mrcvs Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 I know that you want a solid frame, doors that don't sag, no bondo, etc, when it comes to the body, but what about mechanical soundness. What can you do, and what is commonly allowed, as a BUYER? Are you limited to just a test drive (does it drive well) plus maybe a visual check of the body and frame, electrical, etc.? OR, is it common to remove spark plugs and check compression? What else? Can one remove the head on an antique vehicle, assess for hairline cracks, as long as one is willing to pay to replace the gasket? Or, if not, how do you know there is or is not a crack in the block, etc., etc.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Most folks will let your mechanic look at the car to assess it, but not to the extent of disassembling. Depending on the era of "antique car" you are looking at, that will determine the areas that you should inspect for wear/tear/rot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ply33 Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 It might also depend on make in addition to era: For example, some manufacturers kept with poured babbit bearings longer than others and that could make a difference in the cost of rebuilding the engine. You may wish to consult with someone familiar with the specific car makes you are considering to get information about specific issues that are more (or less) likely to occur on them than with a generic car of that era. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 And always remember: they ALL leak. Don't let that dissuade you from an otherwise good car. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 Obviously the mechanical condition needs to be consistent with the price. As you noted, my primary (and usually only) concern is sheet metal condition, because anything else can usually be fixed pretty easily. Of course, the year and model of the car matters. If you're talking about a popular car (Ford, Chevy), you can just about buy anything you need brand new. If the car has a lot of unique parts or is really rare, then obviously you want to be sure the parts are at least present and accounted for. Since I do the work myself, I absolutely don't care about brakes, suspension , engine condition, etc. That stuff is easy and relatively inexpensive to repair - at least for the 1950s-60s cars that I care about. If you're talking about a significantly older vehicle, you need to be sure you can get the mechanical parts before you assess condition and price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted June 8, 2015 Share Posted June 8, 2015 A lot depends on price. I have bought fixer uppers and parts cars after a cursory look under the hood and walk around, knowing they did not run and pricing accordingly. On the other hand if you are buying a $50000 + gem it would be worth your while to have a professional inspection and appraisal, and authenticate the originality of the vehicle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrcvs Posted June 9, 2015 Author Share Posted June 9, 2015 If purchasing an antique car, how do you know that you are not buying a car with serious engine problems not readily apparent without disassembly of the engine, or, at the very least, assessing compression? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vermontboy Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 mrcvs asked " If purchasing an antique car, how do you know that you are not buying a car with serious engine problems not readily apparent without disassembly of the engine, or, at the very least, assessing compression?" I think most of us trust our ears - is the idle steady, the throttle responsive, does it lug ok ? A request to perform a compression test (with the owner taking out the plugs) is certainly not unreasonable but if it "feels" right it usually is. As for things like "hairline cracks" there are not many old cars around without some minor cracking around the valve seat. They run for decades that way. Back in '84 Street Rodder magazine was putting together a project and went of search of the "perfect" Ford flathead block to build up. They gave up after buying 9 used flatheads - they all had hairline cracks..... and these are car people... they just used the best one. As for longevity and touring - how about a family with 4 children who have traveled all over the world (145,000 miles) over the past 11 years in a 1928 Graham-Paige. http://www.today.com/id/42381709/ns/today-todaytravel/?gt1=43001#.VXbW1FIlm8A Or the insurance salesman who has used a Model "A" as his only vehicle for the past year http://www.ldnews.com/ci_19063571?source=rss_viewed The owner of our local antique car junkyard in the 1960's claimed to have put over 600,000 miles on a Model "A" running a scrap business in the depression and WWII era. In the 60's he made the 300 mile trek to sell at the Hershey flea market every year in a 1917 Larrabee. They were made to drive under severe conditions and many of them served their owners well for over 100,000 miles - not without maintenance mind you, but valve jobs, rings and bearing shims were considered service items back then .... just a normal part of maintenance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest AlCapone Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 Most folks will let your mechanic look at the car to assess it, but not to the extent of disassembling. Depending on the era of "antique car" you are looking at, that will determine the areas that you should inspect for wear/tear/rot.I agree 100%. They might allow a wheel to be pulled at the most, but no disassembly of the motor. Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonMicheletti Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 Lots of the comments are good. However, everyone focuses on mechanicals. But they typically are not the grearest expense if a car is to be used or restored. Things like excessive rust, poor upholstery and chrome are the really big expenses involved in an older car.Mechanicals are relatively inexpensive to repair. