Advice on a '96 855r for sale...

bpc2646 · Post by **bpc2646** » 11 Nov 2010, 17:17

Advice on a '96 855r for sale...
Looked at this car today. Its $2k, Black on Black, 180k for mileage. Has solid body, one dent in pass. rear door, front and rear bumpers need replacing, whole car could use paint probably. Interior looked decent and only passenger window wouldnt go down. ABS, TRACS, SERVICE, and CHECK engine lights were on. I was told o2 sensor was bad, car has had "a major ($600) tune up last year all wiring, distriburor, cap, plugs etc. Also alternator and water pump, thermostat, tires, axles on both sides, radiator flush and service, regular oil changes..." Tires are one set front, one set rear, Car ran fine, drove great. I asked about t-belt and was told 175k. Driver windsheild wiper was lifting off window too, not sure what causes that. The driver door has typical broken weld and just swings open, passenger door seemed ok. Interior has a few cigarette burns as well, mostly on shifter for some reason. Its been in the same family for most of its life (after '99).
Is this car worth the trouble or no? I really wouldnt be dissappointed either way, but I saw the car for sale and figured I'd look. If I need more info on the car, what is it?
Thank You

zanzabar · Post by **zanzabar** » 11 Nov 2010, 17:34

Sounds like a good price to me. Especially for an R and it's had the TB and dist/wires/plugs done so probably a good deal. Suspension is in good shape? If so I'd grab it. (For comparison, I paid $750 for my '94 NA that needed shocks, TB, ignition work, and a bunch of other small maintenance.)

Use those engine warning lights as a bargaining chip on the price. Then do your research here to figure out what's causing them.

Post by **Pauloil** » 11 Nov 2010, 19:19

O2 sensors are expensive and if front is bad, time to replace both. not hard to do, but this is a turbo so harder....
asbtracs could be abs computer or wheel sensor and would be good to fully trouble shoot before final offer
the door hinge can be done by an Indie for $75 or a dealer for $325. you didn't say anything about the shocks or strut mounts. has any trans maint been done or flushing? where were the axles put in and is now a drip of trannny fluid for the seal that was damaged during extraction? is the undersurface of the oil fill cap clean?

bpc2646 · Post by **bpc2646** » 11 Nov 2010, 19:51

Well I know a little about these cars having had a '97 850, but this is the "advice" I was looking for. I knew this car was a whole different ball game being a high end turbo model, while I had the base 5cyl non turbo. My car also never had any of these lights on, so I am not really sure what they call for. Ill have to see if the services have paperwork and ask about the tranny service. I didnt see any leaks on the car, the only oil I saw was on the top of engine around filler cap. Probably should have gotten a picture of that to show. I'm wondering if I should just ask to take the car to a shop and have them do a check of the systems to see before purchase. The car needs exterior work for sure which will cost a lot too.

Post by **jblackburn** » 11 Nov 2010, 19:57

The turbos really aren't much more maintenance or trouble...once you take care of all the stupid freaking leaks everywhere.

The oil fill cap may just need a new gasket, but check that the PCV system is clear before replacing that. The O2 sensors may not need to be replaced - probably about 4/5 times it is a vacuum leak of some sort causing those codes to appear. Otherwise, it looks pretty clean.

bpc2646 · Post by **bpc2646** » 11 Nov 2010, 20:21

Interior was great, exterior was the real negative. Also the multitude of lights on in the dash!

Post by **confused_al** » 11 Nov 2010, 20:42

bpc2646 wrote:...ABS, TRACS, SERVICE, and CHECK engine lights were on. I was told o2 sensor was bad...

The abs and tracs lights on are very common on 96-97 850s', it only needs to repair the ABS controller ( I think Matty Moo here does it for $50). That service light is also known as the "idiot light", you can just tape over it. CEL, on the other hand, you should pay attention to it, get the code(s) read and then determine what really is the issue(s). Good thing is that those lights give you good reason to talk down the price.

bpc2646 · Post by **bpc2646** » 11 Nov 2010, 21:37

The service light went off after a few minutes, same as my '97 850. I wasn't too worried about that light in particular, but the CEL is an issue that I'm thinking will have to be looked into further. Also, if the Abs controller is fixed the two lights will go off?

Post by **erikv11** » 11 Nov 2010, 23:30

Yes, if it is the typical ABS controller issue then swapping in a rebuilt ABS module (or soldering it yourself) will get rid of both the ABS and the TRACS light.

I would disagree, turbos are a lot more hassle than NAs, both for the additional oil and vacuum leaks that come up and for how much tighter everything is in the engine bay (e.g. PVC job is a lot more work, O2 sensors only a little more work but definitely more, etc). But in exchange you get a much faster car.

anmartin44 · Post by **anmartin44** » 12 Nov 2010, 00:21

does anyone know why the wiper would come off the windshield? one of my 850's has the same problem. i'm thinking that the wiper arm is shot.