Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
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Joined: Jul 1999
Posts: 1,556
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From: Adrian, Mi, USA
Car: 1988 Pontiac Firebird Formula
Engine: 5.7 TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
You are going to take a serious bath on it if you sell it.... you could fix or replace the motor for a few hundred, (providing you can do the work yourself...) and still have a decent car, that is probably worth what you have invested in it. Just dropping in another motor might be quicker..... depends on what you can find, and how much time ya got.
Where is the P/S leaking from?
Where is the P/S leaking from?
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 709
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From: S.New Jersey
Car: 90 Iroc Vert
Engine: 5.0L
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3.73
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
It was wrong that the PO wasn't honest, but -What did you expect for $1600 ? Its really sad and wrong to be dishonest like that.
Options:
Try to find a local parts car and grab an engine and steering stuff if your handy and can do the install or get HG fixed. If its a decent car you're only into it for $1600 so another $1K and your back in action. $2600 invested ... car should be worth more than that running good, unless its on its way out ?
The good part would be you'd have a decent engine for a daily driver, at $1600 you got a may -go.
Sorry bro, just being honest.
Options:
Try to find a local parts car and grab an engine and steering stuff if your handy and can do the install or get HG fixed. If its a decent car you're only into it for $1600 so another $1K and your back in action. $2600 invested ... car should be worth more than that running good, unless its on its way out ?
The good part would be you'd have a decent engine for a daily driver, at $1600 you got a may -go.
Sorry bro, just being honest.
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
And so the adventure begins ! No , you did not get "screwed" paying $1600 for the car provided it isn't a total rot box that can't be worked on . Now , Ifffn' the body is any good , I'd suggest ya buy up a few repair manuals , READ em , and then roll up your sleeves and tear into it . There is NO way you are gonna buy a 100% reliable daily driver ANYTHING that don't need some work for only $1600 . A decent turn key third gen will go averange around $5or $6 K , you can either $pend it all upfront and get a daily driver that way , or ya can buy a $1600 good body something worth fixing up and for a few $K if ya do the work yourself , have a decent third gen .
Now get to it ! 
Joined: Sep 2005
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Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
PS leak is almost certainly the return hose. What happens is, rather than leaking fluid OUT, holes in that hose leak air IN; which then gets into the fluid as bubbles; which then gets compressed to 1000 psi or whatever when you turn the wheel to full lock; which compresses the air in the fluid REALLY small; which then when it comes back from the gear and into the reservoir at atmospheric pressure, fizzes up like a Coke bottle that's been heated up to near boiling and shaken violently, which BLOWS fluid out the cap and all over hell's half-acre. All it takes to fix it usually, is a piece of return hose, and some GOOD hose clamps. (not those cheeeeep POSs hanging on cards in AZ and such; think, air conditioning ones)
A head gasket is NOTHING. That's hardly an afternoon's work, and barely $100 by itself. Think of that as an opportunity to identify as many of the "might as well"s and "don't know how that's still working"s as you can; turn it into a positive, an opportunity to IMPROVE the car, instead of P&Ming about it like a teenage girl about her acne.
A head gasket is NOTHING. That's hardly an afternoon's work, and barely $100 by itself. Think of that as an opportunity to identify as many of the "might as well"s and "don't know how that's still working"s as you can; turn it into a positive, an opportunity to IMPROVE the car, instead of P&Ming about it like a teenage girl about her acne.
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From: 53.0907° N, 113.4695° W
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 89
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From: Walla Walla, WA
Car: '83 Camaro Z28 5.0, '93 Camry 3.0
Engine: 305 V8, V6 DOC
Transmission: 700R4
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
...A head gasket is NOTHING. That's hardly an afternoon's work, and barely $100 by itself. Think of that as an opportunity to identify as many of the "might as well"s and "don't know how that's still working"s as you can; turn it into a positive, an opportunity to IMPROVE the car, instead of P&Ming about it like a teenage girl about her acne.
