyway - it is what it is - in the end it's your call - just be careful not to pay to much for it!

What do you think? Are those leaks a serious problem or something normal for a 23 years old car?
And how about the mentioned rust?
For the rest the car seems to be in good condition...


Here some pics:




[[URL=http://www.imageshack.us]

 

over all the underbody looks solid, minor rust, there are bound to be oil leaks, as the car is 23 years old, but from the pics the leaks are not major issues to fix, they look to be shrunken seals, before replacing anything have the engine cleaned very well then proceed to see where it leaks without all of the sludge on the block

 

I agree with firechicken on this one. Get the engine as clean as possible to make it easier to track down the leaks. A 28K mile car... I would love to see pics of the interior! These cars ride a roller coaster market. If YOU like it and the price is fair to you and you believe you can fix it's issues then I would say buy it. With such low mileage ya never know what the future might hold for it as far as collector value goes. If the bowling ball wheels and caps come with it you already know those are worth some coin. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

the amount of oil accumulated on the underside of the engine and rear differential tell me that car has WAY more than 28k miles on it.

It's perfectly understandable for a low milage car to have oil leaks, but you shouldn't see that massive amount of buildup underneath. That car has been driven for many, many miles with that oil leak... much more than 28k in my opinion.

Although it's only surface rust, there seems to be more of it than I would expect on a 28k mile car.

It just doesn't add up to me. It looks more like a well taken care-of 128k mile car than a tortured 28k mile car.

 

to hell with the oil leaks .drop a new motor ,trans and change some gaskets and youll be good to go.

 

doesn't the odometer only go up to 99,999 miles? because if so, it could be 128k instead of 28k. My car (84 Firebird) says it has 50k miles on it, but it's really got 150k.

 

That car has way more than 28K on it. Maybe it rolled over the od or someone has tinkered with it. Very easy to do. Check the interior for wear signs like on the brake pedal and the side of the drivers seat where they always wear.

 

that car must have 128k unless who ever owned it beat the hell out of it or never changed the oil? the muffler looks like it's got 128 k on it alone! i would take his advise and look at the wear patton on the car .

 

its hard to say just how many miles are really on it from pics.
i have seen cars that you would think had way more than what they really did.
like a motor so slugged up at 12000 miles it was unbelievable, they changed their oil every 3000 miles, it just took them about a year & a half to get 3000 miles on it, or gas in the fuel tank that is bad because of age, they filled it up last year & still have half a tank in it.

im not seeing signs of leakage on the slinger ring on the yoke of the rear end, it looks to me more like the diff is leaking from the fill plug. a check of the axle tubes is also in order.

trans fluid which is what most everyone puts in the power steering pump seems to attract dirt like a magnet, with the minor leak i have, the bottom of my pump looks about like that hose does & i wash under my hood more than what i wash the rest of the car.

check the lower ball joints to see if they have been replaced, the boots on the factory & dealer bought ball joints are put on completely different than what aftermarket joints are. if it does have the factory joints & they are not completely shot, odds are it doesn't have 100000+ miles on it.

as far as rust goes, the bottom of the floor pans, bottom of the doors, & the inside bottom edge of the rear quarter panels are what i would want to know about. the rust i see isn't bad at all,
especially on a car that old.

the oil leak on the motor, that motor doesn't have center bolt valve covers, those old style covers had more then their share of problems with leaks unless you stayed on top of them. even then alot of people would buy those dollar a piece gaskets that would start leaking again in a few hundred miles.

the body looks great, has it been repainted? or is that the factory paint job?
something to think about, a 20+ year old car that really is low mileage, once its put into normal use can have more problems than one with average mileage.

 

thx for all the comments, but one last question...

How much would it cost to repair the leaks, sand down the rust and maybe coat the bottom?

A rough estimated price is ok for me, I live abroad and I really consider to repair it before ship it here.

 

Check out the rear universal joint too - it looks rusty. Won't harm it to get a grease gun on it. New rear u'j's are cheap anyway - £11 Sterling in UK..

I agree - 128K - odometer rolled over.
Mark.

 

You guys are all wrong. This is a 29,000 mile car it has the original dual resonator exhaust system. Most of these exhaust systems bit the dust by 50,000 miles (it is impossible that the original exhaust system would last 129,000 miles, no way no how). The reason it has some surface rust on some parts is it is a 23 year old car. As for the leaks this is normal for a 23 year car with 23 year old seals that has sat. Fix the leaks on this one, and you will have a nice low mileage T/A.

 

any pics of your engine disco man?

 

If it's a non digital dash it may have the million mile odometer in it, my bird does of course my car only has 83,000 actual miles on it. It's hard to tell age just from leaks and rust. My under carriage is cleaner and it's was never touched until I got the car.

I would supspect it has more then 28K on it from what I see but only the owner knows for sure.

 

Disco... I've got an '82 T/A with 119,000 miles give or take 500 and I still have the original two muffler system from '82 on there. So I know it's not impossible to have a car 100k+ car and not have the exhaust rot out (very unlikely, but not impossible) Here's the real baffler with my car, Ive got no surface rust on the body and stock exhaust intact, but I live in New Hampshire and the car is parked outside uncovered all winter. The previous owner kept the car the same way, only cleaning the snow off it. I would garage it, if I had one.
Anyway, my point is, just sometimes you get a car that just lasts, no matter what is thrown at it, or how it's treated.

 

If you want a good indication of a car's true mileage look at where people constantly touch things while driving it: Brake pedal rubber covering, steering wheel, driver's seat. If those things are pretty well worn, chances are it's got more mileage than the ODO says.

Oil leaks can happen as easily on a car that's rarely used (seals dry out) as they do on one that's got a lot of use (just plain worn out). Exhaust systems are a crap shoot although I think an original 1982 exhaust is unlikely regardless of how many miles are on it.

 

I agree with checking wear points,ie: driver's seat,brake/clutch pedal if mt,carpet.My '83 Z28 is showing 43K and in some places like the brake pedal it doesn't look like 143K.Like devastor_x's T/A she still has her original or an exact dealer replacement exhaust.The use only limited-slip lube tag is still on the rear carrier cover.She has similar leaks to your's though not quite as noticeable.No rust except for the expected surface rust,with GM vehicles until recently you're lucky to still have paint and no rust on the top half of the vehicle.
I agree with a good pressure wash underhood and underneath to locate just where your leaks are coming from.A valve cover can leak quite a bit and make it look like an oil pan or front seal gone.

 

All good advice. Just be cautious about the mileage. My car is 20 years old and has the original exhaust, original front tires, original seals almost everywhere (with no leaks), original paint that looks about like that photo, and no underbody rust. Another good hint is to look at the accessory belts and coolant hoses. If they still have the 8-digit GM part numbers, they may indeed be original.

Where is it currently, and where is it destined?

The minimal rust on the underside can be cured easily once you get it on stands and have good access. The leaks should be relatively easy to repair - If it is necessary. A timing cover seal, pinion seal, and whatever else. They may not even require replacement once you clean up, snug up some bolts and screws, and start running synthetic through it. Most good synthetics condition the seals and will make them "live" again if they are not physically damaged and are only hardened. That front seal area may just be oil pan gasket seepage, and the rear end may be fill plug seepage or spliiage as was mentioned earlier.

Remember that the rear main seal is a two-piece, and the cam is a flat tappet. The auto trans has the older style pump and valve body, and the axle is a plain old Saginaw 10-bolt. Those won't matter much unless you were looking for something different.