AZ Crew,

I'm in the market for a cheap beater that I can commute to work in. I came across a '94 Legend Coupe Type II 6-speed in my area. Plan on looking at it in person in the next day or two. Chatting with the owner and he is very motivated to sell.

Here is the information I have:
1. Car is nearly bone stock, has had 2 owners. Car is black, paint looks decent.
2. Clean title, no accidents (slight dent on the rear bumper)
3. Timing belt/water pump done at 125K
3. 175K Miles on it, clutch replaced at 125K
4. Shocks may need replacing soon
5. 1 belt is showing signs of wear
6. AC needs a tune up (blower motor)

Now I know 175K is a ton of miles, but I hear that the Legend is an absolute tank and nearly bullet proof. What would be a fair market value for this car? He is asking right around 3K but i'm sure I can haggle him down.

Thanks in advance!

-Blake

 

i personally might pay 2k or 1.5k as you need to replace quiet a few things and it may not be cheap .

 

I'm not familiar with motors, but I know head gaskets are a common problem for Legends. Has it ever been replaced?

 

title says it all, "beater" You'd be better off hitting the burbs and finding some grandma's Accord that the family has taken away from her, because she hit the neighbors roadside basket ball hoop one to many times, than to purchase for less than a Legend.

 

i think i'd have to agree . the legend might need too many replacement parts and its pretty old.

 

Since it is quite rare to find a type II 6 speed Legend coupe, I'm still leaning towards the purchase. Any work that needs to be done on the car I can do myself. I really just want a second car to have around since i'm going to convert my Cobalt to e85 in January.

 

I would ask to borrow it to take it to an independent mechanic to get an inspection on it. Tell the mechanic what the owner said is wrong with it and have him check everything out to make sure things were replaced as the owner stated. Get a quote for how much it will cost to get the items fixed that needs to be fixed. Show the inspection report to the owner. Find out the Kelley Blue Book value for the car given the body damage you stated and the condition of the engine, etc. based on your independent mechanic report. Use the vin number to pull up the car fax report and bring that to the owner as well. Use all of this information to haggle the price down.

If the owner won't allow an independent mechanic to inspect it, it probably has more problems than he is telling you and at that point, I would walk away. There are more fish in the sea.

 

i would still suggest getting your own mechanic to look at it as there maybe things the owner isn't telling you. i mean just to be on the safe side.

 

That's what I've heard/read for 2G Legends, very reliable except for the head gaskets.

 

If you're buying the Legend because you like Legends, that's a different story. Just don't expect it to be a minimal-service car like most beaters.

 

this is a highly desirable car (type II manual coupe).

if you are in the market for cars other than legends, then no. (too much $$ in replacements. you can easily settle for something else).

if you were interested in flipping it, then yes. (unless this is plastered online, and local buyers have already passed).

if you are a big legend fan, then yes. (if you were, something tells me this would already be in your driveway).


got pics???

my suggestion is to create a post on the legend forums and see 1. how much the replacement costs would be and 2. how much others would be willing to buy the car for (without disclosing enough information for them to locate the seller).

 

Find & PM 4cruizn (I think that's how it's spelled)
He's got a Legend with over 500k on it. I'd imagine he'd be a good resource to tap into.

 

Those aren't easy to work on. a super pain in the ass. Engine bay is super tight and everything is hard to remove

 

thus high mechanic labor costs.