Chiefs72

Hey everyone,
Looking for my first Fox Body. I've been looking for the last month or so for a 1989-1993 GT and I have a question. What range should I expect to pay for a normal, clean, non hacked up, around 100-130k mile car? Ive seen prices all over the place from 1500 -6000, some were heavily modified, some were stock but not well taken care of/ had some type of damage.

Ive found a 89 GT convertible, 2nd owner car, 110k miles, interior is a little worn will need seats recovered, new carpet and a new top eventually. That ones at about 3500- talked to the owner, it had been in an accident along time ago and had been repaired stated that the fender and hood had been replaced, its a six hour drive to look at it- is that a realistic price?

I looked at a 145k mile 90 GT 5.0 , still had all stock motor/ trans, etc, interior was dingy and would need seats, headliner, carpet, door panels, to look right, However everything was there and worked. It had been repainted a non factory color, did the door jambs and all but they never cut and buffed the paint so I question the quality of the work. Looked like the inner fender by the battery was wrinkled and then tried to hammer back smooth, frame rail on same side looked like it had ran over something and put some dents in it. Price was 5k on that one - I passed.

I know its hard to set an exact price but I just don't want to overpay and I don't know enough about the values of these cars.

Thanks in advance.

dawson1112

You know it depends on what your willing to accept as far a s work is concerned and how clean you expect it to be, and also how much money are you willing to part with.

if you want a beautiful clean no repairs needed fox your gonna have to shell out some bucks and Ive seen them in the 7-8 grand

If your willing to put a little time and money into it 3-4 grand

If your willing to put a whole lot of work money and time 1-2 grand.

Also its location location loacation , it depends on whats popular in your area as aposed to what is popular 6 hrs away...

I look up one that is probly to far for you to drive in Alger Ohio, and its hard to tell with pictures but the car looks clean .

http://limaohio.craigslist.org/cto/3939040643.html

Guy wants 3,200 but I know from experience that on craigs list cash is king and Id probly offer 2,500 to start and see what his reaction is.

DO NOT be afraid to hurt they're feelings as most times they always ask more than the bottom line.

I looked at a fox a few years back the kid wanted 2500 for it said it had a fresh 302 . when I got there the engine looked like it came out of a junk yard covered in grease and oil, body was in pretty ok condition but the interior was trashed and needed to be gutted , I offered him 500 bucks and he took offence to it lol but honestly that's all I would have been willing to go because for me a fresh 302 should be just that .

Chiefs72

dawson,

Thanks for the feedback. I'm not afraid or opposed to doing some work to it, I don't want to do a complete restoration, Ive owned Camaros, a couple of Dodges and a 67 Mustang so I can handle the fixing part, just don't want to overpay for a car. I don't know a lot about what the Fox Bodys are worth. I know a car is only worth what someone will pay, Im trying to figure a realistic dollar amount.

The one you had the link to looks comparable to down here. I found a couple nearby but I thought they looked a little high for the condition of the cars.

http://dothan.craigslist.org/cto/3948750743.html

http://columbusga.craigslist.org/cto/3892531545.html

dawson1112

That first link is WAYYYY to much , 6 grand for that car I would laugh at the guy

Ive seen emaculant stock garage kept cars go for that but that one is obviously faded and I can almost guarantee the under body is rusted.

Second link is closer to reality and I would offer 3,500 and see how he responds . It looks way cleaner than the first one

dawson1112

There are some tricks to talking price down,

Such as , don't be afraid to point out flaws. Remember if you notice a scratch, I promise you he also notices it and is hoping its only noticeable to him because he owns the car .

Don't be afraid to take a long time looking it over, crawl under there and look at the torque boxes , floor pan and break/fuel lines. Point out any rust or decay.

One trick I learned from my dad along time ago is when you go to look at a car, bring a mechanics stethoscope, you know the one with a long metal probe to listen for internal engine noises. Most guys wouldn't even imagine that someone would be so meticulous when looking at a car , It might make you look OCD but at the same time it sends the seller a message that , You are not a fool. He may be more inclined to point out imperfections that he had hoped would be passed over. Never appear to not know, and never say I don't know much about it.

Watch his actions look him in the eye pay attention to body language. Ask lots of questions , and purposefully repeat questions. A lot of times they will just make up something if you ask , and when asked the same question in 15 min the answer will change.

Always appear to be mulling it over never act excited and only focus on the negative points . Your goal is to get that seller to his bottom dollar.

I never go to buy a car and say things like , WOW that is awesome , it give them the upper hand.
Instead say , yea its a decent car but the break lines look pretty bad or I don't know Ill have to probly get tires or get this or that fixed.
Its all about mind games. Make them believe the car is not worth near what they want for it.

The worst you can do is **** em off but you can always walk away .

Duncan_GT

I'm right there with Dawson. I'll even make up some other car of the same make/model I'm "supposedly looking at". Its probably not the most honest method. I would print the guy's ad, as well as a couple of KBB and NADA reports and bring them with me.

As said before, you have to be meticulous when looking over these cars. Like play in the shifter or pedals. Look for the paint rubbing off where hands usually are, like the door locks & window switches, or the lock release for the ignition. Fox body odometers (I don't know if all of them are like this) only go to 99,999 miles before rolling over. So an owner may say the car has 30k original miles, which increases price, when in actuality it has 129,999 miles.

Just some things to keep in mind. I think fox bodies, or any other popular used car, is harder to price

Chiefs72

dawson and Duncan,

Thanks for the replies and the advice. Im taking my time with this one, I want to make sure I get the right car and not overpay or get burned.

F1aReD

This is strange, so if the mileage is unusually low-you probably should add a 1 to the number. My old fox body odometer read 92,450 but someone told me one time I actually had 192,000 miles because it didn't have a 0 in front of it, but I don't think that's right because it has to be 5 digits or it wouldn't make sense...right?


Not really sure how odometers in these old cars works. I just figure whatever it says is what it has.

Sorry to get off topic here.

Duncan_GT

Maybe someone else w a fox can chime in. I know my buddy's fox is like that

reldla1996

My 89 has 5 digits on the odometer, and when it hit 99,999, it rolled over to 00000; twice now since it is currently at 280,000 miles, though the odometer shows 80,000.