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 If the engine has good compression on all cylinders, good oil pressure, and runs smoothly it is usually good or at least, will take only a small amount of work to put it in good condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 GM cars leak the best. That's what keeps them from rusting.Fords are pretty dry underneath and the oil pans rot through.Bernie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_Mack_CT Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 My SL friends claim storage and sitting is what kills those cars and I have come to believe that is the case for all cars in general. A car that has seen little to no use in recent years is more suspect to me than a car that you might see frequently at local shows or tours, for example. Bugs have been worked out and lass likely something is radically wrong with it that needs immediate attention. That said I also believe it is rewarding to bring an older restoration that has been sitting back to life. Just more up front work is really all the difference I think.Mr. Harwood my new model A roadster doesn't leak (honest, strange but true) and no the fluids are not dried out, should I be suspicious? :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 Lots of the comments are good. However, everyone focuses on mechanicals. Possibly because the OP said this: ...but what about mechanical soundness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrcvs Posted June 9, 2015 Author Share Posted June 9, 2015 Okay, good...at least I didn't make a huge mistake when I went about purchasing an antique car several years back. Doors don't sag, frame is good, no significant body rot, could use a paint job someday, but still looks okay 'as-is'. I grew up thinking that when something goes wrong with the engine, that is a huge problem...but not so with these old cars. Still have low compression and there is a hairline crack going from a valve to a cylinder. Not the end of the world. The engine needs work, but it can be fixed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 (edited) Lots of the comments are good. However, everyone focuses on mechanicals. But they typically are not the grearest expense if a car is to be used or restored. Things like excessive rust, poor upholstery and chrome are the really big expenses involved in an older car.Mechanicals are relatively inexpensive to repair.The original poster of this thread stated"mechanically" in his title.... Edited June 9, 2015 by keiser31 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 (edited) Mechanicals become a concern more now with a younger generation getting into the hobby as many never had shop class. Also few garages are now around that know how to work on things of any vintage that don't have a port to plug in their laptop or scanner. So unless you are prepared to take a car to a restoration shop (again few and far between in many areas) to have mechanical work done at a premium rate a somewhat minor problem can leave that 20-50,000 car a useless piece of garage art. Worse yet is when you have had to have it towed home a few times or spent hours away trying to fix something you really have no knowledge of. I'm fortunate and can do most of my own mechanical work but you can easily spend thousands under the hood as you open up the proverbial can of worms. Edited June 9, 2015 by auburnseeker (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted June 9, 2015 Share Posted June 9, 2015 (edited) Mr. Harwood my new model A roadster doesn't leak (honest, strange but true) and no the fluids are not dried out, should I be suspicious? :-) If the clock starts working, run away! It may be haunted! Lol ha ha. Edited June 9, 2015 by Rusty_OToole (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonMicheletti Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 I realized the mechanical statement in the header. My point was that there is more to a car than machinery. If you think mechanicals are expensive, spend some time in a body shop, upholstery shop or plating shop and I think youll find some real dollars there - and almost no one, either new or old to the hobby, has the the necessary sklls for those jobs. (yes, I know there are some) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe_padavano Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 I realized the mechanical statement in the header. My point was that there is more to a car than machinery. If you think mechanicals are expensive, spend some time in a body shop, upholstery shop or plating shop and I think youll find some real dollars there - and almost no one, either new or old to the hobby, has the the necessary sklls for those jobs. (yes, I know there are some) And once again, if you re-read the very first sentence in the very first post in this thread, the OP said that he understood the issues of body, frame, etc and was specifically interested in MECHANICAL soundness. I think every response in this thread alludes to the points you are making, but the rest of us are answering the OP's actual question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted June 10, 2015 Share Posted June 10, 2015 One thing to remember between mechanical, paint, body, chrome and interior. If you enjoy the driving part of owning an old car the most then a car with bad paint, chrome, interior, etc. can still be enjoyed it just wont look great if perfection is your thing, but even the smallest mechanical problem will render the car useless and I think that's what the original poster is experiencing, so unless you are mechanically inclined or have friends that are and will gladly help you out at the drop of a hat, mechanics should be one of your major concerns. For me they don't matter as much but are still a concern as those cars that just need a tuneup turn out to needing a couple thousand dollars to get them up and properly running / sorted and a rebuild of any major component can push you past that mark fast.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Mead Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Smell the oil fill cap. If it stinks, that's one thing, if it smells really burnt, not so good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trickydicky43richard Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 I sold an old 1969 series one Jag XJ6 manual once, it had no oil leaks!! When I pointed this out to a prospective buyer, he looked underneath and said "CANT BE ANY OIL IN IT"....Damn Sod, how cheeky!Whilst on Jags I also had a then beautiful and original XJ12 stored under my house, after 12 months storage I removed the tarps to give it a clean...disaster,.... the paint had pimpled,all the chrome had pitted including bumpers, and body strips and window frames, and so had the engine alloy parts gone powdery white,the interior originally pristine beige leather had turned green with mould. The car was a mess from unsuspected humidity under the tarp, rectification costs were enormous so I gave it away as a spare parts car, that hurt !! ( me and my pocket) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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