Went to look at a 1989 Camry Alltrac

[simple]

Local guy was selling a 1989 Camry Alltrac that looked pretty clean. Only 89,000 miles on it. Engine and interior were mint. Previous owner had an accident and the repair was decent but not great. Replaced the radiator support, lights, and hood from another Camry so the VIN and color didn't match. It got a new radiator and hoses out of the accident. A/C wasn't working so that probably got damaged in the accident as well.

Tire were garbage and underinflated so the test drive was a waste. The engine was unreal how clean it was. Hoses didn't even look brittle. They made them well back then.

He wanted $3500 and I offered $2800. No deal he said. Oh well.

 

[simple]

oh and it was an automatic. I probably would have paid $3500 if it was a manual. Still needs a bit of work but generally ready to go for the next owner.

 

[CTechBlueDragon]

3500 for a 1 of 408 on the continent with super low miles is not bad you should go back. These are way more rare than celica alltracs.

 

[CTechBlueDragon]

where in colorado are you? I am in Grand Junction

 

[abeans]

rare =/= good

 

[CTechBlueDragon]

not necessarily but these are really good cars. Not as cool as a homologation rally car but still.

 

[Roreri]

That's a Colorado family car for sure. Where was it?

 

[Tippo]

considering everything, that's in excellent condition. very rare, but they are very reliable too.

 

[Roreri]

I could actually see going over there and picking this up as a car for my daughter. She’s going to be 16 soon and needs something like this.

 

[simple]

You guys are addicted as much as me huh?

So he reposted it this morning so it didn't sell over the weekend. Trust me the $3500 is overpriced but that is his hard sell price. This was a $1500 car in 2019. It needs tires ASAP and good luck finding 14 inch tires outside of the junkyard. A/C needs to be fixed as well. Suspension felt like jello so that needs to be replaced. Might need alignment as it pulled like a SOB to the right, could just be the tires.

Feel free to reach out to Dwain. He is in Arvada 3zero34314271 and tell him Colin sent you

CTbluedragon don't think this car can be driven to Grand Junction until those tires are replaced. I wouldn't drive this thing more than down the street.

 

[Roreri]

Well with that more detailed report I’m definitely less interested! Thank you.

 

[CTechBlueDragon]

Thanks for the info. These will run forever and are usually way past due for maintenance items. You can replace every bushing in the front and all the shocks for under 500 bucks. The tires are becoming an issue for sure. Probably best to go up to something bigger atleast 15s. These fit 17s easy. I would bet the pulling is a worn bushing and would be sorted by that but with it having front end damage I would want to look under it to make sure something isnt smashed up.

 

[___Scott___]

Just out of curiosity I checked tirerack.com to see what they had for 14" tires:

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/sizes/results.jsp?diameter=14

The size is 185/70/14 based on a photo above. The selection is an uninspiring assortment of all-season tires but for that car one of them is probably OK.

 

[Roreri]

All Seasons are the regulation shoe for this kind of car in Colorado for sure.

 

[Tippo]

look on marketplace, offerup or craigslist for tires/wheels. we have a local tires shop around us that sells lightly used tires for $50 each and surprisingly they all all sizes including 14" available. $3500 for a relatively clean car is not a bad price at all. then again, i'm in the northeast where all prices are inflated, but that price for a rare car in decent shape is awesome. Maybe meet in the middle at $3000?

 

[simple]

If I can't make a deal right then and there I'm done.

Besides I already have a much nicer classic blue on blue AWD Toyota that is a nearly perfect rather than a beater Camry project that just happens to have Alltrac. If I had kids I would have bought it. Hard to find anything under $5000 these days. Inflation is a bitch.

Also for $3500 I can take a vacation to Europe or Japan and have the best week of skiing ever. Again much better than an old car that I'll fix and sell for about the same price I bought it for.

(These are all things I tell myself so I don't make poor financial choices)

 

[CTechBlueDragon]

Its just an engine swap away from being faster than a Celica Alltrac. The odd thing about these is they are only about 3000 lb even being 4 door it is lighter than the Celicas. Its not a bad looking car really either if you can do something about the diving board bumper on the front and lower it.

 

[CTechBlueDragon]

 

[simple]

That's a 64oz cup of nope for me but I can appreciate other folks have different style.