I took 9 days to change a '97 Camaro V6 Head gasket about 2-3 hrs a day my First Head gasket change with the motor still in the car... Only broke two bolts and lost 4 somewhere.. lol.
I may be changing the gasket in my '83 camaro soon.
Last edited by John62591; Feb 20, 2014 at 07:57 PM.
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Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 344
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From: Delaware
Car: 92 Firebird, 91 Trans Am
Engine: L31 with HSR, LB9
Transmission: 700R4, 700R4
Axle/Gears: '99 10 bolt 3.90, '01 10 bolt 3.42
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
Head gaskets in these cars is basically just intake, accessories, exhaust manifolds, and then the heads. This also gives you an opportunity to check out the valve train and the lifters to make sure they're all good.
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Joined: Oct 2004
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From: Henrietta NY
Car: 1984 Trans Am L69
Engine: Sniper EFI Powered 355
Transmission: WC T5 w/ Steel Support Plate
Axle/Gears: 3.42 10 Bolt Posi
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
good news is head gaskets on these cars are way easier than a b18
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From: 53.0907° N, 113.4695° W
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
Lets not lead the OP on the garden path though. It may not be a head gasket but perhaps a cracked head or block. Lets hope once the engine is apart there'll be evidence of a head gasket failure and not something worse.
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
Very well said , and this exactly was the basis for my comment of ;"buy up a few repair manuals , READ EM , and then roll up your sleeves and tear into it"
Hoping that when he read through the troubleshooting pages he would learn all kinds of great stuff like the use of a cooling system pressure tester and at least attempt a diagnosis before pulling it all apart . Anyone who takes the time to read the manual generally fares far better than those who rely on guesses formed at the spur of the moment .
The OP's very next step really SHOULD involve buying a good repair manual and starting at page one of the "cooling system" subheading .........
Member
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 344
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From: Delaware
Car: 92 Firebird, 91 Trans Am
Engine: L31 with HSR, LB9
Transmission: 700R4, 700R4
Axle/Gears: '99 10 bolt 3.90, '01 10 bolt 3.42
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
Very well said , and this exactly was the basis for my comment of ;"buy up a few repair manuals , READ EM , and then roll up your sleeves and tear into it"
Hoping that when he read through the troubleshooting pages he would learn all kinds of great stuff like the use of a cooling system pressure tester and at least attempt a diagnosis before pulling it all apart . Anyone who takes the time to read the manual generally fares far better than those who rely on guesses formed at the spur of the moment .
The OP's very next step really SHOULD involve buying a good repair manual and starting at page one of the "cooling system" subheading .........
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
In all seriousness, if the car has been overheated quite a few times, which I'd imagine it has, there's a very good chance that the head gaskets are blown, but the overheating probably cracked and possibly warped the deck of the heads as well. I've seen it happen a few times on 3800s and other GM motors that customers have brought in.
Yep , and this is all the more reason why the guy needs to begin hittin the books to learn what he needs to know about identifying WTF is up with his cooling system . A decent repair manual will take him through all of the standard troubleshooting protocols in an orderly manner , and arrive him at a fairly well informed diagnosis . Remember , the gent identifies himself as a novice mechanic at best , and so a lil book smarts will go a LONG way in his journey ....... 
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Joined: Dec 2002
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From: IL
Car: 1988 Formula
Engine: 421 Little M block
Transmission: TH400 w/brake
Axle/Gears: 9" 4.30s, Wilwood discs, 28X10.5-15
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
Another option is take it back to the seller.. and get your money back
Don't buy the "as is" BS, unless you signed a bill of sale stating you bought the car "as is" and the major problems are listed on the bill of sale. Otherwise knowingly sold you junk and you can take him to court.
At the very least any used car sold needs to be safe to drive . It can have rust and other mechanical wear but bad brakes and damaged cooling system / engine are major deal breakers.
Good luck if you decide to keep it. Consider it a lesson learned Next time when on a test drive, drive it like you stole it No insurance is the sellers problem, not the buyers. if the car is not "insured" there is a reason.
