Introduction
Well my search is over. This past weekend I trailered home a black 1989 ST165. I had a red '88 165 for a couple years right after high school that I eventually wrecked in January 2004. The last year or so I've been searching for a good project and thought of nothing finer than another All-Trac. I stumbled upon a Craigslist ad last Sunday (11/4) and decided I needed to go have a look in person. During the week the previous owner and I came together and it was a done deal.
First, Some Pictures
Loaded up and ready for the drive home:
First thing to do was get a quick wash to see what I had gotten myself into:
The body is pretty straight. The paint sucks and looks much better in these pictures than it actually is, but still... looks good dripping wet. I'm going to spend a day rubbing on it to see if I can bring it back a little, but eventually a respray will be needed.
The interior is in decent shape:
The most noticeable wear area is the drivers seat as expected, but no rips or anything. For unknown reasons the steering wheel was taken apart, but all the parts are there. Red. Yeah. :lol:
The steering wheel cover had to go (it was in very bad shape):
Still has the privacy board, although it's got a few cracked corners:
The bag is a few parts that came with the car (stock intake parts mostly).
Engine is complete (though not running):
Damn near stock, with the exception of a reworked intake and battery relocation. Engine will more than likely be replaced. I was told it has a bad knock, will investigate further.
The tires are shot also, but seem to be holding enough air to roll around for the moment. The spare is on the passenger rear, the regular wheel is in the trunk.
The Good
- All the pieces are there and appear in good shape.
- Original black car, straight body.
- Interior in decent shape.
- 94k miles on the odometer (low mileage chassis works out to about 4k miles per year since 1989).
- I don't see much rust, actually the only bubbles I see are on the sunroof and they haven't eaten away anything yet.
- Does not appear molested or abused.
The Bad
- Motor is bad.
- Paint is bad.
- Tires are bad.
- Will probably have to add to this list as I go...
The Ugly
- Red interior.
- Windows were tinted at one point, removed except for the front windows for some reason.
- Red interior.
The Unknown or Undecided
- Car was last registered in 2002, so it's been sitting. All fluids will be flushed which should give me a better idea as to the overall condition of other things at the same time.
- Electrical stuff. Still need to do a thorough check, but appears as though the major stuff is working.
- Sunroof isn't opening, drivers window isn't opening. Can hear the motors engaging though, so hoping the motors just need to be replaced.
- Stereo is not stock. Pioneer tape deck installed. Yes, tape deck. Install looks good.
- Key doesn't work with passenger door lock (lock works fine though). Was told a door(s) was replaced at one point. Probably the root of the problem right there.
Plans
I'm not planning anything crazy outrageous. Just a fun little driver. I'm going to work in this order:
- Engine/Drivetrain
- Brakes
- Electrical
- Wheels/tires/suspension
- Misc
Well my search is over. This past weekend I trailered home a black 1989 ST165. I had a red '88 165 for a couple years right after high school that I eventually wrecked in January 2004. The last year or so I've been searching for a good project and thought of nothing finer than another All-Trac. I stumbled upon a Craigslist ad last Sunday (11/4) and decided I needed to go have a look in person. During the week the previous owner and I came together and it was a done deal.
First, Some Pictures
Loaded up and ready for the drive home:
First thing to do was get a quick wash to see what I had gotten myself into:
The body is pretty straight. The paint sucks and looks much better in these pictures than it actually is, but still... looks good dripping wet. I'm going to spend a day rubbing on it to see if I can bring it back a little, but eventually a respray will be needed.
The interior is in decent shape:
The most noticeable wear area is the drivers seat as expected, but no rips or anything. For unknown reasons the steering wheel was taken apart, but all the parts are there. Red. Yeah. :lol:
The steering wheel cover had to go (it was in very bad shape):
Still has the privacy board, although it's got a few cracked corners:
The bag is a few parts that came with the car (stock intake parts mostly).
Engine is complete (though not running):
Damn near stock, with the exception of a reworked intake and battery relocation. Engine will more than likely be replaced. I was told it has a bad knock, will investigate further.
The tires are shot also, but seem to be holding enough air to roll around for the moment. The spare is on the passenger rear, the regular wheel is in the trunk.
The Good
- All the pieces are there and appear in good shape.
- Original black car, straight body.
- Interior in decent shape.
- 94k miles on the odometer (low mileage chassis works out to about 4k miles per year since 1989).
- I don't see much rust, actually the only bubbles I see are on the sunroof and they haven't eaten away anything yet.
- Does not appear molested or abused.
The Bad
- Motor is bad.
- Paint is bad.
- Tires are bad.
- Will probably have to add to this list as I go...
The Ugly
- Red interior.
- Windows were tinted at one point, removed except for the front windows for some reason.
- Red interior.
The Unknown or Undecided
- Car was last registered in 2002, so it's been sitting. All fluids will be flushed which should give me a better idea as to the overall condition of other things at the same time.
- Electrical stuff. Still need to do a thorough check, but appears as though the major stuff is working.
- Sunroof isn't opening, drivers window isn't opening. Can hear the motors engaging though, so hoping the motors just need to be replaced.
- Stereo is not stock. Pioneer tape deck installed. Yes, tape deck. Install looks good.
- Key doesn't work with passenger door lock (lock works fine though). Was told a door(s) was replaced at one point. Probably the root of the problem right there.
Plans
I'm not planning anything crazy outrageous. Just a fun little driver. I'm going to work in this order:
- Engine/Drivetrain
- Brakes
- Electrical
- Wheels/tires/suspension
- Misc