Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin in NJ
Well here is my probably controversial opinion.
Do not buy it, too many flags.
It looks pretty. The interior looks sharp, well I am not sure about the headliner.
It is not fully restored. It is just a nice paint job, interior and a bunch of repro parts.
As a whole you look for attention to details. I will start with the painted over patent data plate on the firewall. The electrical connections are modern crimp connectors in a bunch of places. The drive side passenger door handle droops. This all starts sending me down the road of needing lots of little things (think some $$$) to fix some problems.
The first thing I like to ask is what top speed is the car comfortable to drive. If it is properly restored then running 60 MPH all day long should feel comfortable. That was how they could be run new and all the A's we have owned were driven that way with stock drive lines.
I already know the answer. It does 45 MPH. The engine vibrates cause it was not rebuilt properly because it has a float a motor rear mounts (they have to be done like they are race car engines when it comes to balancing). There are no shocks which means the springs are dead or the car would not feel safe to drive over 25 MPH. I could not tell from the picts, but I would guess the brakes are less then sort of ok.
I would guess you would spend $8k to $10k to make the car safe and reliable to drive. This is based on what I know other people have paid to make their 'restored' cars safe and reliable.
Do not consider buying a car unless you can drive it and look at it. You also need an experience A guy to look at it. By experienced you want the guy who has bone stock A's and thinks nothing of driving all day long at 55 MPH, not easy to find.
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feels safe without shocks? yeah my car does that. I have been pricing different shock options and thought my springs might be a concern. i guess we can take the might out. And it went 45 with two leaking rear cylinders. lots of time later still lots to do.
my car had lots of original parts. all the ones that didnt fall off the car yet.