Don't buy the "as is" BS, unless you signed a bill of sale stating you bought the car "as is" and the major problems are listed on the bill of sale. Otherwise knowingly sold you junk and you can take him to court.
At the very least any used car sold needs to be safe to drive . It can have rust and other mechanical wear but bad brakes and damaged cooling system / engine are major deal breakers.
Good luck if you decide to keep it. Consider it a lesson learned Next time when on a test drive, drive it like you stole it No insurance is the sellers problem, not the buyers. if the car is not "insured" there is a reason.
Joined: Sep 2005
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Car: Yes
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Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
"as is"
"Take him to court" is a bunch of canal water.
For the most part, when you buy a used car, especially from an individual (someone with no particular motivation to maintain a "going concern" business), whatever discovery you do BEFORE you buy the car, is all you get.
Personally I don't see much of a problem here. If the car was in really nice shape otherwise (body, interior, etc.) and all that was wrong with it was a head gasket and a power steering hose, there's really nothing to complain about. That's trivial stuff any self-respecting hot-rodder can handle with half his/her brain tied behind his/her back. IMO, much ado about nothing.
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Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 326
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Car: 84 Camaro z28
Engine: 355
Transmission: Th350
Axle/Gears: 4.10
After months of telling myself I was gonna sell my honda and buy another third gen, I finally made the move. Went out to pick up a 5 speed 85 TA with the 305 HO. Everything seemed to run fun, with the exception of the obnoxious power steering noise, which I assumed was just a leak and the previous owner had failed to keep the pump full with fluid. I checked the coolant, looked fine. Drove the car a bit (lightly, it wasnt insured and I wasnt about to wreck this guys TA) and everything seemed fine. T5 shifted smoothly. I was in love. He was asking 2000, got him down to 1600 and took it home. Then the nightmare began. It wasnt so much leaking power steering fluid as it was draining it. But thats the least of my worries. The car overheats after 20 minutes of driving, and is going through coolant. "Maybe just a radiator problem" I tried to convince myself. Nope. Going through coolant like crazy. Filled up the radiator, and started the car. Bubbles galore, as well as that milky gunky texture. Seems I went and bought myself a car with a bad headgasket. This wouldnt seem so much like the end of the world if it weren't for the fact that the only headgasted job ive ever done was on a 4cylinder twin cam honda. Or the fact that i planned on using this TA as a daily driver. Any advice from fellow third genners? Should I go through the hassle of replacing the headgasket on this ancient motor? Should I just try to find a decent 350 long block and replace the motor entirely?? Or cut my losses, sell the car, and actually give the new buyer the honesty he deserves, and that I was denied? Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone.
Now, I have a bad wheel bearing(passenger front), clutch is making noise on idle, still have yet to replace all bushings, steering and suspension components. Basically get this car back in decent shape BEFORE I spend money on a decent power plant, power adder, wheels and tires, rear end, tranny, brakes..etc
All this and more is more than worth it as this is what I really wanted. Maintenance is next to nothing cost wise if you do it yourself. Parts are extremely cheap and interchangeable. I probably have less than 2100 bucks in this car including the price of the car. And now I have a daily driver that I can drive back and forth to work or where ever I want as long as I have gas money lol.
Get your hands dirty and learn something. These cars are the easiest I've ever had to work on.
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From: Malvern, Arkansas
Car: 90 IROC 2-92 Zs blk vert & prpl
Engine: stealth ram brodix track 1 ful port
Transmission: 700r4 4l80e
Axle/Gears: iroc 375 lokr 92 Z 277 pos vert 327
Re: Got screwed in recent third-gen purchase
If the car has no rust and is fairly straight then you won that deal. A new stock engine is not that expensive considering you will have a little over 2 grand in a dependible, great looking car with a new engine. You can get a rebuild kit for the trans and let a local trans guy bench it and the trans will be new also. They usually will build one for around $200.00 if you bring it to them with all the parts. This thing could be your daily driver and very dependible for a little more money and time.
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